The DioField Chronicle

 PC
Metascore
66

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 17
  3. Negative: 1 out of 17
  1. The Mako Reactor
    Oct 31, 2022
    80
    Despite its flaws, The DioField Chronicle is one of Square Enix's best and most interesting games of the year. It runs and looks great on PC, and even seamlessly syncs your progress to Steam Deck thanks to the recent addition of Steam Cloud support. The demo was promising, and I'm glad that The DioField Chronicle has delivered in almost every way on PC and Steam Deck.
  2. Jeuxvideo.com
    Oct 1, 2022
    75
    From the outset, we cannot welcome the bet launched by The Diofield Chronicle. Carried by divine music and gameplay as ingenious as it is interesting, the Square-Enix game is undeniably generous. Regulars of the genre and lovers of tactical role-playing games risk succumbing to its "retro" charm and its various incantations. Rhythmic, pleasant and more surprising than it seems, The Diofield Chronicle struggles to keep up the pace over time. The objectives are repeated, the free phases do not bring much and the staging lacks the energy to widen its audience. Nevertheless, for those who want to discover something other than the usual blockbusters and who is not hermetic to the genre, here is a work that could become cult in a few years or, at least, find its letters of nobility among enthusiasts.
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  1. 3DJuegos
    Sep 29, 2022
    The DioField Chronicle presents a successful battle system, with a lot of potential, but it doesn't always squeeze the most out of it. The story fails to captivate neither with its plot nor with its uninteresting characters.
  2. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Sep 22, 2022
    Look past the slightly dubious plot and there's much to enjoy about The DioField Chronicle's combat, but when it's a full-priced game I cannot in good conscience say it's 'worth a punt' when half of it leaves such a sour aftertaste. You'll stop caring about this band of mercs long before they do anything to try and redeem themselves, and there simply are better RPGs and better strategy games out there to sink your teeth into instead. It's a shame, especially when its free first chapter demo looked so promising just a couple of months ago, but alas, the central cast just absolutely lost me halfway through. It may not be the greatest plot twist you've ever seen, but at least you'll be on the right side of history this time.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
3.7

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 26 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 26
  3. Negative: 15 out of 26
  1. Astram
    Sep 23, 2022
    4
    I reviewed this game based on a 10-point system. I beat the game and did all the side quests. This is how the point works:

    1 point for    I reviewed this game based on a 10-point system. I beat the game and did all the side quests. This is how the point works:

    1 point for graphics/lighting/models, 1 point for story/believability/makes sense/flow, 1 point for gameplay, 1 point for characters/development, 1 point for music, 1 point for customization, 1 point for the time of play, 1 point for content, 1 point for UI/fluidity, 1 point for emotional impact = 10 points total

    Skip to the bottom to get my summary review.

    Graphics: .7

    The game's artwork is fantastic, but the 3D models were average. The special effects fit the part—nothing too flashy and nothing exceptional.

    Story: .3

    Average story. Some believable events and some unexpected events. The storytelling was very slim and straight to the point. There are some good and bad things about this type of storytelling. First, the cutscenes are short and have little reading; second, the details are very few.

    Gameplay: .6

    The gameplay was fun at first until you reach a certain point in the game where you become overpowered. The game is also very repetitive and seemed rather pointless to the point where you wish you could simulate the fights. Normal mode was really easy. Once I could buy the most potent weapon in the game (which wasn't rewarding to get and was simple to get), I breezed through the game. There were interesting mechanics here, but that gets old fast.

    Characters/Development: .3

    The characters were interesting at first, but due to the game being so short and the interactions between characters being slim, you end up not caring for the characters at the end.

    Music: .4

    The music was there, but I didn't care too much for the music. Nothing stood out, nothing memorable, but at least it wasn't annoying.

    Customization: .4

    There's enough customization for 15 hours' worth of gaming. After that, it goes downhill. You have a few upgrades for weapons, summons, and items. Unfortunately, certain weapons allow you to use certain skills, specific summons do different things, and the items are practically useless from the middle to the end.

    Time of Play: .4

    I beat the game around 21 hours. I'd say this game isn't worth $60. To get a whole 1 point, the game would have to give me at least 50 hours worth of gameplay.

    Content: .2

    The only content is side missions and little dialog with other characters.

    UI/Fluidity: .7

    UI fits with the story and the game loaded pretty quickly. Saving was fast. Not much here.

    Emotional Impact: .1

    This game was honestly pretty boring. The story wasn't exciting. Characters are nonexistent. ZzzZzZZzz.....

    Overall: 4

    I played the demo and had high hopes for this game, but this game let me down. After beating the game with 21 hours of playing, I can say that this game is not worth $60. The artwork is appealing, but the 3D models are alright. The game is pretty fluid in function but lacks the depth to make it exciting. The customization is limited and makes the game very easy once you reach a certain point in the game. Nothing exciting about the story, characters, or music. This game looks pretty but lacks a lot you would want in an RPG. This game is a hard pass.    … Full Review »
  2. Arktor314
    Sep 29, 2022
    5
    The most painful thing about this game is the wasted potential. The gameplay starts out great, but lacks variety. The graphics are solid. TheThe most painful thing about this game is the wasted potential. The gameplay starts out great, but lacks variety. The graphics are solid. The story is generic. Controls are clumsy, but you get used to them. Voice acting is abysmally bad.

    Overall, I'm very excited for the game that takes this gameplay and does it right. Save your money and play the demo. If you want the full game, just play the demo five times.    … Full Review »
  3. Cha0ticneutral
    Oct 7, 2022
    6
    So the first thing that stood out to me was how phoned in and boring the dialogue is. Everybody has the personality of a potato and there's 0So the first thing that stood out to me was how phoned in and boring the dialogue is. Everybody has the personality of a potato and there's 0 expression in anybodies voice. Why should and how can I care about what's happening if there's no connection or care in the writing or voicing of the characters?. I find myself listening to exchanges and wondering "Why would you make somebody listen to this?".

    Square Enix have been going in the direction of Old British fantasy as of recent and tbh I think it really doesn't seem to be going too well for them. They seem to have moved away from the big personality characters of the past final fantasy days to one of a very serious tone but it's really taken something huge away from their writing..it just all feels very droll and uncaptivating.

    The combat has the fundamentals there but is overall far too easy with not much variety as say Fire emblem. This game could be good if they added higher stakes such as permadeath of characters which would actually add some form of tension considering the story and acting does not successfully provide that. Overall it's not a bad experience, but it leaves a lot to be desired and there's a lot of untapped potential in there that could, with future updates and free dlc, be all it could be. Finally I will say, if Fire emblem was available outside of the Switch this game would be in trouble.    … Full Review »
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