The Land of Oz is an enchanting and mystical place, filled with wonder and excitement at every turn. But within this magical kingdom, there exists a figure of darkness and terror – the wicked witch of the western territories. This fearsome creature strikes fear into the hearts of all who cross her path, weaving her web of malice and destruction. Born out of the darkness that permeates the western territories, the wicked witch carries with her an aura of malevolence. Her blackened soul is fueled by a desire for power and control over the land, which she believes is rightfully hers. With her dark magic and cunning intellect, she seeks to dominate the Land of Oz and bend it to her will.
It's also very cute, so highly recommended. :)
Little Witch Nobeta blends third person shooting and souls mechanics to create a magical experience, but the Switch version of the game has some technical issues that make it harder to recommend. This game has all your favourites - Jumping, dodgerolling, attacking up close and from afar and more but has a more laidback pace compared to some of the franticness you can get in the genre nowadays, making it a much more tactical game.
With her dark magic and cunning intellect, she seeks to dominate the Land of Oz and bend it to her will. Nobody knows exactly how the wicked witch gained her powers, but rumors and legends circulate through the kingdom. Some say she made a pact with sinister forces, trading her humanity for the ability to wield dark magic.
Little Witch Nobeta review
There are so many games out there where the main combat mechanic involves you shooting at enemies with guns. This does make sense when there are so many first and third person shooters released every year, but I love when games in these genres think outside the box. Little Witch Nobeta is one such game, replacing shotguns with magic spells and adding a sprinkle of Soulslike mechanics for good measure.
Our adorable witch protagonist is a determined little spellcaster with one goal in mind, to reach the throne of a mysterious castle. It’s not really obvious why she wants to do this, but along the way she meets an aloof talking cat who seems to want the same thing. Along the way she’ll have to deal with weird living dolls called Crafted Souls that seem to have some level of consciousness, which leads to some internal struggles for Nobeta. Honestly the story is pretty nonsensical for most of the game, but doesn’t detract from the gameplay.
Fighting creepy mannequins and shadows will be what you spend the bulk of your time doing in Little Witch Nobeta, and you do it by firing spells at the blighters. Your first weapon is an arcane spell that fires single shots, but before you know it you’ll have more powers like an icy blast that rapid fires like a machine gun and a flaming shotgun. Although there’s only four of them in total, they feel different enough that you won’t get bored of using them.
As well as a regular fire option, each spell also has a charged attack you can unleash by chanting. It takes a while to fill the meter enough to ready these power attacks, but once you do the effects are awesome. When changed the ice spell that locks into multiple enemies once charged then automatically showers the targeted foes with chilly shrapnel, and the fire spell that unleashes a massive explosion is my personal favourite. It’s a clever mechanic, and means you’ll have to balance out the risk of charging with the reward of dealing a shed load of damage.
You won’t get to use these if you can’t avoid enemy attacks for long to charge them, so you’d better get used to using that dodge roll effectively. Once you realise that blasting enemies isn’t enough to survive in Little Witch Nobeta, the Souls side of the game starts to shine through a little. With handy invincibility frames to take advantage of, you’ll need to learn attack patterns and have fast reflexes if you want to make it to the throne.
The other Soulslike aspect of Little Witch Nobeta are the Goddess Statues, which are essentially bonfires where you can save the game and level up using the essence you’ve collected from fallen foes. This is all thankfully very straightforward, but had plenty of options to upgrade Nobeta to suit your playstyle. You can power up HP to tank more hits, make charging your spells faster or just beef up your damage and take baddies down faster. Leveling up your stats is really satisfying, and helps make castle life easier.
If you’re still struggling after leveling up, you’ll be happy to hear that there are some handy difficulty options available for all skill levels. The advanced difficulty will cater to veterans of the genre, but normal mode is much more forgiving and doesn’t expect you to handle some of the more brutal mechanics like curses and losing your essence when you die.
There are some parts of Little Witch Nobeta that are always punishing too, specifically some instant death moments. A lava level in particular has plenty of opportunity to fall into the fire for an immediate game over, and with certain enemies or even your own spells knocking you back it’s far too easy to fall to your doom. It just doesn’t feel particularly fair to lose so much over the tiniest of mistakes, and statues are often way too far apart for it to feel anything other than crushing.
I should also mention the performance of the game on Switch, which is more than a little ropey. The framerate is never great, but if you get to a busy or particularly open area it really tanks. This isn’t really acceptable when you’re having to deal with a ton of enemies and potential instant death, and detracts from the game significantly.
Little Witch Nobeta blends third person shooting and souls mechanics to create a magical experience, but the Switch version of the game has some technical issues that make it harder to recommend. If you can get past some slightly unfair moments and the iffy framerate though (or better yet are able to play it on another platform) you’ll find a lot to love in this castle of creepy dolls.
The first thing that I noticed was the enemy difficulty, which I have already mentioned. The basic enemies in the first stage are pushovers for the most part and aren’t able to take a lot of punishment. Once you complete the first boss fight, all of that goes out the window. The enemies become more intelligent and are better placed and grouped up a lot more so that it takes much longer to get through them. While this proved to be something that I wasn’t expecting, it came as a welcome surprise since it gave me something to look forward to.
Others claim she was cursed by a vengeful sorcerer, forever bound to her wicked ways. Regardless of the truth, her power is undeniable. The witch's stronghold lies in the western territories, a dark and treacherous land where her influence is strongest. Here, her minions, a horde of loyal and fearsome creatures, carry out her every command. From her fortress, she orchestrates her wicked schemes, plotting to ensure her reign over Oz is unchallenged. Countless heroes have attempted to defeat the wicked witch, driven by a desire to restore peace and harmony to the Land of Oz. Some have tried to confront her head-on, armed with swords and spells. Others have sought powerful artifacts that may hold the key to her downfall. But no matter how valiant their efforts, none have been able to vanquish her completely. The wicked witch of the western territories is a symbol of the dark side of Oz, a reminder that even in the most magical of lands, evil can exist. Her reign of terror continues to cast a shadow over the kingdom, thwarting all attempts to bring about her downfall. As long as she remains, Oz will never truly be at peace. The fight against her wickedness will continue, with hope that one day the Land of Oz can finally be free from her malevolent grip..
Reviews for "Conquering the Western Territories: The Wicked Witch's Reign of Terror"
1. Alice - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "Oz the wondrous and fearsome wicked witch of the western territories". The movie lacked depth and substance, and I found it to be quite boring. The storyline felt disjointed, and I couldn't connect with any of the characters. The acting was subpar, and the special effects looked cheap. Overall, I think this movie is a miss and not worth watching.
2. John - 1 star - I have to say that "Oz the wondrous and fearsome wicked witch of the western territories" is one of the worst movies I've seen in a long time. The plot was predictable, and the dialogue was cringe-worthy. The CGI was poorly done and took away from the overall visual experience. The movie seemed to drag on forever, and I found myself checking my watch multiple times. Save yourself the disappointment and avoid this film at all costs.
3. Sarah - 2 stars - I was really excited to watch "Oz the wondrous and fearsome wicked witch of the western territories," but it ended up being a major letdown. The acting was mediocre at best, and the characters lacked depth. The storyline was weak and didn't hold my interest. The special effects were overdone and felt artificial. Overall, I was left feeling unsatisfied and wishing I had chosen a different movie to watch.