I notice a few people wondering about all of the X360 RPGs this year, and a few other upcoming ones. Hopefully this helps out with a bit of info concerning the 6 ones this year, plus one early Q1 next year. I'll add the few next year's ones when I get more time & info.
Two Worlds
Release Date 8/21/2007; $59.99 (Norm), $69.99 (CE)
Two Worlds is a Western Themed RPG from German Based Southpeak Interactive.
Storyline:
(from IGN) The world changed when Aziraal, the god of war, was slain in the huge battle long ago. The hordes of Orcs lost their divine leader and were forced to withdraw to the southern wastelands. Now, thousands of years later, the location of Aziraal's tomb is still unknown, well hidden by other gods who did not dare to entrust the secret to mere mortals. However, now, a fragile peace between the civilized races and the hordes is at stake. When the dwarven mining expedition discovered an ancient temple dedicated to an unnamed deity, a silent war begun, and it will soon ignite the fires that will lead to the holy crusade of the Orcs. However, the real danger lies somewhere else. A powerful force churns silently - weaving a secret plot of fear and destruction. In the end one of the Two Worlds will remain.
Gameplay:
Developers of Two Worlds must have been playing Oblivion, alot. Many parts and activities of the game seem an offshoot of Oblivion. The world is a sandlot-style RPG like Oblivion, characters and quests are also similar. Nevertheless, although the style is definately Oblivion-esque, there are a few key issues in the game that are different (but again, still similar). Your character has 30+ skills in the game. They involve various abilities such as weapon kinds, magics, and fighting styles. Leveling is experience point based, ala the traditional RPG. Once leveled up, you are free to choose 5 skills to upgrade of the 30 available - plenty of room to tailor your character. Opposite of Oblivion, the enemies are set - there is no scaled leveling.
Also, the battle and view are a bit different. Combat is a hybrid between a combo system, and automated ala KOTOR it seems. It takes place in 3rd person mode only - no first person shooter/hack & slash with the game. Animations in battle, however, seem to lack the polish of Oblivion, Fable, or other similar games.
However, the big difference, that makes Two Worlds shine is the addition of an online multiplayer mode. On the Xbox 360 version, 8 friends can join together to compete a virtual quest - similar to the hundreds available in the game. The areas are smaller than the actual game, but rather large still. From what I see from PC impressions, this ends up to be a great addition to the game, and could garner must-buy status for those wanting World of Warcraft-esque quests on a console RPG.
Time of Completion (estimated): 100+hrs
Critical & Sales Reception:
None as of yet for the X360 version. However, the PC Version has been released as of a few months ago, and recieved "good" to "very good" reviews - one such magaizine (I cannot quote a source) gave Two Worlds an 8.8 due to the great multiplayer mode.You should buy this game if....
You loved Oblivion and couldn't get enough, Fable, and other W-RPGs. Two Worlds has been hailed as an "Oblivion Killer" by Topware and Southpeak's PR teams (developers and publishers). Although it seems very lofty, this game probably will be similar in comparison of Saints Row to Grand Theft Auto. Two Worlds looks to be fantastic, but fail in some areas. Nevertheless, the game promises to re-ignite the Western RPG genre by incorporating many elements of great Western design.
Notes:
The CE version is rather nifty. According to IGN, it is going to contain a pen-and-paper RPG version of Two Worlds, akin to Dungeons and Dragons. It's a 48-page player guide, special codes to activate CE-Only weapons, a making of DVD, and supposedly, a replica sword of a notable in-game sword. All this for $10. Seems like a reasonable offer.
Blue Dragon
Release Date: 8/28/07 (US), 8/24/07 (PAL), 12/11/06 (JP); $49.99 (Norm)
Blue Dragon is a Japanese RPG from Mistwaker (paid for via Microsoft Game Studios, hence the price).
Storyline:
(from IGN) Shu and company must use their shadows as weapons as they battle the evil forces and an antiquated human race of people who command a magical power thought to have perished long ago. Shu and friends must wield their skills to save their world from impending doom. Encountering various people on a planet with numerous ancient ruins, the characters and their shadows travel through a world full of mysteries and illusions, where the slightest touch can cause reactions of unparalleled magnitude.
