Shiravune brought Aquaplus’ RPG Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten worldwide to PC via Steam last year. This was Aquaplus’ first worldwide simultaneous release of a new game, and the console versions were not released internationally. NIS America has published English versions of Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten, the 20th anniversary celebration title for the Utawarerumono series, in the West on both PS5 and PS4. I already played the PC version, but was curious to see how the PS5 version compared, and whether the issues I had with the PC version were addressed. In my Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten PS5 review, I’m going to focus on the PS5 port and whether this is worth your time as a fan of the Utawarerumono series.
When Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten was announced for Japan, I was hopeful for Aquaplus’ first attempt at a JRPG, not only as a fan of the developer’s other work, but also as a huge fan of the Utawarerumono series. So where does Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten fit into that series? I don’t think this is a good entry point into the series at all. Even with it trying to be a prequel, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten would be best enjoyed after you already experience the Utawarerumono trilogy.
The battle system in Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten is almost amazing. Turn-based combat with turns being indicated on a ring on the top left of the screen. The character icons move towards the middle and the speed at which they move on said rings depends on the speed stat. Ring position also changes if you manage to break an enemy. Combat itself was fairly solid throughout, but I kept thinking how a bit more polish into the implementation, dungeon design, and encounters would result in a superb gameplay loop on this front.
On the audio side, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten has excellent voice acting and superb music. Both of these are expected given Aquaplus and Utawarerumono, but I was happy to see those aspects represented well. The story itself could’ve been paced a bit better, but the Japanese voice acting is a highlight. I also love the game’s soundtrack, and have been listening to it quite often alongside music from the main Utawarerumono games.
Visually, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten on PS5 can look great, and it shines with its aesthetic in later areas like one specific dungeon, but it feels lacking. The scale is big, and it shows Aquaplus’ ambition here, but it feels like some things needed more time, or to be cut back for a more focused and polished experience. The character designs and portraits are superb though.
My main problems with Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten on PS5 have to do with how it feels like Aquaplus tried to do too many things, and only really succeeded at a few for this release. On paper, I thought I’d love the gameplay as a big fan of turn-based RPGs, but the pacing and sluggish progression of the game make it feel too bloated. It also doesn’t help that the game’s technical aspects are lacking on PS5. I don’t see why a game like this should be 30fps on PS5 with those visuals. Just like the PC version, it feels like there’s a delay to do anything movement wise as well here. The story, characters, and music are the real stars of the show here.
Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten PS5 vs PC and Steam Deck
If you already played Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten on PC, the PS5 version only really is worth your time if you want a physical copy of the game, or really want to replay it. There is no real advantage over the PC version, but the PS5 release does arrive with all updates and patches included making it a lot more polished than the PC version was day one when most of us played it.
Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten on PC is Steam Deck Verified, and it also supports 60fps gameplay making it the better version of the game. I was hoping the delay between the Japanese and Western releases meant we might see a performance increase on PS5, but this is pretty much just the Japanese version with an English localization on console. It isn’t a dealbreaker given the gameplay style, but is disappointing nonetheless. Right now it runs better on Steam Deck than PS5 in many parts albeit at a lower resolution.
The PS5 version has support for Activity Cards, but I didn’t notice anything special with its DualSense features. You can use Activity Cards to skip a few menus to go into your latest save here. I didn’t try the PS4 version much, but the PS4 and PS5 versions support save data transfer between each other.
As a huge fan of the Utawarerumono series, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten should’ve been a slam dunk, but it is lacking in some key ways right now on PS5. The story, characters, and music make it worth your time, but the lack of polish in visuals and gameplay hold it back.
Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten is out now worldwide on PS5, PS4, and on PC via Steam.
