Gaming One Fenix Down Might Just Be a '90s JRPG Fan's Dream

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As the 1990s become more distant, nostalgia from retro games seems to hit even harder. One Fenix Down is a product of sentimentality from that era, as the indie developer emphasized its tribute to classic RPG games like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. One Fenix Down, a new upcoming turn-based RPG game, follows Fenix, the son of the "fabled" hero of Torloria, who gains special abilities and must use them to "protect fate."

In a recent interview with Game Rant, solo indie developer RC Dunn said in the game's combat design, he attempts to eliminate the "golden triangle" that's become common in modern RPGs and MMOs, which refers to a team primarily reliant on a tank, healer, and damage dealer. While he said it's not a bad formula, he's just trying to tap into his own niche set of players who could appreciate the nostalgic take in One Fenix Down.

How One Fenix Down Uses Common JRPG Features

In any RPG system, character classes are a staple, as there's almost always some form of warrior, mage, and/or ranged/rogue archetype. Final Fantasy has Dragoons, Mages of all colors, and more, for example. In One Fenix Down, players will have teammates like angelic seraphims, who can heal but also have offensive magic; rangers, who can be an archer or become a tank/melee fighter; or a thief, who can deal damage with daggers or stand in the back and shoot with crossbows. Fenix, on the other hand, is the Hero who learns his abilities by being struck by the enemy's magic spells, among other characters and classes players meet throughout the game. His armor is made of gemstones, which essentially absorb the ability.

"I wanted to get away from what's become very popular in RPGs and MMOs, which is that golden triangle or golden triad where you have the tank, the healer, and the damage dealer. Instead, how I've tried to balance it is thinking about it as a spectrum, so you have more of a supportive type and then more of a damaged dealing type. You have characters that can sway one way or the other. Supportive skills would be to draw attention or to heal or to cause status effects."

From a storyline perspective, every character that players will meet hails from a different background. There are the humans—Fenix and Rory's category—who are split into three places: western-inspired Torloria, East Asia-inspired Republic of Haishishemi, and African-inspired Zulg. Then there's the Order of Seraphim, who Dunn revealed has angel wings, and the Khuleng Tribe who are blue-skinned northerners inspired by the 2003 anime musical science-fiction film, Interstella 5555. For the Beastmen, which is a derogatory term that the humans use, there are the Dracokin, lizard people who invade Fenix's home; Lupuman, wolf people found in Haishishemi; and Tigrisman, Vuples, and Ratkin, who are tiger, fox, and rat people.

Retro Relevancy In 2024

Dunn experienced the "golden" era of RPGs, which was in the late 1980s and 1990s. Expecting someone to play a '90s-inspired game in the mid-2020s seems like a big ask, but he believes there's a market there for this type of game. To his point, Sea of Stars launched to great reviews in 2023, and it has similar inspirations and direction. One thing he believes will make his game stand out is how a lot of modern RPGs have, sometimes, an overwhelming amount of content. A lot of modern-day open-world RPGs require hundreds of hours to finish, but One Fenix Down is much more focused than that. As Dunn explained,

I think a lot of games these days just try to throw so much content into them, and a lot of them aren't taking a lot of risks like a lot of indie developers...But for my game, I think how it fits in 2024 is it doesn't try to throw the whole kitchen sink and everything into the game. There are going to be side quests, of course, but I think that the story is very linear and focused, and the style is very focused. It's not going to ask you to build a town before you go save the princess. It's more straight to the point while taking a few risks in the storyline, just to really wow and surprise the players. I think there's going to be a niche of players who like the slower turn-based style that you got from '90s RPGs.

Dunn told Game Rant that he also designed the battles to go relatively quickly. If it's a non-boss fight, it can be over within two to three turns maximum. If it's a boss fight on a standard difficulty, they "won't take forever to beat." In the Steam demo that's aiming for early Summer, players will get the chance to play the prologue. The 15 to 20-minute prologue will show the Kingdom of Torloria getting invaded by the Beastmen and Fenix's father, Jan, who is credited for fending off the invaders.

One Fenix Down might be able to temporarily cure side-quest fatigue with its focused, linear gameplay. It'll be interesting to see how well another slower-paced turn-based RPG does among modern games featuring fast-paced, open-world exploration. Dunn's game is a clear passion project as it pulls themes, archetypes, storylines, and more from classic titles like Final Fantasy. Players looking for a new game with a nostalgic feel might find One Fenix Down enjoyable and, in a way, familiar.

One Fenix Down aims to launch a Kickstarter and Steam demo in the early summer.