This is my first thread about a game I'm playing. I have been thinking about doing one but I found hard to pick a game to post my impressions about. So I might not be as detailed or good as many other posted here in vgchartz.
Platform: Nintendo DS
Developer: Monolith Soft
Publisher: Nintendo
Released: Japan Only 02/28/2008
I remember looking online about this game for new information because it looked like a pretty good RPG for the DS. After all, Nintendo owns now Monolith Soft, the developers of Xenosaga, Baten Kaitos and Xenoblade. However my hopes and dreams vanished when the game never got released outside Japan (as many other games Nintendo of America refuses to release >_> ) and even If I know a little Japanese, I'm in no way able to play a full game without being confused or restoring to my many dictionaries. Even though I'm against it... I had to download the English patched version and play it on my DS (as I did with Tales of Innocence and other Japanese games with fan translations).
Alright, let's go to the game. I will avoid as much spoilers as possible
Story
The story is developed in Acts (or chapter if you feel more comfortable) and you take the role of a character that is a member of the 7th Division squad. Before the game starts you choose which character you want to be and play the game through his point of view. However, so far the team always go together so I think the difference is little from character to character.
The story progresses as you trigger events, either by reaching a specific location, after defeating a boss, or talking to a key character. These events are small in-game cutscenes that will help you know the plot and each character a little better. As for the characters themselves, each have a different personality and thanks to the short cutscenes (YAY) I haven't found anything annoying about them.
Gameplay
The gamplay in this game has elements from various other games that help make the flow seamless and easy to play. The upper screen is where the action takes place and the menu navigation. The bottom screen displays the map of the area you're in and your character's status when you go to the menu. Be careful, because you're on the menu screen does not mean the action stops. You can get your butt kicked while you're at it.
even though you always travel with two other characters from the squad, you can only control what they do in battle and out of it. You don't take care of their equipment or other things. However, you must take care of them, if they are defeated they return to base and leave you until they are healed. So you better watch their backs as the watch yours. If you die, you lose experience points and start from base, but you can recover those points if you touch your grave LOL.
The game goes in linear progression, there is no overworld and there are little branches here and there as you navigate through maps and these branches always end up in dead ends.
Battle System
The battle is simple, yet deep enough for you to think of strategies to defeat opponents. You assign attacks and skills to the ABYX buttons and your two companions assist you. Since the battle is real-time, you control only your character while the other two are controlled by the AI (which is decent) using the tactics you assign to them.
Boss fights are diverse and hard, and there are summoners that can fill the area of enemies and you each have a different strategy to it. So far it has never been boring and sometimes is better to flee and heal to return again to be blindly attacking foes.
Graphics/Sound
Graphics are pretty good, the characters are 3D in a 2D drawn background. It reminds you to RPGs on the first Playstation which is not a bad thing at all.
The music is decent, but nothing remarkable so far, the sounds effects are pretty good
More to come
After I finish the game I plan to write a review. but so far is a pretty good game and one of the reasons to scratch your head as of why NOA does not release many games that are in Japan.
