Philna Fantasy

Come for the combat, stay for the Progression.

Philna Fantasy, the debut game from Sailike Games, certainly has promise. Its ridiculous name aside, the game has more in common with the likes of early Legend of Zelda titles than that of Final Fantasy, given its pixel visuals mixed with real-time combat. While those are the game's strengths, a lacking story, unmemorable characters, and host of grammatical and spelling errors do a lot to pull you out of this often charming experience.

We've seen outer space used as a backdrop to Fantasy RPG’s before with the likes of Star Ocean, a series that often plants its feet in fantasy, but always keeps one eye to the stars. While Philna Fantasy does begin with you being dropped into orbit to land on the planet below, the pay off for this backstory is more of a setup for a sequel than anything that really has an impact here and now. Sure, it is an interesting concept of where it could go, but its use here just doesn't feel like it pays that setup off. 

After being rescued from your planetary tumble, you are quickly introduced to the local Adventure's Guild in the nearby town, smack dab in the center of the continent of Votland. After passing a simple test, you are brought in as a new member, one who apparently is so skilled that they are thrust into bigger and more elaborate quests. That said, you do seem to be the only adventurer here, and you are also designated with the more tedious objectives to complete as well. 

Between the major story moments, you'll be left to deal with requests at the guild's counter. You'll have mandatory quests and those that are optional. These quests range from gathering enough kids to watch a performer, handing out meals to promote the church, or preparing an anti-toxin pill for some farmers in need. The optional quests are usually shorter affairs, such as tracking down an item or gathering certain materials, a few of which you may even complete without knowing it. However, the mandatory side quests are my biggest concern, given that they are often placed in front of you after major story moments and absolutely destroy the pacing of the story.

Side quests and the various activities you are saddled with can do a lot to add to a game's world-building and introduce you to various characters and personalities. However, apart from the Guildmaster, since his name is simply Kyle, I cannot recall a single character's name or really any place you visit that is noteworthy or memorable in the slightest. Sure, the Museum is an interesting idea, but I just couldn’t be bothered to head back there after each and every expedition. 

The main town is a place you'll return to often, as you hand in quests, craft, and buy or sell gear and resources. While there is a salon that offers to give you a new look, there is no option to take them up on it, making that building entirely wasted. There isn't anything even remotely interesting here, with not a single character worth mentioning. 

While you play as the hero, there is really nothing to provide the motivation for being said savior. It sort of is just thrust upon you with no real skin in the game. You discover a conspiracy that threatens the kingdom, but nothing connects back to you. Sure, the reason is eventually explained, but it just didn't satisfy, and felt more like sequel bait than a genuine plan for this current game. 

As said hero, you'll have four classes to choose from. Berserker, Assassin, Ranger, and the Chrono Mage. The Berserker uses two-handed axes and is a tank for dealing and taking damage. The Assassin is a fast duel-wielding rogue that uses teleportation to strike at her enemies. The Ranger uses a bow and is joined by a mystical wolf to take on their enemies. Lastly, the Chrono Mage focuses on magic-based combat with a series of elemental spells.

If I had to critique one specific thing about the classes, it is that there are no descriptors to these classes when selecting them. There is no way to know if a character is right for you before you've committed to them. I would have loved a training mode that gave you a fully leveled character to play around in a small map to test their skills. Hell, I would have even settled for a video that showcased some of their abilities. Honestly, anything would have sufficed. 

While the addition of classes can provide the game with some added replayability, you're still playing through the same game with each class, having to relive the same tedious quests all over again. If there were certain quests that were exclusive to each class, or variations of main quests based on your chosen class, then there could be valid reasons for wanting to endure the game, as it is, all over again. Sadly, there just isn't a compelling reason for doing so.

After you've selected your hero and impressed the Guild, you'll be placed in charge of aiding in the important story beats that see you saving one of the Guild's scientists, investigating the palace after the King has mysteriously vanished, and inspecting a series of mines that are possibly under cult control. These objectives eventually lead to some interesting moments, but the story as a whole just isn't interesting. 

