Labyrinth of Zangetsu review

Apart from a gorgeous art style intended to look like an ink wash painting come to life, Labyrinth of Zangetsu is unequivocally conventional. Genre fans should be pleased.

“Innovation” is a pervasive descriptor in gaming, with software habitually attempting to exploit the capabilities of the latest hardware. But with the release of Labyrinth of Zangetsu, developer Acquire (Way of the Samurai, Akiba’s Trip) demonstrates that traditionalism can be just as captivating as invention. The latest release from the Chiyoda-based developer rarely digresses from dungeon crawling tenet. Peer past the striking sumi-e style visuals and you’ll find many of the same constituents that have kept the Wizardry series relevant for over four decades.

Zangetsu’s tutorial is surprisingly spirited. The tone conveys upper-class refinement but with a delicate sneer. By default, your training party is named after the first six Japanese numerals, hinting at the members’ disposability. But unless you are completely careless, the induction imparts almost all the fundamentals you’ll need to persist. And mercifully, even if a character loses all their hit points, swift healing can thwart death.

Reading the Room

Teams are geared for a row of three warriors in the front and a line of magic-using supporters standing guard in the rear. The turn-based battles against subordinate foes move at a fair pace, save for rookies tending to miss their targets (thankfully, enemies are evenly matched). Zangetsu veils some of its lessons via signposts situated throughout each maze.

Like most dungeon crawls, the game yearns to punish the impatient or careless, so taking a moment to read each notice is a worthwhile investment. Pay attention and you’ll learn how to adopt a stealthy stance, which potentially allows you to sneak past foes. You’ll discover how to peer into the shroud of darkness, using the flame of a torch that fades with every step. Keeping an eye peeling for shimmers is also advised, as these convey the presence of a hidden object.

The Sky is a Rare Sight in Most Crawls

Zangetsu’s labyrinths favor the fundamentals of skulking. There are no random enemies, with inky miasmas revealing the position of enemies. You’ll plot out the interior of each of the game’s labyrinths, steadily filling in a gridded mini-map. Pleasingly, they’re not all subterranean, with your first real outing putting you on footpaths that stretch out under torii.

Pause, and you’ll be able to equip newfound items, cast restorative spells, or glean a broader perspective on your surroundings. The latter is especially important when searching for areas of each dungeon that you haven’t investigated yet. As such, one of the more effective strategies is gradually reconnoitering the area near the entrance before making a hasty retreat once your health or magic is in danger of being depleted. Much like Baldur’s Gate, Zangetsu’s magic system provides a predetermined number of uses for each spell level instead of providing a currency based on magic points.

Let the Departed Stay Dead?

But that’s hardly the only aspect that recalls classic Dungeons & Dragons. Opening treasure chests is a multi-step process, requiring a suitable party member to disarm the trap and another to open the trunk before you get the goods. As the campaign persists, this becomes increasingly complicated, often involving a multitude of attempts. But you can always use brute force to crack the chest open, at the risk of ruining some of the spoils inside. Often, Zangetsu is a reminder of just how far RPGs have deviated from classic pencil-and-paper board gaming. You’ll face frequent tests of party synergy and one of the cruelest resurrection systems around.

Should your party get wiped, you can try to venture back to their remains. But this pursuit involves cultivating a whole new team of first-level neotypes. Once I was able to bring their carcasses back and after paying a lofty sum, was told that the resurrection had failed and death was inescapable. The random number generator hasn’t chastised me that hard in a while. San and Roku, you’ll be missed. Hachi, you got some imposing boots to fill.

Sumi-e is Comfort for Weary Eyes

While Zangetsu’s approach celebrates decades-old tabletop mechanics, its aesthetics honor centuries-old artistry. Environments are rendered in a manner that simulates the ink-wash painting technique popularized by Zen monks about 2000 years ago. Here, concentration, clarity, and simplicity were interconnected as artists used black thesumi ink mixed with various amounts of water to create innumerable gradations. Many of the original compositions deliberately offered impressionist interpretations. Zangetsu cheats a bit by injecting a bit of detail and the occasional splash of color. The result is a game that often looks like a manga. Pleasingly, the localization includes as many of the original kanji as possible, complementing menu items with hand-drawn brushstrokes. Undoubtedly, the high point are the monsters, with the game pitting you against various yokai, who are brought to life with a delicate animation.

When it comes to music, Zangetsu is rooted in classical instrumentation. Sure, there’s the occasional synth wash that underscores the cry of the shakuhachi and the pluck of the koto. But this kind of anachronism is forgivable given the splendor of Takahiro Eguchi’s tracks. Arguably, the game’s sole structural shortcoming is a generic script that pits your heroes against the ‘ink of ruin’. Sure, leading a team of Ink Destroyers to wipe away the scourge ties together several of Zangetsu’s constituents. But the premise feels a bit unsophisticated when contrasted with the rest of the title.

Labyrinth of Zangetsu was played on PC
with review code provided by the publisher.