With so many options to dig into just in the past couple years, fans of first-person dungeon crawlers are eating better than ever. The well has been deep, with returning classics like Etrian Odyssey and Wizardry, to new games like Labyrinth of Refrain and Demon Lord Reincarnation. Now there’s a new, developing indie DRPG entering the fray in Early Access, with a novel approach combining the mortal danger of endless dungeons with the wholesome antics of “Yuri” dating.
Witch and Lilies is a debut effort from developer Stromatosoft, and it’s definitely a small scale indie title in a lot of ways. But that doesn’t mean the folks behind it aren’t notable, with Makoto Kedouin of Corpse Party fame leading the scenario, and illustrator magodesu (who has worked with anime studio TRIGGER and Hatsune Miku among other brands) on the marquee. Kedouin’s involvement especially caught my attention, especially with this game’s ostensibly more light-hearted tone.
In gameplay, Witch and Lilies is extremely similar to Etrian Odyssey, but without the map-drawing element. The map fills itself in as you explore, but the class system, skill trees, and nasty, nigh-unbeatable bosses roaming the dungeons are all straight from Etrian. It’s interesting seeing those pieces show up in a different context, especially with how scary it can be to have a Witch (the FOE parallel) right on your tail. It’s hard to think about dating in those moments!
Yes, dating. There’s a romance element to Witch and Lilies, and like I mentioned before it is strictly in the Yuri (women only) category. The way it currently works is after you return to town from a dungeon excursion, you can set your party members to take on small tasks such as training or cooking. Paired up characters can grow closer, and might ask each other out on dates. If those relationships blossom, they can end up interacting more in battle, among other rewards. The opposite can happen too, and girls will reject each other and worse, making problems when lives are on the line.
In practice, things are definitely early, and seem a little shallow. There isn’t really build-up to the “dating,” with characters asking each other out in a RNG kind of way, then one line of dialogue noting if it went well or not. It feels very procedural right now in a skeletal kind of way, and the UI to show relationship status between characters is clearly still a work in progress. For the main genre hook to be this simple is odd, but the development roadmap is just getting started.
Witch and Lilies is Early Access in the fullest extent, well under version 1.0 at this time. The localization is still being worked out and cleaned up (some text is still in Japanese and the formatting is broken in many places), the mechanics are still in flux, and there’s many other ways in which the game’s current state is clearly more demonstrative than final. If you show up now, you’re seeing something more like a fleshed out proof of concept with a campaign rough draft on top. It’s an active construction site, and while you can have a good time with the cute characters and legitimately spooky monsters, you want to make sure you understand what you’re getting into before you open your wallet.
For now, I’m intrigued. Witch and Lilies has an interesting vibe, with a lot of cuteness on top and a lot of hints at more sinister things to come bubbling under the surface. The dating element may be intended to be a ray of light in a darker world, but all of the above still needs work. And to the credit of the developers, there’s no attempt to mask that, with a planned update schedule and a couple new patches already coming through in the time I’ve had access. I can see Witch and Lilies shaping up to be something really cool, if Stromatosoft hits its targets.
Witch and Lilies is available now on PC, in Early Access. Currently, the plan is to fully launch in a year. A code was provided by the publisher for this preview.
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replyLucas White posted a new article, Witch and Lilies wants to dive deep into dungeons and dating
