I really want to like this game. I really, really do. I'm a huge fan of Tokusatu shows and I love Power Rangers and Super Sentai. I also love strategy games, business managers and RPGs. This game is based off Power Rangers, is a strategy game and has business manager elements. Sounds like a combo made in heaven, right? Well...I've tried to play through it over 3 times now and every time I just get tired of it. It's not a bad game, really, but it reeks of poor design choices.

But I don't want it to seem like I hate the game, so lets talk about the positives of the game.

The game looks gorgeous. Pixel art sometimes feels lazy, but this game makes it look really nice. Sprites are put together nicely and are animated well. The maps in particular look sweet, I especially love the city block with the toy store map. The pieces of gear you can craft also look great, most end game gear even looks like cool Power Ranger suits. The animations your characters do when they fight enemies are also done really well and just feel like they really connected. The sound effects really help in making every hit feel like it landed too.

The gameplay itself is also fun. It's simple, very simple, but fun. It's a basic SRPG affair. Units move across a grid map and punch enemies in the face. Some classes like the Tech Guy can hit enemies from afar and each class has their own skills to spice it up a bit. You only get 5 Rangers (missed opportunity for a dope 6th Ranger to join you), so the actual strategy element is a bit lite.

Now for the bad...

The story...oh dear the writing. The writing in this game can range from just plain boring to borderline offensive statements that make no sense, but I want to avoid that can of worms so let's just talk about the other way the writing just isn't very good.

First of all, the actual show you produce doesn't seem to have any sense of internal continuity with itself. You don't really see this unbelievably powerful alien king plotting his plan to take over earth in the show itself. That's like, a trait in Power Rangers since MMPR. Lord Zedd, Emperor Gruumm, Master Sledge etc, even the more fantasy ones had a similar antagonist. Almost every episode feels like a basic "Monster of the Week" episode. You only get to see the action elements of the show too, not the character development or world building Power Rangers is known for. The show you're running is boring and none of the episodes stand out. It's ironic because the actors you play as complain about the former show being all action and no substance.

Next off, the monsters you fight all seem like jokes with no substance or personality. Yes, Power Rangers had silly looking villains (Diabolico still makes me chuckle), but most of them are still meant to be taken seriously, and to an extent, are. Some monsters in Power Rangers look downright awesome. Lord Arcanon, Lord Zedd, Loki, Badussa, Koragg, Ransik, etc all look awesome and threatening. Meanwhile in Chroma Squad we get...that "has science gone to far" meme from a few years ago and a stop sign wizard...it's not very riveting.

Your characters have no portraits for dialogue either, nor do they change expression at all, which makes the mood hard to read. It's hard to take a serious seeming role with a half naked boxer perpetually in a "1-2 punch" animation cycle. Those issues I listed, plus the fact that if you get down to it, the plot boils down to a basic "leader who got full of himself and has to get back down to earth" scenario (Man, Power Rangers SPD had that plot resolved in like, an episode...) that just isn't fun or interesting.

When the plot actually does get going...it's just a typical villain arc with no flair or personality. The main bad guy is a joke in both literal and metaphorical senses. He has no menace to him. It's just a lady gaga parody. Imagine if we got someone like Lord Zedd, Octomus The Master, Emperor Gruumm or even King Mondo or Rita Repulsa to hijack the plot? That would've been 10 times more interesting then what we got. Heck, Power Rangers even had a similar villain to Lord Gaga named Heckyl...and they made him so much more interesting by giving him more depth then "he's feminine and girly".

Now, the bad parts of the gameplay. The bosses just feel like they're tailored made to be as counter productive to a strategy game as possible. The first major boss teleports around every turn -- which makes gaining distance to regroup feel pointless, can scatter your units -- which makes positioning feel pointless, can attack multiple times per turn -- which is just mean and can stun your units -- which just removes an aspect of strategy. Not only that, but he constantly summons ranged units, which widdle you down while he attacks your units twice a turn. What makes this even worse is that you're healer in this game is borderline worthless. 1 heal per 5 turns? Are you serious?

