Rise of the Third Power review — A retro-inspired RPG that doesn’t reach new heights

I’ve never lived through the SNES era of games, so I’m not one to say whether or not people may have some misplaced nostalgia. But games inspired by this generation of gaming are making a comeback. And I’m always glad to enjoy a nice 2D game with charming pixel art. From the surface, Rise of the Third Power looks like a fun and energetic RPG, inspired by games of its ilk like Final Fantasy. But the game makes too many efforts to streamline some of its mechanics, leaving it feeling somewhat empty and tedious to trudge through. There’s a difference between quality of life and stripping a game of its potential, and Rise of the Third Power often deflates into the latter. But that’s a negative opening statement about a game that’s built with so much passion. Developer Stegosoft Games created a game with a shiny core full of potential. But this potential is squandered in different aspects, with many decisions that ultimately feel like calculated risks w…