Bandai Namco is no stranger to action-RPGs.
Over the decades, the company has produced storied franchises
like the Tales of series, as well as the likes of God Eater and Sword Art Online.
Its latest offering, Scarlet Nexus, draws upon its rich history,
yet still manages to establish its own identity thanks to its inventive battle system.
The world of Scarlet Nexus attempts to set itself apart from the rest of the cyberpunk pack,
but the influences are clearly felt from start to finish.
It’s set in a dystopian future where Earth is constantly threatened by monsters
originating from an unnatural field in the sky called the Extinction Belt,
and a military force known as the OSF is charged with protecting civilization from these attacks.
As a new cadet in the OSF, you play in either the role of Yuito or Kasane,
taking one of two distinct paths through a dark and tragic story
that starts fast and doesn’t let up.
In order to get the complete story, though, you need to play through both campaigns.
Asking this of anyone is typically a huge risk;
games that attempt this level of player commitment have met with varying degrees of success,
and even those with the best payoffs still have legitimate drawbacks.
Scarlet Nexus is no exception,
as certain plot points feel underdeveloped
from just one campaign’s perspective.
Whether you opt to take on Yuito or Kasane’s campaign, each is broken into 12 chapters
filled with various missions, story sequences, boss battles,
and downtime at your hideout, where you can develop social relationships.
Clocking in at around 25 hours on normal difficulty,
the prospect of doubling that time may not seem appealing at first.
However, there is a decent amount of overlap between the two campaigns
that cuts down on the length of the second playthrough.
Not to mention, you can carry over progression via new game plus
to further speed things up.
Its cast of energetic characters don’t exactly steal the show,
but they’re written well enough to get invested in each of their arcs.
Seeing their stories fully realized is another way the game encourages you to dive into
the second campaign.
This is, afterall, a game about bonds, and Scarlet Nexus is clearly trying to tap into that Persona mantra
of hooking you with its social trappings,
encouraging frequent interaction with your party members.
It largely succeeds by providing multiple rewards,
whether its cosmetic bonuses that adorn your base or new insights into the backstory of each character.
Perhaps the best reason to develop relationships with your characters
is to improve one of many layers of the game’s fantastic battle system.
As an action-RPG, Scarlet Nexus lives and dies by its battles.
It manages to pull off flashy combat that resembles something more akin to a character action game,
yet still retains RPG elements with its creative fusion of special powers
and new abilities unlocked as part of your character’s progression.
Yuito is a close-ranged melee specialist while Kasane is a mid-to-long-ranged fighter,
and each has a distinct playstyle.
Both employ a special ability to levitate objects and hurl them in battle,
and this pairing of executing traditional style combos while being able to interact with the environment
serves as a solid foundation.
Where it reaches out and grabs you is in the extra components that you unlock
as you make your way further into the game.
You also can’t simply hang back and endlessly hurl objects at enemies.
Each use of your psychokinesis drains a meter,
which can only be replenished by going on the offensive and engaging enemies with basic attacks.
This forces you to find a balance and be more observant of both your opponents
and your surroundings, which is instrumental in learning to properly utilize additional powers and abilities
that are pivotal to a majority of fights down the line.
Each party member can lend you their powers temporarily.
This can allow Yuito or Kasane to infuse their attacks with elemental effects
like fire and electricity,
or they can take advantage of more crafty actions
such as summoning a clone to double your attacks
or moving with hypervelocity so that it feels like you’re The Flash, running circles around your opponents.
Learning this dance of employing these actions in real-time comes with a bit of a learning curve,
but once it clicks, it feels really good.
As mentioned earlier, strengthening ties with party members enhances your combat abilities.
Increasing a bond unlocks a new level to your party member’s special abilities,
whether it’s increasing how long they can lend you power
or activating special combo actions when prompted by on-screen inputs.
You can also take this system even further by upgrading your own character’s skill tree
to unlock the ability to activate multiple party member power-ups at once.
There’s certainly depth to the battle system, but it's all for naught
if the enemies don’t encourage you to utilize it.
Scarlet Nexus boasts a wide variety of unsettling enemies that
actually push you to demonstrate a moderate level of competence
with the game’s intricate systems.
Even on normal difficulty, remedial battles can quickly get out of hand
if you’re simply spamming attacks and not making use of the tools provided.
More abilities such as brain drive and the visually stunning brain field
get introduced a few hours in,
and while it all may sound like a lot,
the game does a great job at introducing each new system at a manageable pace.
When all is said and done, Scarlet Nexus delivers really satisfying combat.
As frustrating as it can be to lose to standard groups of monsters,
especially in later chapters, overcoming them by learning their attack patterns,
countering their strengths, and wisely utilizing objects in the environment
ultimately feels very rewarding.
Though if you find yourself struggling,
you can freely adjust the difficulty setting at any time outside of battle.
The action transpires in large-scale environments such as an underground rail system,
an abandoned city, and the ruins of a massive highway.
Each setting wonderfully realizes a cyberpunk anime aesthetic
as Scarlet Nexus puts its own spin on the dystopian future.
It’s not exactly original, but it’s captivating nonetheless.
There are some blemishes here and there, as some of the backdrops are jaw dropping,
while others clearly cut some corners.
While there’s a good variety of levels,
there’s definitely a sense of redundancy and overuse by the game’s end.
This feeling is further compounded if you take the plunge
and dive into the second character’s campaign since they tread almost the exact same terrain.
There are occasional hidden paths and optional fights, but
the game’s focus is not on exploration, but rather combat.
Thankfully, the combat looks just as visually impressive as it plays.
Scarlet Nexus doesn’t just look good, but it can sound good at times, too.
There are definitely a few stand out tunes, and the general style of the soundtrack
ranges from a blend of synths, dubstep, and power rock for the battle themes,
to soothing piano and strings for the downtime in between.
However, a good portion of the tracks are mostly forgettable,
and overall, there’s a general lack of variety.
Scarlet Nexus more than delivers on the action with its impressive combat system,
which alone almost makes it worth the price of admission.
Surrounded by an intriguing world and strong cast of characters,
it has the makings of a solid new series for Bandai Namco,
though exploration leaves something to be desired.
Offering up two similar campaigns might seem like a huge misstep,
but completing either protagonist’s story
provides a satisfying narrative and conclusion on its own,
and the intimidating task of a second playthrough is tempered by the inclusion of new game plus.
At the end of this journey, we’re left fulfilled,
but strangely still yearning for more,
wondering at the possibilities the future might hold for this striking new endeavor.
Final score: 8 out of 10.
Easy Allies Reviews are made possible by generous viewers just like you.
If you like what you see, check out patreon.com/easyallies to help us make more.
Join for just $1 a month to check out Mini-Game Champions,
a new eight-episode exclusive
in which we battle against each other in various mini-games
to see who can take the crown.