Phantom Chronicle (Pet, Turn-Based)

Phantom Chronicle by Good-Feel is a game where the player manages a group of creatures called Phantoms to battle other Phantoms. The official game description called this a 'card battle game' but the game mechanics are better described as a pet battle system. Therefore, for this review, this game is classified as 'pet' instead of card or CCG.

A typical Battle.

The player has a party of Phantoms to battle opposing Phantoms. At the start of the battle, the player moves first. He/she may arrange his/her Phantoms' order of attack and set Skills to be used. After that, the player may execute his/her turn and his/her Phantoms will go forth and do damage.

The opposition, however, does not work with the same game mechanic. Each of the opposing Phantoms has its own turn counter. When the counter reaches zero, it will attack. This is the main reason this game should not be classified as a CCG: the opposition does not follow the same gameplay rules as the player.

The player may prioritize an opposing Phantom (say, one with a 'Next Turn 1') or he/she may let his/her Phantoms choose their own targets. There is a certain set of rules that a Phantom follows when choosing its target. These rules are easily learned from observation and can be manipulated by arranging the Phantoms' order in combat.

The player has a set amount of HP to withstand attacks, gathered from all the Phantoms in his/her party. Each Phantom has a Skill that may be used in combat for an SP cost. Like HP, SP is shared among the party and is slowly regained in combat. Maximum SP improves as the player gains in Rank (player level). Many Phantoms also have a Leader Skill that provides a bonus if that Phantom is selected as the Leader.

The first few Quests provide a simple tutorial on the basic battling system.

Another battle.

Completing Quests award the player with points for the player's Rank, EXP for the Phantoms in the party, Core (currency) and occasionally, items and Phantoms.

Obtained a new Phantom!

With the resources obtained from Quests, the player may work on his/her Phantoms. Outside of battle, this is the main activity.

Each Phantom becomes stronger with Level. Each Phantom has a Level Limit, depending on its rarity. EXP gained in battle is usually insufficient to improve Phantoms, especially the rarer Phantoms. A faster way would be to level up the Phantoms with other Phantoms and certain items.

Leveling Up Phantoms.

There are tricks to gain more EXP out of the available material. Part of the fun is figuring out the tricks and which to use. Since space for inventory is limited, it is not always possible to save material for the most efficient of the tricks.

Evolving Phantoms to a higher Rarity.

Another method to improve Phantoms is to evolve them to a higher Rarity, which is possible once a Phantom reaches its Level Limit. The evolution process requires Core and specific materials. Rarer Phantoms have better stats, have higher Level Limits and tend to have better Skills and cooler artwork.

Evolved a Dragon Tamer.

Evolved a Phoenix.

There is a Main Quest, which provides a fixed series of challenges for the player to gather material to improve his/her Phantoms. Completing a Main Quest while fulfilling certain conditions will award Medals, which count towards achievements. Completing achievements award the player with rewards like material, Phantoms and e-Crystal (premium currency).

Like many Facebook games, starting a Quest costs Stamina, which recharges over time. However, Stamina recharges faster than the average Facebook game and the player can work on his/her Phantoms while waiting.

The Main Quests.

Earned a new Medal for completing a Quest!

In addition to the Main Quest, there are also Event Quests. The Event Quests are time-limited Quests with certain conditions like specific Phantom-types and with certain specific classes of rewards. These Quests provide variety for the player so he/she does not have to grind continuously on the Main Quests. They also make it easier to gather specific ingredients.

The Event Quests.

Another method of obtaining Phantoms is by summoning them. There is the Normal Summon which costs Guild Points, which are earned from Quests and from interaction with other players. The player also gets a free Normal Summon once a day.

Neighbors (called Guild Members in this game) are not necessary as the player has random access to 4 randomly-selected players and an NPC. However, Guild Members will provide additional options. A Guild Member's party Leader may be brought along as a sixth party member for Quests. In addition, a Guild Member's party Leader may be called in during battle to Attack or use a Skill.

Using Guild Members and providing help will reward the player with Guild Points. However, there is a cooldown of 10 hours for each Guild Member after use.

Summoned a Rare Phantom.

There is also an Advanced Summon that gives rarer Phantoms. This costs e-Crystals and is only one of two possible ways to get access to 5-star Phantoms. e-Crystals are limited in the game since the login bonus only awards them once. It is the same with achievements. An e-Crystal is awarded once for each Main Quest when the player earns all three associated Medals. Other than that, the developers may award e-Crystals but those are rare events.

In addition, e-Crystals cannot be bought with real-world currency.

It should probably be mentioned that the benefits that may be acquired from e-Crystals may be directly bought with real-world currency. :p

The recommended uses of e-Crystals are for Advance Summons and expanding inventory space. A huge inventory space will allow more efficient options for the usage of material. It is a waste to store e-Crystals at the start of the game.

Once the player has a few good Phantoms and a comfortable inventory size, he/she should keep a few e-Crystals for special events. There had been a special event recently with a Special Summon where the player is guaranteed a Phantom that may eventually evolve to a 5-star version.

Other than Advanced Summons, the only other way to get a 5-star Phantom is through events. At the time of writing, there is a 28-day login event where the player will be given a Phantom that can be evolved to its 5-star version (eventually) and the rare ingredients needed for the evolutions.

In summary, Phantom Chronicle is a pet game where the player gathers and trains Phantoms to battle other Phantoms. Time-limited Event Quests give variety to battles, reducing the tediousness of grinding for materials and EXP. Other than battles, the fun of the game is working on Phantoms to improve them. The graphics are not the awesome stuff many other games use but they are adequate to convey information and look professional (just ignore the grammar mistakes in the game). As a result of average graphics, the loading time is low, which is good if a player intends to login often to use Stamina.

Phantom Chronicle, Contents