Starseeker
Vault Senior Citizen
You said in a earlier post that you got a PS1 and was itching to pick up some RPG for it, therefore you would like a review of good games. Well since I am an avid RPGer, I am going to offer you my reviews and opinions of the current PS rpgs as a new years gift. As for others who have also played the games I mention before, please feel free to add your own opinions and observations. (note: This is strictly my personal opinion of games, please don't start the debate on whether one game is better than another. That depends on personal tastes.)
(I try not to spoil the games for you)I am going to split this monster review into couple parts, so I don't have to type it all at once, and it's easier for you to read. Please remember that I do this from memory, so if you find any mistakes concerning facts of a game, feel free to correct me.
Here goes:
Grandia - Hmm..., how should I start? Originally made for the ill marketed Saturn in Japan, it never made american sega soil due to the idiot that was the Sega US president who was fired by Sony. Anyway, ever since sega went strictly software, they allowed GameArts to release this brilliant game on American PS.
I have always been a fan of GameArts games(the Lunar series, for examble), and this one is no exception. The story is more interesting than the usual hero save world stuff. The characters are very well developed, much more so than the beautiful 3D characters that populated the latest games who are 1 dimensional and it's someone you can't give a rats a** about. The story starts out as the Main char. Justin, decide to go explore and discover the true history behind the legend of his ancestors. You will get to know his motivations, his reasons, his ideals, and his dreams. The graphics are 2D/3D isometrics style mingle with 2D animation in drmatic moments. All outside environment including the labyrinths are free form 3Ds, meaning you can turn the camera anyway you want to. However, all the characters and mosters are 2D.
The battle system is slightly similar to the FF system where you wait for an action gauge to count down before an attack. But, it gets kinda of complicated because you can cancel your opponents moves if you act before he does, since more powerful moves take longer, you'll need to have more stradegy than hack and slash. The level up system is slightly unique and new at the time for console gamers. It's actually similar to Daggerfall, because your individual skills/magic level are based on useage. The more you use any particular skills/magic, the more powerful and faster it gets. You can also level up your individual skills and spells, which has a unique spin in things.
The music and sound is - how shoud I put it? Let me put it this way, besides the regular battle music during training, I never get tired of it. I will sometimes go to a certain place for the music.
All and all, it's a great game considering that this is the first 3D style game the company ever produced. There is some pop ups and breakages, but nothing to distract you from the game play. The thing I love about this game is that you see everything. Everything happens in the game happens for a reason. Everyone do the things they do, or not, has a meaning, and you always find out why. I hope you enjoy this game as much as I do.
Hmm..., I need to cut these reviews shorter, that one got a little longer than I thought.
FF Chronicles - inculdes 2 games FFIV, and Chrono Trigger.
This is a re-release. Basically Square decided that they don't milk their frenchise hard enough, and they needed to recoup some of the loses that went into FF:the Movie. But, these two games were very good when they were released a long time ago, and since I bought them for a bargin and sentimental reasons, I am going to review them.
FFIV - A very nice game, it sorta reminds me of the Phantasy Star III. The graphic is very dated, about super Famicon days, but they did add two 3d CGI movies for the begining and the end. It's a retro 2d style, and the battles are side to side.
The story is about the main character Cecil's quest for redemption for the horrible acts of murder he committed when he was a Death Knight under a power hungry king. There is also a love triangle between him, Rosa, the female lead and Kain, his childhood best friend. The jealousy of Cecil from Kain lead Kain to be mind controled by the bad guy Golbez. In his quest for savalation, he discovered his past(he's a orphan), and helped forged a future for all mankind.
This game is famous for their secrets(well so does many other FF games), if you tend to blaze through a game, I would advice you to slow down and try out things. The battle system is time based, like most other square games, but, this is before they used the action gauge, so you can choose to be active(no time to think), or wait(still not much time). There are only 3 type of spells, so instead of elemental spells, you can only learn spells that suit your class. White, black, and summoning. White is status, healing based, black is attack based, and summoning is random depending on the creature you summon.
The music is not bad for an old game. Some of the midi tunes get annoying though.
The biggest problem with the game - too many random encounters. It gets to be frustrating. But, this is due to another fact - you need to level up or die. Everything is expansive, so if you don't have cash you are in trouble. And a lot of bosses are quite tough, so you need to level up a lot in order to win. Your HP/MP can go up to 9999, so be prepared for big a** fights. All in all, it's not a bad game, esp. since it's very dated, and it's a bargin for the trip down the memory lines.
