Unicorn Overlord Spoiler-Free Review (PS5, also on PS4, Switch, X|S) | Backlog Battle

[@Turnbasis]

Played the demo, never having played a Vanillaware game. Immediately bought 13 Sentinels, Odin Sphere, and Grim Grimoire and preordered Unicorn Overlord. Beat 13 last night. Safe to say I’m a Vanillaware fanboy now!

[@Dave_Machine]

Didn't like much the way grim grimoire plays but the rest is very good. Also you may want to look at dragon's crown as well

[@iveybullard8988]

Good. Welcome to the club. Vanillaware always makes interesting games imo.

[@WaruiDeshou]

Damn, you're feasting. Chew carefully.

[@BacklogBattle]

Sweet! You're gonna have an incredible time!

[@Bluesine_R]

We need Muramasa Rebirth on modern consoles! George Kamitani said there are ”problems” with porting the game but I hope Vanillaware can make it happen.

[@iveybullard8988]

Vanillaware rocks. Enough said.

[@Dave_Machine]

I played the full 8 hours demo, restarted the full game and I am about 40 hours into the game with still 3 and 1/2 nations to explore. Huge game and great, addictive fun!

[@BacklogBattle]

I'm actually playing through it AGAIN on the Switch this time lol

[@Dave_Machine]

​@@BacklogBattle I did the other way around, demo on switch and full game on PS5 😂.

[@elcambiollego]

I am playing this in a 1st gen Switch and it works really good.

[@benilinshingoseth2086]

Same here! Just want to enjoy it as much as I can with my own pace !

[@Iridium-77-g]

The time limit for missions is there so you don't just turtle/leap frog from garrison to garrison. Since garrisons heal you, without a time limit you could just move your entire army from one garrison to another, weather the storm of enemy units, heal and then move forward. Because there are time limits, you cannot do that. You need to spread your units and pursue the garrisons and treasure that are out of the way towards the boss of the stage.

[@ty_sylicus]

With all the positive attention around Unicorn Overlord, I'm a little surprised I've never gotten around to experiencing 13 Sentinels despite it being on my wishlist for years. The same can be said for Odin Sphere.

[@BacklogBattle]

Time to fix that! Those two are some of the best games I've played over the past decade!

[@hausu3163]

oh you are missing the craziest story in sci fi history, im obsessed with 13 sentinels

[@Justegarde]

If you’ve never played an Ogre Battle game, you absolutely have to get OGB64 under your belt. Unicorn Overlord is the definitive love letter to Ogre Battle, and as someone who has been waiting for a new OB game since 1999, I absolutely love it.

[@gotaplanstan]

Battles taking place in an explorable overworld is one of many reasons why I love Shining Force games... and also one many reasons why UO feels like it has taken some wonderful stuff from that franchise, and and even improved and perfected them

[@BacklogBattle]

I played Shining Force a couple of years ago and it holds up really well!

[@narius_jaden215]

Ogre battle, baby. Ogre Battle.

[@gotaplanstan]

@@narius_jaden215 sure. But there's plenty that UO is referencing or did, that relates to Shining Force moreso than Ogre Battle or Tactics Ogre or Dragon Force

[@liquifiedart]

Been playing this 60hrs in. Trying to wrap it up. One of my favorite games of all time.

[@xleaselife]

Awwww, yeah. Another Alex review to brighten the day. I managed to nab the Collector's for this. It's sitting right next to me. I am forcing myself to finish Rebirth first, but this is the most excited I've been for a Vanillaware game since Muramasa. It's doing gangbusters on its reviews. Edit: 13 Sentinels was a friggin masterpiece. I STILL think about that game. Still holds the record for the fastest I've ever put 60 hours into a game (though Rebirth might match it, if I hit 60 hours this week).

[@Xoulrath_]

I'm at almost 90 hours into UO after a week. The Monarch Edition was delivered to my door in the early afternoon last Friday. 😂

[@Murderlin7]

I literally can't put this title down it's so good

[@DanielSantosAnalysis]

Definitely going to pick this up after I finish Rebirth.

[@mandatorial]

And with Rebirth you obviously mean Muramasa and not FF7.

[@Gaze21x]

Unicorn Overlord is amazing and it deserves all the attention it can get. Real strong contender for being my game of the year.

