The Witch and the Hundred Knight: Revival Edition (PS4) Review
** The Witch and the Hundred Knight on PS4 is a re-release of the PS3 version. I have not played the PS3 version, so this review is based on the first time playing, not a comparison to the PS3 version. **
The Witch and the Hundred Knight is about a witch and a knight, who is named Hundred Knight. Metallia, the witch, summons the Hundred Knight from a magical realm to act as her personal servant and henchman. With the Hundred Knight’s help, she hopes to spread the mud of her swamp to the four corners of the world so that she can be recognized as the greatest witch of all time. I found the storyline to be very thin and bland. There are many pointless side-stories throughout the game before finally having an actual storyline in the final chapters of the game.
I also found the gameplay to be just as bland. Players control of the Hundred Knight and explore a variety of large, open areas, many of which I found were too large and too open. Hundred Knight can equip up to five weapons at a time, which come in multiple varieties and different types of damage. Your weapons are set from 1-5 and make up your attack combo chain, using each weapon in order. You can also dodge and summon Tochkas, which are beings mostly used for support. I found only two of them useful for anything other than clearing obstacles. Most of the time, combat simply comes down to hitting the attack button until everything is dead. Even boss fights typically don't require any more strategy than this. I found myself running around and button-mashing a majority of the time, which left very little strategy to the game.
The very little strategy that I mentioned is a mechanic in the game called the GCal system. GCals are a time limit placed on the Hundred Knight in each area. Performing actions in the game such as attacking, running, healing, or exploring an unexplored area costs GCals, which drain down from one hundred each time the Hundred Knight enters an area. GCals are fairly easy to restore. The easiest way is by spending grade points earned in combat, which restore 10 GCals each. Grade points can be spent at any of the pillars that are found throughout each level, and can also be used to grant the Hundred Knight temporary stat boosts. The Hundred Knight can also consume nearly dead foes in order to regain a small amount of GCals, but doing so also fills his inventory up with junk. I found the GCal system to be a little annoying at times, but it also gave the game some strategic points and kept it a little more difficult.
As I said before, this is a remake/re-release of the PS3 version, so I am judging the graphics strictly based on the PS4 version. Having never played nor seen the PS3 version, I am not sure how much they updated the graphics, but I found the visuals in the PS4 version to be quite good. The game is played in a ¾ top-down type view and the colors and details pop nicely. The worlds have unique artstyles and the characters have great detail to them. The visuals in this game may not be mind-blowing, but they help keep the game interesting, which it needs due to the lack of strategy.
Overall, The Witch and the Hundred Knight: Revival Edition is a decent button-masher with very little story line. It is currently priced at $39.99 on the PS Store and unless you are a fan of the PS3 version, I would definitely pass on it.
Score a 3 out of 5.
Thanks to NIS America for providing a copy for review.