And it doesn't get better...Season 5 is where I always just give up. It's just not fun in the slightest at that point. Stage gimmicks become bull and enemies have way to much health. The fact that you can't save in episodes -- which can take up to an hour -- is just painful. Theirs no check points, once you feel an episode, that's GG, gotta re-do it unless you want those major drawbacks. What makes this even worse are the mech fights. Oh god the mech fights. The mech fights have literally no strategy to them at all. No extra skills, no items, no techniques, just "punch" and "super move". Winning or losing is based off your luck with RNG.

Character customization is also plagued with RNG. Getting crafting items is based off enemy drops or you can buy them in the store (Money is painfully scarce, mind you), so getting that piece of gear you need is up to chance. You think your characters are under equipped? Just got to live with it, I guess. You can't re-do episodes and theirs no way to grind reliably. If you're doing bad with drops, you just have to deal with it. Because of this, my squad always feels so lopsided, with my frail healer and scout getting all the good gear to cover their bad defenses, while my fighter and Red Ranger lack behind.

Speaking of your squad. You can create your own Ranger squad with 5 classes. Pretty basic stuff, you got your Red Ranger, Blue Ranger, Black Ranger, Yellow Ranger and Pink Ranger, but you can customize the colors. Each has a different bonus and skill variety. My issue with this is the actual people you get for your Rangers. Most characters you pick just seem like jokes. I would've liked a variety of normal looking humans. In the words of the wise Zordon "Alpha, Rita's escaped! Recruit a team of teenagers with attitude!".

That's probably just a nitpick on my end, but I just wish this game took something serious, you know? Everything feels like a joke. The characters are jokes, the mentor character is a joke, the plot is a joke, the monsters are jokes, the main villain is a joke. Theirs nothing to take seriously, nothing to really get into. Power Rangers had silly moments, but was meant to be taken seriously. This is just nothing but a joke. It's not a funny one either.

All in all, this game isn't bad, but it lacks substance, balance, depth and just fun.