Gameplay:
Blue Dragon is as traditional as the JRPG genre can get. Battles, item screens, character progression, PC aquisition, skills, and many areas are very similar to the giants of the JRPG genre. However, Blue Dragon does many things right, as the gameplay is very polished, honed, and balanced according to most user and critical reviews.
Combat is turn-based, but involves the ability to "charge" attacks; allowing them to deal more damage, and infuse a little bit more tactical components into the battle system. Along with the battle system, are the typical smathering of various white, black and support magic skill sets with the standard set of spells. However, unlike many JRPGs (but more like other SRPGs, ala FFT), the Job system is rather good. Player's "dragons" (the things that allow them as children to be so powerful), are allowed jobs and skills as you progress through the game. Not only this, each skill set may be leveled up, and upgraded for each character as you feel set - a White Mage can also have Assassain skill sets (but not all Assassain HP/Speed levels). However, some skills allow you to combine both sets. There's also a "generalist" class that allows you to have a very mediocre charcter, but is strong in everything as you progress.
Time to Complete: 60+hrs
Critical Reception:
Released in Japan last year, Blue Dragon was hoped by some to be the ressurrection of the Xbox IP in Japan. It's consumer reception was a mixed bag: It sold very very well considering the platform, moving many systems, but did not allow the X360 to "take off" and do insanely strong numbers. Review scores in the US and West have been a major mixed bag: Some websites have given it low scores (6-7), whereas Japanese reviews, and some other western mags have given it 8's and 9's.
You Should Buy This Game If....
Your a big fan of old-school JRPGs like Dragon Quest. The game involves the "holy trinity" of producers. Sakaguchi, creator of Final Fantasy produces, while Nobuo Uematsu, composer of many classic SquareSoft IPs scores the music, and Akira Toyriama character designer for Dragon Quest, and creator Dragon Ball Z lends his hand to the style of the game. The demo screams "classic old 16 bit JRPG". If your a fan like I am, you'll eat this up.
Eternal Sonata
Release Date: 6/13/2007 (JP), 9/132007 (US), PAL Unknown; $59.99 (Norm)
Story
(from IGN) Eternal Sonata follows the adventures of famed composer Frederic Chopin as he travels through his own dream world filled with colorful characters and stunning locales. In a land where music influences both combat and exploration, Chopin sets out on a journey not only of self-discovery, but also one of redemption.
Gameplay:
Lets get this out of the way first: Eternal Sonata is a graphical and art beast. There is no denying that this game might be the most beautiful game ever created. Stylistically in the vein of Kingdom Hearts, the game boasts everything beautiful in a game: very opposite of many other RPGs available.
Judging by the demo, gameplay is rather linear compared to other RPGs, and boasts a typical JRPG track. Some areas are inaccessible, and impenitrible for characters. The battle system is very unique, and boasts a similar feel to Tales of and Baiten Kaitos, as well as a flair of Kingdom Hearts. The battles are turn based (one character at a time), but when your PC takes it's turn, it initiates a real-time battle with battle area; you are free to heal, use spells, and attack enemies within the 5 second (in the beginning) time limit. Also, as combos are built up, your "echo meter" increases - allowing for brutal finishing moves to deal thousands of damage points above typical attacks.
Likewise of a typical JRPG, the story seems linear, as well as the character selection and customization: it's a no-frills game of weapons and skills. You obtain new skills as you level up. One unique thing is there are no mana points: skills may be used infinitely in battle, but are weak without the Echo meter being built up. The game also sports 9+ playable characters; more than many games. Nevertheless, you'll be using 3 at a time.
And finally, the greatest aspect that some (like myself) care about: the game has co-operative play. In battle, you can assign any of the playable characters to your Xbox 360 controllers. You can assign upto 3 humans to the characters (one each), and possibly the 4th one as the overworld/status screen controller. Certainly an awesome boon to those that enjoy playing RPGs with friends.
Time to Complete: 40-50 hours (including bonus dungeon, and possibly second playthrough)
Critical Reception:
Being already released in Japan, we know that Eternal Sonata (named Trusty Bell in Japan) recieved strong reviews. Famitsu gave it around a 35/40 rating: a very good score. Sales have also been good in Japan, considering the user base. In Japan, it's expected to be the #1 game of the year, until Oblivion most likely overtakes it.
