As the player progresses through the story, Syrma will unlock new abilities for navigation such as the Ultimate Vault, which allows her to jump, and Ultimate Snag, which allows her to reach items she normally could not. These abilities allow players to reach previously unreachable areas or items in past worlds and makes it somewhat rewarding to backtrack to past worlds to pick up items you may have missed. You just might find a hidden gem.
In Mugen Souls Z, Syrma borrows Chou-Chou's power to make anything and anyone her peon. This is accomplished by selecting the "Captivate" option on the selection screen during battle. Syrma then strikes poses chosen by the player, making the peon gauges build on selected opponents. Players are able to see in advance how much a specific gauge will build based on the pose selected. There are three different outcomes based on the poses the player chooses. The first option is that the selected enemy will turn into a peon, strengthening the G-Castle, as well as activating a set coffin effect during battle. The player chooses a certain effect, ranging from attacking enemies to restoring HP, and as soon as an enemy is "peonified," the coffin effect activates. The second option is that the enemy will turn into an item, which the player will be able to use or sell. The third option is that the enemy will become enraged, regaining all health and receiving an increase in attack power. The "Captivate" option does not use up a turn, so players should feel free to use it as often as possible.
To assist with making enemy monsters into peons, Syrma is able to change her form. This allows her to cater to a specific taste or desire, making it easier to change someone into her peon. Each form has a charm level, which increases as you gain more peons. The charm level helps increase the capability of performing peon and item changes. Form changes can be done at any time, as much as one might want, while on the field by pressing the (L1) button, but they are limited to once per turn in battle and are done by selecting the appropriate command. Again, only Syrma is able to change her form.
One aspect of battle that both helps and hurts players is the presence of various crystals. There are special colored crystals around the field with an aura emanating from them which grant special bonuses if an action is performed from inside the crystal radius. These bonuses range from magic or accuracy boosts to attack boosts, as well as other stat raises. While the player is within them, they get the bonuses or penalties the crystal grants, but an enemy can also stand next to them and receive the same bonuses as well. There are also larger crystals which float around and may grant field bonuses.
Random bonuses are not the only benefit given by the crystals. Players can either break them or use Captivate on them, so long as they are within range. Crystals can be broken by using the Blast Off technique, which knocks enemies and players around the battlefield. Blast Off is used by turning it on from the Skills screen during battle. Once broken, the crystal unleashes an effect which can be viewed from the stats screen. A crystal is captivated exactly like an enemy is, but the crystal is only affected if it is within the player's range. Once captivated, the crystal may either turn into a peon, item, or become enraged.
In battle, players and enemies take turns for their own actions. The player is allowed to perform an action with their characters and then the enemy performs their actions. This goes on until either side achieves victory. Players are given several options during battle. The first is the Menu option. The Menu is opened by pressing the X button, and players may then select an action to take from the available options Attack, Skills, Items, Switch, Retreat and Defend. Main protagonist Syrma is given another page of actions which consists of Change, Captivate, Coffin Effect, Ultimate Soul, an ultimate ability featuring Chou-Chou, and Coax, a plea from Syrma involving specific actions. The free cursor option allows the player to hover over different characters in battle to see their stats, but a list of stats can be accessed by pressing the (R1) button.
Mugen Souls Z is a great step up from Mugen Souls and definitely shows that developers are willing to listen to their consumers. The game does have some drawbacks, such as the intense level grinding to keep up with new bosses and the sometimes frustrating captivating system, but those are just a drop in the bucket considering all the good elements of the game. Hours of gameplay and plenty of comedic events keep Mugen Souls Z interesting, for those with a sense of humor anyway.
