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Backlog Chronicles: Scarlet Nexus

Scarlet Nexus released in 2021. I bought it, played for an hour or so, and then turned my attention to something else. I am sure you know how that goes. It's very rare that I do not like the game. More the "Oooh, shiny" approach I have had for the longest time to video games.

Boy did I miss out.

Scarlet Nexus is a fantastic action RPG developed by Bandai Namco Studios. Its anime-styled approach comes with tons of story elements through two main characters. You have Yuito and Kasane, both joining the OSF (the military of this world meant to fight Others which are monstrous alien creatures) as new recruits. They both have their own storylines that link up and to get the full picture, it is best to play through both characters. After you beat one, you have the option of a New Game Plus with the other.

The writing here is great and I found myself wanting to know everything, even after I completed one story. I finished Yuito's first and absolutely had to go back to Kasane's just to fill in some of the pieces. You can sort of see where it went in one playthrough but it's maybe a few lines of dialogue to sum it up. Without spoilers, you join the OSF and the "Others" start invading a relatively safe city you are stationed in. With plenty of twists, turns, and outright "What the hell" story points during the campaign, Scarlet Nexus constantly kept me wanting more.  There are some real "holy moly" moments I had in my second go as well since it wasn't exactly clear what happened in the first. It is by no means needed to figure it out as both stories will end the same. They offer different playstyles as Yuito is melee and Kasane is more ranged but once you play one, you're good to go on your second.

You know a game is good when you WANT to do the side quests. This is a game that proves that. Scarlet Nexus had me seeking out citizens to pick up additional content. Whether it was fighting requested enemies, finding certain items or just grinding (not much) for a new weapon, this game made sure I always had something to do. Before you start your next "phase" you have time to bond with your teammates, give them gifts, or hunt baddies at will. It has a nice pacing to it as you know when you can do all your side stuff every time.

For the combat portion, it rocks. You have mixed attacks of your main weapon and your powers. For example, Yuito and Kasane can lift objects in the battlefield up with their minds and throw them at the enemies to deplete their "crush gauge." You can then follow that up with a melee (or ranged if you are Kasane) to build your own power meter back up. You also have teammates who, if you have bonded enough with them, you can borrow their powers or call upon them to unleash a powerful move of their own to aid you in battle. This makes a great number of combo attacks possible and different playstyles achievable. It feels rather unique and felt kind of lonely jumping back into my playthrough of Final Fantasy 7 Remake after I was done. The combat is that good.

Scarlet Nexus has a lot of story as well. There are no real traditional "cut scenes" as the narrative is explained through comic/anime scenes. You'll see a frame and the speaker will pop up next to it as they are chatting. It took a bit to get used to, same with Tales of Arise (I will write about that as well) but after an hour or two into the game, it was A-Okay.

I spent roughly 65-70 hours on both stories and side quests in total for Scarlet Nexus. If you're going for 100% trophies or achievements, there are really only about 2 that require some sort of grinding. It is not bad at all.


I recommend Scarlet Nexus 100% if you are into Action/Adventure or RPGs in general. You can get through one story and get the gist of it in about 25-30 hours or complete both sides in around 65. With a great soundtrack and great action that makes Scarlet Nexus, you guessed it, a great game. 

You can play Scarlet Nexus on: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Microsoft Windows


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