Games | A Review of Scarlet Moon Immortal
AIAI-assisted translation·Read the source version
Introducing a game inevitably involves subjective judgement. A work that leaves me indifferent may appeal greatly to someone else. The following should therefore be treated only as a point of reference: if the game catches your eye, it may still be worth trying for yourself.
What kind of game is it?
Scarlet Moon Immortal is a role-playing game. The player controls its heroine, gathers materials, raises levels, and unlocks story scenes and CG illustrations. Combat is turn-based and somewhat reminiscent of Pokémon.
For players who dislike grinding and travelling back and forth across maps, the structure can become tiring: a great deal of running around may unlock only a small amount of new content.
The story follows the princess of a fallen kingdom. When she was a child, enemy soldiers broke into the palace. Her mother, the empress, delayed them by her own means and allowed the girl to escape. She later entered the path of cultivation. As an adult, after finding herself unable to advance beyond the initial stage, she leaves her sect and begins to wander the world.
It is a classic revenge story. As the heroine’s cultivation advances, the plot gradually reveals the truth of what happened in the past.
Why I recommend it
First, the heroine’s visual design strongly appeals to me. A cultivation setting is also relatively unusual among the adult games I have played, which gives the experience some freshness. The CG artwork is generally good, and several illustrations are especially refined.
The game also offers considerable freedom. There is no strict time limit, so the player can proceed at a personal pace.
Why I do not recommend it
The first problem is guidance. The tutorial on the starting island is reasonably clear, but once the world opens up, many side quests appear alongside the main story without any indication of their importance.
The sect storyline, for example, matters a great deal. Unless the player happens to travel to the sect on their own initiative, however, they may not discover it for a long time.
The second problem is the map design. Later areas are too large, and much of the playing time is spent simply travelling. Watching a small pixel character run back and forth for long stretches soon becomes exhausting.
The third problem is the story itself. Its narrative leans heavily towards romantic melodrama. Combined with the mechanics of an adult game, some emotional passages feel insufficiently prepared, and the story and its intended audience do not always sit comfortably together.
Overall, the game has a distinctive setting, appealing artwork and a high degree of freedom, but its guidance, maps and narrative pacing demand patience. Whether it is worth playing ultimately depends on one’s tolerance for its subject matter and structure.