The game begins with five actors filming another episode of their TV show under the uncaring, narrow-minded guidance of director Soap. Having reached their limit for Mr. Soap's tired, uninteresting scripts and combat scenes, one member suddenly ponders the possibility of creating their own show. Instantly pumped-up by the idea, all five actors immediately ditch the set and run away to chase their own dream. Luckily for them, one of their uncles loans them a warehouse to film in, where they also find a snazzy TV prop that will be the perfect centerpiece for their base of operations.

Gameplay in Chroma squad is accessible, even recommendable for strategy RPG newbies. Simply move your characters to any square within the highlighted bounds and attack enemies or use special skills. Battles are made interesting by the inclusion of a teamwork system. Putting a hero into teamwork mode has them strike a pose, allowing others to vault off of them to reach greater distances or stand beside them to regain some health. Double or triple-attacks can be performed when you surround an enemy with more than 1 character and having all 5 members of the team adjacent will unlock the possibility for a finishing move.

This concept of teamwork was also a staple of the aforementioned TV shows, where attacking in unison provided power greater than the sum of it's parts. Displays of teamwork and added flair will raise your score and attract more fans. This will also attract the attention of marketing people and other folk with curious requests who will contact you via mail, leaving you with the choice or accepting or rejecting their proposals. Increasing the fanbase is a primary goal as you move through episodes and seasons. More fans means more money to spend on items and studio upgrades. Aside from appearing on your main menu/homebase, these improved microphones, cameras etc help to attract more fans in exchange for a per-episode fee. Your actors also have to be paid, so make sure you leave enough to go around!

Back at the base, there's more fun to be had. Before you begin shooting your first episode, you can customize your team of heroes from a wide selection of characters with different strengths and weaknesses (some of which were created by backers of the Chroma Squad Kickstarter). Costume colors and actor's names can be edited too, resulting in team members referring to each other by their newly appointed aliases in-game. Catchphrases used during key moments can also be edited, so feel free to use any hilarious or nostalgic phrases you want to see heralding the onset of a transformation.

Enemies sometimes drop play dough, tape and other arts 'n' crafts type materials which can be used to create new armor and weaponry and give a nice boost to your stats. Speaking of which, how to craft and the effects of each stat aren't really explained, but a quick glance at the pluses and minuses is usually enough to determine an item's usefulness. There's a little bit of depth to it, but it's not something you'll spend hours poring over.

Bonus points must be awarded to Behold Studios for their inventive enemy design. Transitmancer wields a traffic light and summons minions akin to a necromancer summoning the undead. Boxing Box is another one you'll meet early on, as well as a guy stuck inside a barrel because he doesnt have a change of costume. Inventveness/ingenuity is a recurring theme that also extends deep into the game itself. With a lack of initial funding (and everyting else besides), anything our actor's/directors can get their hands on becomes a prop or an enemy and storylines are constructed based on the on and off-set locations within reach. The result is a unique story-within-a-story type of structure full of charm and ingenuity.

The simple, colorful 16-bit style presentation and attack animations at times remind me of Battletoads. Cutscenes are very short and very cartoony which fits the context of the game but to me they don't seem to be a perfect match for the in-game graphics. The soundtrack absolutely nails it, particularly the battle music which really kicks things up a notch and captures the energy of the sentai shows perfectly.

So, is an understanding of Sentai shows needed to enjoy Chroma Squad? Certainly not. I think fans and ex-fans will be pleased to find that the essence of the shows has been encapsulated very well here, inside the sphere of a light strategy RPG. Everyone else will probably be equally enamoured, but from a more curious perspective. Chroma Squad is a truly original game with heapings of charm and ingenuity quite unlike anything you've played before.