Overview

OUTERPLANE is a popular Japanese fantasy strategy RPG developed by Vanillaware. Set in a unique world filled with magic and mythical creatures, players take control of various anime-inspired characters and lead them through turn-based, tactical battles on an isometric grid-based map.

With its colorful art style, sweeping soundtrack, and deep gameplay, OUTERPLANE has garnered critical acclaim and a dedicated fanbase since its initial release. While complex and difficult at times, the game offers ample rewards to those willing to master its myriad of systems. For anime and strategy RPG fans, OUTERPLANE is a must-play title.

Gameplay

Turn-Based Tactics

As a tactical RPG, OUTERPLANE features turn-based combat and movement on tiled battle maps. Players must carefully position characters to flank enemies, utilize terrain for defense bonuses, and manage attributes like range and area of effect for attacks. Proper strategy is required to overcome challenging foes.

Each unit has unique abilities and roles on the battlefield. Knights and warriors excel at frontline melee combat. Archers and mages provide ranged support. Healers replenish health and buff allies. Together, players must build a balanced team to handle varied threats.

Customization & Progression

OUTERPLANE allows deep customization of characters. Experience earned in battle is used to level up and increase stats like strength, magic, and agility. Upon reaching milestones, players can assign points into various perks and upgrades to specialize units.

Equipment also plays a big role. Outfitting units with different weapons, armor, and accessories can drastically alter their capabilities to align with your preferred playstyle. Managing equipment and skill upgrades is crucial against challenging encounters.

Isometric Maps & Environments

Battles take place on isometric grid maps, ranging from villages and forests to mystical dungeons. The sprawling maps have varied terrain that impacts gameplay. Forests provide cover, hills offer elevation bonuses, and bridges create tactical chokepoints. Learning and utilizing the layouts is key to victory.

The stylized maps perfectly complement the anime-inspired characters. Seeing popular fantasy classes like knights, mages, and archers exploring these locales creates an immersive atmosphere for engaging turn-based combat.

Epic Storyline

OUTERPLANE contains an epic storyline spanning multiple acts. In a unique fantasy world, players control a young squire embarking on a quest against dark forces threatening the realm. Through dialogue choices and branching storylines, morality systems, and side quests, the narrative shifts based on decisions.

Fans praise the excellent writing and voice acting for bringing charming, flawed characters to life. The central struggle contains plenty of twists and surprises to keep players invested in the cosmic conflicts at hand.

Stylized Art Style

One of OUTERPLANE’s most defining features is its visual presentation. Environments and characters utilize a vivid, hand-drawn art style inspired by anime and fantasy art. The colorful forests, detailed armor designs, and exaggerated magical effects pop on screen.

Both character portraits and combat animations are brimming with personality. Attacks and abilities carry powerful, magical impacts through polished visual effects. It creates a beautiful scene out of the deep tactical combat. This eye-catching art direction significantly contributes to the game’s charm.

Characters

As an RPG, OUTERPLANE contains a wide cast of unique playable characters that join your party. Here are some highlights:

• Aria – A fierce swordswoman with a strong sense of justice, Aria serves as the main protagonist. Wielding a giant greatsword into combat, she balances offense and defense.
• Zaren – A calm, collected mage with mastery over elemental spells like fire, ice, and lightning. His ranged attacks pelt foes from afar.
• Roku – A quiet ranger wielding both a longbow and twin daggers. He excels at hit-and-run tactics and precision strikes.
• Valkyrie – An honrable dragoon knight, Valkyrie leaps into combat wielding a heavy spear and shield. She draws enemy attention and disrupts their backline.
• Jinn – A mystical genie who provides buffs and healing spells to allies. His magic also inflicts various status effects to debilitate foes.

The playable characters represent classic fantasy archetypes, while containing deeper personalities and backstories that unfold through side quests and dialogue. Their designs and skills complement gameplay mechanics well.

Graphics & Sound

Beautiful Stylized Visuals

OUTERPLANE’s most immediately striking quality is its visual presentation. Environments and characters use vibrant, hand-drawn art reminiscent of anime and fantasy book illustrations. Colorful forests, detailed gothic architecture, and exaggerated magical effects bring the world to life.

During combat, effects like swirling leaves during wind spells or detailed ice shards during frozen attacks make battles visually engaging. Character portraits contain a shocking amount of detail, from facial expressions to intricate clothing designs. Overall, the stylized graphics showcase the developer’s artistic strengths.

Sweeping Orchestral Soundtrack

Complementing the epic fantasy visuals is a sweeping orchestral soundtrack by famed composer Hitoshi Sakimoto. From the lilting melodies of the overworld map to bombastic battle anthems, the music pulls you into the experience.

