I've just completed the vote and (I think) am about to start the second battle. So far really liking it, and I'm kinda sad we have to wait over a year haha. In terms of criticisms:
- I think the Main Story/Side Story map system is just a little clunky. It's very cool in principle but it seems to just take too long, added to the sheer amount of story cutscenes there are. I think a simple way to make it slightly better would be to have all Side Story sections of a given chapter available at the same time, and selecting Main Story would have all the story cutscenes play, not just the next one. The cycle of select Main Story, watch cutscene, back to map, select all Side Stories, then select Main Story again, then back to map, and so on until finally a battle, could definitely wear thin.
- I really like the ability descriptions, and I would like if they would do something similar for equipment and stats. I also would like if some of the random chance (e.g. Anna's ability which has a chance to put the enemy to sleep) gave explicit percentages, like hit rates do. I have no idea if "a chance" means relatively likely, say 50%, or a remote possibility, say 10%.
- Many others have mentioned the voice acting, and those points are valid, but I think part of the issue is the dialogue. For instance, one of the villain's siblings literally does an evil laugh at one point - there's no way a voice actor can make that sound not ridiculous! Related, the villains are two one-note and over-the-top evil, which I believe has been mentioned.
I would say these are all minor nitpicks, though. The artstyle is beautiful, the combat is fun and satisfying, and the voting system is a really cool concept. I also am digging the story. Can't wait for the full thing!
