And by “too much skill required” I mean there were too many stealth missions and eventually I’d had enough. I played up to World 9-1 in Guardian Tales, made it through other stealth-based stages like the whole desert saga, but finally I gave up the ghost. It’s like, even if I make it through this one, there’ll just be more of them, won’t there? Along with a host of other game tasks requiring skill and sharp reflexes, all of which I don’t have, otherwise I’d be at the Winter Olympics and not sitting here blogging about games.

I’ll say this for Guardian Tales, though: there’s never a dull moment in the stages. It’s not all running around smashing enemies, fun as that may be. There are also plenty of dungeon puzzles like pushing blocks, completing circuits, lighting torches, stepping on a switch and dashing through a gap before time runs out, and more. Now I hate dungeon puzzles and I hate stealth, but for the most part I was able to figure out the ones needed to pass a stage by myself. As for the optional/bonus ones, well, someone somewhere must have done them, and that’s enough.

Apart from the puzzles, there are also places where you need to race others, blow stuff up, swing across with your hookshot, jump with trampolines, slide across ice, etc etc etc. I haven’t even covered the side stories and optional quests, one of which features a shoot ’em up type game. Incidentally, my personal favorite weird gimmick is/was the Awakening dungeon where you could farm awakening stones by smashing illegally-parked cars. It’s nothing innovative, but it sure is funny.

All that skill-based gameplay makes the stages varied and interesting. That’s undeniable. But it also means you can’t grind/buy/pull your way to victory in non-battle scenes. It doesn’t matter if you have a level 9999 waifu if your fingers are too clumsy to sneak past the guards at the beginning of the stage. And therein lies the crux of my problem with Guardian Tales.

Honestly it’s a fantastic game for anyone who is sick of the one-way monotonous gameplay many casual games offer. Too many of them just have you moving from screen to screen killing enemies and watching cutscenes along the way, but GT keeps you on your toes. It still has casual elements, though. Most stages are short and quick to clear, and you can unlock auto-battles and sweeps for the grindier content. You can also ignore the story and focus on PVE/PVP like the Towers, the Orbital Lift, the Colosseum, the real-time Arena, etc.

But if you care about the story at all (and you need to, to unlock those PVE/PVP options), you’re going to have to “git gud” at running, dodging and sneaking, and I don’t have it in me to do any of that. If you do, though, you’re in for a real treat. I recommended it to a Zelda fan I know, and he’s loving every minute of it.

Things I liked about Guardian Tales

⚔️Action RPG combat! With all the ducking and jiving that comes with it.

⚔️The challenge level is just right. Most stages come with a recommended level, and as long as you stick to that and keep up with enhancing your equipment and awakening your characters, you should be fine. I hear there’s a massive difficulty spike at World 11, but I won’t get there so I have nothing to worry about.

⚔️The soundtrack is pretty good, especially the one that plays in the lobby.

⚔️The little princess is so cute!

⚔️I’m usually not a fan of the retro pixel SNES RPG look, but it worked great here.

⚔️Lots to do, plus lots of unlocked side stories to play through if you get bored. At the same time it’s not overwhelming or confusing. With some games it takes weeks and tons of guides to get all the mechanics down, but it’s pretty straightforward here. There are only a few things you need to grind to get stronger as well.

⚔️The pop culture references are amusing to spot. Monty Python, Ski Free, Pokemon, Ace Attorney, Disney, Dragon Quest… and those are just the ones I remember.

⚔️The game is pretty generous with gems. And it’s not just the usual “love-bombing” gacha games do to newbies to keep them playing. Even after playing for weeks, there are still plenty of ways to earn gems like the Colosseum, events and frequent giveaways. You could probably do at least one 10-pull a week.

⚔️The localization is mostly good, but you do spot occasional careless errors that suggest that the translation was done in a rush.

Things I wasn’t so hot on

🔨It doesn’t run well on emulators unless you’re very persistent & lucky. I don’t like gaming on my smartphone, so it was inevitable that I would remove it eventually.

🔨The story isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. A lot of bad things happen to your cutesy characters and their friends, so you won’t be feeling very good when all is said and done. TBH I rather like sunshine and rainbows, but if you’re looking for a grittier experience, this might be for you.

🔨I said it already, but I hate stealth missions and dungeon puzzles. Always have. And while we’re at it, I resent the fact that it’s a free-to-play mobile game and yet I can’t simply pay my way past the most annoying aspects of the game. I’d actually pay a small amount of cash to skip certain puzzles, no joke.

TL;DR Guardian Tales is a very charming game with a lot going for it. You can see that by the small number of things I disliked versus what I liked. It’s just that both the stealth thing and the phone-only things are complete dealbreakers for me, so this is where I get off. Anyone who is even slightly curious, I highly recommend you try it. Best of luck to continuing players and may the little princess give you lots of free gems!