TL;DR: Morifis, a free tower defense game from one-person Japanese studio Hakumai Studio, now supports Filipino. The in-game text, the ally codex, and the Google Play page are all translated. You can play it on Android, iOS, or straight from your browser with no install needed.
It’s not every day that a game from Japan starts speaking Tagalog. Most titles that reach us stick to English, so when a solo developer adds Filipino to their game, napapansin namin. Morifis got its Filipino translation in this week’s update, bringing the game to 19 languages.
What is Morifis?
Morifis is a real-time tower defense game with one big twist: you build the enemy’s path yourself. You clear the forest one tile at a time, and the invaders march along those same paths toward the Komorebi Stone, which you need to protect. Opening tiles also awakens allies from the forest, and each stage gives you a limited number of moves, so every tile you clear is a trade-off.
Some of the core features:
- Nearly 50 allies to raise and evolve through three stages each, from forest spirits to dragons, with a codex to complete
- Ally abilities like healing nearby allies, howling to boost attack, and an ice shield that reflects damage
- Flowers and Roots to lure enemies or wall off paths
- 125 main stages across five worlds, from sunlit groves to snowy forests
- Forest Trial, an endurance mode where you see how many Waves you can hold, with global rankings
- Daily Forest, added in the latest update, with nine stages that change every day
The enemies are interesting too. Called the Royal Survey Team, they include Healers, Trappers that throw nets to immobilize your allies, and Miners that dig brand-new paths through the forest you left closed. Kaya hindi ka puwedeng mag-relax.
The developer’s favorite part? “Of everything in the game, my favorite is the Forest Trial, where you see how many Waves you can hold out,” according to the press kit.
So, how does it read in Filipino?
Based on the Filipino screenshots in the press kit, the translation goes full Tagalog, and it leans formal. Menus say “Pumili ng Mundo” and “Pumasok sa Mundo,” the codex lists “Mga Linya ng Ebolusyon,” and ally descriptions sit under “Paglalarawan.”
There are some genuinely nice touches. The five worlds are named Maaraw na Gubat, Batis ng Hamog, Gubat ng Lilim, Lambak ng Hangin, and Gubat ng Niyebe. The first world’s flavor text reads “Ang gubat ng simula, na yakap ng sikat ng araw,” which is almost poetic. The codex also sorts creatures into Halaman, Hayop, Tao, and Diwata, a fitting word for a game full of forest spirits.
It’s not perfect. Some English is still left in the UI, like “WORLD 1” and “Home.” The featured allies on the world screen are labeled “Pangunahing Halimaw,” which literally means “main monsters,” a bit odd for creatures fighting on your side. One stat is also labeled “Aral,” which reads more like “lesson” than training.
Overall, it sounds less like everyday Taglish and more like a Filipino class textbook. Depending on you, that’s either charming or medyo stiff. We’ve only seen two screens so far, so take this as a first look, not a full review. Still, a one-person studio in Japan took the time to translate a whole game for Filipino players, and that deserves some respect.
Free to play, with ads
Morifis is free on Google Play, the App Store, and the browser. It does have ads and in-app purchases, with App Store prices ranging from a $0.99 Starter Pack to a $29.99 gem chest. It’s also still new, having launched in September, so jumping in now puts you among its early players on the Forest Trial rankings.
- Play in your browser (no install): play.hakumai-studio.com/morifis
- Google Play: Morifis – Grow and Defend
- App Store: Morifis – Grow and Defend
- Trailer: YouTube
So, would you play a game in pure Tagalog, or English pa rin ang settings mo? Let us know in the comments.