Overview – developed by SimonCreative and Pupuya Games, with publishing by Idea Factory International, Little Witch Nobeta is an adventure with a focus on magical shooting action. Delve through an ancient castle, discover the mysteries that it holds and battle the monsters and souls within on the way to the throne. This version is available for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and Steam, with a link to the game at the bottom of this review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank Idea Factory International for providing the copy of Little Witch Nobeta used for this piece, via the Keymailer service. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review, starting with the story. Please note, I will be covering the core experience of the game, omitting some details to prevent spoilers. I also reviewed the Switch version of the game a few years ago, with most of the content being similar to this review, which you can find (HERE).
Story – Nobeta, a young witch has travelled to a mysterious castle, looking for answers about who she is and her life. As she explored the castle, looking for the throne room, she comes across a mysterious black cat with magical power. As she ventures through the castle, Nobeta will gain new magical powers, while encountering Crafted Souls, powerful beings that posess great magical power. Can Nobeta overcome the challenges, uncover the castle’s secrets and find the answers she seeks.
Gameplay – Little Witch Nobeta is a third person action adventure, where players take the role of the titular witch. In this adventure, players will explore the different areas of the castle, fighting monsters and taking on powerful bosses. The core game loop for this release focuses on exploration, puzzle solving and some platforming challenges. While doing this, players will encounter monsters, spirits and crafted souls that will attack the player on sight.
In order for the player to protect themselves from the dangers of the castle, they have access to two forms of attack. The first is the melee attack, where the player strikes enemies with Nobeta’s wand, dealing a limited amount of damage to enemies. Then there is the magic power, which consists of magical elements, with four of them being used for to fight monsters. The other two are passive effects, which can be throughout the adventure.
During combat with enemies and monsters, the player will need to stay on their toes, as there will be close quarters strikes and long range battle. To survive the battles with the dangers of the castle, players have a couple of options. Nobeta can dash, jump and dodge, which will let them avoid damage from different attacks. However, these use Nobeta’s limited stamina meter, which will cause her to fall over if she tries to run when it runs out.
At the start of the adventure, the player will have access to the basic power Arcane, which is used as a mid-range magical attack. This is an all-round attack, which can be used to battle many of the monsters and apparitions that appear, firing single shot blasts at enemies. As the adventure progresses new magic can be found, which each have different properties with the Ice being rapid fire, Fire being a spread shot and Thunder being a long range blast.
To use Nobeta’s magic, players will use up Mana which is the essence of magic itself. Each time magic is used, Mana will be taken from the bar below the green health bar on screen. If Nobeta runs out of magical Mana energy, she will be unable to use any of her spells. Mana will be recovered naturally as players use melee attacks, defeat enemies and from blue gems in set zones. The biggest drain on Mana is through channelling magical power.
Each of the magical powers can be charged up through channelling, which will increase the power of the magic attacks. By channelling the magical power, Nobeta can unleash a powerful magical attack, dealing significant damage to enemies. This will also empower Nobeta with a special qualities, like the Ice power protecting her from fire. But be careful when trying to enhance her powers, as it can be interrupted by enemies attacking her or environmental damage. All magic powers can be upgraded by finding special books hidden in chests.
Alongside the active magical arts, there are two additional powers that can be collected which will aid the player in their exploration of the different zones. These powers are Wind and Absorption, which are passive abilities that are activated when picked up. The Wind magic allows for Nobeta to have more mobility, like double jump or air dodge. Then there is Absorption, which will let Nobeta siphon magical energy from enemies when dodging.
There is a lot of fluidity with the combat, with the magic working in a third person shooting style, alongside hack and slash melee combat. Players can change their attack style on the fly, switching between up close and distant attacks. When battling enemies, players can manually aim or use lock-on targeting, offering some flexibility to battle. Thankfully, there arent any issues when the combat becomes more frantic, or when fighting bosses.
Located at set points throughout the castle, players will encounter statues that Nobeta can pray at. These allow the player to recover health, while also acting as checkpoints that Nobeta will reappear at in the event of death. The statue also provide a levelling service, where souls collected from defeating enemies can be used, increasing Nobeta’s health, stamina, total magic and more. Players can also trade at the statue, exchanging souls for magic gems.
