I played my first RPG all the way back in 1988 when I spent $100 I’d saved to buy Phantasy Star for the Sega Master System (my mom was furious that I was spending that kind of money on a video game). I almost beat it as well, but I found myself stuck post final battle so I never did conquer it completely.
People love their RPGs though, and now I find Biff Bam Pop!’s Princess is discovering her own love for the genre thanks to Miitopia, which just launched on the Nintendo Switch. She’d already played through the demo released a few weeks ago, and she was eager to dive into the full game. Unsurprisingly, she’s been playing it every day since it arrived, but I managed to get a few words from her.
Andy Burns: So this is your first big RPG game to play. What do you think of it?
BBP Princess: Does Pokémon count?
Andy Burns: I guess, but I feel like this is different.
BBP Princess: It is, for many reasons.
Andy Burns: Tell everybody what the game is about.
BBP Princess: Miitopia is a fantasy world and you have to save the world from the Dark Lord, which you can make anything you want.
Andy Burns: Hold on, you really need to explain this a bit more.
BBP Princess: Yeah, I know. This is just the beginning of the article. So, in Mittopia, you and any other Miis that you want to make, because you make the characters or you can receive characters from other players who have made their own and put them on the internet, set off on a quest that involves saving other character’s faces from the Dark Lord, who has stolen them and put them on the faces of monsters.
Andy Burns: Jeepers, that sounds hard. Is it?
BBP Princess: It gets harder as the game goes on.
Andy Burns: So this is an RPG...
BBP Princess: Which stands for Role Playing Game, if people didn’t know.
Andy Burns: You told me the plot, tell me about the gameplay.
BBP Princess: The gameplay is AMAZING. I’m sure if you’re a Nintendo fan you know how awesome the new Mii Maker is. It gives new wig options, it gives the ability to have two colours of hair, it gives so much makeup.
Andy Burns: So did you make yourself?
BBP Princess: Of course! I was the first Mii I made. Then I made my team of three – Callie from Splatoon, Merina from Splatoon, and then Pearl from Splatoon. I’m not sure, but I’m pretty sure you can notice a theme. I like Splatoon and I like having these characters in Miitopia.
Andy Burns: So you’re a team of four, and you go off into battles. Tell me about those. Are they fun? What do you do?
BBP Princess:They are very fun. You get different monsters in every battle, and you have the ability to select auto-battle for only the first Mii you make. The other three, you don’t have control over their attacks.
Jobs also have something to do with battles. You have the option between making your characters warriors, mages, thiefs, clerics, chefs, popstars and more. You get to unlock even more jobs as the game progresses.
Andy Burns: How are you finding playing an RPG?
BBP Princess: I love it, because it’s easy to get the hang of, and I really like the story.
Andy Burns: Do you think this is a good game to introduce big stories to a younger gamer?
BBP Princess: Yes, absolutely, because it’s super easy to understand the controls, the story is really good, and it’s just fun to be able to put whoever you want on your team.
Andy Burns: Any final thoughts for people considering Miitopia?
BBP Princess: Short answer – get the game!
