Quartet Review
Or Perhaps Octet
The alleged decline of the turn-based RPG has been greatly exaggerated. Despite particular high-profile examples going in other directions, there is a long line of recent titles for RPGamers to dive into, so much so that it might be hard for newcomers to stand out. This is not the case for Something Classic Games’s Quartet. Drawing inspiration from classic 16-bit RPGs, the game easily stands on its own two feet. A very intriguing narrative carries players along, and an excellent implementation of the turn-based RPG template makes for an experience that demonstrates why such RPGs have developed their passionate following.
Quartet begins with a party of heroes chasing down the rogue General Corsin, who has gathered the power of the elements atop Mt. Nibaros. After defeating their foe, the party weighs the potential of using the power gathered for their own differing ideals, but decides to depart and go their own ways. Players are then introduced to each of the game’s four interconnected stories, which start out scattered in wildly different situations. Ben is a chef who cares primarily about how to find enough money to pay his rent until he discovers the ability to use wind magic. Nikolai is a sergeant and firefighting specialist in a country that greatly resembles Nazi Germany, who swiftly becomes intimate with its atrocities. Alexandra is a young woman with a great affinity for machinery, attempting to help keep her family’s shop running while caring for her comatose mother, before becoming involved in her brother’s shady dealings and finding a magical deck of cards. Finally, Cordelia is a skilled mage who finds herself denied her desired position in the bureaucracy of Leornin due to scandal and sets out to its frontiers to make her own name.
Quartet’s four interconnected stories start in very different situations.
Quartet’s story is structured into chapters. The first four chapters each follow one particular character in a completely different location to the others, with the order chosen by the player. Things then become more linear, with the next few serving to join the characters up before the full reveal of how everything connects. The viewpoint characters from the first four chapters are eventually joined in their initial acts by another permanent party member, who ends up being as important in the main story, making for a full major cast of eight.
There’s an impressive amount of depth to Quartet’s story, beginning with just how varied each of the initial characters’ locations are and how their relationships with magic appear to differ. The game also does an excellent job of keeping the pacing of its storytelling up; it is always looking to advance one of its many story threads, whether that is one of the individual character’s stories or the main narrative. There are a great many reveals to be found, with plenty of intriguing ideas behind the game’s world and its magic that combine with relevant themes about the nature of humanity. The variety of the characters’ backgrounds, personal goals, and ideals works wonderfully, providing them with their own agency and leading to differing obstacles for them to overcome. There’s some great worldbuilding, but never does the game get bogged down in the details, keeping the story advancing and making for a tale that is thoroughly engaging all the way through.
Tyler Mire’s soundtrack to the game is another standout aspect. There’s a huge variety to the tracks, from simple pieces with a small number of instruments to full-on orchestral depth, but all of it fits right into the game, from the pumping rock at the finale to the quieter melancholy moments throughout. Memorable tracks can be found at numerous points throughout the game, making it for a very enjoyable listen to go along with the gameplay and story. While there’s nothing particularly flashy about how it looks, the game’s 16-bit graphics are utilised to good effect. There’s a decent variety to all of the locations visited, and all of the character sprites are easily identifiable, even if the main cities don’t really stand out from each other. There are some scenes where the lower fidelity and almost matter-of-fact nature of the graphics strike a chord to the ease of which powers that be can elect to snuff out others’ lives.
The storytelling displays a great amount of finesse with its pacing and depth.
Quartet’s combat is driven by a standard turn-based formula, but is executed very nicely. Turns are character-based, driven by each combatant’s speed attribute, with the turn-order viewable on the right side of the screen. Players have an active party of up to four members and face off against up to three foes at a time. Anyone in reserve can be swapped into with the active turn character at any point and is able to act immediately. During their turn, players can use a regular attack, a special ability or spell, or an item. Each attack or ability is given its own type or element, with enemies having different weaknesses and resistances to exploit or avoid. Abilities and spells make use of Action Points (AP), which are displayed as a percentage. By default, characters restore 10% AP each turn, but this and the default 100% maximum can be increased with equipment. Inactive party members also restore AP during combat, which helps encourage players to keep swapping them in and out, particularly during tougher boss fights. There is also a standard assortment of status effects, buffs, and debuffs that can be utilised effectively by players.
While there’s little the combat does that hasn’t been done before, its incredibly able execution ensures that the gameplay is memorable and highly enjoyable. The balancing of its abilities is great, allowing players to figure out some highly effective strategies and combinations while still being challenged by enemies, although some of the more skilled players out there may wish for a tougher difficulty option on top of the game’s regular and casual settings. The pacing of combat is nice and fast, and all of the individual party members are useful in different ways that are easy to understand. Some characters may get more use than others depending on player preference towards certain strategies, but players will need to make use of all of them during the wide variety of combat situations it doles out.
Combat encounters are visible on screen, with many being required to allow players to progress through the mixture of ruins, caverns, forests, and so forth they will explore during the game. Most locations simply require that players find the correct path through them. However, players are rewarded for exploring during the game’s more linear chapters, with numerous items to be found by exploring side paths and rooms. There are plenty of items and crannies scattered around to find, some more hidden than others. The locations themselves come with enough variety and are well-sized enough to keep exploration engaging without taking too long. There are occasional puzzles and sequences for players during the game, such as extinguishing a path through fire with a limited number of charges, helping to mix things up a bit.
Combat is based on a standard turn-based combat but is executed very well.
Quartet has a standard automatic experience and level-up system, with new abilities and spells being learned by characters at certain levels. The game’s equipment is similar, with each character equipping a weapon, body armour, head armour, and two accessories. While the weapons and armour are primarily attribute drivers, the accessory slots help tailor the party’s combat approach for specific enemy encounters or tactics. Part of the exploration rewards are a decent number of tomes that players can use to increase attributes for chosen party members to help direct them towards a particular strategy.
Side content is heavily backloaded, with various side quests and challenges appearing towards the end of the game, while the bulk of the content leading up to this point is linear and story-focused. Though the game can be completed in a little under twenty hours if rushed, there is plenty of optional content that can easily add at least another ten hours. These include character side quests that help satisfyingly finish off each of the individual party member’s personal stories. These are well worth doing for their narrative payoffs and item rewards, with other late-game side content adding some extra goals for completionists.
Something Classic Games has done a great job identifying what it is that has made classic RPGs so beloved and not only emulating it, but also in adding enough of its own touches to make Quartet a memorable title. The game’s finely-paced and deep narrative, great soundtrack, and well-executed gameplay ensure that it easily keeps the player’s attention. It all amounts to a highly rewarding experience that is easily recommended to any RPGamer.
Disclosure: This review is based on a free copy of the game provided by the publisher.
Story is excellently told and cleverly paced
Gameplay in general is excellently balanced
Presentation works very well
Doesn't offer much new gameplay-wise
Location visuals often blur together
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