Ariana and the Elder Codex Review: Basic but Well-Done Action Platformer

1 week ago 7

Published Mar 23, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT

Murillo Zerbinatto is a contributor from Brazil. He's a JRPG enthusiast who has been around the world of games and content creation for more than six years now. He has a particular love for Final Fantasy and has absorbed all the content this long-running series offers, including its obscure spinoffs such as Dimension I & II, Explorers, and My Life as a King. While playing JRPGs is already a time-sinking endeavor, Murillo doubles down by being a platinum hunter as well.

Ghostwriters are professionals who write texts but don't own the work they create. Instead, their piece is attributed to another named author. I know it feels a bit sketchy, but if it is in the black and white of the contract you signed, well, there you go. Apparently, there's a thing like ghost developers, and as you may have guessed, it's studios that pull the strings for a bunch of big companies and are never credited.

I discovered this when I sat down to play Ariana and the Elder Codex and started digging into whom the developer was behind this cozy action RPG platformer. The studio is Hyde, which also developed Digimon Survive, Digimon World: Next Order, and Everybody's Golf Hot Shots, all Bandai Namco-owned titles. I thought they were the new kids on the block, but I was mistaken.

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Experiences in this genre are usually quite straightforward, but some take the opportunity to go further.

According to our sister site Polygon, Hyde has been around since 2002, has worked on more than 200 games, and has also helped with big franchises such as Final Fantasy, Persona, and Yakuza. However, it did all this work in secrecy, never being credited for it. So, it's only fair that they finally started producing their own games and get the recognition they deserve. Even though they aren't featured in the closing credits, it doesn't mean the team is green.

To sum up, I enjoyed the time I spent with Ariana and the Elder Codex. It's a cozy, simple game that never tries to be more than what's on the package, and sometimes, that's enough. It will please platformer and 2D action game aficionados, but it may not be everyone's cup of tea because Ariana doesn't bring anything new to the genre. It's just more of the same, but well done.

I finished the game in 13 hours and earned the platinum trophy in 15. In general, if you just do everything the game offers, the trophies will come naturally, though there was one for killing a certain number of enemies that required me to grind a bit.

A Story About Books

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Dialogue

The world of Ariana and the Elder Codex is blessed by magic provided by the Seven Hero Codices. One day, however, all the magic vanishes, and it is discovered that someone tampered with the Codices. Ariana is a librarian and the only one still capable of using magic, so she is tasked to delve into the Codices and mend them so magic is restored to the world.

The first thing to note is that, although there are a few scattered bits of lore explaining how the world functions, we never get to see it, as the entire game takes place inside the Library, where the librarians live, and the Codices reside. So, while I could understand that the disappearance of water and fire magic made day-to-day tasks a struggle, I never got to witness this firsthand.

The game also told me, through optional materials, that there was a war in the past between humans and demons, but one day a demon decided to write the Codices and give the humans a fighting chance with the gift of magic. That demon is Divina, the one who taught and raised our young intrepid protagonist, Ariana, after her parents' disappearance.

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Codex

And that's pretty much all there is to know about the story. Although I appreciated the amount of supplementary lore that gave more backstory to the overall world-building, it just didn't hit the mark because the whole narrative wasn't gripping, and the pacing was a bit uneven. Every story beat was developed after finishing a book, which served as a stage. Ironically, the writing was way too wordy, just dragging on and on about how Ariana saving the Codices was pivotal to the world, adding nothing substantial to the plot or character development.

I understood Ariana's quest from the very first two Codices, so when the game started repeating itself by just changing words or trying to raise the stakes of a very predictable plot, I just tuned out. The voice acting is fine, and there are some minor plot twists here and there, but to be honest, nothing really stuck with me. I will probably forget any plot development as soon as I boot up another JRPG.

However, to be fair, Ariana and the Elder Codex never seem to have tried to present a groundbreaking story or to be a masterclass in narrative. After a brief introduction, the game already puts us in the shoes of the librarian and shows us the ropes of its gameplay, where most of the fun lies, and what action platformer enthusiasts can look forward to.

Simples but Well Done Action Gameplay

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Gameplay

Ariana and the Elder Codex is a 2D action RPG with platforming elements. The game offers the usual action affair: you can attack, evade, and jump. The gist of the gameplay is that we can carry six magics in our toolkit at any time, each with its own variation and element. Even the sword attack is considered magic, but I kept it with me at all times because it just made sense, doesn't have a cooldown, and can benefit from every Magic Item buff.

The bread and butter of evolving Ariana is killing enemies to level up, acquiring resources to upgrade spells, or finding new Magic Items, which are equipment pieces that grant various bonuses. It's a pretty straightforward system that hits the nail on the head, delivering a refined, responsive action system often shaped by the spells we have. It was cool to trial and error a combination of magic until I found one that wiped out all my enemies in a fell swoop.

