Remember when random encounters, grinding for money and to level up characters was a thing in RPGs? ASH sure does.
ASH starts with some rather vague storytelling. The game drops players into the Empire of Aghaus with control over two characters, Nicholas and Damien. It's hinted that Nicholas is a former member of Aghaus' military and Damien is his traveling companion who's indebted to Nicholas. Both appear to be running from the past, hiding out as helpful mercenaries to make ends meet, roaming from town to town taking odd jobs and on the lam.
From there, a story quickly builds to show that Aghaus is without its King and is in the midst of strange occurrences, with mysterious disappearances of town folk and the sudden appearance of evil creatures ravaging the villages. The Royal Guard has also been acting suspiciously, most noticeably with bizarre activities and not upholding their vows to protect the Kingdom's people.
If this all sounds familiar, that's due to the fact that it is. ASH is an RPG that weaves a story that pulls from so many games that came before it. The Kingdom has mostly forgotten that magic was a real thing. A history of ancient evil has long been buried and remains vaguely chronicled, too. ASH is made up of these multiple ideas to deliver, however, a bare-bones experience. In fairness, it does have a couple of relatively interesting aspects to it, but it generally tries to bring nostalgia but fails at making a unique statement. ASH also has a huge mark against it, too - the game has a lot of glitches, and one of them renders it virtually unplayable.
While many modern RPGs, like Bravely Default for example, are moving away from outdated systems, such as random encounters and grinding levels to get ahead, ASH embraces those RPG roots. This turn-based RPG pays tribute to the genre of yore with sprites, and a world and combat which recalls the days of titles such as Dragon Quest IV. ASH, however, is not nearly as charming or rich as those games. In fact, the overworld map and towns feel sparse by comparison. NPCs all generally look the same, with their portrait art reminiscent of older American Saturday morning fantasy cartoons, or older Fire Emblem games. Their designs range from bland to not bad, to decent and to unsettling; the colours are simple, and their eyes are creepy and large at times. The main heroes are set apart with overall sharper and more defined designs, and they stand out just enough in a world of knights, pirates and magic users.
This aesthetic extends to the enemies and monsters of ASH that keep in line with that stylized old school look. They're realistic with a touch of fantasy, as much as animated beasts and foes can be. Wolves, snakes, dragons, zombie-like creatures, and the Royal Guards are interesting enough. The fantastical ones are more colourful, and differentiate from those which are normal but vicious in expressions. The art isn't horrible (this is true particularly for the battle settings), nor is it gorgeous or memorable, it's simply ok.
This is what ASH is primarily all about it in nearly everything it does. It merely suffices. It's a simplified experience that's present in its art-style, soundtrack and its gameplay as well. The music is mediocre. It's not an awful, painful thing to listen to but many tracks abruptly end and loop to become an annoyance at times. The turn-based combat is a matter of hitting enemies using special skills dedicated to each character. Characters gain abilities as they level up, and some work in tandem with others. For instance, Nicholas can unlock a move that weakens an enemy's defense, while Damien can follow up with an attack that works to maximize its effectiveness. Eventually a healer joins the party, and finally a spell user. What's somewhat frustrating about ASH is that combat isn't so easy.
Random encounters are frequent enough that it becomes tiresome. Your party can flee on their turn, but many times players may find themselves losing a character before that happens. Luckily a completely wiped out party respawns at the last village your characters visited. Unfortunately, with an HP of 1, it means visiting inns or using healing items is an overused necessity; this is particularly frustrating as consumables and inn visits are not so cheap. What ends up happening is that a lot of fighting has to happen in order to make money and to level up the party. It's a vicious cycle.
If there's one thing ASH is likable for, however, it's that its main characters, specifically Damien, are funny. The game itself uses textual observations for characters' discoveries to show that it has a sense of humour. Inspecting items unveils fourth-wall breaking quips; Damien's conversations with fellow party members do this as well. The tone of the overall game is not meant to be funny but these light comedic moments are refreshing in what would be an otherwise very rigid game.
This aspect of ASH makes it easier to digest. Its story, even though run-of-the-mill, is interesting just enough for players to want to know what happened in Nicholas' and Damien's past. Their relationship, and the dialogue carries the game from outright dull to something a little more compelling. Unfortunately, right when things were finally going somewhere to figure out much of Nicholas' backstory, we encountered a glitch so severe that it's hard to get around.
The struggle to keep the party well-equipped is expensive, with leveling up and getting money a troubling necessity. There comes a point in ASH where it's just not possible to move forward because the game freezes - roaming in the overworld to trigger an encounter caused our 3DS to consistentily reboot. It's so unfortunate because it comes before a sizeable infiltration mission, which would propel the game to dive further into its backstory regarding the Royal Guard. It also marked a point where information was revealed on the great evil affecting the land.
