# Magic and Machines — A retro fantasy turn-based RPG > Retro fantasy turn-based RPG with strategic combat and exploration. (iPhone/iPad app by Little Bear Studios.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/magic-and-machines/id6446097904 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Little Bear Studios](https://appshunter.io/developer/1675350663) - Category: Games, Role Playing, Strategy - Price: $1.99 - Rating: 4.50/5 from 17 App Store ratings · 9 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 12+ - Requires: iOS 12.0 · 309 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2023-06-09 - Data updated: 2026-08-24 - Monetization: paid - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/magic-and-machines/id6446097904/reviews.md ## What is Magic and Machines? Journey into the world of Magic and Machines with six unique party members on a quest to uncover the mystery behind a decaying world. Discover new areas, find the legendary items, solve puzzles to unlock secret buffs, and master the turn-based battle system with its Overload mechanic. It's perfect for players who grew up with turn-based RPGs and are looking for a new adventure, and also accessible for new players as it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Inspired by games such as Chrono Trigger, Golden Sun, and Octopath Traveler, the game is a nod to those influences of the past and present. The game simplifies many RPG elements such as progression or equipment setups. There’s enough mechanics so players will strategize but not enough that they’ll need to reference a wiki to optimize. It’s also quite easy to pick up and put down and is perfect in short bursts or a longer sit down. "I wanted to create a game that would appeal to fans of nostalgic turn-based RPGs that may have busy lives, but also could be picked up by someone who's new to the genre.” Story In a small quiet town a little accident leads to a dramatic chain of events. Years later, monsters run rampant, the world is slowly eroding, and the Sacred Stones are disappearing one by one. Initially, two childhood friends journey out of their small town to find a missing colony, but they uncover an even larger crisis as they cross paths with a colorful cast of characters. Form your party of three from six characters, explore and discover secrets, uncover hidden bosses and their legendary items, and use strategy to defeat your foes. Combat Turn-based battle system with an Overload mechanic. This mechanic lets you supercharge a move after you've used it twice. It can make attacks stronger, effects last a turn longer, and heals surpass your max health. Sometimes you may want to save it and sometimes you may want to use it right away. Explore Some characters can alter the terrain of the world with their elemental abilities. Use their powers to find new areas and solve puzzles. You never know what you'll find! Party Blaer - Fire adept that's good all around. Zmrzlina - Ice mage with strong magic. Alda - Water mage with the best heals. Toka - Earth adept that bolsters defenses. Mphepo - Air adept that's the fastest. Dian - Plasma mage that's an offensive powerhouse. ## Key features - Turn-based combat system - Overload mechanic for supercharged moves - Party customization with six unique characters - World exploration with elemental abilities - Puzzle-solving for secret buffs - Discover legendary items and hidden bosses ## Chart rankings - #197 in Top Paid · Role Playing (US App Store) ## Recent user reviews (9 of 9) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/magic-and-machines/id6446097904/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Love game but hopelessly stuck *2023-08-09* I really loved this game. Brings back all the memories of early Nintendo games like Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior. Sadly I made it to Reapers Castle in Act 5 and find myself stuck and without a clue as what to do. I would love to finish the game but after finding no help online, my journey has come to an end. I still give the game 5 stars and hope in the future other gamers will share clues about going forward. **Developer response:** Update: I'm glad we got to connect and I hope you enjoyed the final boss! Hi Budbeagle sorry for the delay here! I'm sorry you're stuck, I apologize for this and you aren't the first person - I wanted mimic those classic RPGs like you mentioned but understand that modern games have more quest management and it can lead to a bad experience. Are you unable to get into the castle? If so you need to get a piece of Ocean Jasper from the Monster Caves (there's a hole right where the Water Tribe Chief was when you were clearing the town). If instead you're stuck IN the castle there are 4 orbs you need to activate. If you want some more details please email me at support@littlebear.studio and more than happy to figure out exactly where you're stuck! I appreciate the review and congrats on getting to the end game! ### 2/5 — Can’t recommend this *2023-07-21* This game would be good, but it has the most annoying movement mechanism of any mobile game I’ve played. Whether set to fixed or floating, the joystick is awkward and does not cooperate, distracting you from the game constantly. 