The past few months have been rather eventful for Exe-Create and Kemco Games.  Releasing Illusion of L’Phalcia on all platforms was quite the undertaking, but did their gamble pay off?

With multiple release dates on various systems and areas of the world, Illusion of L’Phalcia has been received with little or no fanfare.  When the game was given to me, I had no clue what adventure the code held. I was given the explanation of it’s a JRPG. That was a large bonus in its favor.


The installation was smooth and fast, having the game up and running In no time.  Upon first impression, the game had an adventurous appeal to it, from the graphics to the music.  The graphics are typical with what one would expect from Kemco’s client list, however with the array of colors along with the slight aggressiveness of the music I was ready to play.

The main quest is revealed rather quickly: Ryser is in search of the Illusive Sword of Amal.  The legendary weapon of the past is rumored to hold within its power the ability to grant a wish to the wielder.  Alas, the sword was sealed away in the past amidst the abuse of several wishes.

While the validity of the sword remains a myth, Ryser and Cougar are convinced it’s reality and they are searching for the pieces of the map.  This is where the game starts play.  

Gameplay is pretty straightforward, but the controls are a tad clunky at times as the grid system is a bit sloppy.  It’s quickly adjusted by the time you meet other members of your team and continue your quest.  The tutorial is well-paced and is thorough, explaining practically everything that will ensure your success with the game.

The battle system reminds me of other Kemco games, just a bit different. The edge of the screen starts flashing yellow, indicating monsters in the area.  Once the screen is rimmed in red, the battle ensues.  Attack, defend, and items are on your option wheel, but the addition of Phantom Skills and Magic are unique to the game.  Throughout the game, the characters receive more powerful skill attacks and magical spells.  They are quite strategic as well.  Using the wrong one could eradicate your entire party, so think before choosing.


One tactic that is unique to the game is the Skill Chain Attack.  By pressing the R1 button with one character, it will choose the characters either side of them to perform random Phantom Skills on an enemy.  These are quite powerful and could annihilate the monsters rather quickly.

Magic is another setting that requires a bit of skill, but with puzzles.  In a Tetris-like screen, one must place gems In order to make specific sets of spells available to the character.  Choose carefully as you don’t want spells to become redundant, but rather spreading the variety among your party.

The storyline is alright.  The dialogue can be eye-rolling at times, but overall it’s okay.  I found myself skipping through random encounters with various characters since I wanted to progress further in the story.  

Now to the cons of the game.  The audio is in Japanese and subtitles are English only.  While I do not find that an issue, many other gamers may.  The audio mixing could have used more work as the sounds are unbalanced, going from really quiet to blasting your eardrums out the next second.

The dungeon crawling can unnecessarily feel quite lengthy.  While I admit I’m not the greatest at backtracking on games, this one has those that are stumped at times.  Through trial, error, and lots of monster fights you will emerge victorious…or you can just use a return ring when allowed.  

Once given the ability of world travel, one might think their troubles with transportation are over.  Not so.  It is difficult almost bordering on the verge of ridicule trying to get the bird to land.  At times, the player will have to make quite the trek to their destination.

As unfamiliar with the game as I was,  I made the best of it and enjoyed it for a low-budget game.  It held my attention, but it wasn’t one I couldn’t put down.  It’s a nice title to give a try when needing a break from other games or want a short game to give anywhere from thirty to fifty hours.  Going through the information given in this article, I rate this game 7.5 stars out of 10.

Illusion of L’Phalcia is available on the PlayStation Store for $14.99USD.