On the surface, Monark looks like any number of other Japanese role-playing games that star high schoolers like Persona, Trails of Cold Steel, or some Shin Megami Tensei titles. But Monark differentiates itself from that crowd by leaning into horror, with a slick gothy vibe throughout — it's a bit like Persona 3 going through a rough patch, overdoing the eyeliner and listening to Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness on repeat.
Monark is a new RPG from Lancarse and FuRyu, with some help from a few former Shin Megami Tensei developers. It’s got the vibe of an SMT game; Shin Mikado Academy has been cut off from the outside world by a magical dome barrier, and inside, a mysterious mist is flooding the grounds, driving students mad. Amid a lot of horror are Pactbearers, individuals who’ve made a deal with the patron deity of one of the seven deadly sins to see their wish fulfilled. It’s a bad time to be a normal, everyday student at Shin Mikado.
For much of the game, players explore different parts of the academy while meeting other students and Pactbearers. Certain bits of information, such as locker combinations, are needed to advance and access different parts of the academy. There are notes that are automatically saved in the player’s journal that may contain the solutions for future puzzles, making most of the recorded information important and the clues easy to recall. In general, puzzles require some reflection but are otherwise easy to deduce, but there are a couple that can be tough to crack and may frustrate less patient players. In the end, there is a sense of fulfillment when getting a correct answer or a code, even on the easy puzzles.
Despite the cliché beginnings, once the narrative settles into a groove it becomes Monark’s driving force – an often grim and mature tale with an impressively high body count and hardly any stereotypical anime hijinks. There’s no trip to the beach or embarrassing faux pas with the girls at the hot springs. It’s a tale that gets surprisingly dark at times and one which becomes increasingly ruthless.
Battles are tactical, with each of your characters moving and then acting, waiting, or deferring their action to another unit. Deferrals are crucial, as they provide you with extra turns, letting you heap on damage and rack up multiple hits if units are nearby to toss in follow-up attacks.
Visuals include places filled with Mist that partially limit the vision of players and a constant use of red eyes symbolizing madness. They are pretty good but not very diverse: enemies, the Otherworld, and the academy look very similar most of the time. Character models look unrefined at times, but Monark has a characteristic style that makes its overall graphics pleasing as well as a perfect match for its mysterious mood. Visually, bosses and the animations of special abilities are the stars of the show. The soundscape is enjoyable throughout the whole game. It includes a considerable number of tracks that never overstay their welcome: jazzy tunes accompany the exploration most of the time, normal battles have strings and distorted guitars in the background, and boss battles are highlighted by hard-rock tracks with excellent female vocals. English voice acting is convincing, and the sound effects work perfectly with the music and the mood of the game.
There's an interesting story here and the horror-JRPG vibe is much appreciated, but whatever enjoyment they could bring you is utterly annihilated by the outrageous, egregious amount of grinding you'll need to do to see the game through. Monark is gaming reduced to a thick, treacly sludge to wade through, no cutscene or story beat or reward ever feeling like it was worth the struggle. Just play Shin Megami Tensei while listening to Nine Inch Nails and you'll have a better time.
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Monark with a slick gothy vibe throughout
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