Nutaku is best known for their fun, free to play browser games aimed at casual players. While a focus on ease-of-entry has allowed the company to quickly acquire a large fanbase, many players that enjoy deeper challenges have long been left longing for more hardcore titles. After all, Japanese games are known for their perceived difficulty, and in the case of JRPGs, their challenging tactical turn-based combat systems. Nutaku's newest release X-Overd caters to exactly the players that enjoy such a challenge.
X-Overd is set in the fantasy world Lunartis and tells the story of an advanced human civilization that received their technology from strangers visiting them through mysterious gates. As has been the trope in fantasy stories since Tolkien, the glory days are in the past, and the world is a shadow of itself. A disaster from the gate destroyed the past humans, and only some technology, and weak magic, is left at humanity's disposal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47c8xcldfZs
Once the campaign begins, X-Overd plays somewhat like Etrian Odyssey, with interface-based town actions and turn-based pest killing missions set against 3D backgrounds. Players start by fighting enemies like cats and bandits, then gradually face off against more serious opponents deeper into the campaign. Ultimately, your six-character party fights off waves of enemies before cornering the boss monster at the end of each dungeon. This is where it becomes wise to turn off the automated combat and make some serious choices about which elemental spell to cast, which character to heal, and whether you’ve made the right decision in bringing that cute newbie sorceress that isn’t quite high enough level to be running this dungeon.
In combat, characters have a variety of spells that cost mana points. Some spells cause status effects like poison, paralyze, and sleep, which can be extremely useful for controlling groups of foes - but watch out, because the enemies use them on you as well. Unlike Nutaku's ultra-casual but popular Flower Knight Girl, you can never simply turn on autowalk and enjoy the grind.
As levels are gained and progress is made through the game, more meaningful events become available, such as battles with boss-like gatekeepers that drop sweet loot for your party members. You’ll also open up crafting options that enable you to cook meals for your characters - because truly, no RPG is complete without food buffs.
Art has always been the strong suit of games appearing on Nutaku, and X-Overd is no exception. The characters are drawn with painstaking effort, and as if to show off their talents, the art department made them all wear outfits of exquisite detail in fantastic designs. The collectibility is meant to justify spending some money on the gacha system, which for those of you unfamiliar with Japanese online games, is a chance-based lottery that rewards you with new characters to join your party.
If you like JRPGs with classic character progression mechanics but are too time-constrained to take on an overly involved gameplay experience, X-Overd offers a system focused on fun collecting, squad management, and monster slaying that switches between tactical and automated in an effective manner.
Check the game out at Nutaku.net.
