13 Sentinels Aegis Rim Reviews
Let’s not waste time – 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a testament to video games as both art and a storytelling medium.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is quite exciting. The story, whose destinies of the different characters intersect, fascinates.
Review in French | Read full review
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim has found its perfect home on the Nintendo Switch with its mash-up of two genres that work best when on handheld — visual novel and RTS. I ended up carrying my Switch with me for days on end as 13 Sentinels was like a good book that I couldn’t put down. The gorgeous hand-drawn graphics and intricately layered storyline pair beautifully together to create a love letter to classic sci-fi.
Ultimately, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim remains largely unchanged on Nintendo Switch minus the platform's strengths and weaknesses that exist independent of title. That's for the best, as 13 Sentinels remains one of the most intriguing releases in recent years and a game that's been slept on by a large number of people turned off by its anime or mecha-inspired origins. Underneath that coat is a resonant tale spanning generations and dealing with some interesting, innovative subject matter - and 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim comes highly recommended to anyone as a result.
With 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim developers Vanillaware have achieved their most ambitious work yet. A combination of different genres that surprisingly manages to walk hand in hand, supporting a great narrative experience that should be enjoyed by any fan of time-travelling stories, paranormal elements and introspective dramas with a typically Japanese style. The portability on Nintendo Switch is also a perfect match for the pace of the game's missions and single narrative sessions. If you've already enjoyed it on PS4, this version offers nothing new. If not, this is the perfect opportunity to pick up this precious gem.
Review in Italian | Read full review
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a finely woven story with strategic elements that is a satisfying addition to the Vanillaware lineup, but fans not into anime or Sci-Fi may feel isolated in this futuristic world.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, a Vanillaware title from 2020, is the ideal Switch port. Everything that makes this game great is enhanced by the Switch’s unique form factor. What was once a niche PlayStation exclusive becomes an essential experience for owners of Nintendo’s hybrid.
Despite the battles being a bit of a letdown, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a must have for those who love plot driven games. Up until the very last moment you're still not sure of what's going on, but that's not annoying. Far from it: every single plot twist just makes it harder to put your console away.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
All in all, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim’s Switch release is a strong success. This game is an incredible experience that doesn’t require you to be a brilliant RTS player–but will reward you for being one. If you enjoy complex storytelling and retro anime, you’ll have a great time. If you prefer games that don’t have required reading, maybe play something else.
13 Sentinels holds its place among the likes of The Last of Us Part II and Disco Elysium as a narrative-driven triumph that leverages the interactive medium to deliver a story that can only be appreciated through its lens.
13 Sentinels is a refreshingly ambitious experiment that everyone should grab and far too few players are talking about.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a wonderful achievement for dynamic storytelling, as it puts forth a compelling and multifaceted narrative that'll keep you guessing right up until the very end. This excellent story, combined with enjoyable combat portions, a striking art style, and some top-notch voice acting make for an experience that you won't want to miss out on. It's the kind of game that'll have you wishing that you could play it again for the first time, just so all its best elements could be new again. We'd give 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim a strong recommendation, then, to anyone who has even a passing interest in visual novels. Even if that doesn't describe you, we'd still say to give it a shot; you might just be surprised at how well it grabs you.
Vanillaware has handled 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim's Switch port with the utmost care and, with some of the changes, may even be better than the PS4 version. If you love RPGs, have an affinity for excellent stories, are in the mood for some good brain exercise, or just looking for a nice 30-hour experience in gaming, look no further than 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim.
There was so much room for 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim to just not work. So many threads are weaved together in a way where, by far, the most likely outcome of the whole thing should have been an interesting failure. That it instead sticks the landing, weaving together a plot that has no business being this moving and satisfying, is astonishing. If you’re at all interested in visual novels, or adventure games, or science fiction, and you don’t play 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, you must be suffering from brain overload.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim tells an ambitious and compelling story that takes an anaconda's worth of twists and turns, but it's careful to never overwhelm you to the point of exhaustion, while remaining grounded enough in its characters and concept to deliver everything with a bang. While the other half of the experience is pretty unremarkable in comparison, it doesn't prevent 13 Sentinels from standing high as an example of video game and science fiction storytelling.
Considering how well 13 Sentinels runs on Nintendo Switch, you have definitely no more excuses for not playing this little gem.
Review in Italian | Read full review
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is an excellent game which a thoroughly involving story which takes some time to get your head round, once you do though you’re going to really enjoy the experience. The story sucks you in whilst the games mechanics give you a several different challenging but entertaining experiences. If you want to kill 20-30 hours and enjoy an enthralling game then you won’t go far wrong with 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim’s combat may only be serviceable at best but incredibly handled story more than makes up for this shortcoming.
With an incredible presentation, flashy combat, memorable characters, and depth and nuance in its complicated time-travelling kaiju-fighting narrative, 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim is a must-play for most PS4 owners with at least a tolerance for anime melodrama.