Post by Bytor on May 26, 2011 15:12:10 GMT -5
-Visuals- 9.4/10
The game, like many of the genre (JRPG) features two distinctly different styles. The basic game is basically what it is, a remake of an old PSX game, however, it has certainly been doctored to be much more vibrant, much more detailed and much crisper. The PSP release (the game has seen various releases on various consoles in it's history) is simply a beautiful looking game. The attention to detail is stunning and while the character presentation is not really next-gen standards it is still gorgeous. The various enemies are also extremely well done and show excellent attention to detail as well. Now not everyone will agree with me I imagine but I found the game to be striking. The cut scenes are also very appealing although the character models are nothing really exceptional (except for the dragons, in a word awesome!) but were still a very nice anime style with a really nice look. What was better though were the various cut scenes where other actions were taking place (other than traditional dialogue that is). Here the color and animations really shone through and further cemented the game as simply gorgeous.
-Sound- 9.2/10
The voice overs, minus Nall who sounded like a whinny 10 yr old, were all well done. Again like most games in the genre the acting was very over the top, however, in this instance I didn't feel the voices were so over the top they became obnoxious, only real complaint I have is there weren't really enough of the voice overs to suit my desires, instead the vast majority of the game was written dialogue, and actually that was paced out well as well, with adjustable speed in case you wanted to increase or decrease the dialogue scrolling. The music was grand and sweeping and although somewhat repetitive it provided perfect ambiance while not grating on my nerves, so that is certainly a positive.
-Gameplay- 9.0/10
I hope you like "old school" turn based RPG's with relatively simple commands (with the simple exception of an AI choice, which allows AI to take actions for you, sometimes advantageous on trivial battles but be aware the AI may think you need to use your strongest magic against a level 3 enemy with ten hit points). Attack, use item, defend etc, doesn't get much more basic than this system (although there is a critical attack ability which can be used once gauge is full, to be honest I used it when I could but I found special attacks, which used up a set number of points based on strength and kind of attacks, to be more beneficial). And to be honest, gameplay is certainly not the strength of the game, I admit, after my 10634 th battle I often found myself almost dozing off. But, and this is key, the battle system works, while it may be simplistic it is still NOT broken or unwieldy. Items are readily available as well. I finished the game with a plethora of pretty much every item. Weapons are easy to purchase, as is armor and accessories, and will need to be purchased in the beginning of the game, later on the stronger ones will become gifts and/or spoils of war, but not in the first part of game, spend that money! Honestly fans of today's more in depth button pushing games with various combos and quick reflexes/actions will probably be a tad bored, but I am at heart a fan of turn based battles and especially one's that work as well as this one. Solid, but to some perhaps it could have been more, but I don't really understand why though, not flashy but it works.
-Story- 9.6/10
A timeless tale told wonderfully. You start as Alex, a young village boy longing for adventure. Once the adventure begins he and his friends (Luna and Ramus to start, soon joined by Mia, Kyle, Jess and Nash) discover that the world they inhabit is in danger (perhaps) and they embark upon a quest to save the world. And I LOVE the world, what an interesting idea for an environment and how did it develop is what I want to know. The tale itself is nothing really new but the character development and personalities (not only the characters but also the NPC's, which will say different things in different stages of the game!) of your various allies grows throughout the story and each as their own story , loves, fears and desires. The entire story does take a bit to unfold, and like many games you may somewhat figure out pretty much what is going on about 3/4 through but it is still such an elegantly told story I simply stayed enchanted until the very end, and what a great ending!
-Overall- 9.4/10
The game builds up to a very satisfying crescendo wonderfully. The story will captivate you and tug on your emotions. The dialogue is innovative, funny and yet touching at the same time and the game will keep you immersed for quite a few hours (while it can be finished in 25-30 do yourself a favor and take your time, it will flesh out the story so much more!). The game is simply done right on so very many levels. My only complaint is I was left wanting more, I wanna know more now about the various characters (most especially the story which led up to the story taking place here) and the history of the fascinating world they inhabit. Simply a great game.
