13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is an adventure video game developed by Vanillaware and published by Atlus for the PlayStation 4, with a Nintendo Switch release scheduled for April 2022.

Gameplay
An adventure video game where players take control of 13 different characters. The narrative takes place in a fictional Japan in the 1980s, primarily told through the "Remembrance" portion of the game. Strategy-based battle takes place in the "Destruction" portion of the game. Documented events and important narrative information are stored within the "Analysis" portion of the game.

Remembrance
"Walk along fragments of the past through the eyes of the 13 protagonists."

"Remembrance", which is portrayed in a side-scrolling style, is the story portion that contains the core of the story. Gameplay is performed by selection one of 13 available characters within the five eras; 1945, 1985, 2025, 2065, and 2105.

Thought Cloud
A key mechanic to the gameplay is the "Thought Cloud", which stores hints and are important in collecting various types of information needed to progress with the story. By interacting the Thought Cloud with various aspects in the character's environment, new keywords and information can be obtained and be used.

Destruction
"Control the Sentinels and face the crisis head on."

The strategy-based battle portion of the game, where each of the 13 protagonists pilot Sentinels in their fight against the Deimos invasion. Since each Sentinel of each generation has their own battle styles, a basic strategy is to strategically select a suitable team to handle the specific wave. In a fight, a maximum of six characters can be brought to the "strike team" where the objective is to typically terminate every single enemy unit. In some cases like bosses battles, the objective is to simply destroy the boss. In every case, the selected strike team must guard the Aegis terminal. If the terminal's HP drops to 0, it is game over. Non-selected members are placed on Defense and will act as auto-shock and assist. After each battle, the units that were previously selected will accumulate their Brain Overload gauge. When that gauge hits maximum, they will be unavailable for deployment on the next battle.

The game allows for three different difficulty levels; “Casual”, “Normal”, and “Intense”. Casual is recommended for those wish to enjoy the story without any difficulty in doing so.

There are five areas that are playable in Destruction.
 * The Tutorial/Prologue Area, Beginning of the End, a six-wave area that is required to progress through the prologue portion of the entire game
 * 1st Area in Ashitaba City, consisting of 10 waves
 * 2nd Area in Shibugaki City, consisting of 10 waves
 * 3rd Area in the Himawari Ward, consisting of 10 waves,
 * Final Area in Sakura Ward, consisting of one final wave.
 * and the 4th Area Sumire Ward, which is unlocked following the clearing of Remembrance.

Commands
A unit has four commands:
 * Action is the list of techniques that unit can use. The player can upgrade and purchase more techniques in Customize before deployment.
 * Move allows them to move any unit they want. This is typically used to move a character in range of a enemy unit they want to attack.
 * In Repair, the character forfeits their turn to recharge HP. This leaves them open for enemy attacks.
 * In Defend, the character forfeits their turn to recharge EP, which is required for techniques. This also leaves them open for enemy attacks.

Customize
Using Meta Chips earned from completing various parts of Remembrance and Destruction, the player can purchase and upgrade techniques for use in battle.

They can also upgrade the Sentinels through five different aspects:
 * Armor: Enhanced Machine Soldiers Armor. HP ↑ DEF ↑ Suppresses attacks with a certain probability.
 * Generator: Machine Soldiers Power Furnace upgrade. EP ↑ ATK ↑ EP recovery increased.
 * Fire Control Equipment: Enhanced Machine Soldiers FCS. ATK ↑ ACC ↑ Critical damage increased.
 * Actuator: Strengthened the drive system of Machine Soldiers. SPD ↑ DEF ↑ movement speed and distance increased.
 * Neurolink: Strengthens the machine synchronization system of Machine Soldiers. ACC ↑ SPD ↑ Get EXPEXReduce brain load.

Post Battle
After each battle points are tallied up and character units are given EXP based on their performance in battle. A selected unit will receive the MVP star rating, giving them additional EXP. Based on the player's score, they are awarded Meta Chips and Mystery Points. Depending on if they adhered to the bonus objectives, which can range from an allowance of a certain number of units, or using the required name units, they are awarded additional Meta Chips and Mystery Points.

As each character accumulates EXP, their character level will increase, unlocking skills unique to them.

Analysis
"Look back on the truths revealed so far."

There are two parts to Analysis:
 * The Event Archive is where the player can replay cutscenes and recall events in the game.
 * Mystery Files provide answers to mysterious related the characters and story. While some are automatically revealed through Remembrance, some are locked in red, requiring a Mystery Point to unlock. These mystery points are awarded abundantly in Destruction.

The 13 Protagonists

 * Juro Kurabe - Sentinel No. 13
 * Iori Fuyusaka - Sentinel No. 15
 * Shu Amiguchi - Sentinel No. 20
 * Megumi Yakushiji - Sentinel No. 23
 * Takatoshi Hijiyama - Sentinel No. 12
 * Yuki Takamiya - Sentinel No. 21
 * Ei Sekigahara - Sentinel No. 11
 * Natsuno Minami - Sentinel No. 17
 * Keitaro Miura - Sentinel No. 19
 * Tomi Kisaragi - Sentinel No. 16
 * Nenji Ogata - Sentinel No. 10
 * Ryoko Shinonome - Sentinel No. 14
 * Renya Gouto - Sentinel No. 22

Supporting Characters

 * Kyuta Shiba
 * Miwako Sawatari
 * Tsukasa Okino
 * Chihiro Morimura
 * Chihiro (Child)
 * Tetsuya Ida
 * Erika Aiba
 * Takemi Wajima
 * Heizou Onishi
 * Miyuki Inaba
 * Juro Izumi (Two loops ago)
 * BJ

External link

 * Official Web Site