I really want to like this game. I really, really do. I'm a huge fan of Tokusatu shows and I love Power Rangers and Super Sentai. I also love strategy games, business managers and RPGs. This game is based off Power Rangers, is a strategy game and has business manager elements. Sounds like a combo made in heaven, right? Well...I've tried to play through it over 3 times now and every time I just get tired of it. It's not a bad game, really, but it reeks of poor design choices. But I don't want it to seem like I hate the game, so lets talk about the positives of the game. The game looks gorgeous. Pixel art sometimes feels lazy, but this game makes it look really nice. Sprites are put together nicely and are animated well. The maps in particular look sweet, I especially love the city block with the toy store map. The pieces of gear you can craft also look great, most end game gear even looks like cool Power Ranger suits. The animations your characters do when they fight enemies are also done really well and just feel like they really connected. The sound effects really help in making every hit feel like it landed too. The gameplay itself is also fun. It's simple, very simple, but fun. It's a basic SRPG affair. Units move across a grid map and punch enemies in the face. Some classes like the Tech Guy can hit enemies from afar and each class has their own skills to spice it up a bit. You only get 5 Rangers (missed opportunity for a dope 6th Ranger to join you), so the actual strategy element is a bit lite. Now for the bad... The story...oh dear the writing. The writing in this game can range from just plain boring to borderline offensive statements that make no sense, but I want to avoid that can of worms so let's just talk about the other way the writing just isn't very good. First of all, the actual show you produce doesn't seem to have any sense of internal continuity with itself. You don't really see this unbelievably powerful alien king plotting his plan to take over earth in the show itself. That's like, a trait in Power Rangers since MMPR. Lord Zedd, Emperor Gruumm, Master Sledge etc, even the more fantasy ones had a similar antagonist. Almost every episode feels like a basic "Monster of the Week" episode. You only get to see the action elements of the show too, not the character development or world building Power Rangers is known for. The show you're running is boring and none of the episodes stand out. It's ironic because the actors you play as complain about the former show being all action and no substance. Next off, the monsters you fight all seem like jokes with no substance or personality. Yes, Power Rangers had silly looking villains (Diabolico still makes me chuckle), but most of them are still meant to be taken seriously, and to an extent, are. Some monsters in Power Rangers look downright [I]awesome[/i]. Lord Arcanon, Lord Zedd, Loki, Badussa, Koragg, Ransik, etc all look awesome and threatening. Meanwhile in Chroma Squad we get...that "has science gone to far" meme from a few years ago and a stop sign wizard...it's not very riveting. Your characters have no portraits for dialogue either, nor do they change expression at all, which makes the mood hard to read. It's hard to take a serious seeming role with a half naked boxer perpetually in a "1-2 punch" animation cycle. Those issues I listed, plus the fact that if you get down to it, the plot boils down to a basic "leader who got full of himself and has to get back down to earth" scenario (Man, Power Rangers SPD had that plot resolved in like, an episode...) that just isn't fun or interesting. When the plot actually does get going...it's just a typical villain arc with no flair or personality. The main bad guy is a joke in both literal and metaphorical senses. He has no menace to him. It's just a lady gaga parody. Imagine if we got someone like Lord Zedd, Octomus The Master, Emperor Gruumm or even King Mondo or Rita Repulsa to hijack the plot? That would've been 10 times more interesting then what we got. Heck, Power Rangers even had a similar villain to Lord Gaga named Heckyl...and they made him so much more interesting by giving him more depth then "he's feminine and girly". Now, the bad parts of the gameplay. The bosses just feel like they're tailored made to be as counter productive to a strategy game as possible. The first major boss teleports around every turn -- which makes gaining distance to regroup feel pointless, can scatter your units -- which makes positioning feel pointless, can attack multiple times per turn -- which is just mean and can stun your units -- which just removes an aspect of strategy. Not only that, but he constantly summons ranged units, which widdle you down while he attacks your units twice a turn. What makes this even worse is that you're healer in this game is borderline worthless. 1 heal per 5 turns? Are you serious? And it doesn't get better...Season 5 is where I always just give up. It's just not fun in the slightest at that point. Stage gimmicks become bull and enemies have way to much health. The fact that you can't save in episodes -- which can take up to an hour -- is just painful. Theirs no check points, once you feel an episode, that's GG, gotta re-do it unless you want those major drawbacks. What makes this even worse are the mech fights. Oh god the mech fights. The mech fights have literally no strategy to them at all. No extra skills, no items, no techniques, just "punch" and "super move". Winning or losing is based off your luck with RNG. Character customization is also plagued with RNG. Getting crafting items is based off enemy drops or you can buy them in the store (Money is painfully scarce, mind you), so getting that piece of gear you need is up to chance. You think your characters are under equipped? Just got to live with it, I guess. You can't re-do episodes and theirs no way to grind reliably. If you're doing bad with drops, you just have to deal with it. Because of this, my squad always feels so lopsided, with my frail healer and scout getting all the good gear to cover their bad defenses, while my fighter and Red Ranger lack behind. Speaking of your squad. You can create your own Ranger squad with 5 classes. Pretty basic stuff, you got your Red Ranger, Blue Ranger, Black Ranger, Yellow Ranger and Pink Ranger, but you can customize the colors. Each has a different bonus and skill variety. My issue with this is the actual people you get for your Rangers. Most characters you pick just seem like jokes. I would've liked a variety of normal looking humans. In the words of the wise Zordon "Alpha, Rita's escaped! Recruit a team of teenagers with attitude!". That's probably just a nitpick on my end, but I just wish this game took something serious, you know? Everything feels like a joke. The characters are jokes, the mentor character is a joke, the plot is a joke, the monsters are jokes, the main villain is a joke. Theirs nothing to take seriously, nothing to really get into. Power Rangers had silly moments, but was meant to be taken seriously. This is just nothing but a joke. It's not a funny one either. All in all, this game isn't bad, but it lacks substance, balance, depth and just fun.