Nine Parchments
Co-op action RPG about students hunting nine lost spell parchments.
Nine Parchments is a twin-stick action role-playing game from Frozenbyte, who both developed and published it. The game launched in 2017 for Nintendo Switch, Windows, and PlayStation 4, with an Xbox One version following in 2018. Players control students from the Astral Academy as they hunt for nine lost parchments.
The gameplay uses twin-stick controls in a 3D overhead view, supporting single-player or cooperative play for up to four people locally or online. Two modes are available: adventure and arena. Adventure mode sends players through 32 levels, fighting waves of enemies and bosses. Arena mode, added later, challenges players to survive tougher enemy waves in confined spaces.
Eight playable characters are included, with a ninth added through a free update. Each character starts with three spells of different elements, and new spells are learned by collecting the missing parchments. As characters gain levels, they earn points to spend on skill trees. Three alternate versions of each character, with different colors and starting spells, can be unlocked via achievements. Hats and staves are obtained from quills, chests, or by defeating certain enemies.
The story begins when students Cornelius Crownsteed, Marvek the Torrid, Carabel the Glacial, Rudolfus the Strange, the Mechanical Owl, and Nim the Cleaner are scolded by Professor Butternut for failing another test. An explosion then sends nine parchment spells flying away. Cornelius and his friends seize the chance to sneak out and recover them, traveling across the world. Along the way, they face flora and fauna mutated by magic from mysterious portals.
It is later revealed that the explosion was orchestrated by Anastasia the Lich, a former Astral Academy student expelled for a dangerous experiment that caused the magical pollution mutating the creatures. When the students return to seal the parchments in their spellbook, they find the academy overrun by Anastasia’s minions. After fighting through the ruined school, they defeat Anastasia in a tough battle. Though Professor Butternut reclaims the parchments and tells them they still have much to learn, Cornelius and his friends agree the adventure was worthwhile.
According to review aggregator Metacritic, Nine Parchments received mixed or average reviews from professional critics.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Nine Parchments
- Developer
- Frozenbyte
- Director
- Lauri Hyvärinen
- Producer
- Timo-Pekka Kemppaine / Antti Rantanen
- Programmer
- Jussi Ernsten
- Artist
- Charlotta Tiuri
- Writer
- Maija Koivula / Silja Partanen
- Composer
- Ari Pulkkinen / Antti Martikainen / Sauli Lehtinen / Jori Kemppi
- Platforms
- Nintendo Switch · Windows · PlayStation 4 · Xbox One
- Released
- Nintendo Switch, WindowsWW · December 5, 2017PlayStation 4NA · December 12, 2017 · EU · December 13, 2017Xbox OneWW · March 7, 2018
- Genre
- Action role-playing
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The game's story begins at the Astral Academy, where student Cornelius Crownsteed and his friends Marvek the Torrid, Carabel the Glacial, Rudolfus the Strange, The Mechanical Owl, and Nim the Cleaner are reprimanded by Professor Butternut for failing a wizarding test. An explosion then sends nine stored parchments, each containing a powerful spell, flying away. Cornelius and his companions seize the chance to sneak out and recover the parchments, traveling across the world. Along the way, they encounter mutated flora and fauna emerging from portals, seemingly to deter them.
The explosion is later revealed to have been orchestrated by Anastasia the Lich, a former Astral Academy student expelled for conducting a dangerous arcane experiment that caused magical pollution. When the students return to the academy to seal the parchments via the Ritual of Sealing, they find the school overrun by Anastasia's minions. After fighting through the ruined academy, they confront and defeat Anastasia. Though Professor Butternut reclaims the parchments for safekeeping, the students acknowledge their adventure as worthwhile.
Reader's Guide
Nine Parchments received 'mixed or average' reviews from professional critics according to the review aggregator website Metacritic. The game offers two modes: adventure, where players progress through 32 levels defeating waves of enemies and bosses, and arena, added in a later update, which challenges players to survive increasingly difficult enemy waves in small areas. Gameplay utilizes twin stick controlled combat from an overhead 3D perspective. Each of the eight playable characters starts with three different spells of varying elements, and new spells are learned by collecting the missing parchments. Characters level up to unlock points for skill trees. Three additional variations with different color schemes and starting spells can be unlocked per character through achievements. Equippable hats and staves are obtained from quills, chests, or by defeating certain enemies. The game supports both local and online cooperative play for up to four players, as well as single-player.
Did You Know?
- The game includes eight playable characters, with a ninth added in a free update.
- Arena mode was added in a later update.
- The explosion at the academy was masterminded by Anastasia the Lich, a former student.
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