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Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Lv 5 ~ Costume Quest

 It's still another six months until October, but now is as good of a time as any for me to review the RPG Costume Quest and its DLC "Grubbins On Ice". I had been meaning to play through this title for quite some time, but made sure that during Halloween I'd do so -- and I was pleasantly surprised.



 Costume Quest is an adorable downloadable title for the PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade, and most recently, Steam, and combines traditional RPG elements with a modern, comedic setting, reminiscent of EarthBound. You take control of one of two twins (Reynold and Wren) whose other sibling ends up being kidnapped by a monster while trick-or-treating (after being mistaken for candy due to wearing a candy corn costume, hah!) and it is up to you to rescue him or her. Over the course of the game you end up befriending other kids in the neighborhood -- two of which join your party (Everett and Lucy) -- and travel to various neighborhoods while collecting candy and costumes in order to save the day. The totally awesome catch is that these costumes seemingly transform the children during battle: from a vampire, to french fries, to my personal favorite, the statue of liberty.

Lady Liberty ROCKS that toga. Faaabulous!!
 I didn't expect an incredibly deep storyline given that it was just a child-friendly downloadable title, and so thankfully, I wasn't disappointed in that aspect. Not to say that there isn't a story, it's just... well, simple. The characters are charming, however, and the humor is spot-on. The dialogue was well-written (although again, I use the word "simple") and the names of characters, enemies and items were clever. I typically believe that story is the most important factor in an RPG, but I will admit, the childlike humor made up for the lack of an incredibly deep plot. But yeah. It's a cute, simple story, and suits the game's characters and setting.

 The game's music and sound effects weren't anything notable, either; again, they weren't bad, per say, but they weren't anything that particularly impressed me. The cartoony, cel-shaded graphics, on the other hand, are something I'm incredibly fond of, and the character design and art style both reminded me of games like Animal Crossing and yes, EarthBound. (It's fairly obvious that the developers had EarthBound for inspiration -- I swear it's not just because I'm biased... although I do love that game...) So where audio was mostly "meh" -- especially seeing as how there was no voice acting whatsoever (I mean, sure, it's a DLC title meant to be a retro-styled RPG, but still...) -- the graphics and design really tickled my pickle.

Mmm, smell that scrumptious sizzle.
 What were most surprising to me were the elements featured when actually playing the game. Sure, none of them are necessarily new, and are far from ground-breaking, but it was nice seeing the inspiration from classic games be applied in this title.

 Costume Quest takes the typical RPG feature of a "class" or "job" system that determine skills and abilities and links it with the game's Halloween theme by using costumes, which I thought was both innovative and adorable. There are various roles that can be played: from ranged to melee and from healing and offense, and mix-and-matching my favorite costumes was delightful. Each of the costumes possess special abilities, and most of these costumes also have field abilities that can be used when traversing neighborhoods (for example, the rocket skates of the robot costume to dash). It was a nice touch, although, again, nothing too incredibly innovative. But nice.

 Instead of money or gold, seeing as how the game involves children actively trick-or-treating, candy is used as currency. The only purpose for candy is to purchase stickers, which are equipped to provide statistical bonuses or added effects. Some of these added effects, however, made the game painfully easy -- and it never was a challenge, at any point, even during boss battles. Ultimately, the player has to make a conscious decision to amp up the difficulty by not using stickers if they are seeking any sort of challenge at all. Also, while the game does feature a few mini-games and side quests, it's still a very, very linear experience.



 The turn-based battle system is reminiscent of Super Mario RPG, namely because of the use of quick time events in order to increase offense and mitigate damage taken from enemies. I am a fan of using features like this in an otherwise "typical" RPG, simply because it forces the player to not only implement strategies, but also to engage during the battles instead of simply watching what happens. However, the difference between successfully completing a timed attack or block and not doing so was substantial; I quickly learned that timing was crucial to not being defeated. The game does prompt the player when to input a command -- and does so EVERY single time -- so once you've figured out what to do, it's not a challenge in the least.

 The DLC chapter, "Grubbins On Ice", picks up where the children left off, and adds a new story arc, new costumes, and new stickers. Although certainly not a massive expansion, I recommend that if you plan to give this game a shot, make sure to get the DLC, as well. The costumes are fun, the stickers are ridiculous, and the new enemies are somewhat more difficult than in the main game, but still not anywhere near the difficulty level I was hoping for. Still, I think that the DLC is integral if you're wanting to play through this game and "truly" complete it, like I did. (and hey, it has a few more achievements to pick up, too!)

 It may not be incredibly difficult; it may not be the most innovative; it may not be the most immersive... but Costume Quest is most definitely a fun and enjoyable game. I honestly do recommend it, especially if you're looking for a light-hearted, quick and casual RPG to beat in a day or two and feel like taking a walk down memory lane... and remembering what it's like to be a kid again.


  • Audio: 2
  • Gameplay: 3
  • Originality: 3
  • Story: 2
  • Visuals: 4
  • Overall: 3
  • Difficulty: Very Easy
  • Completion Time: 13 Hours (... and I literally completed everything)

+ Adorable concept, art style and character design
+ Generally fun to play
+ Incredibly amusing and clever humor
- Far too short to fully complete
- Almost annoyingly easy
- "Meh" storyline and no replayability whatsoever

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