[@johnathanrhoades7751]

I picked up the demo. This is my first tactical RPG. And…my freaking goodness I am in love. I’m sure I’d enjoy Triangle Strategy et al, but I love this set up. I have picked up the full version on switch and can’t wait to get off work to play more!

[@cenanuffz]

This is gonna be a strong GOTY candidate, I think it's the most fun I've had in a tactics game since X-Com 2.

[@d_shuffles]

This is actually my 1st Vanillaware game 😅 Wow did they knock this SRPG outta the park!! As someone who has put a thousand hours into Fire Emblem games and other SRPGs, this hit the spot right away. I absolutely love the battle system, building teams, character relationships and managing equipment. Everything just flows together. The battle animations are absolutely beautiful to watch, I hardly ever want to skip them haha. Love the review Alex!! 🫡🛡️

[@BacklogBattle]

Thank you! Glad you're enjoying it a ton! Also, are you gonna check out the rest? I DID make a Top 5 list of theirs recently!

[@d_shuffles]

@@BacklogBattle 13 sentinels is on my backlog thanks to your praises! 👍🏻😁

[@ejirokirishima4604]

This game is so big, im 8 hours in and now im doing the first realy main story quest, so much side content I love it, cant wait to see what it will all evolve into and how they gonna make the game more complicated over time.

[@rabbyd542]

The game gets a lot more intricate as soon as you have 4-person units and level 10 skills.

[@arikari3672]

I'm more positive I'll love this game after the demo. I wasn't all that hyped because I didn't love 13 sentinels, it's a great game don't get me wrong, but at the end of the adventure I was more like trying to finish it so I jump to the next in my backlog, but I feel Unicorn will do the trick.

[@BacklogBattle]

That's unfortunate that 13 Sentinels didn't gel with you! I played that when it was released on PS4, so I didn't have to deal with too many games coming all at once.

[@kevina.3373]

Best review I've seen on UO so far. All the others are crap and barely talk about the mechanics. Makes me want to buy it now.

[@BacklogBattle]

I try to get into the mechanics as much as I can and explain it so people can figure out how things play!

[@jkdeadite]

I'm about 20 hours in, and I'm loving this game so far. Not that impressed by the story, but it's not distracting me either. The combat is a lot of fun.

[@sinisterdesign]

I find it odd that so few reviews of Unicorn Overlord reference Symphony of War, which is *by far* the closest analog. UO is basically Symphony of War with real-time gridless movement, an explorable overworld, and a *much* bigger budget.

[@BacklogBattle]

By that same token, UO is basically Shining Force with real-time gridless movement and a much bigger budget - which is to say that neither Shining Force nor Symphony of War are actually close enough to what UO actually is. Ogre Battle, on the other hand DOES feature real-time gridless movement and an explorable overworld, and is far closer to what UO is than any of the aforementioned games.

[@WaruiDeshou]

​@@BacklogBattleUnlike Shining Force, however, Symphony of War has the same unit composition and automated combat as UO and Ogre Battle, so, even though the movement is grid based on SoW, the comparison is warranted because of the other similarities. That being said, Ogre Battle SNES and 64 are the influences on Vanillaware here.

[@sinisterdesign]

@@BacklogBattle You're obviously right that both SOW and UO are influenced by Ogre Battle--no doubt about that! But you said it yourself in the video: Unicorn Overlord is a blend of Ogre Battle and Fire Emblem mechanics. That approach is very much something that SOW pioneered. Anyway, sorry if this came off as a criticism of you--that's not my intention. I just want indie devs to get their due for contributing to the design space. 🙂

[@levelup7396]

@@sinisterdesignUnicorn Overlord has been in development for 10 years. They are influenced by Ogre Battle, not Symphony of War.

[@Shaded_Sol]

@@levelup7396 sinister stated the reviewers not comparing to sow. He didn’t say the development was influenced by sow

[@Adam.C]

I'm loving this game so far.

[@bungmonkey2295]

There are skills that allow the blue pp points to provide extra attacks so both red and blue gems can be used offensively. I'm about 50% map at lv21 loving every minute! This game is a generational masterpiece

[@Soykuya1]

I own Odin Sphere, Dragon Crown which are beautiful and engaging video games. I been a fan of orge battle and final fantasy tactics series and a return back to the rpg strategy genre is a breath of fresh air.I wish more people drive into this genre.

