jakeunkangajii

[jakeunkangajii]

Miitopia Review!

Hello, this is Jakeun Kangajii and this is my very first Miitopia review! This is my very first review so I’ll just dive on into how I’ll do this. I’ll describe and rank a game on their game mechanics, art direction, music, and story on a 5 point scale. Then I’ll average it up and go from there. Easy, right? Then let’s get started! Warning, there are some spoilers for classes but I won’t spoil the story.

Thanks Nintendo!

GAME MECHANICS

So, at its core, Miitopia is a turn-based RPG where your Miis can level up, gain stats, and learn skills. You know, standard RPG fare. However, there is a lot that sets this game apart from the others, from the wacky jobs to the food system. And I mean seriously wacky jobs. Like flower or cat.

Nya~

In total, there are 14 classes, with the standard Warrior, Cleric, Mage, but most of these classes are very different. I mean, Cat is a class all of its own. Two of these classes are unlocked post game but aren’t overpowered as you might think. All the classes have different skills, though some function the same as others, but how those skills mix and match are unique, so try them all out and see what works best with you and leave the ones you don’t like to the AI.

... Did I mention the party members are controlled by AI?

Wait, I didn’t tell you to do that! That skill isn’t that great either!!

Yeah, you can only control the first Mii you create. On one hand, usually the AI for your allies are pretty good in healing you or getting the kill, but sometimes... sometimes they do things you don’t want them to do. Like healing themselves when the enemy is just ONE HP away from dying. Honestly, it would have been nice if they gave you the option to control what Miis you can control and what Miis you can trust the AI to not mess around with. It does speed battles up a bit, so I’ll give it that much.

Skills aren’t the only things affected by AI. That part where it said the Mii was a “Kind” Cat? Personalities are actually pretty important in Miitopia, with seven types to choose from. They all have good and bad parts to them, like the Kind Mii sharing food with their allies but can also feel sorry for the monster, giving them a 50/50 chance of either letting the monster go or the monster taking advantage of their kindness to do damage to them. My recommendation is to have at least one of each type of personality. 

One thing I’ve noticed is that this game and its predecessor, Tomodachi Life, tend to be pretty obsessed with food. In this case, it’s really important for your Miis to eat food, usually dropped by enemies but sometimes gifted. Why? Cause they help raise stats even after you hit the max level of 50. In fact, you can and are encouraged to raise all your stats to a total of +99. However, there are some limits. After all, you can only eat so much in one day, right?

Plus, some Miis are picky eaters. Eat your baby food, cat.

The other main way to raise stats is through buying gear. I have problems with the method used. You see, you can’t just go to a store yourself. You have to wait for the Mii to want to buy their next upgrade of gear and hope you have enough money, or who knows how long you’ll have to wait for your next opportunity? 

Larry you better not screw it up this time.

Even then, sometimes the Miis might get distracted and buy something totally different. Like a Banana. Or piece of Candy. You get the amount they didn’t spend back, but it is really annoying.

Oh thank GOD.

Next we have Relationships! Yeah, your Miis can bond and learn skills that aren’t specific to one class.

Like, say, warning a friend to get out of the way of an attack. Not that it worked in this case. Darn it Trucy.

How are relationships raised? Well the most basic way is for them to simply spend time in the inn together.

Phoenix is all alone ‘cause he’s sick. Get better soon!

Other ways usually happen randomly, like a random event in the inn, a character uses a beneficial skill on another, or a random event in the field.

However... sometimes, Miis may get into fights. This is a VERY BAD THING. 

Oh my God Kay can you NOT.

When Miis fight, they might either let their guards down, get angry when the Mii they’re fighting with takes a turn, or even get into an all out brawl with them. It’s fortunately very easy to get them to get along again, either by putting them in a room together or have a Pop Star do their job, but it is a pain to deal with. Especially when you have more than one fight going on at a time.

Finally, I’d like to bring attention to how you encounter battles on the field.

Tralala~

You can’t actually control your Mii’s movement. Instead, it’s almost like one of those rail shooters where you go on a specific path except you can’t move your character at all. Battles and random events are placed at certain “parts” of the path, which can be a bit of a pain but can also help for easy grinding. Not that you really need it until post game but. The idea is there.

Ohohohoho, hello money bag.

There are a lot more little details than what I’ve gone over so far, but I’ll leave them for you to discover and try out. I give this part a 4/5. It’s pretty solid overall and it is fun for the most part, but there are some frustrating bits that prevent me from giving it a perfect score.

ART DIRECTION

Obviously, for a game starring Miis, the art is generally simplistic and cartoony, so there’s not a lot of realism going on here. That’s not a bad thing, as it works in making the game look bright and lively, perfect for a weird RPG like this. Besides, they definitely didn’t skimp out on the backgrounds!

You can’t tell me that the background doesn’t look impressive. Especially if you see it in motion.

Another area that I saw a lot of effort put into are the gears and weapons. Because oh my god I love the variety of these things. They make really good ideas for cosplay or just costumes in general! 

God I want that dress SO MUCH.

Of course, we can’t skip out on the enemy designs. However, I don’t think I need to say much more other than these pics.

AHHHHHHH

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH

5/5 definitely.

MUSIC

Ohohohoho.... OHOHOHOHO! THIS is where this game truly shines at its best. You’d think a Mii game would have okay music but nothing too impressive, but you’d be DEAD WRONG. 

That’s just ONE of MANY wonderful songs in this game. I mean, this made one of my top 10 OSTs, and I have a lot of favorite OSTs. God I love it so much.

5/5 highly recommend getting the game if ONLY for the soundtrack. But that would do a disservice to the rest of the game.

STORY

This is insert name here Phoenix. Phoenix is just one of many Miis living in the land of Miitopia. However, dark happenings are afoot.

Dark Lord insert name here Manfred decided to steal everyone’s face and put them on monsters! Naturally, Phoenix must meet new allies and work with them to defeat the evil Dark Lord and rescue everyone’s faces! 

... Pretty simple, right? Well, despite that, I’m giving the story 4/5. Why? Despite how bare bones the story seems to be at first, there are actually many twists, the characters are charming, and more importantly, there is surprisingly a lot of emotional depth to it. It’s not a 5 cause it didn’t make me cry. Close, but no cigar. 

TOTAL

Game Mechanics: 4/5

Art Direction: 5/5

Music: 5/5

Story: 4/5

Average: 4.5/5

All in all, highly recommended for those looking for a light hearted game with surprising amounts of depth. Who knows? Maybe this game can get a sequel and we can get a follow up on the ending. Or maybe we’ll get something completely different. Hard to tell with these Mii games.

Next time, I will be talking about the spiritual predecessor of Miitopia! See you then!