Nights of Azure Reviews
Nights of Azure is a solid action RPG.
Gust's first action RPG is a decent attempt let down by inconsistent visuals and various problems with difficulty.
Nights of Azure feels like a guilty pleasure, but it's the gameplay that's the star here. The boring story is filled with forgettable, two dimensional characters, and while there is passion between the main characters, it feels forced rather than natural. The gameplay isn't ground-breaking either, but it is at least competent at delivering a mindless hack 'n' slash that is fun to play and worth a look.
Nights of Azure 2 is an action-RPG with a good number of content, but despite a great artistic direction, it's technically underdeveloped and with a still too low level of difficulty.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Anything it gets right or does adequately enough is countered by a pitfall or something lackluster. It's perfectly functional and seems to do what it wants to do, it's just a pity none of those things are particularly exceptional in any way.
Nights of Azure is a bit shorter than your average JRPG, but it jam-packs a ton of variety into its 20-25 hours of story — and if you stick around to collect everything afterward, you'll have even more time to sink your teeth into the game's various systems. On the combat side of things, the hack-and-slash at Nights' core keeps things from getting too button-mashy by mixing it up with collectible Servan that can do the majority of the fighting for you, as well as an appealing transformation system and changeable set of weapons. Plus, you've got a compelling reason to fight thanks to the sweet and adorable romance between heroines Arnice and Lilysse; for once, a same-gender relationship in a video game handled with considerable respect. You can enjoy all this no matter your skill level or availability; with gameplay equally suitable for marathon sessions or bite-size pieces, and with a challenge level that can be easily tailored to your play style, this is one of the most enjoyable and accessible pieces of light RPG entertainment available on PS4.
It may not be the best hack 'n' slash game on the market, but Nights of Azure does enough right to warrant checking it out.
Nights of Azure is a game of wasted potential. The game's dark tone and setting is ultimately ruined by the excessive presence of comic relief, which takes a lot of the tension out of the terrible choice Arnice has to take to save the world. With an experience that gets stale way too quickly, Nights of Azure true saving grace are the game's two main characters and the development of their relationship, which takes some interesting turns. A shame, as the game could have been so much more.
Overall, Nights of Azure is a rather unremarkable ARPG that just happens to have a gorgeous art style and a fantastic soundtrack. Even though it's not likely to become the new flagship franchise for the developers at Gust, it's a solid attempt at a new genre and a good distraction until the next Atelier title releases later this year.
Although the story itself is straightforward and relatively simple, it continues to mirror past Gust games with its focus on the intricate development and interactions among the cast of characters.
Nights of Azure is an example a very decent game that could have been great given more time and money.
While Nights of Azure is an enjoyable enough ride, it doesn't really possess anything that makes it worth investing a large amount of time in. A lot of the game's extra components, like the inclusion of merchant trading, seem sloppy and poorly thought out, offered as a mere distraction from the rest of the release. Luckily, it's fairly easy to power through combat and see out the story, and doing so is reasonably satisfying, if not a little repetitive at times.
Gust has some pretty good ideas with the Servan system, and the gameplay is pretty smooth once you get yourself properly kitted out, but Nights of Azure has a few boring aspects that really make it a chore to play.
Fast-paced, agile and funny, Nights of Azure is a light J-RPG with an unexpectedly interesting (love) story. On the other hand, is too easy and tecnhnically poor.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Nights of Azure has an impressive story that is brought down by disappointing gameplay. Those looking for a simple action title will be rewarded with a surprisingly mature story, but the combat is too repetitive to really impress.
Overall, Nights of Azure is challenging, but it is fun and rewarding when those challenges are overcome. The game isn't overly ambitious, with a small world, simple objectives and seven chapters of story content. Even so, it can inspire many hours of gameplay and engage the imagination.
Fumbling between technical issues and stilted writing, this action RPG has the potential to be great... in future installments.
While it starts off fun, Nights of Azure gets boring very quickly and never seems to fully utilize its array of other features.
Nights of Azure overcomes its tropes and the occasional bit of fan service with a heaping helping of content, stylistic panache, and one of the most memorable gaming narratives in recent memory.
Nights of Azure is a game that has the potential to be a legitimately enjoyable experience, but unfortunately, most of that potential goes to waste.