When it comes to JRPGs, I enjoy them as JRPG as possible: long, complex, and grindy. Seeing as Bravely Default 2 is about as JRPG as they come in 2021, I'm really into it. Its novel twists on traditional turn-based battle and job systems, the gorgeous watercolor art style of its many locations, and the sheer amount of game that’s crammed into such a tiny Switch cartridge is just what my old-school Final Fantasy-loving brain craves. The amount of grinding that it demands can be a tough hill to climb, but there are plenty of smart features in play that make those long repetitive stretches about as easy as they can be without losing the feeling of accomplishment.

The good news is that if you’re returning to this world after playing Bravely Default and its story followup, Bravely Second: End Layer, you’re in for a familiar treat; the better news is that total newcomers won't be at a loss because the story of Bravely Default 2 is set in the same world but on a different continent, so you don’t need to dust off your 3DS to get caught up on the details. Instead, Bravely Default 2 connects to the original stories in an interesting way that might be a little surprising (though not jaw-dropping) to those invested in them.

Either way, Bravely Default 2’s roughly 60-hour story is like a refrigerator magnet poetry set of Square Enix cliches: you control a team of heroes out to save the world from calamity using magic elemental crystals – the group is even called The Heroes of Light, and you’re not just fighting evil, you're fighting the ultimate evil. I'm selling it a little bit short with that summary, because there are a few surprises I really enjoyed that diverge from its otherwise well-trodden JRPG trail, particularly near the end. But if you're picking this up expecting some deep storytelling, I'm here to dash those expectations against the same rocks our main hero's ship crashes into at the start of Bravely Default 2. (You know, where he washes ashore on a land in need of a hero? With only the vaguest recollection of how he got there?) And besides, while it might be a formulaic, light and breezy tale, that’s pretty much just what I want from a classic-style JRPG – especially one with such great gameplay mechanics underneath.

You're not just fighting evil, you're fighting the ULTIMATE evil.

The battle and job systems are where I found most of my joy while playing Bravely Default 2, but those don't diverge much from the tried-and-true formulas of the previous games. Remember: the odd name of the series refers to the battle system itself, which lets you either set a character to "Brave" to gain extra moves during your current turn, or "Default" to adopt a defensive stance while you build up extra turns to use with Brave later on. Knowing when to bank and when to let it all loose is crucial to your success in battles, and there is no one-size-fits all strategy right for every fight.

For example, it can be a literal lifesaver when three of your four party members lay defeated on the battlefield: rather than just raise one back with a Phoenix Down and hope they survive to the next round, I could Brave the turns I needed to raise them all at once, but only if I had been smart about banking turns with Default before then. Not only does striking that balance make me rethink tried-and-true turn-based tactics, it saves some battles from becoming frustrating. As is the case in most (maybe all?) JRPGs, certain bosses have moves that would otherwise end your run – but here that’s mitigated by the ability to get multiple party members back in the fight.

Bravely Default’s excellent job system also returns to add another layer of complexity to battles. Unlike a lot of RPGs, where each character is locked into a class from the outset, this job system lets you make them whatever you want, adding onto their abilities and strengths accordingly from each character's base stats. Characters gain job levels outside of normal experience points, and as you level them up you’ll unlock new abilities, including passive ones that can be assigned to that character regardless of their current job. These range from simple things like magical and physical buffs to more game-changing abilities like letting your magic attacks score critical hits as the Red Mage, or even the Monk's bare-knuckle combat ability that turns a character's fists into powerful weapons. Jobs from previous games, like White Mage, Thief, and Freelancer return, but (without spoiling anything) it’s a slight disappointment that there aren't as many jobs as in Bravely Second: End Layer, which had 30.

My inevitable defeat would send me back to excitedly experiment with reorganizing my party.

