A standout gacha JRPG with a strong focus on music | Closed Beta Review - Takt Op. Symphony

211862

Takt Op. (also known as Takt Op. Symphony) is a role-playing game developed by Game Studio and Namco Bandai for iOS and Android devices. It is the counterpart game of the anime television series Takt Op. Destiny, set in a world where music has the power to control everything, and players take on the role of a conductor who must lead their orchestra of powerful warriors called musicarts in battles against monsters and other foes.

Takt Op. Symphony combines traditional console-JRPG with mobile gacha live service elements that results in an intriguing musical-themed game filled with storytelling, waifu characters, and role-playing gameplay. It is currently in a closed beta test for selected regions (Australia. New Zealand, UK) this late April to Early May, and is set to fully release later this year.

Many years ago, a meteorite arrived on earth and wrecked havoc across Earth by creating monsters called Despair Dolls. All hope is lost, until music saved everyone. It turns out, these monsters’ weakness is music, and the Symphonica Organization was created to save humanity.

The main character is a conductor named Takt Asahina, someone with the ability to lead the so-called musicart warriors in musical combat. 20 years ago, he was seriously injured and was put to sleep and has just recently been awakened, without memories.

In Takt Op, Players will meet a range of different cute waifu characters to build their orchestra, each with their own unique abilities and musical themes. The game features a turn-based battle system where players must strategically choose which characters and abilities to use in order to defeat their enemies. We have the typical healer, defense, and damage dealer character types, just a typical turn-based battle system just infused with musical abilities.

While you can control these turn-based combat manually, you can also let it play automatically, or just double the speed of the battles to quickly come to a resolution. So there is some semblance of idle gameplay in here, despite not being one.

From the moment I started the game, it already looks high quality. From the FMV anime sequences to the fluid animations and special effects the characters and skills have. It is all very well made from an artistic and quality standpoint. The design of the waifu characters are also toned down and not over-exaggerated, and I like this relaxed approach.

I also love the storytelling – the vibe feels very much like a good Anime series – which is no surprise as it is a direct follow up of the amazing Anime series takt op. Destiny as part of a mixed-media project. The anime was released last 2021, and this game is set to release two years later to continue the story — 2023 — after multiple delays. The game is told in multiple chapters and in a visual-novel style format, with small bits of FMV anime sequences in between.

As said earlier, it combines traditional console-JRPG with mobile gacha live service elements. The game feels like a proper JRPG, giving us the ability to control our character (in chibi form) in various 3D levels with some dungeon crawler aspects, while also featuring live service elements, like a gacha system for the characters and cosmetics, daily events and log-in bonuses, energy system, and in-app purchases.

One of the key features of Takt Op. is its emphasis on music. The game features a range of different musical themed characters, each with its own unique special abilities in battle. Players can also collect and upgrade these characters in a gacha manner to improve their damage and stats. How much lenient and pity rate the game will give upon release remains to be seen.

Aside from the gacha system and turn-based combat. There are also various bonus game modes like a dating or relationship building aspect with the characters, beverage making mini-games, various quests, special missions, and battle simulator dungeon crawling levels. This game packs a lot of things to do, and is coming out soon this year. I love the concept and the game has potential, and I think I’ll give it a go once it releases.

Despite overall being an impressive and unique experience, I did find some minor gripes, like how everything feels so low in the game. Transitioning to different screens and UI elements take too long and the countless fade to blacks take away the immersion of an otherwise engaging game. Despite also the overall fluidity of the animations, I also found some stiffness in the idle low HP animations with the characters and enemies.

Going through the dialogue isn’t exactly a quality experience, as the system is prone to accidental skips and there is no way to immediately complete the whole dialogue box and you just have to let it slowly play out. Although as a consolation, you can view the current chat history to see any missed text-dialogue. The game dialogue is voiced in Japanese, but there are various text-localizations available including English.

So far with my experience with the closed beta test, Takt Op. Symphony is a unique and engaging RPG that combines JRPG elements with a gacha system, and has a distinct premise that I’ve never seen before with its focus on music as the main plot and gameplay element.

Its colorful and fluid visuals, engaging storyline, and an anime prequel backing it, make it a great choice for fans of the genre, and is a treat for fans of the Anime looking for more Takt Op. content to consume.