The DioField Chronicle review: deep real-time strategy that gets mired in its own plot
Have you ever played a game and thought, "Are we actually the bad guys here?" Usually, the whole "we're fighting on the wrong side of history" line is a deliberate plot device in RPGs, offering moments of clarity to not only peel back the curtain and provide fresh impetus for the events yet to come, but also to cleverly reframe everything you've achieved so far. I don't say this to spoil the events of The DioField Chronicle, the new real-time strategy game from Lancarse and Square Enix, but it is a question I found myself asking a lot during its middle act - and it never quite delivers the punchline you're looking for.
Around 8-10 hours into the game, there's an extended portion of the campaign that sees your band of Blue Fox mercenaries bringing an entire region of DioField Island to heel because they're, err, pro democracy. Of the cast's central quartet, only one stands up as a voice of reason when motions are made to quell these despicable riots, but he's repeatedly shot down every time he tries to offer an alternate view. Eventually, one character says to him, and I quote, "Isca, what has got into you? You ought to know the danger posed by the ideology of democracy." It's an odd stance for someone clearly not a villain to take in 2022, although really, I should have probably seen it coming. Our mercs work for a duke after all, and most are aristocratic nobles who are handy with a sword. Oh no. I think this might actually be played: Tories - The Game. Yuck.