Akuma Rise by developer Exe Create Inc. and publisher KEMCO. PS5 review by Richard with a copy provided by the publisher.
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Well everyone, here we are with another KEMCO title. Last time we had a departure from classic JRPG, but this time we’re back in the turn-based JRPG genre with Akuma Rise.
Akuma Rise takes place in the Shadow Realm of Adribune, a land of various species of demons. It is here that the game starts off with our protagonist Kaine washing up on the beach of the Oni country. He is discovered by the local princess and rescued, only to discover he has amnesia! Oh no! Things couldn’t get much worse in the Shadow Realm either: the Overlord is missing and his second in command is causing trouble. Heroes from the Radiant Realm are attacking the locals, and now Kaine doesn’t really remember anything other than his name and his goal of finding some type of “fragment”. Thankfully for Kaine, the Oni princess Iroha is interested in helping out, and Kaine is interested in beating up the “heroes” that are attacking from the Radiant Realm.
Akuma Rise is a pretty traditional JRPG in the KAMCO flavouring that it’s probably become known to you by now. KEMCO JRPGs tend to come in two flavours, and this one is the standard turn-based battles with a turn order and a more “cartoonish” art style. Gameplay consists of going between towns, or castles in the case of Akuma Rise, by traversing the world map and making it through a dungeon between you and your next goal, all while completing sidequests along the way. Enemy encounters are random, but you are bequeathed a pair of boots very early that adjusts encounter rate between: normal, every step, or none (or half if you’re in an uncleared dungeon).
Towns allow you to nap at an inn for a quite reasonable charge, purchase equipment and items, or if he’s around, an old man will create orbs for you. These orbs act as a sort of secondary equipment-like accessories. While you have a weapon and armour slot, you also have five orb slots. Three of these are for equipable magic, and two are for passive effects, like stat increases or experience gain increases. Magic orbs have an element and a rank. The element is the type of magic used, for example might is fire and attack buffing spells, while rank determines how much an orb can be upgraded. Magic orbs will gain their own exp after battle when equipped, and the spells they hold will level with them, dealing more damage or reducing delay time if they don’t do damage. Alternatively you can infuse new orbs with old ones of the same element to get an exp boost.
Both orb types can be increased in rank if you have the correct items to do so. No worries about running out, as you can farm for these later in the game. For magic orbs ranking up allows them to level further, whereas the passive effect orbs will increase their effect. For example a five percent stat increase will turn into a ten percent increase. There are a bunch of different orbs with different effects, some magic orbs even combine different elements and spells, so it’s kinda fun to mix up your team every so often.
Now that you’re all geared up, it’s time to set out. Exploring the Shadow Realm is dangerous, and you’ll for sure be getting into all kinds of fights. During battle you have access to a list of commands on your turn that include: item use, defense, magic orb skills, power skills (which are unique character-based skills), and a basic attack. Enemies and allies are set on a three by three grid each, and enemies can take up multiple spaces. Different skills, and sometimes your basic attack, can hit single or multiple tiles on the grid adding a bit of strategy or forethought.
If you’ve been following my reviews on KEMCO titles for a while, you may have noticed that this style of KEMCO title usually comes with “quality of life” options for those who want an easier time and aren’t in it for the challenge. Well, it’s back here in Akuma Rise, and it’s a fairly decent midpoint between “absolutely busted” and “no help at all”. Every three battles from common enemies in-game that you actually fight will reward you with ten of a special resource. This resource can be exchanged at an in-game shop like premium currency in an online game, either to get items, adjust certain gameplay elements, or to roll for new equipment. This also applies to all save files. For example, you can exchange a set amount of the resource to increase the amount of experience earned permanently. Another option is to draw a piece of equipment from a random pool and maybe get an awesome magic orb or armour. Unlike some of the other titles, the shop and equipment selection in Akuma Rise is very reasonable and doesn’t fully break the game or offer too little if you’re struggling.
Between the freemium currency shop, the battle rate adjustment, the four difficulties offered, and the option to speed battles up to three times the speed, there are a lot of methods to cut down on grinding time. I hit level 99 well enough before finishing the game, and most enemies or bosses weren’t too much of a challenge, difficulty setting depending. That being said you can always increase the difficulty and not purchase the boosters if you’re interested in the challenge.
Sporting a more cartoonish art style and some enemies that will definitely be familiar to enjoyers of other KEMCO titles with a similar art style, Akuma Rise doesn’t really break new ground on the aesthetic side of things. That being the case there’s nothing wrong with the art style or music direction, so take it as you get it. Keep it in mind it is also available on a phone App Store.
Overall Akuma Rise is a pretty fun title to add to the KEMCO JRPG pool. While the plot is maybe a little cliché and the assets reused from previous titles, there’s enough in the new storyline and characters to keep it entertaining if you don’t think too hard about it. Definitely a pick up for those looking for a retro JRPG that want something to play in the background or casually.
Score: 8 / 10
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