It has everything usual in a JRPG ( Japanese roleplay game ): action, fantasy, a protagonist who is well accompanied and who develops throughout the adventure, a villain who wants to impose his vision and unbridled combat. But Ni No Kuni is not just another game to use. His style is easily identifiable at first glance thanks mainly to his graphic style in which Studio Ghibli has collaborated , from which he drinks a lot when it comes to representing his narrative universe.
They are titles that, without being outstanding in a complete aspect, do manage to stand out in a general way : narrative, gameplay , character construction, soundtrack (they had the work of director Joe Hisaishi)… And all this considering that it started being a work to commemorate the tenth birthday of the developer, Level-5. This obviously changed when they became aware of the game’s excellent reception. But not only did they drink from one of the best-known animation studios, they also did not hesitate to do the same in terms of combat mechanics, inheritance of the great works of the genre… In addition, they knew how to renew themselves so as not to stagnate.
Their influence has been such that they took little time to make the leap to the big screen . 9 years later, OLM INC and Warner Bros produced the film of the same name, which had unprecedented success in Japan and caught the attention of Netflix, which quickly added it to its catalogue.
We present the main titles below.
All the games of the Ni No Kuni series
Ni no Kuni: Dominion of the Dark Djinn
It was released in 2010 exclusively for the Nintendo DS. You control Oliver, the protagonist who embarks on an adventure to save his mother from him. The title will take you through different scenarios that are perfectly recreated. The combats are turn-based, in which you can handle several characters, each with unique abilities, and the imajinn, a kind of fantastic creatures that you can capture and train. It had such a good reception that it would soon be adapted to a console that knew how to better exploit his talents.
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
Original from 2013 and for PlayStation 3, although in 2019 it was remastered and versions were also published for PC, PlayStation 4 and Switch. The story is practically identical, except that it is somewhat longer and has a longer ending. The combat does change a lot, since now you can move the character freely around the map. It is in the animation where the change is most noticeable, since it is much better detailed, always accompanied by music and much more dynamic.
Ni no Kuni: Daibouken Monsters
It is a 2012 card game exclusive to the Japanese market. In it, players traveled the world farming imajinn cards , which you could use by flipping them over and summoning the abilities of that particular monster.
Ni no Kuni II: Kingdom Reborn
It was released in 2018 for PC, PlayStation 4, and later for Nintendo Switch. In this case, the leading role falls on King Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, deposed from his throne by a group that wants to take over the castle and its government. Helped by Roland and Tani, he has to face them to claim what is his, following the tone and scenarios very similar to those seen previously.
During the battle you can line up 3 characters and alternate control of each of them at any time, using basic attacks, magic attacks and Higgledies, small fantastic creatures with different elements and shapes. One of the novelties is the management of the kingdom , which will allow you to acquire new materials and stores to acquire weapons and armor and thus improve characteristics and abilities.
Ni no Kuni: Cross Worlds
Available for PC, iOS and Android, it’s an MMO immersed in the game’s universe in which you’ll have to go through different scenarios and fight different enemies. It is very reminiscent of Genshin Impact in terms of the size of the world, the layout of the missions, the combat system and the collection of resources. The good thing is that you can automate that whole process, in case you want to move faster.
