| My Little Pony: The Bonds Of Friendship | |
|---|---|
 Old Footage of the game | |
| Programming | Fluttershyponygal |
| Art | BadtechBunny, Blackliquidsorrow, Urimas Ebonheart |
| Type of game | 2-D, RPG |
| Platform/engine | RPG Maker MV |
| Featuring | Princess Celestia Nightmare Moon The Mane Six |
| Show connection | Friendship is Magic, part 1 |
| Game link(s)
| |
The Bonds Of Friendship is a 2-D, Role-playing Game which began as a solo project but overtime has added a few artists to its project staff. While the project staff is small, the team seems very dedicated to making this game something more than a simple "MLP Fan game".
Premise[]
Like most RPGs of the 2D era, this game consists of playing as a character from the game, leveling up a cast of characters and experiencing the story-line play out as you defeat bosses and level up your characters. What is different about this game however is the fact that Twilight Sparkle is the main character of the game.
Plot[]
Twilight Sparkle finds herself in an alternate timeline with no idea how she got there. No one seems to know who she is and what's worse, she seems to no longer be an Alicorn. The game's plot is currently incomplete as this game is still in development.
Gameplay[]
The Game plays out like any other RPG. In most cases you will level up Twilight and her friends naturally as you progress the game's Semi-Linear plot. Players will encounter most of the stables of a Roleplaying game such as:
- Random Encounters
- Boss Battles
- Characters learning new spells and skills as they level up.
- Character stats growing with each and every level they gain.
- Buying and selling Equipment, Armor, and Items for use throughout the game.
For the most part none of this will change.
Tactical Combat System[]
The Bonds Of Friendship however, does one thing that few other MLP Fan Games(Even RPGs) have done and that's include not one but TWO combat systems in the game. This combat system is vastly different from the game's normal combat system and the player won't encounter it until roughly one-forth of the way into the game when the Mission System is introduced to the player.
Players who have played games such as Final Fantasy Tactics or Fire Emblem should have no issue adapting to this combat system when its introduced and includes such stables as:
- Open World turn based combat.
- Each character's movement is restricted to a certain number of tiles per turn.
- Some spells or skills will have and Area of Effect which will trigger an effect when the affected tiles are touched by either player or foe.
- Specific objectives the player must complete in order to win the battle.
As the name of the combat system implies, this combat system will require the player to think strategically if they wish to conquer some of the later missions.
Friendship Storylines[]
Friendship Storylines are an optional set of side-quests the player can take part in while playing The Bonds Of Friendship and while these quests are optional, its highly recommended you do as many as you can as some can grant new abilities to Twilight and the other mane characters of the game and/or unlock hidden plot paths that would otherwise be inaccessible. Not to mention, this is a stable feature of the game and a core mechanic.
So why is it optional? Because the developer wanted to give the player the freedom to choose to ignore this feature completely but at a cost. There is one Friendship Storyline however that the player can not avoid and that's Pinkie Pie's Friendship Storyline as it ties directly into the game's plot. Players needn't worry however as you don't have necessarily complete any of Pinkie Pie's friendship quests in order to complete the game but it will negatively impact the game's plot. The reason why her Friendship Storyline is unavoidable is the fact that her friendship level will raise at certain points in the game automatically, whether you did her individual friendship quests or not.
Once again, players who have played games such as Persona 5 will notice a similarity between this feature and the social link system from the mentioned RPG.
Alternate Storyline[]
Though currently inaccessible, the developer has mentioned that players will be able to play two different story plots. One in which Twilight saves Equestria and one in which she goes down a darker path. The Developer hasn't given any details as to what this "Dark Path" will consist of but they have stated that "They thought of it before Undertale was even a thing" and aim to make this alternate plot feel just as engaging if not heart-wrenching to play.
Secret Ending[]
There's also a rumored "Secret Ending" to this game that supposedly requires the player to play through both the main story and the alternate dark story to unlock...