While the Switch hasn’t always been blessed with a load of different RPGs, over the years the stable has gotten to be pretty extensive, depending on the subgenre. Surprisingly, one of the better-represented options out there has been the tactical turn-based flavor, which has certainly been around for quite some time but I don’t think of as being as popular overall as traditional JRPGs or some other varieties. 

The Rise Eterna series has been around for a little while now, and though they’ve never quite had the overall oomph to join the upper ranks of the space, they have shown consistent improvement. Rise Eterna 2 continues that momentum, again managing to pull together a roster of characters who do look the traditional part, but perhaps lack the refined flavor and depth of the better titles out there in the eShop. It isn’t that the game doesn’t have a story, or that its characters have no personality at all, the problem is more that they simply feel cut from typical archetypical cloth rather than being distinctive.

As far as the gameplay is concerned, that same impression applies. Yes, there’s tactical turn-based play, but more often than not it feels straightforward and simpler than many of its peers. That isn’t to say that there’s no strategy at all, or it can’t be enjoyable, just if you’re used to more heady strategic challenges this will feel quite bland by comparison. The pacing and some clunkiness when moving between your units and getting them into place also does the experience few favors, though to be fair I’ve also played far worse on the system, so it shouldn’t be looked at too harshly overall. Just that as a whole the experience is on the lower end of the middle tier available on the eShop. Not terrible, but also not worthy of being put in the same class as the better titles out there.