Conclusion
ASH is an RPG that gives a minimal experience into the genre. Its character interactions with each other and its world are slightly entertaining. The story, as tried and true a formula as it presents, is intriguing in its own way thanks in part to its characters. That said, unfortunately, its gameplay and overall presentation, including its narrative, are not unique enough to warrant spending time with. The game breaking glitch that happens some hours into the experience ensures that too.
Comments 33
This looks like it was made with RPG Maker, how is that possible? The latest one, MV, only supports PC and mobile.
@Peace-Boy it was made in RPG maker, Corpse Party was also made in RPG maker and it is on the 3DS.
So, these are mobile RPGs that are ported to 3DS? And there's no 3D which makes it a Virtual Console-esque experience. I played sprite-based RPGs on GBA but I just don't know about this one.
Really making those two screenshots earn their keep aren't you? Had this game on iPhone years ago. Got bored very quickly and moved on.
@ikki5 Interesting, but how was it done?
Would you expect anything more from CIRCLE?
For a second I thought this was A.S.H. Archaic Sealed Heat on DS eShop ugh hopes dashed. I always wanted to play it but I traded in my old DS
@Peace-Boy RPG Maker lets you use all kinds of external images and whatnot. You don't actually have to use any of the packed-in stuff, especially if you actually have some artistic talent.
...it's just extremely rare, since the bar is set so low...
Also, Circle's been porting and/or localizing RPG Maker games for a while. I don't know what they do to get it to work, but they were doing it long before MX was on the market.
Mmm. Looking at that world map gives me graving to fire up RPG Maker once more. This really does looks like something that would've been made in RPG Maker.
I think this was going to be that Japanese DS RPG. Was that one by the Final Fantasy guy?
@Peace-Boy This was made in RPG Maker VX nearly five years ago, I believe.
Multiple scripters and modders in the community already claimed it's impossible to convert and RPG Maker game into a console game or even a mobile game before MV, so there's no other process of conversion other than building a new engine from scratch and moving the image files over. This is illegal. Since the RPG Maker's license only allows their stock resources to be used in RPG Maker programs.
So in short, the entire existence of this game on the 3DS is against the RPG Maker's EULA.
https://www.rpgmakerweb.com/support/information/eula
So yeah, someone should bring this up to Degica.
@ikki5 Corpse Party was made from the ground up with the held of 5pb., I believe.
Only the original PC version back in 1996 was actually made in RPG Maker, but it's a good example of someone making a huge success with it.
@Seacliff It was originally made with RPG Maker.
@ikki5 That's... what I just said.
I'm just saying it's been handed to larger companies for the console ports, but it's a good example of creators that were successful with RPG.
@Hikingguy I agree with you, this review is a bit skewed against old-school RPGs. I was similarly disappointed at Morgan Sleeper's review of Justice Chronicles for the same reasons, as he also mentions that aspects of that game give off "an unfortunate RPG Maker vibe".
I would rather read a review that takes out the apparent skew towards RPG Maker games being seen as a "negative", considering that many games made with RPG Maker actually have gotten some high praise (like the aforementioned Corpse Party), and it's only a tool for creating games: it's what a person does with that tool that is important, not the tool itself.
@Seacliff Oh, that's depressing, I thought there was an actual way to port RPG Maker games to consoles. :/
By the way, you say someone should bring this up to Degica, but why don't you tell them?
@Peace-Boy Actually, I just did message them about an hour or two ago. They said they'll look into it and see if it either was a legal port, had special permission, or if it is against the EULA.
However, with modern programing people have been finding more ways to play RPG Maker 2k/2k3 games on the 3DS (A bit of a grey area due to modifying firmware), however I doubt this game uses such porting feature due to the game releasing so shortly after these programs were released (the project was picked up in 2013), and it was made in VX, not 2k/2k3. Even if it did use such a method it's still a grey area and I doubt it would be licences.
Actual RPG Maker games being ported and licensed on console should be a reality soon with MV, which runs on Javascript as opposed to Ruby. (Rpg Maker XP, VX, and VX Ace used different forms of Ruby)
Sorry if that sounded like a jumble mess. I'm very much into RPG Maker, so I don't know which terminology are too advance or not.
I was actually quite eager to look into this and other RPGs recently coming out. I wasn't certain if it was a good buy or not so I decided to wait for the reviews. Instead of any positivity of buying the games, I now have to decide if NintendoLife's reviews are even worth my time.
I do not say that with an easy heart. I love NintendoLife and it's the only place I actually get any reviews from. Unfortunately, I like the old school RPGs. I hate the idea of visible encounters. I am extremely upset with my favorite RPG, Dragon Quest, being turned more into visible encounters and lacking grinding for cash or experience.
