In Falsus

Felt pretty invested throughout the game, but I can see a couple caveats that can make or break the general game experience. If you are looking for a pure rhythm game, this probably isn't it. Much like a lot of the marketing and reviews for the game, the genre is a mix of 3: The Rhythm Aspect, The RPG Aspect, and The Visual Novel Aspect. Expecting only one or two of these and ignoring the others will probably sour the game. Taken on their own, I think each have their own unique ideas: For the Rhythm Game, a one handed 6-key layout sounds daunting, but in all honesty after the first arc or so it becomes easier to navigate. The shifting of the fingers on the keys becomes the major point of skill expression, as the game itself is more focused on technical prowess than it is raw stamina or timings (Although both are still important). This gives the game a unique take on difficulty scaling, where the harder levels (At least in ULT - I'm not that good), increase the alternation of different finger orientations. Overall, in opinion, the rhythm game segment is very unique, interesting and fun, leaving me wanting to continue trying to get EX+ much like I did in Arcaea. For the Card System / RPG System, this mechanic is probably the most splitting of the three modes. Whenever you challenge an encounter or try to unlock a song tied to story, you get 5 "Phases" of cards that allow for the activation of different powers/traits to either connect with someone or reflect with yourself. Crafting these cards require tetronimo-like pieces called Iota, which grant higher power/defense with encounter difficulty, as well as providing said powers. Slotting these Iota in different zones on each card blueprint allow variations of ATK/DEF/Traits/Range/etc that can be used to provide an advantage in different encounters. Its a very cyclic system, as you get more powerful cards after beating more powerful encounters. While my description of this mechanic was complex, honestly when you get down to it the overall mechanics are kind of... engaging? Figuring out how to perfectly slot in different shapes to get the highest possible stats is always satisfying, allthough sometimes figuring it out can be a bit tedious. Overall, if you like stats, theorycrafting, and puzzles, you should find this section engaging, much like me. Now the story. I really liked it, but there were a few problems I had nearing the end. For the first part, a lot of the lore/story/background of the world is conveyed indirectly. Bind colors (Which represent emotions) usually aren't outright stated and you need to derive with context clues what each color means. RMI Separation, Gracefalls aren't also explicitly explained, requiring theorizing and rumination from the player. I really appreciate this type of story-telling, as the game respects you and your understanding, and trusts you to "get it," which for the most part, they succeed. HOWEVER, my main gripe is with the "ending" section, but not because of its quality but rather [spoiler] It's open-ended and "live-servicy" stopping point that suggests further updates to the game. I was really expecting to have most of the character arcs and themes tied up by the end. In fact, you only learn what RMI means in the literal last minute of the scenario. This, of course, is due to the fact that from what I'm assuming, the story will be continuing past what we currently have. If that is the case, I hope that each update is a substantial and meaningful story segment in comparison to, say, adverse prelude or black fate in Arcaea, with constant cliffhangers and short story developments in comparison to their respective long development time. [/spoiler] Overall, the story is smart, respectful and engaging, but I do wish for a better "conclusion". All in all, each section of the game is good, but combining them together is what makes the game the game. I recommend this to anyone who understands that this is more a 3-genre-in-one game than a single rhythm or story based product.