Caligula Effect Overdose might have been released a few years ago, but on the Switch, it has been given a significant upgrade. The game itself has been polished and now includes extra features that weren’t present in the original game.
Caligula Effect Overdose tells the story of a protagonist sent to a strange yet familiar world. This young hero, who for the first time in this game can be female, awakens in a different place. They are in what seems like a normal world, at an opening ceremony for a school. Nothing too weird, just a simple gathering of students with the heads of each class speaking. But as the hero walks up to give their speech as the head of new students, they see something weird.
The student in a higher class doesn’t look normal. As they run out of the room the player is greeted with the faces of characters who will join the player on their quest. It’s a brief snapshot that shows off each character for a split second as the character realizes nothing is as it seems. This beginning sets the events in motion that will hopefully bring our hero home.
Caligula Effect might be a JRPG but it plays with the tropes of what a JRPG is. This is an Action RPG but it also plays with the notions of what it should and shouldn’t be. Caligula Effect Overdose is a JRPG that lets players time their attacks. Attacking with certain types of attacks will cause enemies to fly up in the air or be slammed to the floor. By timing attacks, the attacks themselves can cause different amounts of damage. While obviously, it’s possible to simply just attack and win, by timing attacks players can win battles with a little more style.
The timing mechanic might take a little getting used to, but once players have gotten used to it, it is so satisfying. Players can even figure out how to take down multiple enemies by setting them up like bowling pins and launching them into the air. This game allows for customization in battle and that is something that I find to be fulfilling. It’s also cool because mid-turn the actions the player chooses are slowed down so the player can see their effect. This game can be all about the plan of attack and that is refreshing to see in a JRPG.
The characters in this game are also fully voiced though in Japanese. It’s great to have voice acting of any kind in a game, and the subtitling helps tie it all together. There is a lot of interesting dialog in the game from the story itself to the text messaging component in the game. With phones being so prevalent in real life it makes sense that these students would always be on their phones.
Players can and will text the other characters in the game. It is actually an important feature that lets players get closer to the world around them. In messages, players can get to know the characters that will join them in battle. They can also get to know the Five Hundred plus characters that populate the world. It’s quite interesting being able to talk to everyone and finding out what makes them tick. By fighting with characters players are able to strengthen their friendships gaining new skills along the way.
The big reason to make friends with everyone is the fantastic causality link. The causality link is a skill tree of sorts, unlocked by getting to know the characters in the world. Some characters can only be talked too when the player is friends with certain people. It’s best to talk to everyone at least three times upon meeting them as that unlocks friendship. There are some characters that will be locked off but it is easy enough to travel back to see them.
Players will also learn about the darkness in these people’s heart making them seem more real. The player can even wipe out the darkness by getting to know other characters and having them interact. It flows well in gameplay and makes friendship part of the player’s strength. Player’s will want to talk to everyone and the slow burn of befriending everyone makes the game that much more entertaining.
My one big problem with the game is that the music does get old fast. The music constantly plays even in battle and that is something that makes this game just a little grating. Jumping into battle one would expect at least a twist on this music but no, the music simply loops. After the battle, the music begins again, thus bringing the player into a never-ending cycle of hearing the same song for the umpteenth time.
This game does add quite a bit to the original experience. There are the Ostinato Musicians in this game who actually join the party. These characters might start out as foes but become immeasurably powerful additions to the team. It is fantastic that this game adds so many party members because it makes for party customization to feel just a little freer. With so many characters players can choose who they like the most and to me, that’s a good thing. Plus it makes the world feel that much more full when the player has an army of characters talking and getting to know each other.
Caligula Effect Overdose is a fantastic JRPG and one that changes the formula up a little. The characters are lifelike and there are so many to interact with. The story is great and the combat is different which helps make the experience fresher. The protagonist and the GO-Home Club need to get home, will the player help them?
Disclaimer: A review key was provided