Digimon World: Next Order Reviews
The game world, while vast, lacks compelling content and appears far too empty for that reason, while some of the gameplay systems are intimidating and confusing.
While a bit plain in terms of storyline, Digimon World: Next Order is attractive enough for Digimon fans. It might not be the perfect introduction to this world for other more technical demanding JRPG fans and gamers.
For everything Digimon World: Next Order offers, there is something better. If you want monster-taming, Pokemon and Monster Rancher are right there. If you want specifically Digimon, Cyber Sleuth and Survive are more than enough to have your fill. If you want anything other than wonky pacing, shallow combat, and frequently cringeworthy writing, Next Order probably isn’t for you.
Has Digimon World: Next Order made me a Digimon fan? No. I’ve got a love/hate relationship with Digimon World: Next Order. I love the strategy involved in Digivolution, the auto-battling suits my gaming style, and I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the vast map. However, I found the unpredictability of death slightly distressing, the relentless cycle of caring for and retraining my Digimon frustrating and the unbalanced questing disappointing.
If you love Digimon and want to play some great Digimon games, don’t worry: between Cyber Sleuth and Survive, you have more than enough content to satiate your needs on the Switch. Digimon World: Next Order is nowhere near as good, fun, engaging or memorable as these other titles. Sure, it might be a love letter to a PS1 classic (?), but there’s a reason as to why not a single other Digimon World besides that first game had Tamagotchi-based gameplay, it just wasn’t fun.
The re-release of Digimon World: Next Order is a great chance for fans of the series who don't own a PlayStation to take advantage of sim raising. Unfortunately, the advantages stop there. The quality of the work leaves a lot to be desired and even the translation into Portuguese, which was supposed to be a differential of the new version, indicates a great lack of care by Bandai Namco with what it is offering to the end user.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
For better or worse, Digimon World: Next Order has all of Bandai’s best ideas mixed together into one complex title. As a game, this can be huge and intimidating, but it can also be someone’s comfort game to melt into at the end of a long day. As a port, Digimon World: Next Order should be praised for its continuous improvement as it jumps from one platform to the next, but its pricetag hasn’t improved in its 7 year run, which can put off some players who have become accustomed to purchasing ports at a lower pricepoint. Digimon World: Next Order was an overwhelming first foray into Digimon, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was blown away by the complexity, nuance, and depth the series has to offer. Perhaps Digimon truly are the champions after all!
With several points to consider, it's a fact that Digimon World: Next Order is not for everyone. For newcomers who like the first work in the series, this entry should certainly please, as most of the mechanics are more functional and rewarding, especially when it comes to digievolutions. Unfortunately, for those who have already had the opportunity to play Next Order before, there is no real reason to pay such a high price for this new edition, because apart from the Portuguese subtitles, there is no really significant improvement.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Digimon World: Next Order offers a completely different experience from the usual in the genre and is one that you can not miss any of the most fans of the franchise.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
While it’s great to see a full-fledged Digimon title on the Switch geared more towards its traditional style, it’s hardly perfect
Digimon World: Next Order seems to think that the most enjoyable part of monster-training games is endless, repetitive grinding.