Anima Gate of Memories

Anima: Gate of Memories is a third-person action RPG set in a truly unique and engrossing world. Join up with The Bearer of Calamity as she embarks on a quest to stop a war in the shadows that could change the course of the future. Making an unlikely alliance with an ancient monster, things go to hell very quickly with many battles and some serious boss fights waiting for them as they progress through a distinct and interesting world. If you are looking for an interesting game that really tries something unique, then this is something that will interest you. Let’s get into it.

Gameplay

The gameplay in Anima shares some similarities to the Devil May Cry series. Combat that has a lot of movement and combos, you must fight fast and hard to make it through the levels. Although the normal enemies don’t pose much of a threat when in small numbers, the bosses are some of the most vein-bursting, controller-smashing, cuss-inspiring encounters that you may ever encounter.

Maybe I’m not the greatest gamer to ever live, but I often found myself repeatedly restarting battles with bosses, spending like 40 minutes learning their attacks and weaknesses. And its not like the combat system isn’t robust, there’s a nice amount of customizability when it comes to your attacks so you are allowed to play your way; its just the bosses can be a lot sometimes.

Throughout the game, you will play as either The Bearer or Ergo, a demon-like monster that takes human form and you can switch with whenever. Although most of the game is walking from A to B and killing everything you see. There are a few mix ups throughout where you may do some platforming and the themes of those sections can vary nicely.

Story

The story follows The Bearer of Calamities, a young woman who has lost her identity, who has been tasked with finding and retrieving an ancient artefact. The story in this title is actually quite good. It’s dark and unique and interesting, I had a great time finding all the pages of the bosses’ stories and learning about their dark pasts. The narrative fits the look and themes of the world brilliantly, its just up to you to discover what’s going on.

Aesthetics

Its time to lay it out for you; the main character in this title is very attractive. She has been rendered well in a unique style reminiscent of Heavenly Sword or Bayonetta, safe to say she is strangely sexy and that works for me. There’s a lot of that much needed sex appeal that helps cut the dark overtones of the rest of the game as she isn’t the only person who is gorgeous and/or shredded.

Besides the characters, the world actually looks really good too. The levels have been designed in interesting ways and there are a few artistic choices throughout that really surprised me with their creativity. The world looks like a place I actually want to explore and that’s actually pretty rare when I think of how many games have open worlds.

Pros:

• Great character designs
• Interesting and unique world
• Very engaging boss backstories

Cons:

• Bosses can be infuriating
• Normal enemies aren’t even a challenge