2nd, the developer should not put dead ends with no reasonable resolution into the game. At the reaper castle, when I try to enter, the front door tells me “you may enter” but does not open. I have looked everywhere for secret openings, hidden clues, talked to npcs, etc. Cannot find any way to open the door, so I can’t continue the game. Waste of money. At least it was only a couple bucks. **Developer response:** Update: Hello again, the latest version 1.1.2 has fixed the dialog bug you've discovered! Hi! Thanks so much for playing my game and taking time to review it. It looks like you've found a bug, I put the wrong dialog there and am pushing a build now to fix that. In the meantime you can still progress - go back to the Monster Caves south of the Water Tribe to find a piece of Ocean Jasper. Once you have that you can enter the castle. Congrats on almost finishing the game! As for the movement controls please reach out to me at support@littlebear.studio. I'd like to better understand what's not working for you, I used a standard movement joystick in most mobile games would like to know what you'd prefer. ### 5/5 — An homage to the rpg greats *2023-07-21* Imagine that the year is 1995, your just got the new Earthbound rpg for your SNES, you open the box and you are overwhelmed by the crisp fresh smell of your new plastic cartridge. This game really takes you back to a time where you were excited to open a new game and see what it had in store for you. Magic and machines has buttery smooth controls where your hero glides aimlessly across terrain, like when you’ve just finished shoveling your tenth fistful of popcorn into your mouth and you attempt to continue to your next eppy on Netflix using your chrome cast remote but your fingers just slide across the buttons. The combat mechanics are fun and just the right amount of challenging. I highly recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of old school rpgs. ### 5/5 — Enjoyed very much, hoping for a second chapter *2023-07-19* This was quite fun, perfect length for a mobile game, and was linear without being outright predictable. End game has a lot of fun mechanics, so there’s a bit of replay value too. At some point I would like to Buck the trend and try an all-melee run to go against the grain of “Magic and Machines” and try to make it “Melee and Machines”Instead. Game runtime is fast enough where it would be interesting to see a speed run community built around it too. Maybe one note: a bit more to highlight that there are underlying set bonuses to using two of the same classification of gear, e.g. two “steel” pieces, two “sorcerer” pieces, etc. Would love to see a story expansion at some point, and make it so that “Gamebreaker” weapons are not as powerful, or disappear and reduce the team power back to a normal level. ### 5/5 — Intriguing and worthwhile. *2023-07-11* If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Little Bear Studios’ Magic And Machines is about as flattering as app games come. It certainly harkens back to the nostalgic days of the original Final Fantasy. Magic And Machines features familiar gameplay systems and charming story beats that summon forth fond memories from other genre titles. Truly, a simple yet compelling story, that you’ll fall in love with over and over again💞 ### 4/5 — Some good ideas, but needs some love *2023-07-04* I love magic, I love machines, and I really love RPGs. I just couldn’t get invested in this game despite trying for over an hour. Some pointed feedback: - Cost was right on the nose, seems like a lot of value for the price - The writing was totally fine, few grammatical errors here and there - Game appears blurry on an iPhone 11 Pro - Movement felt clunky as your character speed is based on how far you’re holding the joystick control away from the center - Characters and items all use varying types of sprites and styles they didn’t feel like they meshed well together - Menu and controls were really disjointed and the placement was confusing for a lot of the buttons There might be a great game underneath all of these issues so I’ll check back in a few months. **Developer response:** Thanks so much for such a thoughtful review! Sorry you couldn't get into it after an hour - it still means a lot to me you tried it and took the time to give me some feedback. I complete agree with the writing and visual feedback. The art is my best attempt at taking different things out there and putting it together, the writing I can clean up for sure. The blurry game, could you send me a screenshot? I'm wondering if it's blurry on the device or just how the art is since it's a pixel art game. Movement - I intentionally did this so when you're pushing