Chrono Trigger - Considered to be one of the best RPG ever for the Super Famicon. The concepts of the storyline for the game is quite refreshing. The character and art are drawn and design by the Dragon Balls/Z artist, so don't feel weird about seeing familiar faces/stylies.
The name of the game is time travel. The story basically revolves around Chrono & co. 's adventures to fix past wrongs to make the future right, a la Quantum Leap(the show popular in the 80s, if you don't know, ask your dad). And the whole story is very similar to old western legends with one familiar twist - the world was basically destroyed during 1999 by an alien virus/life form that crashed into earth 65 million years ago on the astroid that killed the dinos. Your job is to stop that, and find out all the hows and whys.
The battle system is based on the usual FF system of active/wait where speed is everything, and I am getting tired of explaining it over and over. But the difference is - one, everyone can only learn one elements that suits their personality, and you learn new spells by winning battles and earning TPs; 2, there are lots and lots of combination attacks. There are only 3 person on the team, but you can switch them any time. So it does bring a stradegy element to the game because you need to decide on whose two or three persons combos are suited for a particular place or boss. And, combos are necessary bec. they are much more stronger than regular mojo.
The music is nice with some brilliant moments. This feels more natural than the original maybe due to the cd quality.
This game doesn't feel as dated because of the consistence of the art design and the brilliance of the Dragon Balls artist. And square throws in some new 2D animation for the re-release. This game has a sort of linear story element, but not in the same sense as FO. There are 10 endings, and the difference between them is only the end game animation and the goodies you get when completing them. And the difference between getting ending 1 or 2 is only based on when you tackle the final boss.
Only two things I have to complain - one, stats limitation are quite low, that in turn makes some of the bosses are quite tough/annoying; two, you can only have three char. on the team at any one time, so that makes some of the weaker char. seriously under developed, and it doesn't help the fact that some of the female char. 's higher magic att/def don't make up for their weak physical str/def plus low hp. Still this was one game for the books. I enjoyed it.
Coming up next: Suikoden I & II, FFVII, VIII, IX, Beyond&Beyond/Ark the Lad II, Lunar I & II, Legend of Dragoon, Legend of Mana, and couple others whose name escapes me at the moment.
Enjoy!
Starseeker, signing off.
"The final price of freedom, is the willingness to face the most frightening being of all, one's own self."
(I try not to spoil the games for you)I am going to split this monster review into couple parts, so I don't have to type it all at once, and it's easier for you to read. Please remember that I do this from memory, so if you find any mistakes concerning facts of a game, feel free to correct me.
Here goes:
Grandia - Hmm..., how should I start? Originally made for the ill marketed Saturn in Japan, it never made american sega soil due to the idiot that was the Sega US president who was fired by Sony. Anyway, ever since sega went strictly software, they allowed GameArts to release this brilliant game on American PS.
I have always been a fan of GameArts games(the Lunar series, for examble), and this one is no exception. The story is more interesting than the usual hero save world stuff. The characters are very well developed, much more so than the beautiful 3D characters that populated the latest games who are 1 dimensional and it's someone you can't give a rats a** about. The story starts out as the Main char. Justin, decide to go explore and discover the true history behind the legend of his ancestors. You will get to know his motivations, his reasons, his ideals, and his dreams. The graphics are 2D/3D isometrics style mingle with 2D animation in drmatic moments. All outside environment including the labyrinths are free form 3Ds, meaning you can turn the camera anyway you want to. However, all the characters and mosters are 2D.
The battle system is slightly similar to the FF system where you wait for an action gauge to count down before an attack. But, it gets kinda of complicated because you can cancel your opponents moves if you act before he does, since more powerful moves take longer, you'll need to have more stradegy than hack and slash. The level up system is slightly unique and new at the time for console gamers. It's actually similar to Daggerfall, because your individual skills/magic level are based on useage. The more you use any particular skills/magic, the more powerful and faster it gets. You can also level up your individual skills and spells, which has a unique spin in things.
The music and sound is - how shoud I put it? Let me put it this way, besides the regular battle music during training, I never get tired of it. I will sometimes go to a certain place for the music.
All and all, it's a great game considering that this is the first 3D style game the company ever produced. There is some pop ups and breakages, but nothing to distract you from the game play. The thing I love about this game is that you see everything. Everything happens in the game happens for a reason. Everyone do the things they do, or not, has a meaning, and you always find out why. I hope you enjoy this game as much as I do.
