Author: Rich Meister
Do you know what's cool? JRPGs, also Sailor Moon, also Shakspeare. Do you know who else is having these thoughts? The team at Zeboyd games. This Way Madness Lies is a mashup that I’m pretty sure no one asked for that fires on all cylinders to make an old-school RPG that is truly unique, entertaining, and incredibly engaging.
This Way Madness Lies (PC)
Developer: Zeboyd Digital Entertainment
Publisher: Zeboyd Digital Entertainment
Release Date: November 10, 2022
MSRP: $9.99
This was Madness Lies stars the Upon-Avon High Drama Society, a group of girls that love putting on plays almost as much as they love using their magical powers to save the worlds of famous Shakespeare works from Lovecraftian monsters, complete with an over-the-top magical girl transformation sequence.
This latest game from the creators of Cosmic Star Heroine and Cthulu Saves the World does a lot that's nostalgic and refreshing for the world of JRPGs. For starters, you might wonder how this insane premise is set up; the answer? Who cares? Romeo is in danger, and he needs your help; let's just get into it.
The gameplay is traditional turn-based combat that feels most inspired by under-appreciated classics like Golden Sun. As your characters level up, they unlock new abilities that can be slotted in to try different approaches. Difficulty can be adjusted at any time, with the baseline being easy for those who love a good story, but the challenge is there for those who want it. The gorgeous pixel artfully uses the 2D style to deliver gorgeous spell-casting particle effects SEGA classic Shining Force is a clear inspiration for this visual style. Even if you're playing on easy, try every attack out just to appreciate the work that went in here.
Most abilities work on a limited but replenishable cooldown system that forces your party to use their skills as synergistically as possible and stack status effects to get the most out of a turn. These cooldowns, as well as health, are reset after battles, so you won’t find yourself having to worry about stockpiling items either.
Writing is genuinely funny, if a bit campy at times, and one of the things worth appreciating the most is the humor derived from poking fun at the bits of Shakespeare’s works that have aged...less gracefully. A lot of the text is in old English, and Zeboyd has provided modern translations in case they’re ever throwing you off, but the cast doesn’t hesitate to call out some writing that feels a little less than modern, typically in fun ways.
Verdict: This way Madness Lies is a short and sweet JRPG coming in at around eight hours to beat. It gets the most out of a crazy premise and is a joy to play all the way through, not that I expect any less from this team. We need more short and experimental JRPGs like this, and I can’t wait to see what this studio turns out next.
Buy it
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher]