Maze of Marionette is a semi-open world Action game. In it, we play as Claudia, a magical doll that has been activated for the first time and is simply given orders to buy the soldiers under siege some time to escape. With that short introduction into the world, our task is something we must immediately handle as in the next few moments you will be facing a horde of monsters that you either defeat or lose to right then and there. I really enjoyed this opening. It was sweet and to the point, as well as showcased how desperate their situation was with you being near immediately tossed straight into the fray of it.
The game is viewed from the isometric perspective and is all in real-time. You move via invisible square grids similar to Dungeon Crawlers, as do the enemies. In your hands will be a sword which you can swing at any time, though it would be best to wait until a foe is in range. Just mashing the attack button does work in the first area of the game since all enemies there receive a knock-back effect from it, but later on, your movement will be your most vital skill. The sword has a large area of effect when swung. It will damage enemies directly in front of you with a width of three grids, making taking down a ton of weak enemies a quick yet dangerous affair if they get any closer.
It is an adult-oriented title. Most enemies do not do a ton of direct damage, but they can knock you down and sexually abuse your character. You have a chance to get up before that happens if there isn’t a foe too close by mashing the movement keys and the menu button (oddly enough). If you do not manage to get up in time, you will be violated on the spot by whatever monster got their mitts on you. An animation will play out and you can mash buttons to escape or let it play out, you do not take any damage from it. You can even press the H key to knock yourself down if you want to see all the animations. Do not do so with bosses however, they will in fact drain your health very quickly during intercourse.
There isn’t much variation to the sex despite what monster has their way with you. Most of them do not have any unique poses or frames, all of them mostly alternate between doggy style and missionary. Some like the tentacle foe are unique and the zombie is an interesting case too. Zombies share the same animations of most other enemies, though they are the only enemy that can pile up on you during intercourse. You’ll receive new positions if more than one of them is around, with three being the limit. What is here is ultimately pretty solid, yet do not expect much variation from regular enemies. Bosses, on the other hand, all have exclusive animations and a piece of quality CG art should you lose.
After defeating the wave of monsters from the intro scene, you will then be free to explore. This game doesn’t have the word maze in its title for nothing, it is a sprawling and intricate world to navigate. There is a ton of branching paths everywhere, that do usually end up looping back into another part of the map, instead of simply being dead ends. It starts off simple enough, as to ease you in. It is not until you defeat the first boss that the game will truly open up. There will still be natural barriers to keep you from going to high-level areas you shouldn’t, yet it is a far cry from exploring your first area. If you don’t like exploration, this title may not be for you. I’d say that is an even bigger part of it than the action.
Near every screen will have multiple enemies in them and they do respawn if you leave it then come back again. There is never a lack of something to smack with your sword. But it will take a whole different feel after the initial dungeon. You will now encounter foes that can not be knocked back, so they can easily corner you or tank your damage and reach you before you can kill them. There is nothing to be gained from killing in this game. There is no experience system, no item drops, or any tangible reward from slaying monsters. That gets you into the mindset that you are meant to survive, not to massacre everything like in your typical RPG or Action title. Killing became more of a tool I only did to clear a safe path to my destination or to avoid being overwhelmed when your back is against the wall.
Some foes take a ton of hits, with a few later on that are impossible to kill. It will get tedious fast if you try to brute force your way to victory. That, in addition to no kind of rewards and the fact they immediately respawn once you leave the screen, makes choosing your fights not only a valid tactic but a necessary one. It adds to the sense of truly realizing just how bad the situation was before you were awakened. You are far from powerless, but ultimately your goal was merely to buy the soldiers some time and then escape yourself if possible. It is a seemingly impossible journey behind enemy lines you are tasked with surviving, not one where you are supposed to or even able to save the world.
That intro area doesn’t really convey this well as you can steamroll everything that crosses your path easily. Also crossing your path will be a few side characters who are magical dolls, same as you. They can either guide or hinder you. It also brings up interesting views into your kind, whose entire existence was made to take orders. One of them received an order that simply went along the lines of “kill anything you see” that was assumingly given out by a solider similar to our own. Those words that bind her make repeatedly fighting her despite clearly being on the same side pretty tragic. A nice change of pace from what would otherwise be the ‘insanely dense’ character cliché we see time and time again.