Hmm..., I need to cut these reviews shorter, that one got a little longer than I thought.
FF Chronicles - inculdes 2 games FFIV, and Chrono Trigger.
This is a re-release. Basically Square decided that they don't milk their frenchise hard enough, and they needed to recoup some of the loses that went into FF:the Movie. But, these two games were very good when they were released a long time ago, and since I bought them for a bargin and sentimental reasons, I am going to review them.
FFIV - A very nice game, it sorta reminds me of the Phantasy Star III. The graphic is very dated, about super Famicon days, but they did add two 3d CGI movies for the begining and the end. It's a retro 2d style, and the battles are side to side.
The story is about the main character Cecil's quest for redemption for the horrible acts of murder he committed when he was a Death Knight under a power hungry king. There is also a love triangle between him, Rosa, the female lead and Kain, his childhood best friend. The jealousy of Cecil from Kain lead Kain to be mind controled by the bad guy Golbez. In his quest for savalation, he discovered his past(he's a orphan), and helped forged a future for all mankind.
This game is famous for their secrets(well so does many other FF games), if you tend to blaze through a game, I would advice you to slow down and try out things. The battle system is time based, like most other square games, but, this is before they used the action gauge, so you can choose to be active(no time to think), or wait(still not much time). There are only 3 type of spells, so instead of elemental spells, you can only learn spells that suit your class. White, black, and summoning. White is status, healing based, black is attack based, and summoning is random depending on the creature you summon.
The music is not bad for an old game. Some of the midi tunes get annoying though.
The biggest problem with the game - too many random encounters. It gets to be frustrating. But, this is due to another fact - you need to level up or die. Everything is expansive, so if you don't have cash you are in trouble. And a lot of bosses are quite tough, so you need to level up a lot in order to win. Your HP/MP can go up to 9999, so be prepared for big a** fights. All in all, it's not a bad game, esp. since it's very dated, and it's a bargin for the trip down the memory lines.
Chrono Trigger - Considered to be one of the best RPG ever for the Super Famicon. The concepts of the storyline for the game is quite refreshing. The character and art are drawn and design by the Dragon Balls/Z artist, so don't feel weird about seeing familiar faces/stylies.
The name of the game is time travel. The story basically revolves around Chrono & co. 's adventures to fix past wrongs to make the future right, a la Quantum Leap(the show popular in the 80s, if you don't know, ask your dad). And the whole story is very similar to old western legends with one familiar twist - the world was basically destroyed during 1999 by an alien virus/life form that crashed into earth 65 million years ago on the astroid that killed the dinos. Your job is to stop that, and find out all the hows and whys.
The battle system is based on the usual FF system of active/wait where speed is everything, and I am getting tired of explaining it over and over. But the difference is - one, everyone can only learn one elements that suits their personality, and you learn new spells by winning battles and earning TPs; 2, there are lots and lots of combination attacks. There are only 3 person on the team, but you can switch them any time. So it does bring a stradegy element to the game because you need to decide on whose two or three persons combos are suited for a particular place or boss. And, combos are necessary bec. they are much more stronger than regular mojo.
The music is nice with some brilliant moments. This feels more natural than the original maybe due to the cd quality.
This game doesn't feel as dated because of the consistence of the art design and the brilliance of the Dragon Balls artist. And square throws in some new 2D animation for the re-release. This game has a sort of linear story element, but not in the same sense as FO. There are 10 endings, and the difference between them is only the end game animation and the goodies you get when completing them. And the difference between getting ending 1 or 2 is only based on when you tackle the final boss.
Only two things I have to complain - one, stats limitation are quite low, that in turn makes some of the bosses are quite tough/annoying; two, you can only have three char. on the team at any one time, so that makes some of the weaker char. seriously under developed, and it doesn't help the fact that some of the female char. 's higher magic att/def don't make up for their weak physical str/def plus low hp. Still this was one game for the books. I enjoyed it.
Coming up next: Suikoden I & II, FFVII, VIII, IX, Beyond&Beyond/Ark the Lad II, Lunar I & II, Legend of Dragoon, Legend of Mana, and couple others whose name escapes me at the moment.
Enjoy!
Starseeker, signing off.
"The final price of freedom, is the willingness to face the most frightening being of all, one's own self."