Nothing sums it up, my disappointment of these reviews from NintendoLife, more sufficiently than this review. It shows open hostility towards old school RPGs and frowns upon what originally defined the entire genre. "While many modern RPGs, like Bravely Default for example, are moving away from outdated systems, such as random encounters and grinding levels to get ahead, ASH embraces those RPG roots." Not only does Bravely Default still used those Random Encounters engines, but it also includes level grinding. This makes this entire statement not only a falseitude, but it also highlights the negativity towards old school RPG gaming.
After reading this review, I am so sickened by my thoughts of this negativity that I no longer can trust NintendoLife with any RPG review. Don't send me to review a Shooter; Shooters are not my genre. If this person can't appreciate old school RPGs, they shouldn't be reviewing this.
@Seacliff Is Javascript supported on consoles then?
@GloryQuestor I'd say the tool is pretty important. For instance, I liked very few games that were made with Unity, while I love many Game Maker games.
@KingMike
No that was an entirely different game.
@Peace-Boy More like 'Flexible'
Javascript is insanely easy to convert to other programing languages, a notable one being HTML. At release it was already simple to convert a game for IOS, Android, and even browsers. To Javascript, the 3DS is just another operating system.
It'll still take some effort, because we're still just a few steps away from reaching it. For example browser games made in MV isn't support with the 3DS, Wii U's, or even Vita's browser application because they lack a Web Audio API.
I downloaded the game. There has been a patch, I'm hoping that the patch fixed the crashing issues.
I got the game because I like the games where I have to grind to lvl. I haven't played much of this game yet, but it seems like the type of games I like. But I like old school RPGs, so take my comments with that in consideration.
Looks too much like an RPG Maker Game...
It's about time this game got a review. Man, it seems like you guys took forever to finish this and "Justice Chronicles."
Anyway, aside from the decent portrait art, those are some pretty ugly graphics that wouldn't look out of place on the NES. Overall, it sounds like it would've gotten a 5 were it not for that game-breaking bug, but even if it gets patched that's not enough to interest me with all the other wonderful JRPGs out there, both retail and digital, that I have yet to finish or play.
CIRCLE Entertainment? Not surprised.
I like the game. I would give a 5 - 6. I have put in 6 hours and haven't encountered any glitches. its nothing ground Breaking but I didn't expect that in a 3.99 RPG which is decent enough to pass the time in an old style way. Players on the Eshop have been rating it a 5 pretty much across the board.
Why hasn't anyone mentioned that it doesn't let you move with the circle pad? You have to move with the D-Pad. The music sounds terrible, either you can't hear it or it's distorted and rattling the speakers.
@LordGeovanni I am a big fan of old-school RPGs too, and while the review does speak kindly of the game, I think the final score of 3 is fair reflection of a game-breaking glitch... in fact, that's probably reason enough to score the game even lower, IMO.
@SolarJetman
Have you played the game yourself? It tends to be difficult to list how severely a game breaking glitch should affect the score unless you have played it. I myself have not. In the meantime, I know games that have had glitches that disable the ability to see the ending and still they have a higher score than this. By this review, this game breaking glitch seems to be tied to the random battle encounter system and that might just be a random event anyway.
My point is if you eliminated every single game from having more than a 3 on a particularly bad glitch, you would be having very few games near the top.
@LordGeovanni I downloaded it recently, and played it a bit, and I like it. BUT, as a lifelong Nintendo devotee — a company known for releasing extremely polished games, unlike some major third parties — my expectations of games are that they are glitch-free when they come to market. If developers/producers, no matter how big or small, are either too lazy or hurried to make sure there are no bugs, I feel ripped off if I buy such a product. This is why I think the score of 3 is completely justified. We need to hold developers to the highest standard, and not allow them to think glitches are acceptable.
That said, there has been a patch released since this review was written, so NL would do well to give this game a fresh look and review.
I have been looking for A budget eshop rpg for awhile this sounded interesting so thought at £4 despite the review i'd give it a whirl i have no idea if the bug is still there or not but ive liked what ive played so far. the characters are likeable, the graphics are basic but get the job done. i do agree with regards to having to level up as you get very little money from battles and you do get quite heavy blows in early battles, that i would say is the major issue so far and whilst its quite easy to play battles some sort of tutorial would of been nice. for the price i think its great value and based on my experience so far i would say its a 6 or a 7.
Updated review ! Yes I did encounter the annoying bug which basically sets you back to the start . Despite this you can still finish the game but word of warning keep saving often ! It didn't seem to happen later on but it did for awhile and it seemed to be happen whilst In the menus . Despite this I actually loved the game . The characters are quite engaging and funny , if it had no bug I would give it a 7 but even with I think it's worth a 6. The 3 star review I think is a bit harsh .
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