Video Game Review: Astlibra Gaiden: Cave of Phantom Mist

Astlibra Gaiden: Cave of Phantom Mist is the standalone expansion to developer KEIZO’s hit, Astlibra. Taking place during the middle section of the base game, Astlibra Gaiden: Cave of Phantom Mist aims to portray another side of the wider narrative. 

I’ll admit now that I’ve never experienced Astlibra, so when I was greeted with a spoiler warning, it did not phase me. I had no emotional attachments to these characters, so finding out the events of the first game didn’t bother me at all. That being said, if you’re currently playing through Astlibra it’s probably best to finish it first before tackling this one. You have been warned.

Taking place around the middle portion of the Astlibra Revolution, we’re placed in the role of the nameless daughter of the settlement baker. With the protagonist of the main game away on that adventure, it’s down to you to protect the village from the encroaching darkness. This standalone adventure soon entwines with the original story as you’ll soon be tasked with tracking down a group of adventurers that have gone missing in the titular Cave of Phantom Mist. 

The gameplay of Astlibra Gaiden plays very much like a traditional roguelike. Each journey you take into the cave sees its layout change which aims to keep things fresh. What sets Astlibra Gaiden apart from other roguelites is that after every run your character level is reduced back to its basic level. How you measure your progression is with something called “Force Gems” which are collected by defeating enemies, and are carried over between runs. These gems can then be used to enhance our mysterious protagonist via a vast system dubbed grow. 

The grow system acts as a giant talent tree. It’s here where you’ll spend any accrued force gems to unlock passive talents and abilities. Playing on higher difficulties also introduces a risk vs reward choice as being defeated in the cave can result in you either losing a portion of your gems - or all of them. 

The Bakers Daughter is quite a complex character and can become quite powerful as the journey progresses. Between runs, you’re able to switch between classes which offer a wealth of benefits to suit each play style. As my style of gameplay often sees me getting stuck into combat I opted for a class that favoured “getting stuck in”. This then gave me a buff to weapon speed which allowed for some quick attacks which certainly helped me plough through plenty of cave-dwelling nasties. Each character class comes with its unique attack, and the Bakers Daughter is also able to equip all manner of spells to supplement her arsenal. 

Difficulty-wise and everything here is what you’d expect from a roguelike adventure. I’m not one for punishing myself by playing games on a high difficulty so I generally stuck to the default normal difficulty setting. Enemies weren’t particularly too punishing but there’s enough of them thrown at you to pose a risk. Quite often I end up dying due to not managing my health, or taking unnecessary risks. Each section you clear of the cave does come with a save point, and in true roguelike fashion, you’ll be able to spend any saved currency within a shop that appears from time to time. As touched upon earlier, if you do want a more difficult time then higher settings do offer a more challenging experience. 

Aside from sharing the name, Astlibra also features as a gameplay mechanic. Presented as a weighing scale the Astlibra is used as a way to fine-tune your builds and stats. On the surface, it does seem quite a convoluted system, but with a bit of practice, it’s fairly easy. The trick with the scales is it get everything to balance as close as possible by placing different items on each side. Whether it’s slices of cake, books, condiment shakers, and many more, every item has its statistics that’ll offer unique bonuses to the silent protagonist. The trick is to place items that complement each other so you get stacking bonuses, however, if you place the same item on both sides they then cancel each other out. There’s no right or wrong way to how to balance the Astlibra out so with a bit of practice you’ll be able to nail the intricacies of the system in no time. 

Presentation-wise the experience is a bit of a mixed bag, but don’t let it fool you. From the get-go, you can tell that this is a game that’s been developed by a single person. The world is extremely flat and assets feel like they’ve been pasted on top of each other. Character design is where the game shines and from on-screen sprites to conversation windows everyone you interact with has a unique design. Likewise, combat is very versatile and the game flows with relative ease. The musical score is full of whimsical beats and crashing crescendos which helps to blend the contrasting atmosphere of the town and cave settings. 

Overall and dispite not playing the original I did have fun with this standalone DLC. While I have no doubts that a lot of story beats flew over my head, I still felt invested in the journey. There’s a certain degree of charm that surrounds Astlibra Gaiden: Cave of Phantom Mist and for the paltry entrance fee of £8.39 there’s plenty of content to keep you busy for a few hours. 

Rating: 7/10

A code was kindly provided for this review. 

Astlibra Gaiden: Cave of Phantom Mist is available now and can be purchased via the Nintendo eShop. 

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