Much of this comes from a wealth of spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, and the fact every apostrophe is double-spaced in each use. While I hate using the example, this felt so much like playing a game built from RPG Maker, where there is a solid premise to start the story, but the execution of seeing it through just falls apart. There was also a part when playing as the Assassin, who is female, and having them reference as a boy. These issues on their own are minor, but when added as a whole, does a lot to pull you out of the experience.

Combat is, quite frankly, the saving grace of this 12-15-hour journey. It was what attracted me to the game in the first place, and thankfully, the end result is rather fun, especially with a few systems in place to really make you feel like your character is tuned to your play style. While co-op could have really amped up this game, the varied combat options still make for a great time on your own.

Apart from a simple attack and your dodge, you'll have a skill tree to help flesh out your arsenal. While you'll have varied options to choose from as you fill up your four attack slots, you are encouraged to respec at any time to shake things up. As the Ranger, I opted for a series of fast arrows to pepper my foes, a volley to catch them unaware, a burning series of arrows to set them ablaze, and a phantom wolf to join me in battle. Now, sometimes I'd swap out to be able to set traps as well, if the situation called for it. The skill tree also has passive upgrades to make these skills more effective, which helped my wolf become even more of a threat when they could not only do more damage, but survive longer in the fight as well.

Each of your special attacks consumes a mana bar, which can be refilled by simply using your basic attack. However, you can have certain perks applied to your character that will, for example, drop blue bananas on the ground that refill a portion of your gauge. As you are able to dodge, you can roll out of the way of AOE attacks that the bosses will spam, or projectiles from the fodder around you. Combat is fast, enjoyable, and heightened by a few key systems. 

To aid in your stats, there are a few options. First, you can purchase pets to follow you around, with accessories to apply additional perks to you. This system is complemented by a Magic Belt that has you defeating enemies to convert their energy into cards that can be equipped to the belt. These boost your stats and grant you additional benefits based on the monster. There is a heat system that prevents certain card combinations from taking advantage of this system. 

These systems work well and add a nice layer of depth to how you customize your hero. Each monster card equipped to the Magic Belt can boost a ton of different stats and really allow you to make certain builds. And, with a ton of accessories and pets to unlock, this system works as an addition to the belt in all the right ways. 

While there is a map, it can be incredibly confusing to navigate specific areas. The map will have rooms and hallways that don't always line up, such as the mines, where you are jumping in and out of numerous mine carts. I would walk up from where my character's icon is, only to appear in a room to the right. Most areas are represented on the map just fine, but these few annoyances can certainly have you questioning the map functionality.

Puzzles are plentiful here, and most are actually quite great. Despite its simplicity, I really liked the memory puzzle as I've always been a fan of that game. There are some where you'll move laser pedestals around various paintings, fill up lit up squares on the ground, to moving platforms around with barrels to cause geysers to allow you to hop across them. There were a few tedious ones, but ultimately, they showed a lot of great design to provide something other than just combat. 

Throughout the adventure, you will gain a few powers that are taught to you by an elder. These involve manipulating plants to construct bridges or ladders, or creating platforms out of thin air, provided a specific symbol is nearby. The addition of these powers works not only in traversal, but in some of the game’s more complex puzzles. 

Philna Fantasy is a very attractive game with a ton of solid pixel work in not only the various creatures, bosses, and your character themselves, but in the lush and colorful land around you. From swamps, forests, and ancient ruins, not to mention the magic academy, the mines, and some of the later zones, there is a ton of solid work here that is truly fantastic. 

From a content perspective, Philna Fantasy has a lot going for it. The progression systems are great, and really allow you to customize your character and tailor them to what you want from them. The game has plenty of environments to venture through, bosses to defeat, and a solid combat system to devour. However, part of what makes a good RPG is its story, its cast of characters, and an engaging reason for your hero to take on this journey, and sadly, Philna Fantasy suffers the most in these crucial categories. While the game is focused on setting up a sequel, these areas need to be addressed to make it worth my time to return to a world that should be engaging to explore, but felt underbaked, under developed, and underwhelming.

Developer - Sailike Game. Publisher - AnotherIndie. Released - January 15th, 2026. Available On - PC. (Steam) Rated - (N.A) No Descriptor. Platform Reviewed - Steam. Review Access - A review code for the game was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.