Hi friends! I spent a cozy week with Artis Impact, a turn-based RPG from Mas (published by Feuxon) that launched on August 7, 2025. If you like games that lean into charm, pixel love, and gentle pacing, this one has a lot to offer. It’s playful, funny, and full of small, delightful touches — but it also has a few design choices that kept it from becoming one of my all-time favorites.
Overall Impressions
Artis Impact is a beautiful little world. Playing as Akane, you wander bright, varied locations, talk to quirky NPCs, and pick up side quests that hide tiny surprises. What stood out most was the personality: the writing is playful, the jokes land often, and there’s a real sense of heart in the design. The game feels less like a hard-core RPG and more like a relaxed adventure — which is great if you want something cozy with occasional stakes.
Where it fell flat for me was the combat and difficulty balance. The RPG systems (upgrades, stats, ranks) are there, but they rarely feel necessary. I found myself steamrolling enemies — bosses included — after the early sections, which drained tension from fights that otherwise try to be dramatic. Compared to other turn-based indies that balance story with meaningful combat, Artis Impact leans much closer to a visual-novel-adjacent experience with light RPG dressing.
Gameplay Mechanics
The combat is simple and smooth. The animations are lovely, and the turn-based flow is easy to follow. There are mechanics like sword upgrades, permanent stat growth, and rank systems that suggest build options. In practice, these systems feel underused. Enemies have low HP, your attacks scale quickly, and once you get a little momentum you can one-shot most encounters. That makes the fights feel satisfying but also a bit pointless.
That said, the game shines in exploration and interaction. NPCs often have little side stories, and the world reveals lore when you poke around. Side quests aren’t just check-the-box chores — they’re where the game’s charm really blooms. One standout moment for me was a quiet subplot on a dockside level: simple interactions led to a gentle, surprising payoff that felt earned. It’s moments like that the game does wonderfully.
Some players have mentioned odd UI or structural choices — like title screens or credits appearing in strange places — and I noticed those too. Localization also trips up now and then; the English isn’t always polished, which can make some lines feel clunky. Still, the tone and humor mostly come through.
Story and Characters
This is the heart of Artis Impact. The relationships and little reveals are the main reason to keep playing. Akane is a likable lead, and the cast you meet feels distinct and memorable despite the short run time of many side quests. The game’s lore is mostly revealed through exploration and NPC interactions, which rewards curiosity. If you enjoy piecing together backstory from small scenes and flavor text, you’ll love that part.
The narrative isn’t a deeply complex saga, but it’s very effective at creating mood. It can swing from goofy to dark to quietly sweet without feeling jarring — and that tonal range kept me engaged. The ending isn’t earth-shattering, but by then I was more invested in the ride than the final twist.
Visuals and Graphics
This is where Artis Impact truly sings. The pixel art is gorgeous: smooth, expressive animations and lots of small details that make the world feel lived-in. I noticed tiny environmental touches that only show up if you interact with things, and those moments felt rewarding. The character sprites are stylish and full of personality, and the environments pop with color and life.
If you’re someone who follows pixel artists on Twitter, you’ll probably appreciate how much love went into every frame. It’s the kind of game you can sit and admire between quests.
Sound and Music
The soundtrack is solid and fits the mood — mellow tracks for exploration, moodier pieces for more intense scenes. There are unique boss themes that sound great in isolation, but unfortunately, I rarely got to enjoy them because fights ended so quickly. Sound effects are cute and crisp, which helps the combat feel snappy even when it’s not mechanically deep. No voice acting, which suits the tone; the ambient music and effects do the heavy lifting.
Difficulty and Replayability
Difficulty is the game’s main weakness. If you want a thoughtful, challenging RPG with tight combat balance, this isn’t it. However, if you want a chill story-driven experience with light battles and lots of exploration, it’s a lovely fit. Replayability depends on how much you love the world: there are secrets and small revealables that encourage another run-through, and the side quests offer different bits of lore you might miss the first time. But because the combat and progression don’t branch much, you won’t find a lot of incentive for multiple playstyles.
Developer Trivia and Behind-The-Scenes
A fun piece of background: Mas is a small indie developer (many fans believe it’s a solo effort from Malaysia), and you can feel the personal touch throughout the game. Artis Impact had a visible presence on social platforms during development, and a lot of the charm seems made with care by a small, passionate team. The publisher, Feuxon, helped bring it to a wider audience — and the recent Steam reviews are “Very Positive,” which lines up with how many players respond to its style and heart.
Final Thoughts
Artis Impact is a cozy, heartful RPG with gorgeous pixel art, cute characters, and a world worth poking around in. It doesn’t deliver the tightly balanced combat some RPG fans want, but it rewards players who enjoy exploration, storytelling, and charm over mechanical depth.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Why? Beautiful art, great worldbuilding, and genuine warmth make this a very lovable game. It loses a star for uneven combat and some rough localization, but I still recommend it to anyone who likes relaxed, story-forward experiences with a lot of personality.
If you’re into gentle adventures, quirky characters, and pixel art that makes you smile, give Artis Impact a go. It made me grin more than once, and sometimes that’s exactly what I want from a game.