Inside boxes that are in the different rooms and spaces of the castle, gems can be found inside boxes. The different gems offer a variety of effects, which can be deployed whenever the player wishes to use them. Gem effects are based on their colors, with green for healing and blue for Mana recovery as the most common. However, some of these items may be cursed, taking souls away upon player death, but curses can be healed by praying at statues.
The castle itself is broken up into regions, with each of them having their own distinct thematic elements to them. There is the main castle itself, made up of grey walls and large halls, the underground cavern and the volcanic ruins that sit in lava. The different areas are mostly interconnected, with gates and locks that will block progress. To open the paths up, players will need to solve puzzles, defeat deadly enemies and destroy seal locks.
At key points in the adventure through the castle and its settings, powerful bosses will appear. These are Crafted Souls, which are puppets that have gained consciousness and act on their own. During battle with these imposing foes, players will need to focus as attacks will come thick and fast. Players will need to focus on dodging attacks during the boss phases, as they hit hard and can lead to a quick death if the player is careless.
The last thing to discuss is the side content, which consists of special unlockable content. Over the course of the adventure, players will find special items that get added to the collection, containing lore about the world. Then there are the costumes, which provide a variety of looks and cosmetics to dress Nobeta up at prayer statues. After the game has been cleared, some extra content will open up, offering even more challenges for players to dive into. (Note: Trial Tower and some costumes are post release free content)
Now with the gameplay covered, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this release, starting with the controls.
Controls – from a control perspective, this game is very comfortable to play, with all of the combat actions on the shoulders and movement/actions on the face. The general flow of action works well, without delay and or lag for inputs, especially during movement and highly tense situations. But there is one minor issue when it comes to control, which is the camera can be jittery at standard settings, but this can be remedied with a quick settings adjustment.
Difficulty – there are two difficulty settings for Little Witch Nobeta, offering players a Standard and Advanced mode to challenge. If the player chooses the Standard mode, Nobeta will get some adjustments to her abilities, making it an easier experience. Then there is the Advanced mode, which is the intended gameplay experience, with a higher difficulty and no enhancements. Both modes offer a challenging experience, with the bosses being the hardest part.
Presentation – visually, this release is a mix of cuteness and dark fantasy, which work well together making it feel creepy yet cute. The textures and on screen assets look crisp and bold, with the standout being the puppet and crafted soul enemies. There is some darkness in places, but it doesn’t spoil the game. Compared to the switch version, the appearance is improved, with sharper visuals while retaining the stable pacing and flow of action.
For the sound, there is a lot of atmospheric music that enhances the adventure, with compositions that are diverse in their instrumentation. This is achieved through soft piano, choir style harmonies, gentle chimes and strings that can build tension in the haunting areas of the castle and its grounds. The dialogue for this game is entirely in Japanese, with performances from Konomi Kohara (Genshin Impact) and Hololive talents Omaru Polka, Shirikami Fubuki and Shirogane Noel.
Final Thoughts – when I first reviewed Little Witch Nobeta a few years ago, I had a fantastic time with the switch version, so when I got a PS4 and the opportunity to play it again arose, I happily took it. Upon revisiting the game, the same feelings of wonder and emotion were still there, with the new free content being a fantastic bonus. The action flows fantastically with a soft souls-like gameplay, as the challenge doesn’t feel overly difficult, even if the boss fights can feel a little intense and frantic.
While there are areas where the challenge can spike, it isn’t punishing so the skill level required to play is very low, which is rare in the modern action adventure genre. While there are comparisons to other souls style games, the game has a unique personality and feel of its own. This is most evident with the enemy variety, like giant creepy dolls with scissors and the cute yet deadly bosses. So I am happy to recommend this to everyone looking for a new action adventure to play.
In the end, my rating and score for Little Witch Nobeta stays the same at 4.75/5. The flow of action during battle, exploration, characters and the presentation are just as good as my first time playing it, with some extra free content. There are some things that could frustrate players, like progress or soul loss upon death, but it isn’t a significant setback. If you want to check this title out for yourself, a link to each version of the game will be below.
Link to PlayStation version (HERE)
Link to Nintendo Switch version (HERE)
Please note, there is paid DLC for this release, but I did not recieve or use it during this review.
W.Kohaku Media 