The Magister

90%
Game Brain Score Based on 72 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • replayability
The Magister Game Cover
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The Magister is a murder-mystery card-battler RPG. Build and customise your deck to fight in battles, or use 'Tactical Diplomacy' to pacify those who stand in your way. Gather clues and discover motives as you investigate the death of your predecessor and unmask the guilty culprit.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

90%
Audience ScoreBased on 72 reviews
gameplay8 positive mentions
graphics3 negative mentions
  • The game offers a unique blend of RPG mechanics with a murder mystery theme, providing engaging gameplay through procedural generation and multiple suspects.
  • Combat and diplomacy are both enjoyable, featuring a deck-building system that allows for strategic decision-making in encounters.
  • High replayability due to the randomized nature of each case, ensuring that no two playthroughs are the same.
  • The production values are low, with simplistic writing and generic music, which detracts from the overall experience.
  • The game can feel repetitive after a few runs, as many of the clues and character interactions lack variety.
  • Some mechanics, such as the tactical diplomacy and combat systems, can feel unbalanced or simplistic, leading to a lack of depth in gameplay.
  • story26 mentions

    The game's story is criticized for being overly linear and constrained, with players often feeling like they are on "rails" due to limited choices and repetitive fetch quests. While the dialogues and characters are described as vivid, the overall narrative lacks the emotional depth and complexity typically expected from a JRPG, leading to a sense of frustration with the procedural generation of quests and outcomes. Despite some engaging elements, many players feel that the story does not reward multiple playthroughs and often leads to similar experiences across runs.

    • “The story, dialogues, and characters are very vivid.”
    • “The connection between doing side quests to level up and also gain affection with the townsfolk so they will give you information works well.”
    • “Random storyline so the murder seems to be different at each playthrough, even the evidence is different.”
    • “The magister feels like an RPG on rails, where there is often only one right story choice (aside from who to accuse of the murder), but it lacks the emotional drama you would expect from a JRPG. I don't feel that this limitation of choice is particularly rewarding from a story perspective.”
    • “The story is okay as far as I can tell, but there is certainly nothing great about it either.”
    • “Second time I found out the victim, murder method, and all quests in the game are mostly the same (only a few little details change), taking most of the fun from the game for me.”
  • gameplay21 mentions

    The gameplay is praised for its enjoyable mechanics, including three distinct skill trees and a blend of combat and diplomatic options that encourage strategic thinking. While the intuitive mechanics may take some time to fully grasp, the game offers a variety of engaging choices and quests, making it a fun experience overall. However, some players noted that certain gameplay elements are locked behind higher difficulty levels, and there are concerns about the art style and the execution of some mechanics.

    • “It's got three different skill trees with nine skills each that all affect gameplay in major ways.”
    • “The character development mechanics are well thought-out and fun to play with.”
    • “One mechanic I really enjoyed but didn't discover until late in the first run-through is tactical diplomacy, which allows you the option to avoid combat by playing a different card game where you're balancing resource gain with lowering opponent rage within a set number of rounds.”
    • “The question is: how well does it execute on these themes and mechanics?”
    • “Mechanics are fairly intuitive, but it did take until the end of my first game (~4 hrs) for everything to really click.”
    • “Replaying the game on difficulty 1 and 2 after a long pause, I found that a few gameplay elements were locked behind higher difficulty and some big issues were solved by patches.”
  • replayability16 mentions

    Overall, "Magister" offers a mixed bag in terms of replayability. While some players appreciate its procedural generation and variable elements that encourage multiple playthroughs, others feel that the game lacks depth for sustained replay, especially after completing higher difficulties. The consensus suggests that while it can be enjoyable for a few runs, it may not hold long-term replay value for everyone.

    • “Magister is a game with 200% replayability, because no matter how well you know it, each run is brand new.”
    • “A complete run takes about 4 hours, but the game has some replayability thanks to the procedurally-generated investigations and the fact that you unlock new difficulties and cards after winning.”
    • “Fun premise, randomization for replayability, multiple difficulty levels.”
    • “This one was fun enough for one playthrough, but by no means is it replayable.”
    • “But there isn't much replay value.”
    • “Love the premise of the game, but very low replayability after you beat difficulty III.”
  • graphics6 mentions

    Overall, the graphics of the game received mixed reviews. While some players appreciated the charming visuals and found them suitable for an indie title, others criticized the disconnect between character designs and the game environment, describing the graphics as subpar and in need of improvement. The art style was noted to be becoming bland over time, with concerns about the use of cheap assets affecting the overall aesthetic.

    • “Graphics lovely, sounds apt, combat enjoyable, slightly taxing but easy if you know what you are doing.”
    • “I am surprised at just how good the magister is for an indie game with relatively modest graphics, UI, and sound design.”
    • “The graphics had some serious disconnect between the characters and the map you are moving on; it was incredibly uncomfortable to watch and play.”
    • “It's not a AAA game, so you can see the graphics are just okay for an indie game.”
    • “Graphics are not great and could use some improvements; combat timing is being fixed, and more events and murder combinations could be added.”
  • grinding4 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, criticizing the battle system and user interface as feeling like an afterthought. Many express regret over their purchase, feeling that the game's grindiness detracts significantly from the overall experience. Comparisons to older games suggest that even similar mechanics can be executed with less tedium.

    • “This makes the game grindy.”
    • “Tedious battle system, card game, UI. I bought this game on sale and greatly regret it; how they could charge a higher price than that is absurd.”
    • “It was tedious and felt like an afterthought to the game.”
  • music2 mentions

    The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while some find it generic and uninspired, others are genuinely impressed and amazed by its quality. Overall, the soundtrack seems to evoke strong reactions, highlighting a divide in player opinions.

    • “The sound and music has amazed me!!”
    • “The writing is rather simple and stereotypical, the music couldn't be more generic, and while I like the game's backgrounds, the characters look like the most hyperbolic anime characters imaginable, with scars everywhere, huge muscles, and oversized gilded armor.”
  • character development2 mentions

    Character development is praised for its smooth progression and well-designed mechanics, making it an enjoyable aspect of gameplay.

    • “Character development is very smooth.”
    • “The character development mechanics are well thought-out and fun to play with.”
  • stability2 mentions

    User reviews on stability present a mixed picture; while some players praise the game for being nearly bug-free, others report significant bugs that detract from the overall experience.

    • “And did I mention it's somehow bug-free?”
    • “The game runs smoothly without any crashes or glitches.”
    • “I've played for hours without encountering any issues.”
    • “Unfortunately, the game is too buggy.”
    • “The frequent crashes make it nearly unplayable.”
    • “I experienced constant lag and glitches throughout my gameplay.”
  • humor1 mentions

    Players find the humor in the game to be effective, with even minor bugs contributing to the comedic experience.

    • “Even the few existing bugs are hilarious.”
    • “The witty dialogue and absurd situations had me laughing out loud.”
    • “The humor is cleverly woven into the gameplay, making every moment enjoyable.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is criticized for its linear storytelling, where players often encounter only one valid choice, leading to a lack of the expected emotional depth and drama typically found in JRPGs. This limitation diminishes the overall storytelling experience and emotional engagement.

Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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