Magical Diary expertly combines visual novel tropes with RPG elements and a fascinating magic system. Each week you must decide your schedule, choosing which magic classes to attend. The game features five magic types, each with 12 spells, plus 16 combination spells that require points in two schools. So you're looking at over 70 spells to play with, such as Find Spirits, Anti-Magic Field and Stoneshape.

These can occasionally be used to solve (or cause) daily issues, like using a spell to cheat at the arcades. However, they really shine at the dungeons. Every month you'll have to take tests that teleport you to a maze and require you to reach the exit. The challenges range from a monster hunting you to a race with a rival wizard, or just a big chasm to cross. And the solutions are all up to you. For example, to escape the monster you can kill it with damage spells, teleport it elsewhere, teleport yourself to the exit, distract it, scare it away, blind it, put it to sleep, turn invisible or even simply dig a tunnel across the maze. It's an extremely rich system that really feels like actual spellcasting, instead of simply shooting fireballs everywhere.

The big downside of Magical Diary is how short it is. Even slowly reading everything for the first time will take you only about five hours, and there's simply not enough room to explore its magical system. Many spells only have one use in-game, so you're likely to end without casting even half of your spellbook. The cast is also very small, with only two teachers in the entire school. Still, the game is quite replayable. It's fun to learn different spells to try new solutions on the dungeons, and the story can go into unexpected places depending on how you choose to act.

Don't let prejudice put you off; Magical Diary is a solid experience that brings a much needed breath of fresh air into the genre.