Today, October 9, publisher Yabukarado released the roguelike RPG *Magical Girl Yūsha-chan and the Labyrinth of Lust*, developed in collaboration with Silver Sprout Studio, for PC (Steam).
A magical girl aims to escape a dungeon that changes its layout every time she enters
This game is a turn-based roguelike in the style of *Mystery Dungeon*.
The protagonist is Yūsha-chan (voiced by Rio Fujimura), a magical girl who also appears in doujinshi manga. You control her as she finds herself trapped in the dungeon, aiming to escape the “Labyrinth of Lust,” whose layout changes every time you enter.
The basic gameplay involves defeating monsters and collecting items you find along the way as you venture deeper into the dungeon. Yūsha-chan’s dialogue is fully voiced.
The game features authentic “Mystery Dungeon”-style mechanics, where if you run out of HP in the dungeon, you lose all your items and must restart from Level 1. However, a recovery system is in place that allows you to retrieve lost equipment.
While the title and visuals might lead you to imagine an adult-oriented title, the game does not contain any explicit adult content. Although there are suggestive lines and situations, the content is rated R15 or equivalent, and as of the release date, there are no plans to distribute adult-oriented DLC or patches.
The “Bundling” System: Managing Your Inventory Is Key
The unique “Bundling” system allows you to freely combine items other than equipment. You can bundle identical magic books to combine their remaining uses, or group items with different effects to free up inventory space—managing your inventory effectively becomes a crucial survival strategy.
Weapons are represented by gems, and armor by ribbons; equipment you pick up comes with random effects (enchants). You can combine and enhance these enchants at furnaces found within dungeons. The number of enchants that can be applied varies randomly by piece of equipment, and some effects become stronger when stacked—adding a light hack-and-slash element to the game.
The deeper you delve, the more unidentified items you’ll encounter, forcing you to decide whether to use them to find out what they are or to search for a way to identify them. Trap items are also mixed in, and depending on your stats, you might even forget the names of items you’ve already learned.
Managing your hunger is only necessary in the 99-floor dungeon “More S Dungeon,” which unlocks after clearing the main game. In all other dungeons, you don’t have to worry about starving to death, so you can enjoy the strategic back-and-forth of exploring a floor, preparing your gear, and then descending the stairs.
Additionally, to make the game accessible to first-time roguelike players, the developers deliberately omitted shops and jars. In keeping with the story’s theme of escaping the dungeon, there are no base-building elements either.
In “S Dungeon,” “More S Dungeon,” and “Monster Tower,” if Yūsha-chan faints, nearby monsters may “sneak into” her inventory.
While this makes you slightly stronger, it’s a nuisance because the monsters wriggle around in your inventory and occasionally slow you down. If a monster sneaks in while your inventory is full, you’ll randomly drop one item, so managing your Stun Gauge is crucial.
In terms of controls, you can rearrange items in the inventory screen simply by pressing the X key (X or □ button on the gamepad), and you can move using “Smart Dash” by holding down the Space key (RT on the gamepad) while pressing a directional key.The “Smart Dash” is a feature that lets you sprint straight through items, stairs, and entrances/exits, automatically dodging any visible traps along the way.
The game also features a wide variety of 90s-style FM sound source tracks reminiscent of the golden age of the PC-88.
Includes a total of 5 dungeon types, ranging from the tutorial to the 99th floor
There are five types of dungeons in total: the tutorial, a dungeon up to the 12th floor, the 20th floor, the 40th floor, and the 99th floor, which is unlocked after clearing the game. For those looking for a deeper challenge, the game also features the “Monster Tower” on the 99th floor and the “Puzzle Portal” with a total of 100 puzzles.
Apparently, the latter half of the puzzles includes some that even the developers themselves solved only once and then couldn’t figure out how to solve again.
The estimated time to complete the game is about 20 hours for first-time roguelike players and about 5–10 hours for experienced players. The 99-floor dungeon unlocked after completion is expected to take an additional 10–20 hours.
Game*Spark is bringing you a hands-on report on this title ahead of its release. The article praises the game’s design, which ensures that failure doesn’t end in a “loss,” and describes it as a dungeon that’s “rewarding” no matter how things turn out.
Settings to adjust the visuals for streaming and live commentary
This game supports streaming, live commentary, and video uploads, and includes settings to tone down the intense visuals.
The main settings are as follows:
Silhouette Mode: Choose between Normal, Silhouette, or Semi-Transparent Silhouette for the hero’s appearance
Shaking Intensity: Adjustable on a 10-point scale
Censorship Mode: Censors sensitive words in the story and mutes the corresponding voice lines
Detailed Info Screen Mode: Continuously displays inventory, equipment, stats, playtime, and elapsed turns on the screen, allowing viewers to comment while keeping track of the situation
You can check out gameplay footage from Stream Mode in the promotional videos and screenshots.
Free collaboration DLC and a publisher sale also begin on the same day
On the day of release, the free DLC “Kanimaka-sensei Collaboration Pack” will also be available. In this pack, illustrator Kanimaka-sensei joins the game as a collaboration boss.
Additionally, the boss battle BGM for this DLC features the original track “Awakening Kanikama Battle,” composed by chip-tune artist Professor Sakamoto.
Released at a time when the “Mystery Dungeon” genre is garnering significant attention, *Magical Girl Yuusha-chan and the Labyrinth of Lust* is now available for PC (Steam). The regular price is 1,600 yen, but until October 23, it’s available for 1,280 yen—a 20% discount—as part of a launch celebration sale.
Additionally, the “Yabukarado Publisher Sale” is underway through October 23. Nearly all Yabukarado titles are available at up to 50% off. The game’s original soundtrack is also available for purchase.