There’s a lot of fun to be had in mixing and matching passive abilities with ones only available to a certain job for combos that are greater than the sum of their parts. You can set one of the abilities to guard a teammate when they're low on health, for example, and then add the chance to automatically counter-attack with another passive ability. Granted, there’s a fair amount of trial and error involved; there were a few boss battles where, after a few minutes, I'd realize I'd planned terribly for the task at hand (for example, not having a dark magic job like the Pictomancer equipped against a boss with dark magic weakness). However, my inevitable defeat would send me back to excitedly experiment with reorganizing my party to exploit those weaknesses before trying it again. The auto-save system is really generous, and saved me from having to redo my progress when I walked right into a boss' lair without stopping off at the nearby save-point beforehand. Definitely appreciated. Bravely Default 2’s boss battles are particularly great as well, especially some of the more challenging ones. For the most part, you start off the first half of the campaign finding and fighting bosses who hold items that unlock different jobs. Some of them are extremely tough, too – I spent over an hour fighting one, mostly due to being a bit under-leveled and not having a good loadout equipped going into it. But even if I had gone into it at exactly the right strength, it still would have been a challenge due to the nature of the fight. It almost felt like a puzzle: the boss had several minions who all buffed each other and attacked my party. I'd make serious progress only to have it undone by a healing spell from a minion, one who was in turn protected from attack by the boss' buffs. It was pretty arduous, but the satisfaction of beating the tougher bosses always made the struggle feel worth it.

The satisfaction of beating the tougher bosses always made the struggle feel worth it.

The bosses aren't just relegated to the main path, either: there are "rare monsters" scattered about the world you can take on as you see fit. They're hyper-powered versions of regular monsters, and the first time I tried my hand at battling one my party was absolutely crushed. The first of these bosses is presented right near the start, but I was about 30 hours into the story (roughly halfway) before I was able to best it.

Even beyond that, there are other bosses to fight in Bravely Default 2's many optional sidequests (including a late-game quest with one of the most irritating boss fights I think I've ever experienced, though the frustration it caused was the exception rather than the rule). Both the sidequest bosses and the rare monsters reward you massively with experience, but the equipment they drop isn’t nearly as exciting. As great as the job system is, it sort of unsatisfyingly takes the place of equipment rather than adding another facet of character customization. There is no ultimate sword of everlasting holy light to excitedly discover; there are powerful weapons, that's for sure, but they never feel like they're impacting the way your characters might fight like they do in other RPGs. They're just kind of there because... how else can you fight a monster?

The overwhelming majority of the sidequests are slight variations on fetch quests.

Another gripe I have with the sidequests is the overwhelming majority of the ones I came across were just slight variations on fetch quests: collect four hides from a certain enemy and bring them back. Find five types of flowers and bring them back. Set out into the wilderness to collect three item types by defeating specific enemies and... bring them back. They're not all like that, but the majority are. However, there are some pretty excellent rewards for some of the side quests, and some of the jobs themselves are unlocked this way, so they’re usually worth putting up with. Make sure to ask around when you're in a town.

As great as the boss fights are, the dungeons leading up to them aren't nearly as notable. They're all quite pretty, but each one is essentially just a different take on a classic maze-like layout. I found myself getting turned around more than once, but not in a way that ever got frustrating or anything. It was always fairly easy to get myself on the right track, but thinking back after the fact, none of the dungeons have any unique mechanics or obstacles that could make them stand out from each other beyond one being set in a steampunk-inspired magician's laboratory and another being set in crystalline mine, for example.

The overworld and many of the towns you visit are jaw-droppingly beautiful.

On that note, Bravely Default 2's watercolor visual style is a double edged sword. Its overworld and many of the towns you visit are jaw-droppingly beautiful – the upgrade to the Switch has lost a little of their charm from the tiny worlds of the 3DS, and each location is stunning in HD. Salvalon, the flooded desert city you might recognize from the demo, is an Earth-toned oasis for the eyes, while the ice-encrusted locale of Rimedhal blends blues and greys to exude a gorgeous sense of wintery majesty.

The character and monster design, on the other hand, is less appealing. There's a plastic sheen to everyone and everything in the cutscenes and battles that looks a little off in a way I can't quite put my finger on. I loved the similar character style of the 3DS games, but that look hasn’t translated well for the Switch’s higher resolution and larger screen. As a result, they look out of place among the otherwise gorgeous watercolor backdrops.

Meanwhile, the voice acting for Bravely Default 2 is great. I have no qualms with it whatsoever, other than the quips made during battles lack variety after just a few hours. You can also swap between English and Japanese at any time you're not in battle, which is a welcome touch. I played the majority of Bravely Default 2 with Japanese voiceover and English subtitles, because I find it easier to read through the text at my own pace when I don't understand the words being spoken. Plus I'm a huge dork.