Child of Light is a joy to experience. Our review says as much, and if it’s still not on your radar, you really ought to reconsider, even for the aural and visual aspects alone. If you’re a fan of turn-based RPG combat that packs a punch (not to mention an incredibly fun gimmick), then trying Child of Light basically becomes a no brainer.
For those of you already sold on the game, you can’t expect to just wander blindly into Lemuria (which literally translates to a “lost land”) without a game plan. What will you do when an anthropomorphic bird-zombie jumps from the shadows and strikes before you can heal or spend your skill points? Or what about all those hidden chests and collectibles scattered throughout the land? Oh, and don’t forget sidequests, Oculi crafting, environmental puzzling, and skill-building. And controlling your firefly friend Igniculus. He’s so adorable.
To help expedite your preparations, we’ve compiled some tips to keep in mind while playing, battling, and literally flying through Lemuria’s gorgeous, hand-drawn world. Stay sharp, and brush up your knowledge of poetic rhyme schemes. Trust me, you’ll need them.
Child of Light Tips
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Be Friendly to Igniculus
Your partner in both battle and exploration, the firefly Igniculus, is one of the first characters and gameplay mechanics you’ll be introduced to upon booting up the game. His uses may seem limited to puzzling or one-off distractions against enemies at first, but don’t be fooled -- Igniculus is crucial to your strategy.
Aside from his ability to freeze enemies in their tracks outside of battle (which allows for greatly beneficial surprise strikes), his diversive ways translate to combat fully intact. Controlled with the right analog stick (or a second player), Igniculus can greatly reduce the speed at which enemies move along the battle timeline, which is main mechanic of combat. If utilized properly, Igniculus can slow an enemy's progress at precisely the right moment, allowing Aurora’s attack to interrupt whatever it is the foe intended to throw your way. It’s not a perfect science, and Igniculus’ glow-meter does run dry if you’re not careful, but even so it can make or break certain encounters.
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Spread Your Wings and Fly
Perhaps the most freeing moment in Child of Light is when Aurora is given her wings. It’s one of those “wait, I can do that?!” moments, and when you realize you can simply hover, dash, or twirl through the air toward previously unreachable areas, it’s a great feeling.
There’s a lot more to flying than the pure fun of it, though; Lemuria is filled with secrets waiting to be discovered. Meticulous players will want to scan every nook and cranny for secret passages or Oculi crystals (raw materials used for crafting), and if you’re thorough you’ll come across winding paths through trees, the sky, and even underground, many of which are completely optional. There’s usually a reward, of course, but the real joy comes in simply mapping every corner of Lemuria that you can. You’ll also collect a lot more Stardust this way, which can be used to permanently boost your stats.
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Embrace Your Party
Before long Aurora is joined by fellow travelers, and though they make for an odd caravan all said and done, your allies are also extremely powerful if used correctly. Odds are you’ll meet Rubella the jester first, for example, whose Tumble ability has a very quick casting speed. It’s important to use that to your advantage, and make interrupting enemy attacks one of her primary functions.
Once you add even more party members (Finn the magic-user joins up soon after Rubella), you’ll want to strategize when and how you’ll swap them in and out, since only two can fight at one time. For me, I’d start with Finn and Aurora, using Finn’s elemental attacks to target and take out foes with specific weaknesses (more on that later). I’d then send Finn to the bench for Rubella, who would come in to cast Heal, take absurd abuse thanks to her massive HP stat (via skill points), and interrupt whatever it is Aurora is trying to kill. This is just one strategy, but you’ll want to devise at least one or two go-tos to break out it tough situations.
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Water Your Talent Trees
Okay, they’re actually called skill trees here, but the point is that premeditating your skill progression can go a long way when devising your battle strategies. Though it’s true that all characters eventually acquire every skill available to them (you’re granted a generous one skill point per level-up), deciding how soon you want to have certain abilities, and for what purpose, is something you’ll want to spend time thinking about.
In my case, I chose to make Aurora well-rounded, while giving acquired party members very specific roles. Rubella was quickly made a tank/healer, stacking up HP-boosting skills as well as giving her access to a spell that heals the whole party early on.
Finn, on the other hand, was groomed to deal damage: get in, ruin the enemy with the appropriate elemental, and get out. Choosing one character to simply scatter your skill points willy-nilly is probably okay (I did this for Aurora and found it kind of fun), but you’ll want to assign dedicated roles too. As mentioned, you’ll get them all in the end, but in the meantime it’s something you’ll want to put thought in to.
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Pretend it’s Pokémon
As noted already, certain enemies have specific weaknesses to particular attack types, and in the latter half of the game it’s something you’ll really want to take into consideration. You’ll be able to test out fire, lightning, and water attacks when Finn joins your crew, but Aurora can use certain spells to deal massive damage as well.
Being the child of light, many of Aurora’s spells are particularly effective against “dark” creatures with a weakness to it. When possible, you can use a bulky party member to either absorb damage or repeatedly interrupt weaker enemies while Aurora hammers the more powerful foe with super-effective light spells. Or, if you’d rather, you can kill annoying ankle-biters with elementals right off the bat, leaving the entire party available to dispatch the enemy that remains. There are bosses with elemental weaknesses too, so it’s not exactly something you can ignore -- just keep track of who’s vulnerable to what, and you should be fine.
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Crafting Night with the Child of Light
You’ve heard me mention Oculi crystals, and though their use isn’t essential to beating the game, they’re a fun diversion that can lend your team some nice bonuses. The Oculi you find in the wild are in their most basic form; they can’t be broken down further, and are one of three colors. You can equip these just fine, but it gets much more interesting when you begin combining them. They then form larger, more potent Oculi, and so on.
Oculi crystals can be applied in a number of ways, from powering-up your weapon to boosting resistances, and you’ll want to try and match the gains with the role a particular character is filling. I often put my best Oculi toward Rubella’s defenses, for example, but I could easily swap it to Aurora’s sword (and thus spells) if I knew a tough enemy would be particularly resilient to her attacks. To be honest, my first playthrough didn’t have me depending on Oculi all that much, but I’m sure another go on hard mode will render them much more important.
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Have Fun and Soak it All In
This may seem like a goofy tip, but it really is applicable for a game as beautifully surreal as Child of Light. While playing, there were numerous times where I would simply put the controller down on my desk and stare at the screen. Aurora was there, levitating in the sky, looking down upon the mysterious world she awoke in, and Cœur de Pirate’s beautiful score wove its way through my consciousness. This is blissfulness at its finest.
Such things are quite common in Child of Light, but they’re not always all that prevalent in other games. Sensorial gems such as this don’t come along all that often, and regardless of your thoughts on its gameplay and RPG elements (I quite liked them), there’s no denying Child of Light’s charm and artistic integrity. In other words, for Lemuria’s sake, just enjoy it.
