Sometimes you just want to fire up a game and get lost in its world, and few titles do this quite like JRPGs. Mato Anomalies by Chinese developer Arrowiz does just that by serving up an interesting new world. But to call it just a JRPG is a bit of a disservice.
Read More: How PlayStation Launched JRPGs in the West
Mato Anomalies is a turn-based RPG but with adventure beats, dungeon crawler moments, visual novel sections and a splash of deck building just for good measure. To say there is a lot to get stuck into is an epic turn-based understatement.
Shanghai Moon
Mato Anomalies is set in Mato – a fantasised neo-futuristic version of a ‘bygone oriental city’. One which has more than a passing vibe of Shanghai.
You play as Doe and Gram who are sort of cops/detectives, I think. The game throws you inside its world headfirst but doesn’t explain things.
The pair are investigating strange anomalies around the city and team up to save the place from a dark power. It’s worth noting that Gram and Doe perform different roles during the game and act like symbiotes throughout the tale. You also eventually get the sense that everyone in the world has a past with them.
There are a lot of moving parts to keep track of in the first half-hour. And it continues like that across its tale, bouncing themes like time travel and an apocalypse at you, all the while both heroes battle corruption.
Mato Anomalies is an extremely deep, dense and layered tale that can often be pure JRPG brilliance.
However, Mato Anomalies is also really hard to follow and needs your 100% attention at all times. And maybe a notepad and pen.
World Well Built
Gameplay sees you as Dom exploring a vast city, taking on quests and side quests as you go. And the more you work your way through main quests, the more the city opens up. Each area comes with its own missions to tackle and threads to unravel.
The progressive unlocking of the expansive maps also gives you loads of NPCs to talk to, adding even more flavour to the tale.
Mato Anomalies then flips to Gram when you start to explore dungeons. Combat is also handled by Gram and sees you battling beside party members you recruit along the way. The frame of the battle follows a Persona-style combat system.
And while this is not the only parallel that fans of Atlas’ smash series may draw from the game, it must be said that combat builds massively upon the system popularised by Persona. Mato Anomalies‘ take is a fun and fast-paced turn-based system centred around the elements.
Mato Anomalies features a robust set of upgrades and unlocks for skills and abilities for Gram and co. These do actually make you feel stronger in battle but follow what you would expect from a JRPG.
There is also a sort of deck building mini-game built around mind hacking, a power that let’s Doe change people’s minds.
However, your options to customise your deck of cards are very limited. And this results in blind luck netting you the win more often than your deck skills.
Eye Candy
Visually, Mato Anomalies is a mix of styles. For example, cut scenes can be full 3D affairs one minute and then comic book-style panels the next. It’s wild but highly engaging – you never know what is coming next.
The game’s futuristic take on Shanghai looks amazing with visually interesting dungeons dotted across the cityscape. The intermittent voice acting is OK. And the atmosphere that the soundtrack creates fits the game perfectly from area to area.
Brain Candy
Mato Anomalies is an epic yarn that’s sometimes hard to follow and sometimes willfully confusing. However, over time and, maybe a few replayed chapters/cut scenes, the game starts to unravel itself. As a JRPG that throws everything into the mix, it’s a solid offering.
If you’re looking for a title to become consumed by from start to finish, Mato is a world worth the visit.