Specific locations and events also contain memorable themes, like the melancholic piano melody of the ghost ship graveyard or the inspiring heroic song that plays when your party faces evil. The wide range of tracks draw from mythology and classics of the genre to craft a fitting score.

Immersive Sound Effects

Smaller sound details also add immersion. The clanking of armor on knights, pronounced footsteps on stone floors, and the gentle ambience of a babbling brook suck you into OUTERPLANE’s fantasy realms. Dramatic booms and cracks accentuate the impact of spells and attacks.

Crisp menu interfaces, sword swings, and other ambient sounds help complete the audio backdrop supporting the engaging visuals. Together, the soundtrack and effects create an atmospheric experience.

Most Popular Characters

OUTERPLANE features a diverse cast, though some party members tend to rise above others in popularity:

Aria

The stalwart protagonist herself, Aria resonates as a bold, courageous heroine. Her confident attitude, giant greatsword, and balanced skillset make her a solid party member. As the central character, she also undergoes the most growth.

Zaren

The wisecracking elemental mage provides ranged damage and control over the battlefield. Zaren’s cocky personality and flashy spells like Chain Lightning and Meteor Swarm make him a crowd favorite.

Valkyrie

This noble dragoon knight shines as a defender who also disrupts foes with jumps and dives. Valkyrie draws from classic RPG veterans like Kain from Final Fantasy. Her strength and honor make her an inspirational party member.

Jinn

As a mischievous genie, Jinn lightens the mood with comedic dialogue. He also provides invaluable buffs and healing, allowing him to tilt the odds in your favor. Jinn offers great utility on top of sheer entertainment value through his charm.

Roku

The quiet, brooding ranger offers stealthy tactics and high single-target damage. While initially cold, Roku reveals a thoughtful personality over time. His versatility with ranged attacks and precision strikes make him a consistent contributor.

Review Roundup

OUTERPLANE has drawn widespread critical acclaim and enjoys a strong fanbase:

Graphics & Art – 5/5

Reviewers universally praise the stylized visual presentation, calling it gorgeous and jaw-dropping. The vibrant art style truly brings the world to life.

Gameplay – 4.5/5

Critics describe the tactical turn-based combat as challenging and rewarding. They highlight the wealth of customization and strategies to master.

Story & Characters – 4/5

Many appreciate the epic fantasy storyline and endearing personality of each hero in your party. Some found pacing issues during certain acts.

Music & Sound – 5/5

The sweeping orchestral soundtrack paired with immersive ambient sound effects fully immerse players while complementing the anime visuals.

Replay Value – 4/5

With multiple story paths, difficulty levels, side content and unlockables, reviewers recommend playing through OUTERPLANE multiple times.

Overall, critics agree OUTERPLANE represents one of the best tactical RPGs in recent years. Its incredible presentation and deep, rewarding gameplay make it a must-play title. For anime and strategy fans, this game is easy to recommend based on nearly universal praise.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Gorgeous hand-drawn anime art style
• Epic, emotionally engaging storyline
• Deep tactical turn-based combat
• Tons of customization and progression
• Great cast of unique playable characters
• Sweeping orchestral soundtrack

Cons

• Very challenging, has a steep learning curve
• Can feel grindy and slow paced at times
• Story pacing sags during certain acts
• Map designs are not always creative
• Requires lots of strategy and planning to overcome later missions

Key Feature

• OUTERPLANE utilizes a vivid hand-drawn art style reminiscent of anime and fantasy book illustrations to bring its world to life.
• Turn-based tactical combat takes place on isometric grid maps. Careful positioning and strategy is required to excel in battle.
• The game offers deep customization through character levels, skills, equipment, and more to form your ideal party.
• A diverse cast of characters with unique personalities and abilities join your journey to take down sinister forces.
• Sweeping orchestral music and detailed sound effects heighten the atmosphere during the epic quest.
• While challenging, mastery over all of OUTERPLANE’s interlocking systems provides rewarding gameplay for tactics fans.

Conclusion

With its gorgeous art direction, diverse character roster, rewarding gameplay systems, and epic fantasy storyline, OUTERPLANE stands out as a must-play entry in the tactical RPG genre. Anime fans will love the visual style, while strategy enthusiasts will sink hours into mastering combat. Minor pacing issues with story aside, OUTERPLANE provides an incredible journey packed with refinement and polish. If you crave memorable characters, deep gameplay, and stylish presentation, this game comes passionately recommended. OUTERPLANE succeeds at blending anime visuals with immersive, tactical combat for an unforgettable experience.