The charming result of developer Level-5 and juggernaut Studio Ghibli’s efforts, Ni No Kuni is the ultimate love letter to the golden age of JRPGs (Japanese Role-Playing Games). Back are the sprawling world maps, endless hours of dungeon crawling, and tactical combat choices, yet there are changes that solidify the game as more than an homage to previous classics in the JRPG genre.
At the heart of Ni No Kuni lies the story of grief-stricken Oliver, a young boy who embarks on a journey with his plushy/mentor, Drippy, in order to defeat the evil wizard Shadar and to bring back his deceased mother.
It’s a standard story of the powers of good overcoming the menace of evil through unwavering kindness and friendship, yet Ni No Kuni manages to make Oliver’s travels much, much more than a generic outing. It does this not only thanks to a remarkable cast of characters and a heartwarming story but, more importantly, by tweaking the standard mechanics of JRPG combat.
In a genre that subsists on level grinding and random encounters, the battle system feels fresh and intense by combining the workings of Pokémon, with real-time combat. The main caveat here is that other party members aren’t the sharpest wands in the coven, displaying a proclivity to drain mana as soon as possible, along with an incapacity for self-defence.
On the visual aspect, obviously the game looks fantastic. Not only is the cell-shading unlike anything you’ve ever seen in a video game, but the art direction and level design make it the closest anyone has ever come to being in a Studio Ghibli film, coupled with a sweeping soundtrack composed by longtime studio collaborator Joe Hisaishi.
Not only a fantastic JRPG, Ni No Kuni is the perfect expression of what makes Studio Ghibli click: it encapsulates the cloying sweetness of My Neighbour Totoro with the fey and otherworldly quality of Spirited Away, displaying that unending heart required to make a game a classic, something it is sure to become.