Maintaining Momentum in Crimson Shroud

Much like its predecessor, the Nintendo 3DS has amassed a number of high quality role-playing games in its library. With its backwards compatibility with Nintendo DS game cards, however, stating the system may have one of the best comprehensive JRPG libraries is not a bold statement. Remastered versions of old classics, new and exciting series and installments, and the occasional singular entry that stands well on its own. Something the 3DS benefits from is its eShop, a place where independent developers could flex their muscles and release smaller titles at affordable prices. In its early days, the eShop was a saving grace for the system's somewhat starved retail library, but as the 3DS grew to prominence, the eShop became a stage for experimentation. Nintendo and third parties could take risks with less-familiar intellectual property and toy with small scale concepts.

While Crimson Shroud was never strictly intended to be an eShop title, first appearing in Level-5's collaborative Guild minigame series, both it and the titles it was bundled with from the Guild01 physical release were distributed as separate eShop titles in the West. In many ways, it is a game that couldn't really exist in any other form other than within a compilation or on a digital shop, as it is merely a brief snippet of a narrative set within a single elaborately designed dungeon. As a fan of smaller-scale RPGs, Crimson Shroud's narrative won me over in a number of ways, but what truly sent me falling head-over-heels in love with this quirky title were its combat and character progression systems. There are many interconnected aspects in this Yasumi Matsuno original that work to elevate it beyond a retreading of familiar ground- its roaring soundtrack, the Dungeons and Dragons-esque narration, aesthetic, and mechanics, and unique melding mechanics that bolster its customization, but in this article, I'd like to focus on a very specific aspect of its gameplay, one that factors into the successful feeling of ebb and flow found in its many skirmishes.

I am speaking of Crimson Shroud's sense of momentum.

When I utilize this term, it primarily refers to the pacing of a combat system, but also applies to the amount of time where the player must be actively aware of their circumstances within the overarching progression of a game. If a player isn't engaged with the ebb and flow of a battle, then the battles feel superfluous, even when they are narrative-related. Likewise, when they feel that they can turn their brain off for artificial character progression, the game's systems are not promoting present and enticing styles of gameplay. It is most definitely an aspect of RPGs- and video games in general- that is exclusive to the genre. For example, a moviegoer can feel the tension of a dramatic scene because of the performances, causing them to sit at the edge of their seat, but games create the sense of tension through the active participation of the player. Momentum is clearly exhibited in platformers, not just literally, but also in how a player must actively execute options in order to attain certain challenges within the game's level design, and with how level length and number contributes to a sense of forward progression. Within RPGs, however, momentum can be achieved inside and out of combat. A particularly engaging narrative can push a player to continue forward, just as the ebb and flow of a battle can help a player realize their level of proficiency with a game's systems and character progression.

Matsuno is a developer with a deep understanding of momentum. Having developed several tactics games as well as the masterpiece that is Vagrant Story, he has exhibited momentum in a number of different fashions. In particular, Vagrant Story and Crimson Shroud both use intimate settings and contained narratives not only to create a sense of story-based momentum, as the player is ultimately limited in their freedom to wander off in certain directions, but also in gameplay, as the combat mechanics of these titles never allow the player a chance to feel completely safe and secure. On the other hand, a player who feels confident within these systems can exploit them in order to achieve a satisfying sense of accomplishment within tense scenarios. With Crimson Shroud as an example, we can see how this terminology applies to a number of systems within the game.

As a band of Chasers sent on a mission to obtain a mythical magic artifact, the small party of three spends their entire adventure and of main narrative within the dilapidated walls of a ruined palace. The place is crawling with all sorts of creatures, and yields no respite for the brave adventurers seeking the truth among the ancient stones. There is no inn to be found in Crimson Shroud, the player must utilize enemy drops and strategic choices within combat in order to survive. There's not much else other than combat present in the game- rooms have specific events and skirmishes triggered upon their first entry, and the player can scope out which areas have encounters by dragging around the map and checking for pacing footprints within rooms. Many events are simply additional layers of rich lore presented in lengthy text boxes, but that's the long and short of it. An eight hour RPG needs more than just a good combat system in order to sustain itself- it needs a fantastic one. Luckily, Crimson Shroud has the perfect answer.

One of the most important aspects of the game's combat comes from a particular quirk of its mana system, which can be replenished inside and outside a skirmish. However, the limited amount of engagements and enemy drops the player receives means this can be a risky proposition, and most of the heavy-hitting attacks and skills require substantial amounts of mana in order to cast. While each character is capable of spending a turn rolling dice for a mana draw, this neutral action has the potential to cancel dice chains, a feature we'll touch on shortly. Players can instead use a character's basic attack function to convert a fraction of damage dealt into mana. I have stated on numerous occasions that the contextualization and encouragement for using basic attack functions is one of the key aspects I appreciate most in any combat system, and Crimson Shroud's mana draw system is one of my favorite is no exception. It prioritizes aggression and skill usage within skirmishes in a number of ways, but it also justifies each character's class. For example, Frea is a mage, meaning her melee attacks are poor in terms of damage output. Since basic attack mana draw is based on the damage dealt, its best to utilize Frea's dice-based mana draws instead, meaning she can predictably end- or extend- dice chains. Likewise, Giauque and Lippi are melee-base characters, so buffing their attack power and utilizing basic attacks gives them higher mana draws, allowing them to consistently operate within their combat roles.

