As usual your entry is really good!
Visuals are really great, the retro look, animations, palette choice, all speaks the game of that age. Controls and keyboard-only approach fortifies it. By the end of the game I’ve built the muscle memory for most of the things I need to do.
I loved treasure chests hidden behind encounters, so you get a reward after taking some risk and get stronger as a result. I also like the approach I usually call “puzzle RPG”, which basically means that you need to find encounters you’re comfortable with, finish them, level up, find the next challenge, rinse and repeat.
The RNG when your character miss all the time is a bit annoying, but if you play strategically it’s not a big deal, it just makes each encounter a bit repetitive and a bit too long. A, C-2-1, rinse and repeat, sometimes it felt like I’m playing a piano and when my characters improve and get more powerful I start to play a different melody :D
Speaking of melody, just any basic ambient sound would help the atmosphere, however that wasn’t a big issue, as I was getting involved in the story and fights.
Ah, and one last thing - I think if you skip the selection, if you only have one valid target will help the game a little bit. For example when you’re casting a spell or shooting, you still have to press 1 or A, while they’re the only valid targets.
Here’s my play-through: