PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

A title like Brigandine Abyss is a design nightmare. It takes two genres with a massive mental overhead cost and tries to make them both work in the same game. The result is a game that may not appeal to fans of either genre, but will be a must-buy for fans of both. For those who wanted Fire Emblem with more strategic freedom, this is the game, and for those who love Dynasty Warriors Empires but want more engaging combat, this is the ticket. Brigandine Abyss knows its niche extremely well.

Brigandine Abyss is a deeply involved SRPG that is here to weed out the strategy dilettantes and reward dedicated. The fun here is in the planning, which is good, but the lack of focus on the actual turn-based combat means many will not stay with it for the hundreds of gameplay hours it offers.

Brigandine Abyss lost some of the series identity in exchange for its efforts to try and find a broader audience. I don’t know if it will quite get there in the end. It’s easy to play and perfectly competent across both strategy and tactics, but there are so many other games out there that do that, and unlike the essential Brigandine: The Legend of Runersia, Abyss doesn’t have its own hook. With that being said, unless you are specifically comparing it to the earlier Brigandine games, the depth of characters, monsters and strategic options in Abyss is genuinely compelling so who knows- perhaps this will find a new audience after all.

Brigandine Abyss is a delightful blend of tactics and grand strategy, allowing for massive wars between unicorns and fairies to be played out.

Brigandine Abyss attempts to make the complex strategy/tactical RPG hybrid formula more accessible, but in doing so betrays the core ideas that made the series a cult hit.

Brigandine Abyss tries to explore other angles for the strategy RPG franchise, but ultimately ends up feeling comparatively worse than its predecessors. Though its modes limit what players can find in a misguided manner, it still manages to provide enough depth to be worth a try. Keeping in mind its issues, Abyss is still a solid experience in the genre that may find some fans spending many hours exploring all the perspectives of Meltitea.

Brigandine: Abyss is a good game. It could have been so much more.The foundation is excellent: the strategic system works, the army management is deep, the customization offers many possibilities, and the six campaigns guarantee a truly impressive amount of content. The problem is that all this depth is weighed down by an initially cumbersome interface, an uneven difficulty, excessively slow combat, some imperfectly balanced mechanics, and a structure that, despite the six campaigns, inevitably ends up repeating the same experience over and over again. And then there's the lack of Italian, which is a real drag for a title with this amount of content. Those who love old-school tactical RPGs, however, will find plenty to enjoy.

BRIGANDINE ABYSS is aimed at TRPG fans looking for a deeper and more expansive experience. While it has some strong arguments in its favor, certain shortcomings ultimately weigh on the overall experience. A game that may be worth checking out, provided you can accept its few flaws.

Brigandine Abyss is a solid strategy RPG with a vast roster of colorful characters with a tried-and-true combat system, full voice acting, and intriguing management systems in its campaigns. However, the game's overall presentation and lack of engaging story beats and variation in content might leave you wanting more from the game.

Brigandine Abyss is a disappointing return for the series—a dumbed-down strategy game with poor visuals, unfair mechanics, and a monotonous campaign that loses everything fans loved about previous installments. Many elements are mediocre, while others are simply bad.