Mato Anomalies: Digital Deluxe Edition

Mato Anomalies is a tough sell; it features some fresh ideas and concepts (which should be applauded) but fails to create a compelling core gameplay loop in the process. With so many other other excellent turn-based titles demanding your attention, it fails to provide a compelling reason to undertake this surreal journey.

Mato Anomalies is an ambitious indie attempt to create a Persona-like RPG romp through neo-futuristic Shanghai. There's no shortage of good ideas in the mix here, with flashes of inspiration in the fusing of turn-based dungeon combat, mind-hacking card games and stylish visual novel elements. However, for all the ambition on display, it's let down by uninspired combat, repetitive level design, clunky exploration, frustrating card mechanics and writing that just never manages to engage. This one's not entirely without merit, but overall it's an experience that'll test your patience far more than it manages to entertain.

The Digital Shadows DLC is a surprisingly welcome return to the futuristic city of Mato.

Mato Anomalies was a kind of game that pushed me away and pulled me in frequently. I found Doe’s investigative side to be boring outside of good story bits and the Mind-Hack card battle segments. Meanwhile, between the Gear system and skill cooldown system, exploring the Rifts and fighting the Bane Tide would be really fun, if not for the lack of enemy variety and non-stop one-liners. The story was good enough to help me look past some of the issues, but ultimately Mato Anomalies has a lot of repetitive annoyances that keep it from being better than many of the RPGs it borrows from.

With its engaging story, charming cast of characters, and solid RPG mechanics, Mato Anomalies is a game that all role-playing game fans will enjoy, especially fans of the Persona series, by which the game is greatly influenced. Lack of innovation, dull turn-based combat and a wonky English localization impact the experience, but not enough to make it unworthy of a look from fans of the genre.

How would you describe your relationship with Mato Anomalies? "It's complicated," I'd say. On the one hand, the game captivates me with its fantastic game world, its magnificent art style, the fun runs through the metaverse, and its variety of missions. On the other hand, there's the somewhat confusing storyline with a main character about whom we learn virtually nothing and whose motives are completely unclear. Personally, I also didn't need some of the game elements, such as the mind hacks. What remains is a perfectly acceptable role-playing game that's certainly playable, but not entirely recommendable.

Mato Anomalies is a good game that fails for trying to include, unnecessarily, too many elements in its formula. Despite this, its good characters and interesting plot manage to sustain it for its entire duration and the combat brings enough new elements to remain challenging.

Mato: Anomalies is a very flawed RPG that tried. It had big ideas in its story but god bless anyone who is fat-brained enough to understand it. The gameplay has small sparks of creativity, but it is lost under the woefully low-budget presentation.

At the end of the day, Mato Anomalies feels like a budget title with a lot of things going for it. It has some decent mechanics and some interesting story bits if you are willing to read a lot. The RPG side of the game can have some difficulty spikes and level grinding side dungeons will be needed in some instances, but for RPG fans and visual novel fans, if you can get past the different mechanics and are willing to learn some unconventional ones, this could be a decent experience for you even with the lower budget feel.

This is a game that is very dense, with a time-consuming interface and a story that tries way too hard to be something grand, throwing strained dialogue and empty contrivances together to the point where most of the meaning is lost.