Gamescom is one of the calendar's biggest gaming events, held annually in Germany, that attracts hundreds of thousands of gaming fans who flock to check out what developers are working on. With so much on display, Gamescom make sure to recognize the best games presented at the conference across each genre and platform.
For mobile gaming, the award went to Battle Chasers: Nightwar, a JRPG based on a graphic novel series of the same name that was previously released on the Nintendo Switch and arrived on Android in early August. For fans of turn-based RPGs and haters of games with ugly microtransaction systems, this is a game well worth your attention.
This game was developed by HandyGames and does a good job of bringing the source material to life with its highly produced opening cinematic sequence and top-notch voice acting to help draw players, many of which like myself who might be entirely fresh to the Battle Chasers world, right into the game.
It helps that the game is built around a fairly familiar team for a turn-based RPG like this. The main character of the story a young girl named Gully who is on a quest to find her father, Aramus, a renowned hero who left behind powerful gauntlets before he mysteriously disappearing, which his daughter must make use of in her own epic adventure.
Gully is joined by a supporting cast that includes Knowlan the wise old mage who always travels with Calibretto, an ancient war golem built for battle that developed his own sentience and emotions but who can still kick ass to defend his friends. There's Garrison, a paladin who was friends with Aramus and feels compelled to protect Gully along her journey and lastly Red Monika, a rogue outlaw who manages to toe the line between good and evil.
Everything about this game is polished and complete, from the detail put into the overworld that's filled with hidden dungeons to explore, epic bosses to take down, and other surprises along the way. The turn-based combat is inspired by all the favorites you remember from the JRPG genre and is a real treat even for a casual fan. Along with the dense and sprawling world to explore that's teeming with enemies to do battle with, there's also deep crafting elements as well for upgrading your team's weapons, armors, and magical jewelry.
Truth be told I've only just scratched the surface of this game, but I've loved what I've seen so far and am eager to enjoy exploring all that this game has in store. Adding to that is the fact that it's a complete game offered as a paid title with no ads, no in-app purchases, and no micro-transactions of any sort to deal with. This is mobile gaming done right and I look forward to doing a deep dive review of this game in the coming weeks.
Venture forth
Battle Chasers: Nightwar is a game specifically designed to appeal to fans of turn-based role-playing title, with a JRPG influence in all the aspects of the game. Best of all, there's no microtransactions of any kind - buy the game and you're all set.
