NIS Classics Volume 3: La Pucelle Ragnarok / Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (2022) [Switch] review

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

-William Faulkner

Just a few short months after delving into the NIS Collection Volume 2, we now have the third volume on this series of strategy RPGs that feature two games — Prinny Presents NIS Collection Volume 3: La Pucelle: Ragnarok/Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (Which I will refer to as NIS Classics Volume 3). La Pucelle: Ragnarok is a game that was originally released for the PlayStation 2 (as La Pucelle: Tactics), but later was ported to the PSP. Rhapsody is a bit older as it was originally released for the original PlayStation. This updated collection is available on Nintendo Switch and Steam.

Face The Music

I’ve spent a short while with both games, starting with Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure. You play as Cornet, a girl who can bring puppets to life by using a magical horn. Throughout your adventure, you’ll come across puppets that will join your party and fight alongside you. Monsters you encounter in battle may also join, though from my understanding it’s something that happens randomly. The turn-based battles occur on a comparatively small grid and the battle themselves are pretty straightforward with little complexity. They’re also very brief, each non-boss battle only lasting a few minutes. I was surprised by the simplicity of the tactical component, but I didn’t get too far into it so there may be other mechanics not yet introduced.

The presentation of Rhapsody is one of my favorite aspects of this title. The graphics have cartoony but detailed pixel art and gives off cute and cozy vibes. Even the monster designs are adorable to look at. The game does not contain FMV cutscenes but does make up for it by providing pleasant music and voiced musical scores. It surprised me the first time I heard it, but I guess I should’ve expected it knowing the game has the word “musical” in it.

Speak of the Devil

The second half of the NIS Classics Volume 3, La Pucelle: Ragnarok, is a much more complex tactical RPG in comparison. In La Pucelle, you take control of a group of young demon hunters for the Church of the Holy Maiden tasked with ridding the world of unspoken monstrosities. Although they are young and inexperienced, they have high ambitions of one day acquiring the prestigious title of Holy Maiden. The game also features pixel graphics though the characters are placed upon polygonal backgrounds. Just like in Rhapsody, the characters and world are very vibrant and have charm, but the characters here are voiced.

The battles progress just like how you would expect a tactical JRPG should. Enemies are spread across the grid and your job is to eliminate all the demons. The characters you control have physical attacks, special abilities, and items at their disposal. However, you also have a ‘purify’ ability that gives you a chance to recruit monsters to your party. If you’ve purified them enough and after defeating them, you’ll be able to immediately summon them into battle if the purification was successful.

However, what makes the battles much more complex is a unique dark energy mechanic that makes the battles very interesting. There are dark portals spread throughout the battlefield that have different types of energy flowing out of them in random directions. This flow can change directions if you place a character in its path facing a different direction. When the dark portal is purified, any enemy standing on the path will take damage and be afflicted by fire, poison, etc. depending on the type of energy. Any of your characters standing on it will also receive an extra turn, so strategically placing characters to create a combo of attacks toward multiple enemies becomes very satisfying.

Takes Two To Tango

I’ve spent a very short time with each game but am looking forward to playing both for different reasons. Rhapsody is a fun experience with simple, fast-paced battles that I can just relax to if I want to enjoy the story and cute aesthetics. La Pucelle, on the other hand, is a game that is challenging and satisfying when I do get through a particularly tough battle. While being different thematically, they both have a lighthearted and silly nature to them with how often the characters would do or say something funny. Both games also have great music that matches their unique styles.

As I also mentioned in the NIS Classics Vol. 2 review, this is an important collection in terms of game preservation. It includes two obscure games that you otherwise would only be able to play on original hardware if you happen to acquire the pricy disc for the respective game. The physical version of the game includes a disc of musical selections from both games which I appreciate very much, as well as an art book. I’m happy that more publishers have been more proactive toward bringing back difficult-to-find classics and I’m glad that a large number of gamers have embraced this. NIS Classics Volume 3 means preservation, even for the obscure.

Pixel Perfect

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