Fairy Bloom Freesia
Relies solely on taste.
Reviewed by Daavpuke on Nov 20, 2012
Japanese culture has a unique term called “doujin” that merges both the meaning of indie and niche together. The term is attributed to the culture that enjoys amateur manga in its many forms. There is no better explanation than that for what games like Fairy Bloom Freesia represent: A noticeable reliance on this genre for whatever devices it holds. In this case, it’s a simplified side-scrolling battle game, low on content, but high on esotericism.
The story of this game is vapor, as it has been played out a thousand times before. Good people want good, bad people want bad, karma happens and the protagonist is supposed to win. Should this title pretend to have significance in its narrative, then it has failed. Luckily, we can assume that it isn’t needed to enjoy this colorful feature. The fairy heroine Freesia is fluently animated and the few forest backdrops she uses as her battlefields receive a thunderclap of color with each flashy blow she emits. Yes, Fairy Bloom is about pizazz. Each fluttering flourish of our character needs to catch the immediate eye, quite like fireworks. Also like fireworks, some of the attacks can become blinding. Additionally, the same care isn’t put into the generic monsters, each more shapeless and monochrome than the last. At least the game didn’t resort to any skillful programming it couldn’t handle, so the result is a push.
This simple outlook is further portrayed within the game’s very core. The game is based around combat that uses but one button to unfold. In a series of waves, here presented as days, Freesia uses a simplified fighting mechanic where one button with a certain direction means a certain attack. It’s the basis for combat, but it’s also a big base. At any time, mashing the punch button and periodically minding the direction is enough to cleave through the pack. Additionally, our fairy can use some special skills that are earned through experience. During intermissions, players can upgrade Freesia with some additional attacks, special abilities or passive traits that enhance her fighting, such as a strength boost or a higher blocking tolerance.
Still, while this basic experience is a large part of the equation, there is a world of subtlety within the level progression. More experience, means more power, but also more moves in the arsenal that can be strung together in more combos. Other specials also combine differently with other things and so on. More so, the game also pushes for excellence, as faster victories with lesser damage yields more experience and in turn boosts the aforementioned effect. Monsters can also be pushed into other monsters, which create a collision that damages them more. Things can get creative in this game, but let’s not kid ourselves: This complexity was a mere coincidence and what really stands out is still that simplicity that takes up more than half of the game’s action. Some will unlock more potential in this brawler, but those that don’t will not stay far behind. One more variety comes in the form of Vortex games, where Freesia must protect a given point from an onslaught of monsters. This ball of goodness also heals the player. By scattering multiple nodes across a level, some stages can get quite hectic to manage. Flying from one point to the next and efficiently knocking down opponents to fly over to the next point will be a challenge within itself. Despite a first impression of an easy, one-trick fighter, there is a surprising amount of difficulty in this game.
Here also lies the tip of the biggest issue with this game: For such a simple title, Fairy Bloom Freesia certainly is challenging, sometimes bordering the outright frustrating. Once a punch or projectile lands, the swarm of monsters can quickly become overwhelming and take out an entire section of health and no simple combo in the world will remedy that. Boss fights are even worse, as some take what seems forever to overcome, while these tyrants cut through health bars like butter. Is this game overly simplified or overly difficult? Which is it really? The answer is both, which is mind boggling to think about.
This makes the fighting game a tough one to call. Yes, it does scrape away too much of its game to be truly engaging, yet it also doesn’t let players enjoy this ease for long. Additionally, the game is short and even repetitive in the hour or 2 it will take to complete a first time. That’s a very abrupt end. However, there is enough nuance and certainly enough challenge to try everything anew, should repetition not be so blatant each time. Each day of fighting is essentially the same furious mashing of that one punch button. Yet, there are several different play styles that can get derived from that and an added Guardian mode that comes after defeating the game once can add a new dimension to repetition. That too won’t save this game from its simpleton monotony, but it does help.
There is no one way to think about Fairy Bloom Freesia and that alone is frustrating. Is it a good game? Is it a bad game? The answer relies solely on taste. Those that can overlook several huge dents in its core gameplay can entertain themselves endlessly, as the game never changes. Other people who can’t take more of the same mechanic ad nauseam will not experience that much difference. Grievances will just be put more in the front view, instead of being a displeasing side effect. The latter group will put this brawler down after just a few hours and that clocks out too soon to matter. Niches do mean just that: It’s not for everyone and even so, each point will need to be taken into account on just how important it is to ultimately enjoy a final product.
Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed. (@Daavpuke)
Editor, NoobFeed
Verdict
60
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