Vortex Gaming

Brown Dust 2, a mobile RPG developed by Gamepfs and serviced by Neowiz, was officially released on the 22nd.

Brown Dust 2, which underwent several tests before its release, especially fixed many parts to the extent that it could be called a big change during the last beta test. What will the official release look like after the BM is included? The definite thing is that the graphics, sensibility, and strategic battle system that were well-received seem to be well-applied.

The biggest advantage and characteristic of Brown Dust 2 is that it feels like a nostalgic JRPG. 2D graphics that give a smooth feeling with a slight blur effect, SD characters without exaggeration, and a story-centered progression method.

It seems to be a very good first impression. It evokes memories for those who have often enjoyed JRPGs, and it conveys novelty to those who are new to it because it is a method that is not often seen in the smartphone game market.

It's not a perfect match, but it's similar to the recent Y2K trend in the fashion world. It gives nostalgia to those who have gone through the 2000s, and on the contrary, it gives novelty to those who do not know the period as a completely different look from the existing one.

Brown Dust 2 is focused on reviving these memories, or in some ways, on emotions. Just looking at the part where you insert a game pack to move on to the next story chapter. Even the fact that the game packs don't fit properly and you have to shake them.

The battle system also completely went against the trend of recent mobile games. Even if it's a strategy game or a turn-based game, most of them pursue simplicity, but they chose a much deeper method. You have to pay attention to so many things, such as the characters' skills, positions, enemies' skills and positions, links, and skill points.

This is also a common sight in old PC package games. It's not just about matching the characters' skills to the enemies, but also about adjusting the character's position by looking at the skills the enemies will use next, and considering the available resources and cooldowns to think about which skill to use to attack which enemy.

There is a set turn, and the character can only move once per turn. And the same goes for the enemy. The key to the battle is how many enemies you can deal with in a set turn while avoiding or mitigating the enemy's powerful attacks.

And Brown Dust 2 has upgraded the strategy of turn-based battles by adding the systems of 'link' and 'knockback' here. You can push an enemy that you can't finish at once in a specific direction, and then organize it by linking it with the skills of other characters.

Even all the characters have knockbacks in different directions, so you can see that there are much more diverse battle options. While proceeding with the battle, you'll be thinking about how to push the enemies in which direction to wipe them out.

In the case of links, where chains are accumulated each time characters attack the same enemy, and the damage received increases as a result, it also acts as an element that adds depth to the strategy. The advantages and disadvantages of the battle change drastically depending on which character is set as the attacker and which skill is used.

In this way, very strategic turn-based battles are completed by combining a variety of elements such as knockback and chain, turn and skill points, placement tiles that can change the character's position, and the position of the attack target that differs for each character.

It's not a strategy of just putting characters into the party in a superficial way and using one ultimate skill, but a real strategy that requires you to think deeply every turn.

The graphics are as impressive as the strategic battles. Various backgrounds such as forests, deserts, cities, caves, mines, ruins, and modern classrooms have been implemented to highlight their characteristics. This is also full of the JRPG sensibility that old gamers will be familiar with.

The SD character also blends in very well with the overall smoothly expressed background. Thanks to this, the overall atmosphere of the game feels cute.

In addition, the dialogue scenes that continue the story are drawn through speech bubbles so that they are not too heavy. Of course, the story itself is not light, so in really important scenes, the screen is switched to use the characters' illustrations and spine animation. This also serves to refresh the atmosphere from time to time.

There are no excessive or insufficient parts in the character cutscenes that appear when using skills. You can choose to see it only once a day, every time, or not at all through the settings. I really like the fact that the player is given a choice.

However, there are definitely some disappointing points. The biggest one is the exclusive equipment, and the options for that exclusive equipment.

In the case of Brown Dust 2, there is a character, and there is a costume for that character, that is, a skill. You can think of each costume as having a new skill attached to it. And each character has exclusive equipment that they can use. Exclusive equipment has much better stats than the common equipment that can be crafted in the game.

Of course, that's why exclusive equipment can only be obtained through gacha using cash goods. There are SR and higher UR grades.

The problem arises in the stat options of the equipment. Surprisingly, the options for the equipment in this game are all random, from the main stat to the sub stats that are created through enhancement. The story is that the stat options of the equipment that you worked hard to obtain using cash goods, even the UR equipment that you managed to obtain by breaking through the odds, are all randomly attached.

It doesn't end there. Even the numerical values of the stats that go up through enhancement are random. Apart from the main stat that is attached when you first obtain the weapon, new stats are attached to the equipment each time the enhancement value reaches +3, +6, and +9. But the numerical values of these stats are random.

These numerical values must be randomly rotated from C to S again through the refinement system after achieving +9 enhancement. In the meantime, the 3 numerical values are in a bundle, so even if a specific numerical value comes out as S, you cannot save it. You have to keep turning it all at once.

In the end, it's like a story of random random random random. Even if you work hard to get the exclusive UR equipment for the character you want through gacha, you have to pray that the stats attached to that equipment are correct, and you have to pray that a whopping 3 useful good stats are attached to the equipment that you were lucky enough to get.

The bigger disappointment is that there is currently no way to modify the random stats of this equipment. Even if the stats of the equipment you worked hard to obtain are a mess, you have to use it with tears in your eyes or turn the gacha again.

However, the developers say that they plan to improve this part through an update within August. They are planning to add a function to change both the main option assigned to the equipment and the 3 options assigned during enhancement to other options through in-game goods.

In addition to this, there are quite a few disappointing aspects in terms of BM. These are things that recent mobile MMORPG games often choose. You have to get skills with cash goods, or you have to collect things that can only be obtained with cash goods to increase your stats.

As mentioned above, in Brown Dust 2, skills are the same concept as the character's costume. In order to obtain or enhance skills, you must obtain a new costume for the character and upgrade it by overlapping the same costume.

And except for the costumes that are given as basic in the story pack, high-grade costumes can only be obtained through gacha, of course. The same goes for enhancement.

It's not that this part is necessarily wrong. BM is an area of choice for both the game company and the player. However, the advantage of Brown Dust 2 is 'strategic battle', but it is disappointing that the diversity of skills, which is a basic part used in that strategy, is limited.

Brown Dust 2 is definitely a well-made game. In particular, the visual aspects, such as the wonderful graphics and the beautiful character illustrations that you can't help but admire as soon as you see the in-game screen, deserve applause.

In addition, the fact that the main story, character story, and PVP mirror war are made in the form of game packs to revive the retro sensibility, and the fact that the JRPG nostalgia is properly given in various parts such as the characters moving together, battles, and stories, also act as positive elements.

Strategic battles cannot be left out. By utilizing various in-battle contents, it may give fatigue to people, but it provided a turn-based battle where you can feel a proper strategy even on mobile.

Unfortunately, however, convenience and spicy BM are slightly covering up these advantages. As the developers have promised to update these parts very quickly in various aspects, I think it will get better and better. In fact, Gamepfs, the developer, has a history of actively accepting gamers' opinions and fixing the game in a positive direction even during the test period.

Webzine InvenKim Su-jin Reporter
2023-06-29