Ikenfell Review
Every week, I wish I could begin my reviews with something light-hearted and fun instead of the latest news cycle of misery and hatred. But, I’m living in a country where children get their jaw broken for the color of their skin and domestic violence survivor support organizations lose funding for supporting Black Lives Matter. Worse, the government is taking steps to make sure these racist, fascist actions can continue in the clear light of day. Hopefully, something can be done soon, not for the sake of my silly review intro paragraphs, but for the betterment of the American people. If you haven’t voted yet, I really hope you are making plans to vote, or if you voted absentee due to COVID concerns, I hope you are keeping up to date on the status of your ballot. Once you have that done, and maybe have donated to or volunteered for a helpful organization, make sure to take some time to decompress, possibly with the new release from Humble Games, Ikenfell.
Ikenfell tells the story of Maritte, a young woman in search of her missing sister Safina. Years ago, the sisters separated when Safina was accepted to the Ikenfell School for Witches and Wizards, where she would learn to understand and harness her gifts. Maritte, an “Ordinary” meaning a non-magical person, was left behind and only saw her sister during the summer when school isn’t in session. However, this last summer Safina hasn’t returned home so Maritte goes searching for her. Instead of finding her sister, Maritte finds the school grounds lock down and swarming with monsters. More interestingly, Maritte discovers she is now able to wield fire magic. With the help of her new abilities and some new friends, Maritte must break into and explore the grounds of the magical academy to uncover what happened to her missing sister and what Safina has to do with magical powers emerging in other Ordinaries and dangerous new spirits wreaking havoc on the land.
Based on hour count, it seems like I’m about halfway through Ikenfell and so far I’m really enjoying almost every aspect of it. Ikenfell is not unlike last year’s excellent Bug Fables, but with a more tactical approach to combat. Like so many RPGs before it, Ikenfell sees the player exploring a world, gaining new equipment and new skills while regularly being accosted by monsters. Where this game differs is that, once a battle has started, the player’s party isn’t lined up opposite a line of enemy monsters, trading hits while remaining more or less motionless. Instead, the player and their allies are set onto a 3x12 grid with their opponents where they will maneuver around enemies and attack using spells with specific effective ranges, like a game of chess but fun. Further spicing up the combat is the importance of timing on the player’s part. When attacking or defending, players will have to hit a button at a specific moment during the attack, with the accuracy of the timing deciding how effective the attack or defense will be. Outside of combat, players will solve puzzles and hunt down treasures as they try to solve the mystery of what the Ikenfell school is hiding.
Probably my favorite thing about Ikenfell is the combat because of how engaging it is thanks to its timing system. So long as the player gets fairly close to the correct timing, they’ll get a “Nice” which means their attack will do normal damage and apply any special effects if on offense, or will shield them from roughly half of the damage from the incoming attack if on defense. Outside of that range, either too early or too late, the player will get an “Oops” which means the player’s attacks will do minimal damage and not apply any special effects, or taking full damage from an enemy attack on defense. Outstanding timing will award a “Great,” granting a significant boost to damage and special effects for attacks or blocking roughly 75% of the damage from incoming attacks. I don’t know that everyone is looking for this level of interaction during a turn-based game, but I found that the timing requirements both kept the fights feeling tense as well as made me feel like I was learning to master the spells alongside the characters. When using a spell for the first time, players are totally clueless as to when the button prompt will be necessary, not unlike picking up a new skill. In theory, I knew what to do, just push the button, all I had to figure out was how to do it. This is made even more interesting by the differences in each spell any given character has. One spell might require a single button press with a fairly obvious cue while others require multiple inputs or might be more unclear about when inputs should be made. And for those who either don’t want to deal the timing or have some limitation that makes it unfeasible, Ikenfell has accessibility options that makes timing checks easier or automatically successful.
Another thing I love about Ikenfell is how LGBTQ+ friendly the game is. I know that there are several good examples of the video games industry gradually moving to become more progressive with the inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community, but because of how long it took to get here and how many games stay silent on the topic, I really appreciated how up-front Ikenfell was. Within the first two hours of the game, players have already encountered two lesbians and a non-binary character, with more to come as the game progresses. To be clear, I don’t mean these orientations are hinted at, they are presented as shamelessly as they deserve to be. One character, Glinda, serves as a Gary Oak-type character for a good portion of the game. Before the mysterious catalyst that gave Maritte magic powers and unleashed chaos upon the school, Glinda was an under-performing student at Ikenfell. After the strange event, she finds herself capable of bombastic lightning magic and sets out to prove herself to the students who used to look down on her. However, she almost immediately meets Maritte and develops a massive crush on her, causing her to shift focus. Now, instead of proving herself to the other students, she will prove herself worthy of Merete’s affection by, paradoxically, repeatedly challenging Maritte to magical duels in an attempt to win Maritte’s heart by winning the duel. An opposition built out of adoration instead of hostility was not only a refreshing change of pace, but it was also adorable and I was genuinely thrilled every time Glinda appeared. Also, her theme song is top-notch.
Ikenfell is an all-around good game with a few facets that push it into a higher echelon of quality. The gameplay is solid, with lots of interesting spells to master for each character, the writing is good to great, the music is terrific, and the pixel-based art style is well done. If you’re looking for an excellent RPG or a heart-warming LGBTQ+ story, I heartily recommend Ikenfell, especially because it’s only $20 and is available on every platform other than mobile.
Buy this game at full price
It’s worth every penny they’re asking