[@Dave_Machine]

The rapport conversation can be seen easily on the map if you rotate the displayed icons and you can also fast travel to them

[@BacklogBattle]

The mini-map right? Because the actual map map doesn't display the Rapport

[@Dave_Machine]

​​@@BacklogBattle Yes the mini map where you fast travel. But also on the world map where you actually move there is a marker for the rapport, albeit not so pronounced. Icon rotation is via square/y button

[@d_shuffles]

@@Dave_Machine ohhh I didn’t think to try this!

[@uppernimbus]

This game is incredibly beautiful and is quickly becoming one of my favourite JRPGs of the year!

[@BacklogBattle]

Yes! Glad you're playing through it too!

[@Lightspeeds]

I'm just happy that I have friends to talk about game with and we can just gawk about it. No reddit level shittalking, just genuine praise for the game.

[@sergiomessias3691]

Great review! I am super excited about this game and will pick up a physical copy!

[@Road_to_Dawn]

I preordered the PS5 Collector’s Edition and I’m more than a couple dozen hours into it. For a large portion of that time, I did absolutely no main story, and just focused on clearing up as much side content as I could before moving on. There was SO MUCH! I’ve now explored a little under one and a half of the five nations, and there’s just so much more of the game still ahead of me. This game is absolutely MASSIVE, easily VanillaWare’s biggest game in my experience. I love the freedom the game gives you to explore and tackle quests largely in which order you want, charting your own course through the world. I’m obsessed with this game and can’t stop playing during my sadly limited free time! I was looking at my CE and kinda wanted a second set of the card game in case anything happened to the cards, so I had backups. I also really wanted to be able to play during my lunch break at work. So… I also now have a Collector’s Edition for my Switch lol. VanillaWare deserves it!

[@Kuroshor]

Always look forward to your reviews. Instant classic. I hope they continue the series!

[@mageborn23]

Also if you play on story mode, I don't think you even have to worry about time limits. I didn't even realize there were any. Also stats lol.

[@BacklogBattle]

I didn't play it on Story mode, but this is good to know! Thank you for sharing!

[@jedimaster12100]

Great review Alex. Once I play through what I'm playing now I'll definitely have to check this out.

[@BacklogBattle]

If you haven't picked it up, I encourage you to play the demo since it's very generous!

[@jrpgaddict7726]

Already on my 2nd run for True Zenoiran, the game is AMAZING!!!!

[@andreamoraja6537]

This video is a gem. Keep up the good work fella , love your content

[@BacklogBattle]

Thank you! Will be 7 years on KZbin in May!

[@_Azurael_]

10:40 just go to the map, and check the filters. it shows all available conversations.

[@Lumpalooza]

Love to see more Vanillaware stuff. Great review!

[@josemsanchez80]

Man, thank you for your review! Don't forget to update your Ribbon Ranked list, please!

[@BacklogBattle]

I usually do it a day after so it won’t spoil the surprise! But thank you for the reminder!

[@WiiFan20XX]

I'm playing on normal and it just feels very cozy.

[@BacklogBattle]

The demo only had Tactical and Normal was patched in day one. I think it's a fair difficulty to play the game on!

[@jessierosenqueen5644]

Symphony of War: The Nephilim Saga could have been like this if they have a lot of budget hehe

[@BacklogBattle]

I'm going to have to get around to playing that some day.

[@echasketchers2092]

great review honestly. I loved 13 Sentinels but not so much Odin Sphere, and have been on the fence about this game. Hearing you talk about the exploration and combat convinced me to take the plunge. I never liked the Fire Emblem style of world map, let me walk around and explore!!

[@BacklogBattle]

I didn't know that having the battlefield and world map as the same map made such a cool gameplay experience, but it did!

[@ponceponte4416]

One problem is the rng of the game, as soon as you move a unit in a row even when facing a single enemy, the game relaunches those rng and the forecast can change drastically (the hit rates change with evasion, criticals, etc.) which can It can be a bit annoying even when the grid starts to fill with more units.

[@mandatorial]

14:07 that's interesting you would say that. I've seen some complain that UO was too flowery in its localization vs the original japanese.

[@BacklogBattle]

If we're comparing the script to the original Japanese, I don't doubt that the localization actually reflects more of the Western inspiration for some of its lines given its medieval style setting, making it feel more flowery as a result. But when you compare its script to something like the Trails series where one scene can just go on for minutes, talk about a topic outside of the current conversation, circle back and reiterate what's been said, this one's a ton more succinct!

