Games worth discovering

Is it a good witch or a bad witch?- MementoMori: AFKRPG Quick Review

15K View2022-10-28

“Memento mori” is a Latin phrase meaning, “Remember that you must die.” Quite the appropriate phrase for the Halloween season, if I do say so myself. It’s an expression that inspires one to take action and avoid wasting the precious time that you have. It’s also the phrase used in the title of the highly anticipated MementoMori: AFKRPG, which, according to the developers, is “the first RPG to be spoken of in the history of fine art.” A lofty boast for a game based on a lofty concept. But is that sense of grandiosity earned?

THE STORY

In the world of MementoMori, there are powerful girls known as witches, but when misfortune spreads across the land, the public begins to fear and detest these powerful women. Led by the Church of Longinus, inquisitors have commenced a continent-wide witch hunt. In response to that aggression, the ten powerful “Witches of Qlipha” unleash a series of curses that quickly send the world spiraling into madness. You must band together with a group of young witches—the good, innocent ones!—to destroy the curses and save your dying world.

PLATFORMS

MementoMori: AFKPG was developed by Bank of Innovation and is available for Apple IOS and Google Play.

TIME PLAYED

I’ve spent around two hours playing MementoMori: AFKPG hands-on, which was enough to unlock all the gacha elements of the game. With that said, most of what happens in MementoMori is automatic. My team battled and earned loot constantly while I was away from my phone, and I just had to check in on them every once in a while.

WHAT’S AWESOME

• Visuals. The production values on MementoMori are quite beautiful. The watercolor nature of the art style and live animations makes it seem like it’s almost a painting come to life. Added to the fact that each character is a collage of colors ranging from dark to light and atmospheric backgrounds, MementoMori feels like fine art.

• Audio. MementoMori comes equipped with an entire cast of English-speaking voice actors but can also be switched to Japanese. Fully scored music compositions also help bring the world to life. Moreover, each character has a unique song, known as a Lament, which expresses the character’s personal woe at being branded a witch. The Laments are a nice touch that uses the music to further build character development.

WHAT SUCKS

• Gameplay. You can’t say they didn’t warn you. The gameplay of MementoMori: AFKRPG is spelled out right in the back half of its title. Most of my time with the game was spent waiting as the characters endlessly grinded for loot and gear. My only goal was to check in and see when they had built up enough levels or equitable upgrades to begin the next boss battle. And, you guessed it! Once I clicked the for the boss battle to begin, they were also completely automated.

• Microtransactions. Like in most gacha games, monetization in MementoMori is based on collecting new characters. The highest rarity SR pulls at about a rate of 4.46%, and it takes 3000 of the in-game currency for a 10-pull. MementoMori also incorporates a VIP system, where spending real money moves players up in the VIP ranks, which in turn allows them more privileges. This means some features that would otherwise be mainstays are locked out initially.

SHOULD YOU PLAY IT?

MementoMori: AFKRPG leaves a lot to be desired. The visuals and music are truly impressive and make the title stand out. Still, considering it’s a mobile game and not a work of fine art I’d admire in a museum, it was disappointing how the gameplay was the least impressive aspect. If you can appreciate that this game is more style than substance, check it out, but if mostly AFK gameplay and heavy microtransactions bother you, give it a pass.

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