The World Next Door

“The mechanic for spell casting is fine in concept, but actual casting takes too long and sometimes the game doesn't register your cast or your instructions to move a tile.”

“I kept getting caught on invisible corners, and the picking up, placing, and casting tiles mechanic legitimately just doesn't work half the time.”

“The bosses also throw in tile busting/blocking mechanics, which draws out those battles--much of the time you're just standing around avoiding their mechanics because so many tiles are blocked there is nothing to cast.”

“While the artwork for the actual game itself with the tiny sprites and soft visuals is utterly gorgeous, the various sprites displayed when characters are talking all look like plastic dolls that would be sold to young girls, or the kinds of character models you would see in a stock mobile dating game with underhanded pay-to-play elements.”

“I did really like the art style and the puzzles, but I can't condone buying this game at full price for three hours of play.”

“The way the fights work is both challenging and entertaining, and all of the enemies are intimidating, despite the cutesy art style of the overworld.”

“The soundtrack, to be honest, was very bland, so much that I can barely recollect what it sounded like, though I just finished the game a few moments ago.”

“Music is forgettable.”

“If you do pick up the soundtrack, it is WAV files, not MP3. It's my understanding that WAV is superior, but it's also not as compatible.”

“That being said though, I found the storyline and character development to be lacking, which appears to be a common criticism with this game, especially for those who were going to play it for the story. In that case, I can see why they felt disappointed or that the characters were flat and the ending too open-ended, with the overall plot lacking in tension and stakes.”

“Since as Jun, you are technically only in this world for a few days, I couldn't really say if there should be a lot more character development considering what you and your friends go through together. There is some, but as a few others have pointed out, they seem to go off ensemble cast archetypes and don't feel substantial or satisfying for those who are invested in anything character-driven, which this game, as I've experienced, is not.”

“[The game felt a little too short, some character designs really looked amateurish, choices had very extremely minute effects on the game, input lag on PC version (Switch version was fine), RPG elements seemed unnecessary]”

“You'll need a second life for grinding.”

“As it is, the battles and puzzles are tedious, and you find yourself slogging through them with irritation at the game devs for not keeping fun their main priority.”

“I really want more and would be happy to pay for more, but as is, the game is merely attractive art with some elements placed on top to give the user some feeling of satisfaction through initially interesting but ultimately tedious and buggy battles and the illusion of a deep world when they are allowed to explore only a tiny percentage of what would be possible.”

“The world next door has 0 replayability because it just becomes boring.”

“Perhaps movement can be slicker and cleaner, as well as a 'skip' option for dialogue to encourage replayability.”

“It's suffering from a buggy combat system.”

“I really want more and would be happy to pay for more, but as is, the game is merely attractive art with some elements placed on top to give the user some feeling of satisfaction through initially interesting but ultimately tedious and buggy battles and the illusion of a deep world when they are allowed to explore only a tiny percentage of what would be possible.”

“The overall atmosphere feels lifeless and uninspired, lacking any real sense of immersion.”

“Despite the game's setting, the atmosphere is flat and fails to evoke any emotional response.”

“The ambient sounds and visuals do not blend well, creating a disjointed experience that detracts from the overall atmosphere.”