Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition

Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition teeters on the precipice of being a must-have JRPG, but is, unfortunately, let down by a myriad of story-related issues. Thematics and pacing complaints aside, however, there’s certainly plenty of content here to keep JRPG enthusiasts thoroughly entertained.

Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth is built for the fans of the series. There were things I enjoyed, like my trial-and-error of finding new Digimon through the evolutionary lines, and things I did not, like the lost item quests. The item was sometimes feet away from the person! The game may never win any awards for its story, but it was a solid romp in a digital atmosphere that reminded me how much I enjoyed the television series when I was younger.

For players that have yet to play either of these two titles, this package is more than worth picking up as it comes at a great price for two separate titles. Whether either is worth a replay or not is debatable, however. This package came at perhaps the wrong time of year, given how many other great JRPGs (and Pokemon itself) have been released at the same time. These are fun little games, but they're hardly classics.

Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth Complete Edition isn’t going to wow you unless you already have a built-in appreciation for the franchise.

It certainly offers a wealth of content as it contains two already sizeable games and they even manage to weave some interesting stories while incorporating good gameplay ideas. Unfortunately, all those pluses come with their own fair share of minuses, with the most damning creating significant pacing issues. Far too often, you are dragged away from the main story to deal with repetitive and uninteresting filler. These problems ease up a little bit once you make it to the second game, but they are still present even if it’s not quite as bad. So, while there’s plenty to love in the games, you will have to work your way through some genuinely boring and annoying stuff to reach all of it.

The Digimon Story titles can only blame themselves for the failure to realize the themes they seem to chase. The mechanics are unsuitable for developing a relationship between the player and the Digimon. The cliché-ridden characters and plot defeat the emotional impact of Cyber Sleuth, and poor scripting makes Hacker’s Memory feel irrelevant. What’s left is an astonishing quantity of JRPG grist. While there’s some satisfaction in grinding it down, none of it leaves a lasting impact.