Ikenfell is a magical school in its seemingly natural state: danger. The students have disappeared, strange trees appear and other magical anomalies plague the country. As Mariette, the non-magical but still troubled sister of an Ikenfell student, you embark on a journey through this 2D pixelated RPG adventure to save her, the school and maybe the whole world. A number of interesting ideas both in the story and in action make Ikenfell an attractive prospect, but since some prove to be stronger than others in execution, it is ultimately a journey with more than a few bumps in the road.
At the starting of the game, Mariette almost immediately acquires supernatural pyromantic abilities thanks to strange magical events. It actually seems a bit at odds with the message of not having to be magical to be heroic, which unbalances the mood from the start. However, the vanity makes sense in the context of the story and exposes one of the first secrets of the game. New forms of Magic appear, and even some who did not have magical powers before suddenly find themselves in elemental magic. Mariette can use her newfound firepower to take on the various magical enemies of Ikenfell in turn-based isometric grid battles, with a little twist.
action is a fairly important part of the game and is mainly turn-based. The rounds are divided into a movement phase where you position your team on the battlefield, then an attack phase where you choose from action options that have their unique ranges and damage, and sometimes additional effects. At the starting, you have basic attacks that deal moderate damage to only one enemy in front of you on the grid. As the levels are reached, the group members are added and the moves are unlocked, more strategies and styles open up.
The strategy really becomes very flexible because no two group member movements are the same; they each have their own abilities to match their characters. The impulsive electric carrier can quickly teleport in and out of danger, while the shy alchemist has limited range and can superior heal or virus. Although I finally chose the group of three that I preferred, I still used the full selection of their moves in various battles. This is thanks to the wide variety of enemies, all of which can be approached in different ways. I tended to use virus and regeneration spells in long battles against high HP opponents, for example, rather than blowarding them with direct damage. For the heavy guys, I would write down their attack patterns and position my crew accordingly, which would modify the feasible attacks. The mechanics are simple but offer enough strategic considerations and opportunities to keep the formula relatively fresh over time.
The twist on the battles is that, although they are turn-based, they contain timed elements. Each attack, and even each defensive maneuver, has its own Animation and its own Timing. Although it is a relatively simple pixel art, some of them are simply beautiful and full of personality. If you press the button in time with the Animation and sound, this will determine the success of your attacks. Some can do more damage, while others need solid Timing to trigger status effects. In defense, timing a pressure on the block reduces your damage.
At first I really liked this system. While the first few fights were easy, just something that gave me a boost gave me a feeling of mastery of the fight. The right Timing feels great, almost as if you were snapping your wrist at the last Moment of the spell or actively preparing for defense at the crucial moment. It also makes it seem as if the spells you are still good at are your own, as if your practice has paid off. However, it’s frustrating to time something wrong, and with so many different attacks from both sides to learn, it can be difficult to get it right consistently. The time elements mean that you must always know what is happening on the battlefield, and that you cannot pause during battles, requires a high level of care.
The influence of your success in Timing is immense, which makes it a bit double-sided, because Failure can work against you in the same way that success can work in your favor. The clutch mechanism that allows you to survive a fatal blow with a successful defense means that there is literally a difference between life and expired. As the game progressed, I switched the Option in the settings to semi-automatic, which gives me a little more leeway, and I preferred it a lot. This change eliminated some of the more unfair losses in Timing that I swear I nailed and encouraged me to experiment without panic of losing directly. You can also disable it completely, and although I did not prefer this option, it is important to make the battles more accessible.
In addition to the fights, there are also puzzles to solve. Most of them are quite Standard, as you may have to operate a certain number of switches, push bricks or collect certain objects. They are usually the right challenge to make you think without leaving you stuck, and they offer a nice Break between fights. However, some only feel deliberately obtuse. I once had to look for books in the library and just interacted with all the shelves until I found them – there seemed to be no marker or strategy to help. Sometimes there are invisible paths that don’t signal anything to you other than: “I think I’m just going to try to cross this wall.”In this way, Ikenfell can sometimes seem as confusing as it is magical.
Fights and puzzles take place all over the school premises and around Ikenfell. Each area has its own beautiful Chiptune themes that match the environment. However, the action music doesn’t change, and since you tackle so much of it, it can get repetitive – except when it turns into a few vocal songs for specific character moments to show your personality and intentions. Unfortunately, these are not very good and can be incredibly painful when this happens in the middle of the game. I often turned down the volume in these sections.