Grifford Academy is a turn-based RPG about friendship

Grifford Academy is a turn-based RPG where you play as a party of prep school kids that have been Isekai'd into a mythical realm inside a book. You'll fight worms, spiders, crabs, and a whole host of spooky fantasy guys as you find your missing schoolmates, craft new weapons, and build relationships.

The turn-based combat system has all the bits you'd expect: tanks, healers, mages, and support characters with attack systems that overlap, applying buffs to your team and debuffs to your enemies. You'll visit the fantasy town to craft new weapons that do different types of damage or teach new spells.

What really seems cool about Grifford Academy is how the dialogue choices you make between party members seem to shape the relationships between teammates. It's not terribly in depth, but being able to roleplay as a friendly team captain is a cool evolution to the genre.

At least in my time with the game, I never found an overworld segment where you can freely move about the world, instead going from fight to fight, or back to the village for new gear. I don't think that's a problem though, Gifford Academy feels like a game much more interested in party dynamics than level grinding.

Do I recommend it? Go check out the demo! There's enough unique here to give the game a shot, but I'd only recommend spending $20 on an Early Access game after you play the demo.