This also means that players can focus down on toying with customization options alone while they are out of combat, as it pushes them to continuously gain mana in order to regain health via skill usage within combat. In particularly desperate circumstances, players can utilize consumable items, but it is often just as useful to backtrack slightly and engage in a low-risk skirmish in order to charge your hit points and mana points before pushing forward again. This system also allows battles to ebb and flow properly as the player encounters new monster types and experiments with certain status effects and skills. Many of the monsters in Crimson Shroud possess specific stat spreads and skill sets that result in varied gimmick engagements, so the player can often feel thrown off-guard when encountering a new enemy type. With its mana system, combat can offer experimentation at relatively low costs before players decide to go all-in with the more nuanced aspects of its dice-rolling system. If RPG design is often centered around acute understanding of combat and customization, then efficient and strategic gameplay within Crimson Shroud highly benefits from the continuation of momentum through its mana gain systems.

This further factors into the game's central, tabletop simulation motif, which revolves around dice-roll tactics. Almost every skill in the game can be bolstered by additional dice-based damage, but obtaining these dice requires the development of two skills, one in-game and one player-based. The dice draw skill can be cast by characters in order to increase the likelihood of a dice chain resulting in high-number dice, and the player must be aware of their character's available skill set in order to maximize the number of dice chains they can execute. Each skill has an elemental attribute, and when a series of skills are used with varying attributes, they start a dice chain. Opposing elements and repeated elements will end a dice chain, and neutral attribute skills count as a skip. Ending chains in this way- or maxing out the number of chains- converts them into dice, which are saved in their own inventory for usage in combat. The player can only hold a relatively low number of these dice at a time, so continuously restarting dice chains is key for adding higher damage output to skills as well as proper execution, as many status-based skills will require an accuracy skill check that can be supplemented by these dice. The player must also be mindful of the elemental attributes of their enemies' skills, as they are also able to contribute towards and end dice chains.

While all of these systems exist within a turn-based battle system that, by design, allows players the opportunity to stop and carefully consider their options, they mesh in order to achieve a consistent sense of actively strategic thinking. Continuing chains requires the usage of skills, which requires mana draws obtained through certain attacks and skills, which also deal damage and apply buffs and debuffs to players and enemies respectively, which require dice to maximize damage or safely execute, which then requires proper dice chaining, repeat, repeat. This bleeds into the customization aspects of the game, which allow for proper planning outside of battle with skills applied to weaponry itself, as well as species-effective damage boosts. The melding system allows players to buff the power and effectiveness of a weapon and assign skills to them, which opens up the options for continuation of dice chains within battle. Players must be mindful of their equipment load, however, as they cannot wield equipment of a certain rank depending on how much other armor they possess. All of these choices lead to an RPG that, although brief, demands a great amount of attention from the player.

To say that Crimson Shroud is only eight hours long isn't entirely true. The player can replay the main narrative after completing the game, which also unlocks a substantial, previously-uncovered portion of its game map with high-intensity skirmishes and even more strategic depth. Likewise, they can restart numerous times after that, experimenting with the combat and character progression systems to create even more possibilities for themselves. Although my first attempt through Crimson Shroud equaled around that initial eight hour timeframe, my total playtime logged sits somewhere around forty hours. Although limited in scope, its versatility is impressive and enjoyable, more than any eight dollar RPG has any right to be. But its mostly the sense of momentum that caused my playtime to grow far beyond that original estimation- even at the game's conclusion, I felt such a rush and sense of present accomplishment that I couldn't help but restart and rediscover.

Crimson Shroud is unlikely to receive a sequel, as Matsuno has now departed Level-5 and the Guild series has garnered a relatively low amount of recognition and appreciation. It is sad, however, because its systems are absolutely sublime, rewarding the player for refined strategies and efficient gameplay in ways that many modern-day RPGs do not. The Guild series as a whole is hit-and-miss, but on the whole, it possesses some absolutely fantastic game design that will likely be covered once again in future articles. If you are a 3DS owner with a taste for RPGs, roll your dice and take a chance on this small title.

What are some other examples of RPGs with a great sense of momentum? Would you be interested in a critical analysis of Vagrant Story? How many twenty-sided dice do you own? As always, I encourage any sort of feedback and critique of my writing, so feel free to leave a comment below.