Ender Lilies: Quietus Vs Ender Magnolia: Bloom

In gaming culture, sequels often outperform their predecessors. However, in some cases, the original sets a standard so high that the sequel struggles to meet expectations. Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights is a dark fantasy Metroidvania fairy tale released in 2021 by Adglobe, Live Wire, and Binary Haze Interactive. It’s a game for fans of sad piano music in the rain, complete with a compelling, emotional story and hauntingly stunning art style. 

Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, on the other hand, is the upcoming sequel to Ender Lilies. It takes place in the same universe, albeit decades later. But which entry outperforms the other? If you’re a newcomer, should you just go straight into the sequel or trace your steps back to the better counterpart? Let’s find out in our Ender Lilies: Quietus Vs Ender Magnolia: Bloom comparison guide.

What is Ender Lilies: Quietus?

Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights is a dark fantasy Metroidvania. It takes you on a mystical journey across a kingdom in ashes. You’ll unravel an emotionally charged story, running into terrifying enemies. You’ll face challenges that test your skills. Your only hope is to release the enemies you face from the curse of the Rain of Death. Thereafter, recruit them to fight beside you. In the end, can you uncover the truth behind the demise of Land’s End?

What is Ender Magnolia: Bloom?

Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, on the other hand, is the sequel to Ender Lilies. It picks up decades after the events of the Rain of Death. This time, you’ll face enemies who have succumbed to the fumes. The more enemies you purify, the more allies you’ll recruit for your cause. As of now, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist is scheduled to enter Steam’s Early Access on March 26, 2024. Thereafter, it’ll be released on all major platforms later in 2024.

Story

While both Ender Lilies: Quietus and Ender Magnolia: Bloom take place in the same universe and decades apart, they each feature unique stories. Ender Lilies: Quietus tells a fantasy tale of a cursed land. An unexpected rain turns all living creatures into horrific monsters. It falls on a young woman called Lily to embark on a truth-seeking journey, fighting and recruiting the monstrosities to her cause and uncovering the mystery behind the Rain of Death. 

Ender Magnolia: Bloom, conversely, features magical creatures called Homunculi that arise from the depths of the lands. Unfortunately, toxic fumes also escape from the underground, turning both humans and the Homunculi into horrific monsters. Players will control Lilac, who embarks on a treacherous journey in search of her friends and lost memories. With both humans and the Homunculi needing your help, who will you choose to save?

Gameplay

Similar to the predecessor, Ender Magnolia retains the same dark fantasy 2D action RPG Metroidvania genre with a focus on nonlinear exploration. On the one hand, Ender Lilies: Quietus features varied environments across Land’s End. You’ll fight enemies in submerged forests, discover secrets in underground caverns, and even traverse a grand castle in search of the truth. You’ll face vicious boss characters, who, once you overcome them, will become powerful knights helping you fight for your cause. Ender Magnolia: Bloom is more or less the same. You traverse across abandoned cities, laboratories with mystical stories, a grand Sorcerer’s Academy, colossal factories, and more. However, you’ll be trying to ‘purify’ both humans and the Homunculi, possibly choosing which race to save at the end of your quest. 

The sequel, Ender Magnolia: Bloom, will feature up to 30 different spirit abilities. Players will be able to equip up to four at a time. These will include rapid-fire guns, brute-strength fists, and auto-attacking beasts. You’ll collect hidden relics and upgrade gear at a Blacksmith. You’ll also enjoy a revamped battle system that upscales overall gameplay and exploration. With new difficulty levels also added to the sequel, high hopes are for an all-around better experience. Unfortunately, with the sequel still yet to launch its Early Access, we can’t quite know for sure whether the gameplay truly elevates the player experience. To kick off, Early Access will include ‘one village and the first four areas of the game.’ Depending on user feedback, mechanics and features in the final game may change for the better or worse. Here’s to hoping the former is true.

Verdict

It’s no secret how teary-eyed many gamers became post-Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights. The game tells an emotionally-provoking story alongside stunning art and music. For the most part, Ender Magnolia: Bloom seems to retain the melancholic and enigmatic atmospheric vibe of its predecessor, at least based on the reveal trailer. Musical group Mili returns with a similar sweet and somber music score. So does defeating horrific monsters and recruiting them to fight by your side. 

Players will, however, unlock 30 new spirit abilities in the sequel to use in combat and traversal. Each ability will have its strengths, weaknesses, and cooldowns. The Steam store page also says to expect a ‘ revamped battle system that elevates your gameplay and exploration beyond that of Ender Lilies.’ To that, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, CEO of Binary Haze Interactive, adds, “Ender Magnolia will evolve with the help of our amazing players, and we look forward to this new journey with them into the Land of Fumes.”

While we can take the developing team’s word on whether Ender Magnolia will be better than Ender Lilies, you can take practical steps to ensure they succeed. All you need to do is give feedback to the Early Access Ender Magnolia version launching on March 26, 2024. According to Steam, the developers are “open to constructive criticism and are taking every comment into consideration.” So, your feedback will definitely help smooth over the development process and hopefully contribute to a better playthrough upon launch.

So, what’s your take on Ender Lilies: Quietus Vs Ender Magnolia: Bloom? Will you be grabbing a copy of Ender Magnolia: Bloom when it drops? Let us know over on our socials here.