When I first came across Monster RPG 2 a few weeks ago, I was instantly lured in by a particular quote,  “If you loved the 16 bit classics on systems like SNES, you’ll love this game”.  Indeed, I do enjoy a nostalgic trip down NES lane every now and then, but this alone wasn’t enough for me to just say “Boom” and hit the buy button (which as most people in the iPhone/iPod Touch universe know, never ends well) so I did a little research and as it turns out, this is an iPhone version of an already existing PC game. After a little more research and a lot of screenshot digging, I decided to finally give Monster RPG 2 a shot and was just blown away at how instantly immersed I became in this 16 bit, turn-based JRPG (Japanese role playing game) blast from the past. Nooskewl (the developer of this game) left nothing out in this SNES-styled fantasy, from the quirky plot line to the in-depth battle system and right on into the strategic mini games that any true JRPG would feel incomplete without.

The story revolves around a heroine named Eny and her “friend” Tig. Well long story short, Tig finds a magical staff, turns evil, knocks you out, summons goblins, laughs maniacally and vanishes, leaving you to explore the vast world of Monster RPG 2.  Along the way you meet various NPC’s (non-playable characters) that join your party with different skill sets and a strong desire to put an end to Tig’s evil reign.  Cliche plot? Yes.  Has it been done a thousand times before? Probably. Does it bother me? Nope, and I’ll tell you why. This is a SNES styled JRPG! You can’t have an award winning story with a 16 bit JRPG, it just doesn’t work and would quite possibly ruin the game’s nostalgia. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. End of story.

On to the controls/game play.  Monster RPG 2 has an incredibly similar control set up to Vay (another “must have” JRPG styled iPhone game). You touch where you want to go and the sprite automatically walks to the corresponding spot.  The “In fight” menu is similar to that of Final Fantasy where you can attack, use magic, run away, use an item and  change equipment. It also has a fairly standard leveling system (xxxx out of xxxx exp to next lvl) and a fixed amount of points you gain after every level up, only increasing every few levels or so (10 points turns into 20 points at level 5, ect.) You can spend them in either Maxhp, Attack, Defense, Speed, MaxMp, M.Def or Luck. Nooskewl did throw in a few twists to this otherwise Final Fantasy clone such as being able to pan a preset distance from your character in each direction as-well as a fairly new (I’ve never seen it before) swipe to attack feature which some players seem to have mixed emotions about.

One thing I really enjoyed in this game is its world map, which is very similar to the world map in Dragon Age: Origins. Once you complete an area you’re taken to a world map and can then chose the icon of the next area you want to go to. The more you complete the story line the more icons there are to choose from  (back tracking is possible).

Ah, but few games are without their faults and this game is no exception. Sadly one of its faults steps foot into the control category. While “point and go” worked wonderfully in Vay, it some how falls short in Monster RPG 2. The sprite will often not go where you command her to. You are also (as far as I know) not able to stop her from moving once touching where you want her to go and while the menu is quite polished itself, (think of a final fantasy type menu) trying to get the menu to open can be time-consuming and frustrating. These few faults are in no way game breaking (though at times annoying ) and it’s very easy to get past them and lose yourself in the pixelated fantasy world around you.

This brings me to the graphics. The sprites themselves are nothing to lose your hat over. They’re exactly what you would expect to see from an 80’s SNES game (ain’t nothing wrong with that) but once you enter one of the many, many random encounters, you will fall in love with Eny and crew as they’re brought up to size,  fluid and still retaining their retro-esque feel. Not to mention the (at times) beautifully rendered scenery while traversing the bridges or overlooking oceans. While not the best graphics on the iphone, (which it’s not supposed to have anyways) I definitely enjoyed the graphics that Monster RPG 2 had to offer.

I would recommend this game over and over to anyone calling themselves a “true JRPG fan”. While at times this game can be difficult, I can’t describe the satisfaction you will get from completing it :). 5/5 stars from me.

Monster RPG 2 on the App Store.