Antiquia Lost (Nintendo Switch) Review

All the typical components that make a JRPG great are in Antiquia Lost. The plentiful humour made it a joy to play, even at first when the equipment and magic system felt confusing. There is a fair amount to grasp, but the systems are explained well, and the extensive help information can be accessed from the main menu at any time. Additionally, selecting the easy difficulty level truly makes it so easy that newcomers to the genre, or those who are in it for the story than the more in-depth battle mechanics, can enjoy what they like best, while still progressing at a rapid rate simply by selecting whatever form of attack they want to deploy.

The story itself has a fair amount of twists despite being predictable in places, something that didn't deflect from the overall enjoyment. Antiquia Lost, like many JRPGs, has both tragedy and triumph in the game that some may need tissues to cope with an unexpected yet understandable ending. Good does conquer evil, but even evil has a good side.

Battles involve random encounters familiar to players of older JRPGs, with a typical turn-based style. The transition from travelling on the map to going into battle is smooth and well executed. The overall appearance of the game is a throwback to older JRPGS, on older console systems, and can be a break from the incredible 3D games of the current generation, with often intensely realistic 3D graphics that can cause motion sickness in some players.

The range of characters are typical to JRPGS, and include a ruffian, a protector, a guard, and 'Lumaria;' a cute mystical shape-shifter that provides much intrigue and fun to the tale. There are situations where Lumaria shape-shifts to get a feel for a person's character, or because she is exhausted. How that slug-like being goes through several emotions involving face changes, is amusing and weird in equal measure.