Varlet is a JRPG coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Switch on August 28th. The game’s developers traveled to Anime Expo 25 to provide demos of the game’s battle system, and I was able to get some hands-on time with it. And just to be sure that I got the full battle experience they started me off with a boss fight, but before I get into that let’s take a look at what the game is about.
The game is set in the future after the development of cross-reality networking. Kousei Academy is the first school to implement this technology as a part of its curriculum, which attracts the game’s protagonist, Hero, who transfers to the school. Once at the school he joins the SSS (Student Support Services), an informal student society that helps students work through their issues or aids them with special requests. He soon finds that the cross-reality networking is leading to glitches – alternate worlds created by the psyches of the students when their needs and fears exceed their ability to control them and they become manifest. The alter ego of one of these students was the boss that was awaiting me for battle within her glitch.
The battles are turn-based, with the order of attack displayed on a timeline on the left side of the screen. In most turn-based games, the timeline is mostly informational, but in Varlet the actions that your characters take have a direct effect on the timeline. When selecting an action, you will see how many turns it will take to complete. Once you select an action, it will appear on the timeline that many turns ahead. In addition, if the action has a target, whether it’s an ally or an enemy, the target will be shown on the timeline as well. And it’s not just you doing this – your enemies are selecting actions and targets as well and those will appear on the timeline, too.
Battles are more than just selecting an attack or an occasional buff as each character’s turn comes up. You must pay close attention to what’s coming up on the timeline to survive a battle. Knowing when’s the best time to interrupt an enemy attack or when a character should assume a defensive stance is critical, as is knowing where on the timeline an action will appear and if there will be consequences from the enemy actions that come first. Choosing a long-developing heavy attack won’t do you any good if that allows the enemy to strike that character first and possible interrupt the attack or cause heavy damage to the character. In addition to being strategic with your choices, you’ll need to be adaptable as well. During my boss battle the boss summoned a couple of minions and suddenly there were two new enemy actions on the timeline targeting my team.
Another factor that plays into battle is that enemies can have a stun gauge. Clear that gauge and the enemy will be momentarily stunned, allowing you to unleash a burst of attacks from your team. Maximizing the damage that your team does while the enemy is stunned also requires some planning so that your team can take full advantage of the situation to do as much damage as possible.
I enjoyed the strategic depth to the battle I played, and was impressed with the sheer number of attacks and actions available to each character when planning their next move. There’s a lot to explore here in terms of battle strategy and attack synergy. The battle was fun to play, but it was unfortunately the end of the demo. I asked the developers a bit about the rest of the game and they said that it will be a full RPG with a world to explore. Your membership in the SSS also means that you will be interacting a lot with the other students. The choices that you make during these interactions will affect your relationships with them. Your choices will also server to define your character traits which will also impact the arc of your relationships, and determine the passive battle skills that you develop. All told, there’s enough here to keep you occupied for over twenty hours of gameplay. Once again, you can get your hands on Varlet on August 28th and give it a try yourself. If the demo was any indication, those of you who prefer battles that require thinking more than repetition or reflexes should definitely give Varlet a look.