Natural Doctrine Reviews
There's a thin line between rock-hard gameplay and a broken game and while Natural Doctrine runs up to that line repeatedly it manages to never actually cross it. What it does manage, however, is to be a great example of the genre while also doing very little to bring it into the twenty-first century. The enjoyment found here depends on the gamer coming to it; one gamer's excruciatingly difficult and confusing is another's deep and complex, and it's the latter group NISA are going after with everything they asked for. It would just be nice if they could give a little extra too.
Natural Doctrine is a cruel, unpolished, but interesting spin on tactical RPGs
I know that in the current climate of the gaming industry, everyone is glamouring for hardcore games that don't hold their hand, but I don't think Natural Doctrine is what you're looking for. The game isn't challenging so much as it is just inconsistent because the enemy rules are seemingly made up as it goes along. It just isn't enjoyable to play, and that's a really big failure in a game like this.
The battle system is a well-thought-out tactical setup that brings all necessary attributes to a minimal core but, for me, the choppy flow, the time required, and the harshness of the ridiculously skewed battles yielded too little reward to continue progressing enthusiastically.
Natural Doctrine is a punishingly difficult strategy game but if you stick with it, you may just find it to be extremely rewarding.
'Natural Doctrine' is really a love it or hate it game. There's quite a bit of good in this little title, but at the same time there's also a lot that will drive away a great many gamers. It's complicated, even obtuse at times, but battling and steamrolling over foes when everything goes right can be a great feeling. Then again, watching the same animations over and over again because of a failed attempt or lucky critical can be rage inducing.
Natural Doctrine is a tough game to judge. It's strange and convoluted, it has sub-par graphics, and the story is quite weak. It basically carries itself entirely on the gameplay, which is frequently difficult to the point of frustration. If you can get past that and wrap your head around the mechanics, it's a remarkably fun strategy RPG. It rewards careful thought, proper planning, and smart positioning, and it feels incredibly satisfying to pull a victory from the jaws of defeat. It isn't going to be a game for everyone, and even die-hard SRPG fans may be turned off by the high difficulty level, but if Natural Doctrine clicks for you, you'll probably enjoy it.
Natural Doctrine gets so much right. A strong premise, great top-level strategic mechanics, sensational skill system and ruthless tactical battles ought to have made this a left-field cult smash.
As is, this is a demanding strategy RPG that will turn away casually interested parties. The outrageous difficulty is admittedly a preference for some gamers, and those who are hungry for these types of games will not be disappointed. Natural Doctrine is a raw example of pure strategy with such delicate situations amidst a roaring hurricane.
That's not to say Natural Doctrine is great, because it doesn't naturally move you forward and at times it can be frustrating, with some areas being a bit too much trial and error with some poor check-pointing, making retries annoying. But at the same time those who become good enough to avoid death on a regular basis, will have a cracking time.
Natural Doctrine fails in its ambitious attempt to deliver a wonderfully unique, deep, and rewarding turn-based strategy adventure. The foundation is solid but what's built atop that foundation is a crazy assortment of great individual pieces, but none of them really fit together. Satisfaction isn't out of the realm of possibility, but when seasoned veterans have to spend many hours dissecting the ins and outs of a gameplay mechanic, only to find their efforts thwarted by an unfair and unforgiving structure, well… Controllers may shatter and nobody would blame you.
Hardcore fans of the Strategy RPG genre may find Natural Doctrine to be very enjoyable given that they invest time into it. The game is very lengthy so make sure to set aside some time before plunging into the game's world.
As I stated above the game is very unforgiving at times and that will be a huge turn off to some players. Still if you like tactical RPGs and a good challenge you will enjoy this game. If you are more of a run and gun player this one should be avoided.
Look, I'm not going to put on a purple astronaut helmet or run half-speed into a wall of cake mix or perform any other act of subterfuge that may trick you into forgetting that Natural Doctrine is one of the most unforgiving virtual experiences currently available in this or any possible dimension. It's like that university professor who wouldn't accept your term paper three minutes late despite the fact that your dog body slammed your cat from the roof that morning, placing them both in sad but cute comas. It just doesn't give a damn. Yet, if you have patience, get a kick out of learning through experimentation, and receive a rush when accomplishing what seems satirically impossible, you may appreciate Natural Doctrine's unyielding difficulty, and certainly gain a feeling of unrivalled empowerment that's associated with overcoming it.
Unfortunately, when all is said and done, NAtURAL DOCtRINE simply doesn't provide an enjoyable experience. A difficult game like Dark Souls will reward patience and show steady improvement of player skill in-game progress, but this is purely hard for the sake of being so. It's too frustrating in today's busy age to spend 45 minutes at a time on the same mission, failing to make any progress for hours. Mid-mission surprises happen too often and the game's design only makes their appearance frustrating rather than tense. There's no saving halfway through a mission, a problem that's sure to annoy Vita purchasers. I haven't finished the main campaign, although I would estimate I'm over halfway. In-game timer reads around 20 hours – although this doesn't include the hours of gameplay lost to rage quits.