This is a hentai game, so you may encounter them again in rather precarious situations with a monster schlong inside her. There is no penalty for not helping her immediately, you could do so at your own pace. You will certainly want to do so eventually, however. They not only give you tips on what to do, which is a godsend in this Maze, but also give you incredibly valuable items for that area. You’ll encounter two different status effects that can be randomly applied from a monster or by walking into noxious gasses scattered about. Both reduce your stats and can not be dispelled by anything other than the potions other characters give you.
Pretty soon after the first boss fight, you will encounter the second and only other weapon aside from the sword. It is a magical fire staff which is far weaker than the sword, yet has an incredibly large area of effect when used. There is no mana or anything of the sort to limit your usage, making it the safest weapon to use as you can batter away at a distant foe. Since many foes don’t have knock-back, rushing them with your sword is a risky proposition. Yet that doesn’t mean your sword becomes a useless paperweight. The fire staff only does long-range attacks, if a monster gets in close, you either switch to your sword immediately or run if able to.
Your main objective is to escape as stated, to do so requires you to defeat four bosses. They are creatures such as plant monsters or giant golems that have caused disruptions to the environment that make it impassible with boulders or vines. You face these hulking beasts more so out of necessity than anything. To little surprise, they are far more difficult opponents than basic enemies. It is not an overly difficult game, but these can be quite intense. Being knocked down and prone to being sexually abused goes from a slight annoyance to a massive “oh no!” moment as you mash the keys to get back up. Most of them are fun to face, though I did find the golem to be quite the chore. That is due to him spamming a knockdown special attack if you make sudden movements. Getting back up requires you to mash the movement keys, making it far too easy to overshoot and end up knocked down again.
Defeating the bosses gains you clearance to another area and a Health boost. They are five-point increments and you start with 100 default. It barely feels worth celebrating, to be honest. What is much more fulfilling are the rare orbs hidden around the world. Finding one feels like a great accomplishment and has more of an effect on gameplay. It can either increase your attack or defense. Quite useful for taking down enemies faster and being able to better take a blow. That last one, in particular, is very handy considering how much you will be avoiding combat when possible and makes your health upgrades more substantial to boot.
Being low on health is never a problem. Herbs that heal a considerable sum of your health with just a single one are scattered all over the map. Not only that, but they also respawn simply by leaving and entering the screen again. You can only carry up to five, yet doing runs in the over-world never felt like I was at risk of dying thanks to their abundance and just how much a single one heals. The only time I ever ran out was a particularly tense moment near the end where you face a boss and must decide to continue on or head back for more herbs. I choose the former and finally finding some as I ventured deeper in was quite the satisfying moment I wish there were more of.
One thing that this title fails at is telling you if an area on the screen can be entered or exited. There are multiple instances where there was no distinction between an opening or simple scenery. Other developers usually get around this by shading the ground in front of an entrance/exit a darker color, yet that is not done here. It is fine when it comes to secret areas, but unwarranted for overall navigation. Another thing worth noting is that you will either have to set your system to Japanese or change your Unicode preferences to that language if you want the text to display at all. It is fully translated into English, yet the text won’t display at all, likely thanks to symbols not in Unicode messing with the code. Don’t fret if you have no idea what I’m talking about, just click on my hyperlink a few sentences back to be directed to my guide on how to get Japanese games running.
In total, this adventure lasted me around an hour and a half. Pretty close to what was stated on the store page. Completing the game unlocks a room in where you can face off against any enemy or boss, as to be defeated again and experience their unique H content once more. It also unlocks the option to be fully nude, instead of always having your armor on. There is a stat penalty, though by that point it doesn’t matter much as there is nothing new to see if you re-explore the game and you could always reequip your clothes. You will not miss out on any content if you decide to never let yourself be downed until then. It is flawed in some areas, but I definitely got my money’s worth out of Maze of Marionette. For 7 dollars, it is more than worth it for someone on the lookout for an isometric action game. Just keep in mind it has more in common with avoidance type games than straight Action titles like YS or Zelda.
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