Lost Sphear Reviews
If you liked I am Setsuna or just games with a very old school gameplay, then this title is for you.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
A less focused outing than its predecessor, Lost Sphear gets lost amid its various, undercooked systems, and it fails to successfully consolidate its many inspirations. It's a pleasant enough game with a nice aesthetic, but we doubt we'll be looking back on this one with too much sentimentality.
If you enjoyed I am Setsuna, there is a good chance that you will have a great time with Lost Sphear. If you didn't, it is hard to say if Lost Sphear will be able to pull you back in, since it works more as a spiritual successor than a brand new game.
There's little in Lost Sphear that you haven't seen before in JRPGs, but that doesn't mean it's a title to be dismissed out of hand. If you can look past the clichés, Lost Sphear presents an engaging world, deep battle system, and plenty of replayability which will likely delight many an RPG fan. Tokyo RPG Factory has proven with this release that it's capable of learning from past mistakes, and though Lost Sphear still might not be the game to surpass Chrono Trigger, it proves itself to be worthy of that legacy. We'd recommend Lost Sphear to anybody who loves a focused, traditional RPG; it may be priced a little high, but this is an enjoyable experience that fans won't want to miss out on.
If you're looking for an immersive story in a captivating world then Lost Sphear is certainly an RPG to add to your collection.
Old school JRPG fans will find much to enjoy here, but the refusal to innovate does more harm than good for the genre's reputation.
Lost Sphear may not be the vastest or most extraordinary RPG on the market, but it's a very well made game that is sure to deliver a very enjoyable thirty hours or so.
Tokyo RPG Factory's follow-up to I Am Setsuna improves on the first game's combat, but feels like a by-the-numbers RPG in other areas.
Playing Lost Sphear was like re-visiting the classic RPGs of yesteryear that hooked me in with their enjoyable combat mechanics, impressive world design, and incredibly evil (though somewhat predictable) villains. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and whilst I’ll certainly admit that it had a few flaws, I was completely absorbed by it throughout the entirety of my twenty hour-plus adventure. Believe me, if you’re an RPG fan you need to buy it. It acts as the perfect reminder that RPGs don’t need to have super fancy visuals, overly intricate combat mechanics, or a convoluted plotline to grip players in – they’ve just got to have heart, and that’s something Lost Sphear has in abundance. Here’s to the next fascinating adventure that Tokyo RPG Factory send us on…
Accidentally trivialising a boss by inflicting Charm and having it put itself into a perpetual cycle of Sleep.
Lost Sphear nails the look and sound of classic RPG's while updating the combat in interesting ways. While the story may not stand up with our all time favourites it's a big warm hug that doesn't overstay its welcome.
So here I am, gushing over a nostalgia filled love letter to classic JRPG’s when all you really wanted to know was: Is it any good? Well that depends on you as a person really, Lost Sphear is one of those game’s I have found really difficult to score. For old school fans of the genre I would say that Lost Sphear is an absolute must play however as a game on it’s own merits it relies a little too heavily on nostalgia to really come out on it’s own.
Lost Sphear is an all-in nostalgic RPG that never really tries to offer something new. But if the story starts in the most classic of ways, the game will fulfill patient gamers with some more complex stuff, and not-so-easy fights. Unfortunately, you will have to pass through an very generic artistic direction and pointless dialogs.
Review in French | Read full review
While there are plenty of good aspects to Lost Sphear, it does suffer from dipping into the well of nostalgia a little too often. It captures the essence of 90's Japanese RPGs quite well at times, but the application is uneven and that effectively scuttles a lot that Lost Sphear does right.
Lost Sphear is a competently assembled retro product that may dredge up fond memories of older, better JRPGs, but it lacks a personality of its own. The unique, melancholy world of I Am Setsuna has been replaced by soulless tropes, and incrementally improved battle mechanics and dungeons don't make up for that loss of identity. Sadly, the makers of Lost Sphear have lost the thread.
Heavily influenced by a lost era of JRPGs, Lost Sphear however has its own charm and personality, fixing many of Tokyo RPG Factory's first faults. It's a good little JRPG that will charm those that miss the traditional gameplay mechanics.
Here's hoping that Tokyo RPG Factory's next project takes that gameplay design and applies it to a heartfelt story that doesn't feel like it was assembled on a conveyor belt.
I love Tokyo RPG Factory's admiration of the past, but Lost Sphear offers little for both longtime fans of the genre and casual passersby. If a taste of the past is all you need, however, then it will surely be your companion on that trip down memory road. Just don't be looking for anything more than that here.
Lost Sphear is a game that seems to fall victim to its own ambition. It presents plenty of classic JRPG elements that fans of the genre will enjoy, but its efforts to follow a nostalgic form result in something that ultimately feels insincere. The foundation is solid, particularly with regard to its battle system, skill customization, and overall presentation, but the soul of the experience just isn't there. Lost Sphear is meant to feel like a proper return to a traditional form, but its lackluster dialog and underwhelming plot development instead result in a game that simply can't stand up to the classics it's inspired by.
Lost Sphear is an Old School JRPG with all it's letters that takes a lot of the classics of the 90s'. Unfortunately it doesn't just take the positive parts of those games, but also the cliches, which in one part is great because it brings you back, but it also reminds you how overused the formula is. All around the game is somewhat inconsistent and can become tediuos, but it's fast-paced and rewarding gameplay saves it from all its faults.
Review in Spanish | Read full review