boulders you can slow down, is there something else you'd expect? Menu and controls - I'd love to get your info here as well! I felt I went with a standard movement-left/actions-right setup. Please reach out to me if you don't mind at support@littlebear.studio and I'll see what changes I can make! ### 5/5 — Great game! *2023-07-02* My whole family like this game! Hope a second game coming up soon! ### 5/5 — Great for traveling, doesn’t need internet *2023-06-30* Hours of nostalgic fun that doesn’t take itself too seriously ### 1/5 — Magicand Machine *2023-06-23* Bad controls Only for left handed people Item shop does not show item comparison **Developer response:** Thanks for your feedback! I'm sorry this hasn't been a good experience for you. I'm not sure what you mean by left handed only, I'm right handed and also use both hands to play. I also used a very common setup (movement-left/actions-right) for mobile games and other RPGs I've seen (like Chrono Trigger). I could be misinterpreting, are you referring to swapping the movement joystick to the right side? I haven't personally seen many options like this for mobile games and I can take a look at adding a swap option if you'd like. As for the item shop comparison I'd like to better understand what you mean. When you go to a shop and look at an item, I wouldn't know which character to compare to since there are six, please reach out to me at support@littlebear.studio and we can discuss further. ## Frequently asked questions about Magic and Machines ### What is the gameplay like in Magic and Machines? Magic and Machines features a strategic turn-based battle system. A key mechanic is 'Overload,' which allows you to supercharge moves after using them twice, making attacks stronger or effects last longer. The game also includes exploration and puzzle-solving elements. ### Can I play Magic and Machines offline? The provided information does not specify offline play capabilities. However, as a single-player RPG with a focus on story and combat, it is likely playable without a constant internet connection. ### How does the Overload mechanic work in Magic and Machines? The Overload mechanic in Magic and Machines lets you enhance a move after using it twice. This can result in stronger attacks, extended effect durations, or heals that exceed your maximum health. Deciding when to use or save Overload is a key strategic element. ### What is the price of Magic and Machines? Magic and Machines is available for a one-time purchase of $1.99. There are no in-app purchases or subscription fees mentioned. ### What age rating does Magic and Machines have? Magic and Machines has an age rating of 12+, making it suitable for pre-teens and older audiences. ### How often is Magic and Machines updated? Magic and Machines was last updated on July 24, 2023, with version 1.1.2. This indicates a relatively recent update, suggesting ongoing support and potential for future content. ### What devices can I play Magic and Machines on? Magic and Machines is supported on iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices. It is designed for iOS platforms. ### Does Magic and Machines have ads? No, Magic and Machines does not contain advertisements. It is a paid application with no ads. ## Version history (last 4 releases) ### 1.1.2 — 2023-07-24 Small fix for dialog bug from a player's review. Misleading dialog when entering Reaper's Castle ### 1.1.1 — 2023-06-30 Small update from a player who reached level 100! Fixed bug when you reach level 100 Fixed a few typos and dialog issues Fixed wrong music tracks in Mountain areas ### 1.1 — 2023-04-11 New music, sound effects, and bug fixes. ### 1.0 — 2023-03-22 No release notes. ## Apps similar to Magic and Machines | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Dunidle: Auto Battler RPG Game](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dunidle-auto-battler-rpg-game/id1452929189) | 4.7 (3,425) | Free | Games | | [Braveland Heroes: War Strategy](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/braveland-heroes-war-strategy/id1144533452) | 4.5 (830) | Free | Games | | [Questland: Turn Based RPG](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/questland-turn-based-rpg/id1079884680) | 4.8 (28,155) | Free | Games | | [Age of Revenge: Card Based RPG](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/age-of-revenge-card-based-rpg/id1236412425) | 4.7 (486) | Free | Games | | [Age of Magic: Turn Based RPG](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/age-of-magic-turn-based-rpg/id1175370741) | 4.7 (24,973) | Free | Games | | [Caves of Lore](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/caves-of-lore/id6449979034) | 4.9 (186) | $7.99 | Games | ## More apps by Little Bear Studios - [HexaJump](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hexajump/id6770116326) All apps by Little Bear Studios: https://appshunter.io/developer/1675350663 --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-24.*