[@dederjs6893]

Amazing review, already got my collectors edition and it’s just beautiful, and completely worth the money! And the game is just amazing, loved the demo and loving even more the full game.

[@whatisnani1540]

I have played the demo and the jiggle physic is superb 10/10 imma get this game for sure

[@BacklogBattle]

Not as crazy as Dragon's Crown though, you gotta admit!

[@whatisnani1540]

​@@BacklogBattletrue true i agree however a gryphon rider and a shaman is chefs kiss 😂. Great video btw as always. I hope you will release a guide for skills condition.

[@vicetea86]

yo , you Def gotta check out ogre battle. Everything you said was unique was from ogre battle Map? : same aesthetic as original ogre battle. Auto Combat? : exactly the same as ogre battle political intrigue : also Ogre Battle Shit some of the towns have extremely similar names. I.E the capital in ogre battle is Zenobia, Unicorn Overlord? Zenoira. like I said though ,not e bad thing I fucking adored ogre battle and how it played ,then *poof* never saw anything else like it , until now Now I'm not saying that is bad , I hated how Tactics Ogre completely threw out the strategic style in exchange for tactical unit battles. There is so much more ,but I dunno how similar they are down the line. Hidden characters(tons of units you could only get under special circumstances, equipment , recruits all that on a super Nintendo

[@dukenukem7043]

i ordered this for switch on ebay last night. hope it ships fast

[@QwertYuiop-yt3uh]

I am addicted to this game

[@Zodia195]

You know what else is great about Vanillaware games? THE FOOD!!! Lol. Omg they make food look so appealing, I got hungry a lot when playing 13 Sentinels and watching an LP of Odin's Sphere lol. I have recently decided to get this game, I just don't know when since like your Username, I have a big backlog lol. I do have one question though, is there romance in this game? Because that was one of my fav parts in both Odin's Sphere and 13 Sentinels since I am a romance junkie in video games. I will admit, I did wonder if I would get this game because of the gameplay, but since 13 Sentinels made me like Tower defense for once (which is a miracle) and I did seen an LP of the prologue, I have changed my mind. Like I remember being on the fence of getting FE: 3 Houses, but the gameplay intimidated me so yeah. Like I always computed Tactical RPGs to a chess game when you have to think 3 steps ahead and I don't like thinking that hard. I prefer taking my time, which is why I enjoyed Turned-based.

[@hausu3163]

i started playing today and couldnt stop for 5 hours, the art and the story are keeping me in, gameplay is fine, not super exciting or fun(and i love strategy, i just dont think battles are like triangle strategy level) but at least it has some unique aspects and its challenging

[@BacklogBattle]

Keep playing! It'll get to some really crazy depth in terms of ability management and party composition right around hour 9 or 10, if you're playing on Normal!

[@youthnando]

Now im more excited to play it

[@BacklogBattle]

You've got something to play after Rebirth!

[@CountMecha]

I really wanna play this but I'm forcong myself to finish Super Robot Wars T I bought back in 2019 before I buy another tactics RPG. I'm a big fan of 13 Sentinels so I'm looking forward to getting this. The demo was fantastic.

[@meropolis]

This is the review I had been looking for. Thank you

[@femtrooper]

Great review as always!

[@Subremedy]

Such a great game!

[@Damackism]

Thanks for another great review Alex!

[@OG_G4m3r]

awesome review -- thanks for this!

[@davidcbeaudoin]

Would you rank it above Triangle Strategy?

[@BacklogBattle]

Ooh. That's a tough one. They're very different. The story and characters are Triangle Strategy's strengths, whereas Unicorn Overlord makes up for it with its slick presentation and deeper gameplay depth. I like both for very different reasons.

[@solidarity9371]

Superb review!

[@BacklogBattle]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@otakon17]

12:43 Don't just mention Dragon's Crown, Odinsphere and Muramasa both had bombastic designs for females. It's damn near a signature quirk of Vanillaware titles.

[@BacklogBattle]

That’s why I said prior to that section that Vanillaware games - not just Dragon’s Crown - have titillating designs. I merely used it as an extreme example since that was the last original medieval fantasy game they made prior to 13 Sentinels.

[@dylandurnal6544]

Ff7 Rebirth will be my game of the year. However this game is literally right behind it. My first strategy rpg that I actually enjoy.

[@BacklogBattle]

This tracks

[@Gamer-jj9op]

I beat final fantasy 7 rebirth amazing hame now playing unicorn overlord amazing game I recommend buying the game.

