Metal Messiah -Steel Savior- (Free RPG) Introduction, Impressions, and Strategy Notes

I played and completed "Metal Messiah -Steel Savior-," an RPG created with "WOLF RPG Editor."
This game is an RPG where the real fun lies in editing the AI that automatically handles battles and experimenting with different approaches.
It was a compact game that I completed in about two and a half hours, but it was so engaging that I found myself completely absorbed in it.
I had a lot of fun playing it, so I thought I'd write a review, my impressions, and some strategy notes.

Game Introduction

This is a story about a world where humanity has fled the devastated Earth and moved its place of residence to floating cities in a new land.
There, too, corporations acting as substitutes for the government are constantly engaged in conflict, and the player is a member of a combat unit belonging to one of these corporations, piloting "mechs" (armed automated robots).
If you've ever played the "Armored Core" series, you'll understand it better if you imagine that kind of atmosphere.

The gameplay is simple: after preparing your mech by equipping it and editing its AI, you select a mission, deploy, and receive rewards upon completion.
With the rewards you earn, you can purchase new equipment and mechs to prepare for the next mission.

While new bodies and equipment are important, editing the AI is also extremely important.
It might seem complicated, but there are only three settings to configure, making it very simple.
You simply set the activation conditions, target, and action.

The activation conditions are set, such as "when your HP is below half," "when your EP (fuel consumed during actions) is below 30%," or "once every four turns."
Next, the target list includes items such as "yourself" and "targets with less than half HP."
The actions taken are specific, such as "repair," "single shot," and "machine gun fire."
You should be able to understand it quickly once you set your actions in the in-game tutorial and experience actual combat.

It's important to note that you should check whether the conditions are met in the order of "Action 1" to "Action 6".
If the conditions for Action 1 are met, the action for Action 1 will be performed, and the process will not proceed to the condition check for Action 2.

A common mistake is setting "Action 1" to "When your HP is below 50%, restore HP to yourself" and "Action 2" to "When your EP is below 30%, restore EP to yourself."
With these settings, if the condition for "Action 1" ("HP is 50% or less") is met, the character will continue to attempt to recover HP with "Action 1" indefinitely, even if they don't have enough EP to take any action.
Since most actions consume EP, we recommend registering the following for "Action 1": "When my EP is low, I will perform EP recovery on myself."

Game Impressions

The amount of content isn't particularly large, but the enjoyment of trial and error, and the satisfaction of finally getting it all right, is exhilarating.
The game itself seemed to be inspired by the world of the "Armored Core" series and the gameplay of "Carnage Heart."
However, compared to the two more difficult works, this one felt much more approachable and user-friendly.

In the early stages of the game, when you only have one character, you have to figure out various combinations and strategize, much like solving a chess puzzle.
However, having two of them makes things dramatically easier, and you feel a great sense of joy, like gaining new companions in an RPG.

The game's progression is almost entirely based on the assumption that you'll need to restart, but even if you get wiped out, you can immediately return to the point just before.
If you want to withdraw from the mission map, you can re-prepare and start over.
I think it was good that, despite the need for trial and error, I hardly felt any stress about having to start over.
However, in the latter half, I had to rely on brute force tactics, and it was a little disappointing that I ended up fighting every enemy in a similar way.

While this game is an RPG, if you're looking for a free game that leans more towards chess puzzles, "Runners Eclipse" offers a similar kind of enjoyment.
This section requires more rigorous trial and error, so you might find it difficult.
Another game that tests similar thinking skills, and features unique characters and a compelling story, is "Imperial Magic Academy Duel Division," which I found very enjoyable.
Those who enjoyed playing "Metal Messiah" might enjoy this in the same way.

Strategy Notes

I enjoy figuring things out through trial and error, so writing these kinds of strategy notes might be a bit pointless, but...

I felt that the early stages, when you fight solo, were the most difficult.
The key to victory lies in reducing the number of enemies and utilizing the area-of-effect attack, "machine gun fire."
When there are multiple enemies, use "machine gun fire," and when the enemies are weakened, switch to "cannon" to make combat easier.

From the mid-game onward, having two playable units makes combat much easier because you can divide the roles between them.
Area-of-effect attacks such as "machine gun barrage," "carpet bombing," and "beam barrage" are very powerful.
Rather than applying beneficial effects such as self-repair at the start of battle, it's more important to quickly reduce the number of enemies with area-of-effect attacks right at the beginning.
You can compensate for any added advantageous effects with additional parts.
Once you have three or more units, you'll be able to defeat most enemies using similar tactics.
However, there are still a few points where you might get stuck.
However, in most cases, you can overcome these challenges by adding extra parts to counter status ailments and elemental attacks.
In my case, I cleared it with Riot, Priest, and Primal Fear, all of whom have area-of-effect attacks.

summary

"Metal Messiah -Steel Savior-" boasts a world and game system with a profound atmosphere, yet it's a very accessible and addictive RPG.
If you're even slightly interested, I think it's worth playing.