Oreshika is a game I almost though wouldn’t make the trip across the sea. But the digital platform of PSN, and Sony’s localization and marketing teams have convinced SCEA to bring the title to western audiences. And the game is a solid JRPG experience with a great visual flair, so it was worth the wait.

Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines is actually a sequel to the original PS1 game, which was ported to the PSP a few years ago. And the title is a portmanteau of it’s full Japanese title Ore no Shikabane wo Koete Yuke 2, roughly translated as Over My Dead Body. The premise behind the title ties into the story where a Clan that took the blame for a failure to protect the sacred instruments from being stolen by Oni: which leads them to their deaths. A god tries to resurrect the now dead clan members, but discovers that not only were you set up, but that your entire clan was cursed to only live for a maximum of two years, and procreation can only happen between gods and other clan members. Of course, humans can’t normally survive like that, so newcomers have an accelerated aging process that brings them to a prime fighting state. Even the birthing process is sped up, and with apparently no need for standard human methods. A ceremony is performed, and suddenly there’s a baby magically created in the womb.

You only have two years with each clan member, and each excursion into the labyrinths or Rite of Divine Union takes a month at a time, so players need to plan according. If you go into a dungeon, you should make the most effective use of your time there. Your party members have standard JRPG attributes. Stamina is HP, Technique is MP, and Vigor acts like a buffer for HP. If Vigor drops too low, your HP count will be effected, and your lifespan will diminish if it’s not replenished regularly. Clan members also have the standard attack, defense, and agility values. However, they have these values for each of the four elemental affinities the game has. There is also a class system in place, with each having various strengths and weaknesses. While the Clan Head can pick from any of the 6 classes, you will need to find the appropriate scroll before new clan members can pick that class. This also goes for techniques. Most techniques and equipment are random drops from the enemy. The interesting thing here is that the game uses an item slot reel, which provides a good visual for players as to what they can get. It could be an item, gear, money, or extra glory, which is experience. Getting three glory or money reels in a row results in 3 times the rate of glory. If it’s during the Flame of Frenzy, this can go to quintuple the rate. Flame of Frenzy time also increases the chances of rare loot appearing. The offset to this is that demons get tougher, but it’s worth the risk.

During combat, the actual object is to defeat the enemy leader. Doing so ends the battle instantly, but you miss out on the extra experience from the other enemies. The loot will always be gained though. Unless of course the leader runs away with it, which makes player prioritize grinding over loot collection. It’s a real fun twist on the traditional turned based system. The game also borrows elements from Suikoden where party members can join techniques together to produce an attack that’s many times stronger than doing it individually. Although it will take a full turn to realize. This is somewhat hindered by a quirk of the combat system. Even though the acting captain of the team can always do whatever they want, your other members actions are limited to whatever they suggest. Listening to there most suggested actions will earn you loyalty, which leads to them performing better in battle. Conversely, losing loyalty can see them abandon the Clan, taking any gear that they had with them. Or if they die with low loyalty, they can come back to haunt your party.

Outside of battle, you can rest to restore vigor, which also takes a month. Players can also purchase gear or even invest in shops to increase their available inventory. There’s also the previously mentioned Rite of Divine Union, which lets you make new clansmen and women. Depending on the God chosen, they will retain similar facial features, and their stats will be a mix of the two parents. Compatibility also plays a role, but it’s best to pick more powerful gods. This requires more devotion, so make sure to grind away in the dungeons. If you do decide to go back into a dungeon, you can let your assistant plan everything for you. This is good for players that might be pressed for time. Just know that the higher the difficulty setting, the more time you spend in the labyrinths. This actually leads me to some of the game’s small but notable shortcomings. Players can also use QR codes to get access to some unique gear or recruitable clan members.

The passage of time seems too short for any given difficulty. It might have been less annoying if you had spent a week instead of a month in a dungeon for every five minutes. But maybe the game could have just stretched the two years out in general a bit more. Also since the clan members only get two years of life, they get no story of any kind. In this game, the focus is put on a god named Nueko. Since the first game focused on the clan, it’s the god’s turn. The only problem arises when you are forced to transmigrate her into a mortal. Since she’s an important character to the story, you can’t advance the game during the Feast of All Demons, the story-centric months unless you bring her with you. And of course it costs a nice chunk of devotion to do so. Since she’s treated as a clan member, she also only gets two years, and needs training. Thankfully she’s pretty strong, and only gets stronger as the game goes on. But still an annoyance you will have to deal with. Those are really the only issues that the game has though. It’s a fantastic JRPG built for short bursts of play. It has beautiful artwork, decent music, and it’s actually a budget digital title at 20 dollars. Definitely worth a try for any RPG fan.

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