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A while back, someone asked if I was to do a review again, and I answered that it would be during summervacation. Two wednesdays later, I was looking for a chance to review something different, and I picked up this little number  for my DS.

Knights in the Nightmare was developed by Sting, the same people who did one of the most unique games on the GBA, Yggdra Union. This game combined a lush, new story with great artwork and gameplay. Now they’re back with a new title, and they’ve been chugging the creativity juice.

Let me get this out first hand. This is a strategy game. This is a complex strategy game. This is a game with a deep complicated story. If ANY of these things bother you, I suggest you watch a few gameplay videos before you consider buying the game. This game is one that takes practice, skill, and patience. One thing that surprised me was that I had to run through the whole tutorial. The tutorial is set seperately from the game, so when you start the first mission, the game expects you to know the rules, mechanics, and way to kick tail. If you don’t, you’re going to be spending more than ten minutes trying random things in frustration before you get angry for not figuring it out.

The game’s story in a nutshell is this; Castle Aventheim suffered a strange disaster, killing most of the inhabitants, and leaving the living in disarray. You play as a Wisp, a ball of light that was once the King of that Castle. With the help of a Valkyrie named Maria, you launch a campaign against the monsters that now block you from your Castle. The wisp has a unique ability; it cannot utilize the spirits of fallen knights to fight against the monsters. It is up to you to discover what happened to the Castle, and how to stop the darkness that now envelops it.

The gameplay is very unique and almost entirely stylus based. Before each turn, you select four items to be placed on a sidebar. These items are usually weapons, but sometimes they are Key Items used for recruiting souls into your army permanently. Each weapon is set to a specific class of Knight, and can only be used with that knight, with the exception being Maria. Each weapon also has limitations on when it can be used. There are two modes available during combat; Law and Chaos mode. Some weapons can be used in both modes, but have different range, damage and ability.

Setting the weapons is easy, utilizing them in combat takes some know-how. As the round starts, you’ll notice a timer at the top. The Wisp’s life is pretty much that counter. When the counter hits zero, the turn is over, and new monsters will be replace the old ones. In combat, monsters move across an isometric field, while your soldiers are stationary. You drag corresponding weapons to your soldiers which allows them to use it, provided you let the charge meter go up. While you’re attempting this, enemies will be shooting bullets and other projectiles that are only visible in the top screen. You must try to dodge these, because every time you get hit, you lose some time off the counter. As you kill monsters, they will drop crystals which will drop MP for you to keep using weapons. They will also drop new weapons and key items for you to use as well.

After each mission, you’re given the chance to use the exp on the different soldiers to Level Up. Soldiers gain more Vitality( HP ) and can use weapons of a higher lvl limitation. You can also improve the quality of weapons and give them abilities, as well as fusing two of the same weapons to replenish it’s durability. This can also be done with the soldiers for some sinister reason.

As much as I would like to highly recommend Knights in the Nightmare…I have my doubts about it. You see, the story comes to you in fragments, bits from before the crisis and after. The Art is wonderful, but may be a bit…eastern for some people. There are also some problems with deploying your soldiers too. Usually you’d be able to direct them facing the battlefield, but for some reason, many of the soldiers are very comfortable facing away from it. I really can’t explain it. They kinda forces you to play with the same guys over and over, hoping you’ll eventually recruit some better soldiers later. The learning curve is also pretty steep. I STILL have to go back into the Tips section learn that there is a way for my soldiers to dodge enemy attacks, something I didn’t know was possible until I was in an important Boss Fight. But…the game is deep. I mean…DEEP. Theres alot for the Strategy fan to get into here. The story is also pretty engaging, it’s nice to see who your soldiers were in life before you starting using them as your minions. Not only that…the gameplay is unique, something rare to find in a DS game anymore. Most games on the DS are gimmicky, and use the Stylus to menial tasks. But…theres no Wifi…I don’t know.

Knights in the Nightmare is engaging, brilliantly put together, and very nice to look at. I really like it. My others may not, so here’s my breakdown of the game’s pros and cons.

Pros: Deep Gameplay, Good Story, Solid art and graphics.

Cons: Steep Learning Curve, Tarantino-like presentation, Quirky Soldier Placement, NO WIFI.

Bottom Line
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Knights in the Nightmare gets 8/10 for its unique game play and engaging story, the art is awesome to boot. If you like strategy, jrpgs, or really great artwork, I suggest you pick this one up right away. If not…maybe this game would be an acquired taste for you.

Burns upon me. It’s gotten hot! Very hot, almost too hot for my taste. Now that I’m finally done with school, I’ve had time to play WoW and TF2. A Lot of neat changes to WoW I might add.

I managed to get the Cloak and Dagger equip for TF2 two nights back. The item is very good. And very cheap. When wielded by the right player, the CD becomes a tool of death. I’ve spent many a game wandering the corridors of the enemy base, killing wandering Pyros and Snipers, wasting Heavys and their Medic compatriots. Sentries are far easier to destroy, as are the engineers. The key to proper execution is timing, I’ve found. Where normally I would find myself racing into enemy lines in stealth, only to reappear as a friendly mild-mannered engineer, I can take my time now. I can plant myself in the enemy base, and watch their routines for a few minutes. Then, I can kill one of them, take their place, and bring ruin upon my enemies. With every kill I slip into the shadows and repeat the cycle until they no longer wish to operate in groups. It brings me great joy to be able to play a class with some expertise. Before my best class was the Pyro, but now, because I know how to play the Pyro well, I also know how to fool the Pyro.

I’m not a great player perse, I’m more of a laid back, legitimate player. I play for fun. You know, that thing we started playing games for.  One certain “mscupcakes” of TheGameHeroes forum kicked my around for a few rounds one on one. She really knows her TF2.

Is anyone else excited for this E3?!? Some amazing titles are being shown, and I hope that I can someday visit that glorious convention before I die.

Well, time to see if I can stab some more folks in TF2.

Later!

-Locke