Epic Battle Fantasy 5

One of the golden remnants of the flash game era of the internet, I still remember when EBF 3 came out in 2010 and it was phenomenal for what it was. This is no different and is even better than it's predecessors.
lets just say getting pwned in 2024 brings a tear to my eye :,)

You can think of EBF as pretty much a high-quality parody of late 90s/early 2000s JRPGs: goofy anime protag types wielding massive swords, bombastic limit breaks that nuke the entire arena, a weird presence of futuristic military technology that clashes heavily with the fantasy theme, and final bosses so powerful they might as well be literally gods.
The enemy design is varied, the artstyle and animations are charming, and it's extremely fun. It's an archetypal turn-based RPG, but brings enough to the table in terms of mechanics and gameplay variety that it doesn't feel like "just another turn-based JRPG".
If you enjoy:
- turn-based JRPGs
- flash game-era weebkino
- games with legalized nuclear weapons
This is HIGHLY recommended, along with EBF 3 and 4.

EBF5 is a bit of an enigma to me because it's one of the few JRPGs I truly enjoy, but it's a tough sell to other people. The animations, world design, and especially the music are outstanding in this game. Maybe the coolest part is how the game reinterprets and modernizes a whole bunch of mechanics from different JRPGS and fuses them into one cohesive package. I can tell EBF5 very much is a passion project. Both the battles and expansive overworld were clearly made with a lot of personality that bleeds though the game. There's so many extra touches and content that didn't need to be there, but was put there just because it's cool.
So where does the tough sell come in? Well for one, EBF5 is still at the end of the day a turn-based JRPG with all of the oddities and slow gameplay that comes with it. It's a very technical JRPG made by someone who is obviously a huge nerd for these sorts of things, and that could be off-putting to some. The other thing is that well... the game's just a bit stupid. Intentionally for sure, it's very inspired by Newgrounds era flash games, but I could see the writing, humor, and parody elements of the game putting some people off.
STILL! I had a really good time with this vibrant and well-thought out adventure and even went back a few more times on harder difficulties. The parts that work with EBF5 really do shine that well.

Matt Roszak never lets us down when it comes to the quality of these games, and this one is the crown jewel of em all. So many times throughout this game there were moments that I went "wow, that is such a nice and convenient feature for a Turn Based RPG". If you have any love for Turn Based RPGs at all, (or ESPECIALLY if you are like me and grew up playing these games on sites like Kongregate or Newgrounds) this one is a cant miss

A really great turn-based RPG game with some mechanics to learn and tons of skills. I have played EBF 3 and 4 before this and they are really good game. But, after playing EBF 5, i'm sure that this is one of the best turn-based game i've ever played. This game mix the element of turn-based game, exploration, secret finding, and a little bit of grinds. Some concepts in this game are also really spectacular. I personally would recommend to go for hard/epic difficulty so that you can actually learn the mechanics in this game and actually play (i think) how the game was intended to be played. Normal difficulty or below can just be completed by just "brute forcing" the enemy(my experience tho, not sure about others). But, after getting 100% of the achievements in this game and opened a secret room that required all achievement to be completed, the room and the afterword/story felt a bit anti-climatic. Other than that, EBF 5 is really a good game.
Overall, 9/10. If you like turn-based game, go try this game out!

I played this whole game on epic difficulty and it was an experience. This was one of the most strategic games I've ever played because the enemies most of the time one shot you and so every turn matters. The fights take really long and there are a lot of strategic elements you have to consider until you eventually get the hang of how all the mechanics work. This is the first turn-based strategy I've played where your characters have absolutely broken moves and abilities but they feel necessary on epic difficulty and the game just embraces the chaos of it all. This game also has a lot of customization options so you can play it however you want and still have a good experience. It is pretty balanced and every character on your team has an important role that can be switched depending on the gear and setup you give them. This game is hilarious and the way your team interacts with each other and the world is fun to watch. Definitely would recommend 10/10 game in every way. I literally can't find any problem with this. Also it has a banger soundtrack and references a lot of games I've played so I feel like this game was made for me.

I've sunk well over 300 hours into this game: first on the free web browser version, then the Steam game, and the mobile port. It always sucks me in and has so many hidden treasures to find and I love that you can change difficulty modes mid-play through; it helped me finish quite a few of my runs