Little Witch Nobeta Review (Kuroko)
Little Witch Nobeta is a light but worthy twist on the Souls formula for the weebishly inclined.
The biggest twist in question is that Nobeta is a witch, not a melee fighter. She out-ranges most of the enemies she fights and is considerably powerful at that range, but her mana is limited and recovers very slowly on its own. She must chant to access her more powerful attacks, slowing her movement to a walk. Mana is recovered during battle by dodging accurately or physically striking the enemy with the wand. It's a simple, elegant system that encourages you to work on your timing and take risks to fight effectively. I really like how this game focuses on making the solo mage work and keeps it feeling powerful, instead of compromising by introducing too many melee options.
The magic itself feels great to use. Sure, it comes in four generic flavours, but the visual and audio effects really pop and fizz. The elements each have distinct uses, both when it comes to solving puzzles and dealing with enemies at differing distances. Pulling off a perfect dodge and following up with a huge strike really does feel great. In general, the visuals are clean and polished, even if much of the design is generic high fantasy JRPG fodder.
I think it's fair to say that a lot of the success of Little Witch Nobeta comes down to Nobeta herself. It's clear from her animations that a lot of work has went into making her the most adorable moe protagonist possible. She has so many little flourishes, from the way she falls over when out of stamina to how she clasps her little hands together to pray. Once a certain objective is met, Nobeta's character is considerably fleshed out, and it was great to discover that her animations also change to reflect this. It is worth noting that some of the fanservice options - such as the alternate costumes - might be objectionable to some, especially considering the protagonist's apparent youth. It should be nothing unmanageable to an anime veteran though.
While Nobeta sticks out as particularly charming, the narrative is not very impressive. I can praise the decision to keep things abstract, but there's very little substance to reward the sense of mystery. There's at least no annoying JRPG exposition here, and thank goodness - the dialog between the characters plods along at a snail's pace, and the voice acting while clear isn't exactly motivated. The numerous items you can pick up contain lore, but the contents are so basic and vague that you've probably played more unique beginner D&D games. Still, there's something to be said for the game's dreamlike, simplistic tone.
This is an indie release by a small team and it very much shows in its presentation and how much the assets are reused. Similar concepts, map layouts and enemy types are retread so often that the core game starts to feel like merely hallways between bosses. The bosses are good, but their difficulty is uneven - I had far more trouble with the second boss than any of the subsequent bosses. Not that any of this game is that difficult - it's harder than its cute looks might make it appear and it takes some getting used to, but while it's clearly Souls inspired, it's in no way Souls-hard.
Nor does it need to be - Nobeta is a success on its own terms, but you need to weigh your expectations. I'd really like to see this team or another take this Souls-Mage concept and flesh it out, because the truth is that if you weren't taken in by the adorable protagonist and core combat like I was, then you'll probably find very little beyond them to keep you entertained.