Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy - review

Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy, a dungeon crawler RPG game from the team that brought you Demon Gaze, a dungeon crawler that was released in 2014. They say Demon Gaze is a glorious and niche game that is greatly nighttime evident. As a result, dungeon crawlers are popular on the handheld consoles, including the Etrian Odyssey series. Just because dungeon crawlers are hard doesn't mean they are bad. If you don't want to get a dungeon crawler, then you may not get one, unless you're confident perhaps. Now let's read the review about the cool dungeon crawler.

The Story:

Operation Abyss' story is about the group of people in Tokyo who are investigating a crime scene that rocked the whole city of Hinowa. The group of people is known as the Xth Squad, the advanced police force who are salvaging as they can from the crimes of Hinowa, as well as a paranormal phenomena that rocked Tokyo.

The Gameplay:

The gameplay to Operation Abyss is different than the other dungeon crawlers because the gameplay is more robust and you can have a group of 6 members. As you start a new game, members will attend at one time, as default. If this the group you don't want, then you can go to CPA Headquarters, which is located inside the academy.

In each labyrinth, there are Codes that are found from defeating enemies and in certain spots. Some of them have traps, which can be examined and disarmed and some don't have any traps. Inside of each code are unidentified items.

There's a gauge located on the upper left corner of the screen. The gauge is called the Drop and Rise gauge. The gauge fills up when winning each battle against Variants, enemies in the labyrinth. When the gauge reaches a certain level, Variant difficulty will increase. When it reaches max level, the threat becomes very difficult, so be careful. However, you can decrease the encounter gauge, by escaping until the gauge reaches to a fine level or to zero. 

Now, when you accumulate enough EXP, the red square will flash below the "Lv." symbol. It means you're ready to level up, by resting in the medical lab.

The Power of Unity:

Unity is a term of people grouping together to fight enemies at the same time. The blue Unity gauge is located on the bottom left corner of the screen. To consume the Unity gauge, use the Unity skills, which can be displayed by pressing the right or left directional pad. When you use a Unity skill a certain number of times, the maximum Unity will increase, their Unity rating will increase and Unity Skills will be learned. You can increase the Unity gauge by fighting, clearing missions or making the right decision.

Creating Your Character:

Like other dungeon crawlers, you can create your characters. The first step for example is to choose the look of character, like the Lancer, who is capable of wielding long weapons. Second step is give him/her info, including giving himher a name and a trait. Third step is choose what type is the character. Fourth is to give him/her a voice. Finally, you give the character a Blood Code.

Missions:

In headquarters, you can advance the story, by clearing key missions. As the story advances, new dungeons will be accessible, and they can be found on various places other than headquarters. Missions are optional and there also the repeat one, which can scan for Variant levels. This is also where you can create characters in Member Application. The headquarters can check for situations that are dire, yet consequent. When you disband your team, GP will be sent to the storage and you will not get to the mission until you form a team.

At the Medical Office, you need GP (Growth Points) to do the various things, such as the Growth Surgery, which can allow you to set how much GP you can convert to EXP. The Rest menu allows your character to recover HP, MP and exaustion. Depending on the level, the price of growth points will rise. Like I said before, resting after accumulating enough EXP will level up your Blood Code. Whoever in your team died will be reported to the ICU, and you can treat him/her, by going to Status Recovery so he/she can be incorporated to the team. The GP price to doing that increases depending on the level.

Here in the Development Lab, you need GP to do sorts of things, like the Issue menu, which can allow you to buy stuff. With GP, you can craft, strip, affix and remove glitches on the items. The Deliver menu, which allows you to sell unneeded items to earn GP. There's the Identify menu that can identify items to see what they are specifically. Depending on the value, GP cost gets higher. Here, you can also store GP that you don't need.

The Blood Code:

The "Blood Code" is a special attribute that has various effects. Each Blood Code has a level. You can choose a different Blood Code in headquarters under Member Application. When a Blood Code reaches a certain level, it will learn a new skill. However, each Blood Code has a level cap, which can be extended by advancing the story.

The Conclusion:

Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy is a serviceable dungeon crawler for Demon Gaze fans and mature audiences to enjoy. I will say it was an awesome dungeon crawler. Blood Codes are the interesting ways of powering my team up. And I'll call it perfect because I had fun with it.

Pros:

+Great successor to Demon Gaze
+Great music quality

Cons:

There are no cons.

I'm giving Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy a perfect 10, and I might be looking forward to the sequel. One of the awesome games I love.