Anima: Gate of Memories

Reminding me of cult hit Nier, Anima: Gate of Memories has its issues, but a lot of them can be forgiven thanks to how charming the game is and how interesting the world surrounding it is.

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The Arcane Edition includes both Anima Gate of Memories and Anima The Nameless chronicles. Play two different full campaigns, each one with its unique story, characters, scenarios and bosses.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

65%

Audience ScoreBased on 470 reviews

story108 positive mentions

optimization8 negative mentions

The game features a rich and engaging story with interesting character dynamics.
The combat system allows for character switching and combo chaining, providing a fun and dynamic gameplay experience.
The art design and environments are visually appealing, creating an immersive atmosphere.

The voice acting is subpar and can be cringeworthy at times, detracting from the overall experience.
The camera controls are often frustrating, making platforming sections difficult and sometimes unfair.
The game suffers from balance issues, with some bosses being overly difficult and punishing.

story
302 mentions
36 % positive mentions
60 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The game's story is a blend of familiar anime tropes and engaging narrative elements, featuring well-developed characters and multiple endings that enhance its depth. While some players found the writing and voice acting lacking, many appreciated the emotional impact and intriguing lore, particularly for those familiar with the Anima universe. Overall, the story is seen as a strong point, capable of captivating players despite some technical shortcomings in gameplay and presentation.
- “The game's narrative is well-written, and the characters are well-developed, making it easy to become invested in the story.”
- “The story is also engaging, with plenty of twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat.”
- “The story was interesting and once I began to understand what was going on everything made sense and I started to become more intrigued into the story of the game rather than me just trying to get through each new area as quickly as possible.”
- “The story is a mishmash of all anime cliches from Final Fantasy, Claymore, Evangelion references, Silent Hill Homecoming bosses, Devil May Cry 3 tower, and many others.”
- “The story is pretty minimal and makes little sense with random existential dialogue about nothing; I lost interest pretty fast and I don't think there was much to miss.”
- “The incoherent storytelling is horrendous.”
gameplay
196 mentions
31 % positive mentions
55 % neutral mentions
14 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Anima: Gate of Memories has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its engaging combat mechanics and character-switching feature, reminiscent of titles like Devil May Cry. However, criticisms highlight issues such as clunky controls, unresponsive mechanics, and frustrating platforming sections that detract from the overall experience. While the game offers a unique blend of genres and a compelling story, many feel that it lacks polish and refinement, making it a challenging yet rewarding experience for dedicated players.
- “Anima: Gate of Memories is an action RPG game that offers an enjoyable and immersive gameplay experience.”
- “The game offers a great blend of gameplay, story, and aesthetics, and it's sure to keep you entertained for hours on end.”
- “The gameplay is fluid and easy to grasp, yet as the game progresses the bosses become very hard and interesting.”
- “The gameplay is clunky and doesn't flow well in the slightest, making chaining moves or even approaching an enemy feel like a chore.”
- “It's literally dodge into attack into dodge into attack, with unresponsive controls, horrible knockback mechanic, no stagger, and bosses with 55 million health and AOE melee attack if you're stupid enough to get close to them.”
- “The last boss fights really showcased the lackluster gameplay in combat.”
music
125 mentions
63 % positive mentions
34 % neutral mentions
2 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its haunting and beautiful soundtrack, which enhances the overall atmosphere and immersion. Many reviewers highlight the quality of the score, noting that it fits well with the game's themes and environments, making it a standout feature despite some criticisms of voice acting and gameplay. Overall, the soundtrack is considered exceptional, with some players expressing a desire for it to be available for purchase separately.
- “One of the game's standout features is its soundtrack, which is both haunting and beautiful.”
- “The music perfectly captures the game's dark and mysterious tone, adding to the overall immersion.”
- “The music is absolutely outstanding and fits perfectly with the theme of the game.”
- “The soundtrack of the game is decent as well; however, the voice acting is on a thin line between being cringy and being funny.”
- “Music is tolerable and can even provide occasional atmosphere, but the general sound direction is atrocious.”
- “This game is really trash... I don't know why I played it before because now I'm regretting buying the second part... the OST is fine, but if it were a CD of songs, it could have my upvote; for a game, it's poorly made in all parts.”
graphics
123 mentions
37 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
13 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Anima: Gate of Memories" receive mixed reviews, with some praising the art style and detailed environments while others criticize the overall execution and dated visuals reminiscent of PS2/PS3 era games. Many players note that while the graphics may be basic and occasionally glitchy, the game's aesthetic and atmosphere can still be enjoyable, especially when focusing on the story and lore. Overall, the graphics are seen as a weak point, but they are often overshadowed by the game's engaging narrative and art direction.
- “The game's graphics are visually stunning, with highly detailed environments and character designs that are a feast for the eyes.”
- “Graphics are amazing, love the colors, smoothness of animation... consider however it's an indie, you may remember old PS2 games.”
- “The whole aesthetic of the game is well made.”
- “Graphics are really bad.”
- “My biggest problem is the entire game I had stuttering, frame drops, and no matter what changes I made to anti-aliasing and v-sync, as well as playing on lowest graphics made no difference, and I never have had this problem even playing FPS on medium-high.”
- “The graphics aren't so shiny when compared to more recent indie titles, but their poor execution and processing (I'm looking at you, anti-aliasing) are easily excused the more you play the game, thanks to the wonderful job these 3 people managed to achieve when it comes to art direction.”
humor
43 mentions
95 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, featuring both intentional and unintentional comedic moments, with some dialogues being genuinely funny while others veer into cringeworthy territory. Characters like Ergo provide humorous lines, though the quality of voice acting often detracts from the experience, leading to a "so bad it's funny" vibe. Overall, while the humor can be hit-or-miss, it contributes to a unique and engaging narrative, balancing between lightheartedness and darker themes.