[@TiffBreneman]

Great video! I appreciate you talking about the overly sexual character design and talking positively about the devs moving towards less sexual designs overall. I'm somewhat used to seeing overly sexualized video game characters, but Scarlett's ridiculous pigeon toes have me seriously second guessing getting the game on principle. Not enough reviewers touch on this kind of theme, or they do it in a gross way that seems written for 15 year old boys. Thank you for your commentary, it makes these spaces more welcoming to women!

[@ty_sylicus]

I've played a few of thier titles and still didn't mentally record the name Vanillaware.

[@jeremy6491]

My main problem is that I cant buy the game lmao . Sold out in my country and I refuse to play digital

[@maroXUprising]

I’m pretty sure PlayAsia is your best option to pick up the game physically.

[@ZeNex74]

Whaaaaat, if station a guard that still be in a unit? Ive been hiring randoms

[@BacklogBattle]

Yup! It’s true! Even the tutorial says it!

[@zeroescape]

The girls in this game are dangerously hot, Vanillaware could probably kill in the mobile game market. Thank god they're so based and only make absolute classics for console with top-tier 2d art

[@ty_sylicus]

🦄

[@Kaluo225]

you sold the hell out of this game

[@BacklogBattle]

I just really, really like this game!

[@MrDarksol]

The story may be simple from what I've understood but compared to fire emblem engage it's still way stronger than that game was because I give more of a crap about the characters in this game and they feel like actual people. Speaking of which despite the fact that people keep saying that the game is a huge homage to ogre battle, another difference I definitely prefer the characters in this compared to ogre battle since I don't even know anything about any of the characters even after doing some level of research and knowing that at least one game has a plot. This game just takes all of the good elements from a lot of strategy R PG games but more so refines them in a way where I can actually enjoy this VS all of the recent strategy R PG games that we've had and that includes fire emblem Engage.........Except for Disgaea 7 lol. But this is definitely a huge improvement over engage since the characters again feel like characters the game played well it isn't improvement it doesn't feel like the only thing that's in here the music is actually further memorable and with the characters being so memorable it also helps that the art style is just fantastic. It's the same artist who's been doing a lot of Vanillawere stuff but there's something about his art style that just really really works and I am very glad that all the women still look really good but it is also another key point of his design:Witches gyrating hips, Griffon Knights having big boobs that drop while in flight.......... I am 100% certain that this man has a type lol. All that aside this is definitely gonna be on my bucket list of games I'm gonna get because I was already interested in it when I found out that the team was gonna be responsible for this and since the switch version has been playing perfectly great despite it being on the switch thanks to my experience with the demo, I'm definitely going to hawk this on my switch. Great job with the review Alex and now I will await fanart for this game because it needs it!

[@BacklogBattle]

I don't think the word "crap" is worth censoring yourself for 😉

[@MrDarksol]

@@BacklogBattle I really hate when the auto correct would censor me lol.

[@blackfistxu7953]

👍🏾👍🏾💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯

[@JackTheFenris]

Subscribed!

[@miller_de]

As much as Vanillaware rocks, I won't buy a console for it. Release it on PC and I'll give you money. it's that easy. Throw in 13 Sentinels and Odin Sphere while you are at it. Thank you 😊

[@BacklogBattle]

Hopefully, you won't have to wait for a long time. They've mostly been a PlayStation developer since their inception, and it's just now that they've released a game on Xbox.

[@donpandino1615]

Someone else counted how many times he said "unicorn overload"?😅

[@BacklogBattle]

Could be a really dangerous drinking game!

[@donpandino1615]

@@BacklogBattle ahahha, indeed

[@larrytheloner7964]

Anyone find the game too easy on expert tho?

[@JoonKimDMD]

I think the game is just ok. I dont think the villain is that bad. And I didnt feel sad about Queen’s death because we dont know much about her do the revenge didnt come across as satisfying as it should.

[@KarseFarrence]

The Fact that you start saying that you are Vanillaware fan, makes your review bias. I guess.

[@momarbeye9252]

Not necessarily you can be a fan of a specific developer and still dislike one of their games. For example I love Vanillaware but didn't enjoy Grimgrimoire once more

[@BacklogBattle]

Would you rather have someone who plays Call of Duty review this game?

[@KarseFarrence]

@@BacklogBattle Haha I dunno but maybe.