The DioField Chronicle PS5 Review. There’s a lot to be said for spirited RTS efforts that can be done in the blink of an eye, not least because they are indeed a rare breed. Coming from reliable JRPG and tactical battler suppliers Square-Enix, The DioField Chronicle is one such effort that, despite its relatively artisanal presentation and design, can still shine on its own, while also being resolutely welcoming to newcomers to the genre. .
The DioField Chronicle PS5 Review
A welcoming and engaging tactical RPG for newcomers to the genre
Set against the backdrop of a world where technology and magic coexist, The DioField Chronicle puts players in control of the Blue Fox, an extraordinarily talented mercenary made up of nobles, compatriots and veteran soldiers. With the wealthy Duke Hende as his entrenched and politically linked benefactor, the Blue Fox finds himself at the center of events in the realm of Alletain as external hostile forces and internal power struggles threaten to plunge the continent into a perpetual state of war.
Clearly drawing great inspiration from storytelling like Game of Thrones, The DioField Chronicle weaves a thick tale of betrayal, tragedy and political sloppiness as the various factions and empires all vie for supremacy. While the story takes some time to get going and is told through a mix of static dialogue sequences and pre-rendered cutscenes, it helps that the gradually expanding cast of protagonists that make up the Blue Fox is a fairly interesting piece to follow. and act as an immersive window into the sometimes labyrinthine world of The DioField Chronicle’s myriad political backstabbing scenarios.
While the narrative side of things is fine, it’s really in the various nooks and crannies of The DioField Chronicle’s tactical RPG mechanics that Square Enix’s latest genre venture really shines. The action in The DioField Chronicle is essentially split into two very different components. The first takes you through the hallways of Blue Fox headquarters, chatting with your fellow mercenaries, buying equipment from vendors, doing side missions, and continuing the story.
Blue Fox’s headquarters is much more than just a generic hub area, it can be upgraded by redirecting the money you’re paid for completing quests towards hiring cooks, alchemists and more, all of which offer tangible upgrades to your warriors in battle, such as additional skill trees, upgraded summoned monsters, a wider selection of gear to buy, and much more.
The other side of The DioField Chronicle’s gameplay offerings, and arguably the foundation of the entire experience, is the real-time battles you’ll engage in The DioField Chronicle’s many missions. Underlined by its RTTB (Real Time Tactical Battle) system, The DioField Chronicle allows players to send single or multiple units into battle in real time without the need for some sort of grid system. In fact, you can move freely to just about any area on the battlefield, as you wish.
Where The DioField Chronicle makes things a little more interesting, however, is how players can pause the battle whenever they want. Since it works in a way not entirely different from how the Active Time Battle (ATB) system works in the Final Fantasy games, players can basically do everything from this pause screen, from planning moves and attacks to unleashing of special abilities, abilities, spells and even unleash epic Final Fantasy-esque monsters on the opposition.
For people who may not be too familiar with the real-time strategy genre, this represents something of a godsend, as it allows players to take a break and carefully consider their next move without worrying about being left in the dust. be pounded while they do. This also allows you to combine a number of special attacks to be unleashed all at once, destroying legions of enemies at once.
Despite having such tricks up their sleeve, the battles in The DioField Chronicle play out the same way as other RTS endeavours. For example, flanking enemies proves to be a desirable tactic, as it allows you to deal additional ‘ambush’ damage to the rear of your enemies, while splitting up your troops to deal with approaching enemy units at a number of different entry points is something. you’ll have to get used to it early on. Further afield, other tactical capabilities become available, such as being able to detonate explosive barrels to destroy nearby enemies, all of which provide players with more resources to expand their tactical arsenal.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, orbs of different colors can be seen scattered around the place, each having a different effect, such as replenishing your energy points so you can perform more skills, restoring your heroes’ health, and upgrading a special meter that can be used. used to unleash summoned titans and beasts to aid you. Often the presence of these orbs makes wannabe armchair generals have another tactical consideration – take a depleted force into the final stages of battle, or divert part of your unit to seek out these orbs for some much-needed Reviving?
If there’s a substantial complaint about The Diofield Chronicle’s fights, it’d be that they’re just not very big. But the modest size and duration of The DioField Chronicle’s numerous battles also make it appealing to newcomers to the new genre.
What makes The DioField Chronicle such a downright compelling proposition is how accessible and respectful it is to your time. Since battles are usually over in ten minutes or less, The DioField Chronicle is the kind of wonderfully bite-sized strategy RPG that has total respect for your time, letting you jump in and out in the blink of an eye and still do a whole lot in those short sessions.
In terms of the battles themselves, they aren’t particularly challenging and certainly won’t be too much of a challenge for loyal strategists. Making these battles even easier is the fact that not only are the side quests (which are sadly a nut in scope and generally feel like an afterthought) will keep you comfortably over-leveled for the main missions themselves, but battles can go on indefinitely. will be played, allowing you to collect precious gold and experience points for as long as you like. Again, it’s good to remember that The DioField Chronicle is almost laser-focused on encouraging newcomers to the RTS genre, rather than softening the tactical scholars already in the ranks of its fans.
Audiovisually, The DioField Chronicle is also quite uneven to say the least. The character models, while stylish, are plain-looking and clunky animated constructs, while the geometrically simple and bare-bones environments (the Blue Fox hub headquarters, in particular, are almost poignantly sparse), making The DioField Chronicle feel like an ode to an effort by an older generation of PlayStation consoles.
It goes much better with the soundtrack though. The music in The DioField Chronicle is broadly epic in composition and composed jointly by Game of Thrones duo Brandon Campbell and Ramin Djawadi. The music in The DioField Chronicle swells with dramatic flair during combat, settling into calmer serenades during less action-packed scenes. It’s great stuff, honestly. Certainly with its relatively simplistic challenge, solid combat and unspectacular presentation, The DioField Chronicle will likely struggle to find an audience among the burgeoning crowd of armchair generals looking for their next tactical solution. For anyone else looking to dive into those genre waters, The DioField Chronicle is the kind of easy-to-access, dip-in/dip-out tactical RPG you need in your life right now.
The DioField Chronicle is out now on PS4 and PS5.
Review code kindly provided by PR.
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