This is the most fun I've had with turn-based combat since Into the Breach.

There's something so intensely addictive about the battle system in Beastieball. The rules are simple, but the strategy runs deep. I'd be running dozens of calculations in my head with every action like it was second nature, yet it never once felt exhausting or tiring. You know that graph, the one that fluctuates a hundred times between "IT'S SO OVER" and "WE ARE SO BACK"? That's what playing Beastieball feels like.

And that's just the game of Beastieball in the video game Beastieball. The videogame Beastieball? The creature collecting, world-exploring RPG? It might be even more addictive.

I spent the first ten or so hours of Beastieball just exploring the map, eager to have the whole world at my disposal and to see what little goobers I'd come across. I don't usually tend to aim for 100% completion in games; doubly so for RPGs that already last quite a while. So damn you Beastieball, damn you, because you made it so easy, so fun, and of course, so addicting to start cataloguing, researching, and recruiting Beasties. Before I knew it, I logged 30 hours and walked away with every single Beastie in tow.

And ignoring the game part of this video game, the video is just so darn charming. It's hard to verbalize it in any other word but "charming". Every Beastie I came across, I'd look at it, and go "that thing is so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cute" or "that thing looks so cool" or "that thing is a FREAK and i NEED THEM". The designs are so lovingly crafted and well executed. I really don't know how to verbalize it in any other way than "these designs would fit right into a Pokemon game".

Even the simplest things like the random relationships my Beasties formed captivated me. One specific pair of Beasties I had formed a friendship, strained that friendship, tried to talk things out, failed to, and ultimately became fierce rivals. I just watched these two go through an entire shonen anime arc, and that's just a footnote in my time with this game.

The writing was consistently witty, goofy, and endearing. I'd usually have a stupid smile on my face throughout the game's cutscenes. Yet, when it wanted to be, it was also fairly punchy, showing a surprising depth and nuance to its characters behind their loud and brash personalities, especially in the game's social links. And this game's story is overt and blunt about the topics it wants to talk about. Like, very overt and blunt. It…honestly might even be heavy-handed, but it's hard not to understand why it's so angry about everything around us, and the story is better off because it chose to tackle these topics so openly.

And of course, Lena Raine's soundtrack literally never missed a single time. There is so much variety in this game's soundtrack that it could very well have been the soundtrack to 8 different games, and yet it's all cohesive; it's all distinctly Beastieball. Overworld themes that call for adventure, character songs that reflect on quirks and personalities, and the battle music. My god, the battle music. Every time I heard a new battle song, I would go "oh my god, that's peak", and I kept on going "that's peak" up until the credits rolled.

Beastieball wears its inspirations on its sleeve, yet despite being so firmly rooted in those inspirations, it's easily one of the most creative RPGs I've played in years, and it's because of that creativity that I was glued to my screen from start to finish.

I backed this game on Kickstarter and I have no regrets, except maybe the fact that I'll have to sit here waiting for what comes next to early access.

This is the most fun I've had with turn-based combat since Into the Breach. There's something so intensely addictive about the battle system in Beastieball. The rules are simple, but the strategy runs deep. I'd be running dozens of calculations in my head with every action like it was second nature, yet it never once felt exhausting or tiring. You know that graph, the one that fluctuates a hundred times between "IT'S SO OVER" and "WE ARE SO BACK"? That's what playing Beastieball feels like. And that's just the game of Beastieball in the video game Beastieball. The [i]videogame[/i] Beastieball? The creature collecting, world-exploring RPG? It might be even [i]more[/i] addictive. I spent the first ten or so hours of Beastieball just exploring the map, eager to have the whole world at my disposal and to see what little goobers I'd come across. I don't usually tend to aim for 100% completion in games; doubly so for RPGs that already last quite a while. So damn you Beastieball, damn you, because you made it so easy, so [i]fun[/i], and of course, so addicting to start cataloguing, researching, and recruiting Beasties. Before I knew it, I logged 30 hours and walked away with every single Beastie in tow. And ignoring the game part of this video game, the video is just so darn charming. It's hard to verbalize it in any other word but "charming". Every Beastie I came across, I'd look at it, and go "that thing is so goddamn cute" or "that thing looks so cool" or "that thing is a FREAK and i NEED THEM". The designs are so lovingly crafted and well executed. I really don't know how to verbalize it in any other way than "these designs would fit right into a Pokemon game". Even the simplest things like the random relationships my Beasties formed captivated me. One specific pair of Beasties I had formed a friendship, strained that friendship, tried to talk things out, failed to, and ultimately became fierce rivals. I just watched these two go through an entire shonen anime arc, and that's just a footnote in my time with this game. The writing was consistently witty, goofy, and endearing. I'd usually have a stupid smile on my face throughout the game's cutscenes. Yet, when it wanted to be, it was also fairly punchy, showing a surprising depth and nuance to its characters behind their loud and brash personalities, especially in the game's social links. And this game's story is overt and blunt about the topics it wants to talk about. Like, [i]very[/i] overt and blunt. It…honestly might even be heavy-handed, but it's hard not to understand why it's so angry about everything around us, and the story is better off [i]because[/i] it chose to tackle these topics so openly. And of course, Lena Raine's soundtrack literally never missed a single time. There is so much variety in this game's soundtrack that it could very well have been the soundtrack to 8 different games, and yet it's all cohesive; it's all distinctly Beastieball. Overworld themes that call for adventure, character songs that reflect on quirks and personalities, and the battle music. My god, the battle music. Every time I heard a new battle song, I would go "oh my god, that's peak", and I kept on going "that's peak" up until the credits rolled. Beastieball wears its inspirations on its sleeve, yet despite being so firmly rooted in those inspirations, it's easily one of the most creative RPGs I've played in years, and it's because of that creativity that I was glued to my screen from start to finish. I backed this game on Kickstarter and I have no regrets, except maybe the fact that I'll have to sit here waiting for what comes next to early access.