- “The humor in the dialogue is fantastic and it has a unique setting.”
- “Really funny game with nice gameplay, stunning visuals, and a truly interesting story.”
- “So yeah, for the price, you get a fairly good amount of game with funny characters and good combat similar to the DMC series.”
- “The game tries to be serious like 'House of the Dead' but fails to deliver any real humor or meta commentary.”
- “It feels like 'House of the Dead' but without the humor; the game is too serious and misses the mark.”
atmosphere
22 mentions
82 % positive mentions
14 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its impressive environment design and art direction, reminiscent of the PS2/PS3 era, which enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the intriguing and dark story setting, complemented by a fitting soundtrack that elevates the atmosphere, despite some criticism of the sound direction. Overall, the combination of visuals, music, and narrative presentation creates a captivating and immersive atmosphere.
- “For an indie, the environment design is amazing, along with the atmosphere it creates.”
- “The final boss stage deserves special attention: by supporting the character almost as if part of it, it creates a really unique atmosphere, especially when combined with the soundtrack.”
- “The overall setting and atmosphere of the game is wonderfully presented.”
- “Music is tolerable and can even provide occasional atmosphere, but general sound direction is atrocious.”
optimization
18 mentions
22 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
44 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players experiencing significant issues such as stuttering, frame drops, and freezing, despite attempts to adjust settings. While some users noted that the cel-shaded graphics were well optimized for a small team, others criticized the overall performance as uninspired and poorly executed. Overall, the game's optimization appears to be inconsistent, leading to frustration for many players.
- “Well optimized cel-shaded graphics with impressive amount of assets for a small team.”
- “+ well optimized.”
- “Well, this game was a bit less optimized than I expected, but after getting it to play properly I can say I don't hate it and it did not fall flat in terms of my expectations.”
- “My biggest problem is the entire game. I had stuttering, frame drops, and no matter what changes I made to anti-aliasing and V-Sync, as well as playing on the lowest graphics settings, it made no difference. I have never had this problem even playing FPS games on medium-high settings.”
- “Uninspired and badly optimized game with no substance.”
- “You can't make two steps before stumbling into one, all because of bad optimization, which would cause freezing issues.”
emotional
12 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its touching and nostalgic moments, with players expressing a strong attachment to the characters and experiencing sadness during key scenes. While many reviewers praised the character development and the heartfelt conclusion, some noted a lack of emotional investment, leading to mixed feelings about their overall experience.
- “It's really hard for me to say goodbye to the characters (although I still have a New Game Plus to play), and at the end of the good ending, I felt a bit sad, emotional, and nostalgic.”
- “By the end of the game, I have grown attached to the characters and I cried a little in some scenes.”
- “It was really heartwarming when the cutscene at the end of the credits of the 'true end' hit me.”
character development
12 mentions
25 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is highlighted by impressive character and monster designs, which are visually appealing and well-crafted. However, the gameplay suffers from a lack of meaningful interaction with these characters, as items primarily serve to alter stats without enhancing the overall experience. Additionally, the dialogue is criticized for being crude and detracting from the character depth.
- “Character designs, monster designs, and the environments are all great.”
- “While I like the character design, it's a pity that the items (weapons) only change some stats of the characters but aren't 'actually' used.”
- “And of course, those character designs are a ++!”
- “There's sexually crude dialogue, and while the combat is okay, the game ultimately feels like a mesh of bad ideas and mediocre implementation.”
- “Character designs are great, but they don't compensate for the lack of depth in character development.”
- “The character development is shallow, leaving players wanting more than just visually appealing designs.”
stability
8 mentions
50 % positive mentions
25 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
Overall, the game demonstrates solid stability with no major glitches or crashes reported, and it runs well on various platforms, including Linux. However, players have experienced freezing issues in open areas due to asset loading, leading to frequent loading screens. Despite these minor setbacks, the game remains enjoyable and functional for its budget.
- “There were no glitches, bugs, or shutdowns.”
- “Keep in mind that this is a title with a much smaller budget, so it does not outshine any of those games, but it does have all the same parts, it works quite well, runs great, and is very enjoyable.”
- “Runs great on Linux!”
- “A:gom can't handle open areas with objects in them (as apparent from one of the starting zones in the game, where you meet the lady for the second time). I kept getting freezes on my PC, and lowering the resolution changed nothing, because apparently it was just the game loading up assets as I progressed, deleting them once I moved past a certain point, then loading them in again if I backtracked, instead sentencing the players to dozens of small loading screens.”
grinding
6 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game frustrating due to a lack of balance and insufficient grinding spots, which leads to difficulty spikes that can make the experience infuriating, especially on higher difficulty levels. While the game is marketed as an action-RPG, it offers minimal RPG elements beyond grinding for skill points, with a shared experience system and limited narrative choices. Combat starts off tedious but improves as players progress, with more engaging enemies appearing later in the game.
- “The balance of the game is absent, so if you want to play it - play only on easy because the controls, the platforming, and the difficulty spikes without proper grinding places make the experience very infuriating.”
- “Although marketed as an action RPG, this game only has a tiny amount of RPG elements. Other than grinding and leveling up to gain skill points (you get 2 points each level-up for each character, and XP/level are shared for both playable characters, but the skill trees are different), and multiple endings that only depend on your choice at the very end of the story, there is no branching plot or choices before that point. Besides that, there are no other role-playing elements I see in this game.”
- “The combat is a bit tedious at the beginning, but as you get further in the game, enemies get more interesting.”