It's a rare thing to encounter a title that manages to combine a phenomenal story that can be told in a number of different ways, with tight and engaging gameplay that can make a strategy game feel exciting, yet 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim has achieved this feat. 13 Sentinels combines two separate game types into one package - a narrative-heavy adventure mode and a fast-paced strategy game.
The story of 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is told from the perspective of different characters, and the player can experience them in any order they choose, barring a few mandatory roadblocks in the later section of the game. Without going too far into spoilers - the earth is being attacked in different time periods by giant machines, and only robots known as Sentinels can stand against them. The main characters are the pilots of these Sentinels, but some of them exist in different points in history. This sets the stage for a time-hopping adventure, where the characters learn more about their foe and the machinations of people trying to pull their strings behind the scenes.
The story-telling in 13 Sentinels is masterfully done, and the fact that the player can experience events in their own order means that everyone's experience will be unique. Finishing one storyline and learning that someone on the main cast is secretly a robot, for example, changes how the player will see that character when they're encountered in other storylines. The story of 13 Sentinels is a sci-fi epic that is gradually revealed to the player. The number of characters on offer means that the story can be hard to follow at first, but stick with it, as everything is explained over time and the pay-off is worth it. 13 Sentinels is like Stranger Things combined with Neon Genesis Evangelion, and if someone is a fan of either of those series, then this could be their title.
The narrative sections of 13 Sentinels are short on action and have very few puzzles, so they act as glorified visual novels. This is where the battle aspect of 13 Sentinels comes into play. There is a mode in 13 Sentinels where the player controls the Sentinels in their battle against the Kaiju, which is done in a strategy game. Each Sentinel has access to different weapons, all of which have their own effects, ranging from the short-ranged Sentinels with incredibly powerful attacks (but limited mobility), mid-range Sentinels with buffing moves and turrets, and long-range Sentinels that can rain death upon the enemy from a distance.
The combat in 13 Sentinels starts out easy, as the goal in most missions involves protecting a location known as the Terminal, with enemies flying in waves towards it. These early missions can easily be won by spamming missiles at the enemy, but everything changes when the player reaches the 2nd Wave missions, where different enemy types appear and their numbers increase exponentially. Suddenly, the player will need to make the most out of their resources and carefully balance their team in order to face the oncoming threat. The battle mode just keeps getting better as it goes on, and overcoming each mission feels like a desperate struggle for victory. This mode could easily be its own game and be an excellent strategy title in its own right.
The story and battle modes might seem like two separate entities that don't gel, but they are linked in how they deal with unlocks. Completing chapters in the story mode will give the player points that can be spent on upgrades for the Sentinels in the battle mode, which is vitally important for giving them new abilities and improving their stats. By the same token, completing missions in the battle mode unlocks "Mystery Points," which can be spent to unlock documents regarding characters and concepts in the story mode, to help better explain elements to the player.
All of this gameplay is wrapped up in some of the most gorgeous visuals of the current era. 13 Sentinels was developed by Vanillaware, which is the same company behind games like Dragon's Crown, and it shows. The character artwork and backgrounds in 13 Sentinels are composed of beautiful watercolor paintings. It's clear that a ton of work went into crafting every single aspect of the game's visuals. The visuals aren't quite as striking in the strategy mode, where most of the sprites are composed of basic 3D models, and it feels more functional than extravagant, but it doesn't detract from the gameplay. One thing we cannot vouch for is the voice work. 13 Sentinels is a dialogue-heavy game, and an English language option won't be available until after the game is released, so we didn't get the chance to experience it in full.
13 Sentinels is an incredible game, but it also very niche. A narrative-heavy/strategy fusion that plays like an interactive mecha anime is not going to be to everyone's taste, and it demands the player's attention at all times. This isn't a game that people can easily emote to while playing on stream, nor is it something that can be played with half an eye and half an ear while listening to podcasts. 13 Sentinels has a lot to offer, but it also requires a certain level of engagement from the player, and that might be too much to ask for some, especially with so many game releases in a given calendar year. It's important to put that out there while recommending the game, as 13 Sentinels definitely won't be everyone's cup of tea.
2020 has seen its share of disappointments on the gaming front, with long-awaited remakes failing to live up to their precessors, and brand new releases that failed to live up to the years of hype they built-up. To think that a game as fresh and unique as 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim can be released and offer such an amazing experience proves the gaming industry isn't quite as bereft of new ideas as we feared. For these reasons and more, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a must-play for anyone even remotely interested in its successful mashup of genres.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim will be released for PS4 on September 22. A digital copy of the game was provided to Screen Rant for the purposes of this review.