That, however, raised a few issues. I started on Normal difficulty, but I soon moved to Hard because it was too effortless. The first four Codices we face are elemental (water, fire, earth, and wind), and the game soon taught me that each pair of elements is strong against the other. So, if a water enemy appears, the best bet is to use fire magic and vice versa. Once I started doing that, I was bulldozing through these Elemental Codices because every single enemy there was way too frail against their weakness, forgoing any build whatsoever other than "pick every opposing element spells."

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Boss Battle

Since magic doesn't have an MP cost, only a casting time and cooldown, it's possible to spam them endlessly. This removes the risk of uncautious attacks and casting them all in a go often decimates enemies before they can even move. Accumulating enough elemental magic on an opponent creates an Elemental Burst, an explosion that can ricochet to the next enemy and so on, creating a chain effect that kills every enemy on screen.

It's a pretty straightforward system that hits the nail on the head, delivering a refined, responsive action system often shaped by the spells we have.

With every new Codex, I was inclined to equip magic of the opposing elements, which made every task a piece of cake, even when facing bosses. In the end, however, the stages began to vary, placing enemies of several different elements together, which forced me to equip a more diverse toolkit, a welcoming dynamic. I had also spent more resources on each spell, strengthening the ones I was most familiar with. Even so, there were only a few bosses I needed to retry because, in general, I could just play aggressively and win without giving much thought to my actions.

Mega Man 2 Super Mario Bros 3 Castlevania 3 Kirby Super Star Rayman

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Codex of Fire

This is because Ariana is a very forgiving game. We have two recovery spells, and since the game has no mana, if I were at death's door, I could simply move away from enemies or stand still, use the healing magic, wait for the cooldown, and use it again until my HP was topped off. There are checkpoints in the game, but they become somewhat redundant other than doubling as save points.

My biggest thrill was always unlocking new spells, testing their functionality, and evolving them to see how their power increased. However, once I unlocked everything or found a strong build, there was no reason to change. The Magic Items even allow for slightly distinct builds, but it is clear as day which ones are the best, and not equipping them felt counterintuitive.

But to be honest, I didn't mind. As someone who is constantly playing 50+ hour JRPGs, Ariana and the Elder Scrolls was the perfect palate cleanser before diving into another god-slaying journey. The game was easy to learn, every spell was simple but effective, and the loop was comfortable. It was really what I needed at the moment.

Still, I have to be critical, and my big bone to pick with the game is the enemy variety, which is painfully low from the start. I'm not kidding, but there must be about ten different enemies in the entire game. Sometimes they boast elemental variations that alter their weaknesses and some special attacks. Other than that, they operate exactly the same, which, in the long run, makes the action feel a bit stale.

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Spells

Some stages have challenges and platforming gimmicks, but they are more of an afterthought than a truly challenging puzzle. Speaking of which, you can find several optional challenges spread through Codices that serve mostly as combat trials in a limited area. The faster we beat these, the better the reward and the more lore documents we unlock. But just like the rest of the game, I was getting straight A's on all challenges merely by sticking to the strategy of equipping spells of the opposing element.

Ariana and the Elder Scrolls was the perfect palate cleanser before diving into another god-slaying journey. The game was easy to learn, every spell was simple but effective, and the loop was comfortable. It was really what I needed at the moment.

The bosses are interesting and bring some much-needed variety, but nothing is really mind-blowing except for the final ones. Focusing on the offense was always a very efficient strategy, which made me beat some bosses way too fast, sucking the fun out of it. I mean, I was happy to see my spell combo was powerful and just play something without needing to learn new terminologies or remember a dozen characters' names, but the game could at least have put up more of a fight to make me feel a tiny bit more fulfilled.

Gorgeous Artwork, Forgettable Soundtrack

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Conversation

Since most of Ariana and the Elder Codex's narrative is told in a Visual Novel format, the game took extra care to create impressive artwork, both for the characters and for some full-screen scenes representing meaningful moments. During gameplay, the graphics are nothing to write home about, but at least the game runs smoothly, with no stutters or bugs on my PS5.

The soundtrack is, unfortunately, utterly forgettable. It acts as more of an atmospheric piece, reflecting each world inside a Codex, but it often gets lost in the cacophony of spells being cast with their numerous sound effects of explosions, wind, breaking rocks, and flowing water. It was a good representation of the elements, yet still vanilla.

There are two voice tracks, English and Japanese. I played in English, and it was okay, though I had to turn down all other volumes and keep the voice at maximum because the sound balance was all over the place. Here is a strange complaint: I wish not all story events were voiced. When they are, I usually leave it on autoplay and watch the scenes, but when they aren't, I skip the text as soon as I finish reading. The voice acting made some narrative moments feel like they dragged on forever, to the point that my DualSense would disconnect while I was following the story.

Ariana and the Elder Codex Review - Platforming

Ariana and the Elder Codex is a game that gives you exactly what you see on the tin. It's a straightforward 2D action RPG platformer that won't take up much of your time, but it won't break the mold either. If you are an enthusiast of this style, it is worth giving it a go for the gameplay, since the narrative is unremarkable. However, if you don't care much for action platformers or still have others in the genre to cross off your backlog, then Ariana and the Elder Codex might stay on the sidelines for a while.