US/Western reviews have been mixed, although few have been published. Thus far, it has a 75% on gamerankings.com, but I've seen multiple reviews that will boost the score. Expect 80% or so for the final score.
You Should Buy This Game If....
Your a big fan of colorful, vibrant, unique JRPGs. Also, if your a Tales of or Baten Kaitos fan. The game looks to have it's great boons to the JRPG kingdom: a great battle system, a unique story, and a graphical powerhouse. My 20 y/o girlfriend and her 8 y/o niece are eargerly anticipating this game, as well as myself, a 21 y/o RPG vet.
Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom
Release Date: 10/13/2007 (Asia), Unknown PAL/US Release Date; $49.99 (estimated)
Storyline:
(updated from KUF:CoD's Director): At the end of “The Crusaders,” two heroes stay behind, while two others – Kendal and Regnier – enter Encablossa’s dimension to stop the destruction of the Age of Light. “KUF: Circle of Doom” links the story between “The Crusaders” and the next “KUF” installment (as some of you may know, I cannot reveal its name yet) which will take place about 50 years later. Thus, “Circle of Doom” is about how and why Kendal, Regnier and other heroes attempt to return to the Age of Light from the Dark Dimension of Encablossa.
Gameplay:
Taking a massive break from the standard Kingdom Under Fire format; which was one of the best Real Time Strategy games concieved for a console; the developers have switched the focus to a stronger A-RPG feel.
The game will revolve around you playing as one of multiple heroes (ala N3), fighting hores of enemies as a lone warrior. Statistics are rumored to revolve around only 3 traits: hit points, skill points, and luck. Don't worry though, it's not just a simple 3-tier stat system. The developers are promising tons of complexity with the system, and in older Kingdom Under Fire games, skill points (as well as weapon classes), played a huge strategic part of the game. Not only this, the developers are promising randomly-generated dungeons for "infinite replayability" if you like those sorts of things like I do.
The game isn't going to quite be a "button masher" hack-n-slash action game with RPG elements. KUF is a vastly underrated game for it's tactical aptitude: in hold KUF games, mastery of understanding level ups, equipment, evolving classes, and working with your stats was a huge part, and developers are keeping many of these aspects to the game.
Also, a huge great part of this game is going to feature 4 player co-op play online. Imagine playing a re-vamped Gauntlet-esque RPG with 4 buddies: it is going to surely be one of the funnest, most intense gaming experiences out there; and dare I say, rival other comparibles in Heavenly Sword and Devil May Cry (but with RPG gusto!)
And finally......Is anyone else thinking "old school ARPG" when you see the health/skill levels? It's reminding me of real old Wonders from Ys screenies.
Critical Reception:
None at this time. However, previous KUF games have recieved rather good scores. Heroes recieved a 8.5 and was titled as being "Xbox's most underappreciated game". Nintey Nine Nights totally failed in it's copy of KUF, and was rumored to be rushed to production to help the failing Xbox 360 in Japan, so comparisons cannot be drawn too strongly.
You Should Buy This Game If...
Your dying for a new Kingdom Under Fire game, or a true ARPG powerhouse of a game. KUF was the most underrated game in the Xbox's library. Fans of hack-n-slash games will enjoy this, but so will those that enjoy thourough RPGs, as KUF has always had a great, emotionally charged storyline. Also, with a 4 player co-op campaign, it will provide a great, unique RPG experience.
Operation: Darkness
Release Date: 10/11/2007 (JP), Unknown US/PAL Release Date; Unknown Price
Story:
Quite possibly the only World War 2 RPG ever created. The story is a mish-mash of the craziest ideas of World War 2 ever created, in a way only the Japanese can tell. The story revolves around you leading an elite guard of Special Operations soldiers fighting deep into the heart of Nazi Territory (sound familiar?). The plot twist is that what you find isn't normal: The Nazis are dabbling in the occult (Nazi Vampires anyone?), and fantasy monsters. They're replacing Panzer Tanks with Panzer Dragoon, and V2's with a zombie force. And it's upto your team to shoot, slash, and use magic to stop the Nazi War machine.
Gameplay:
Okay, does the game have your attention already? Great. Despite the crazy exterior is what appears to be a very unique isometric SRPG exeperience. You control a large (5-6 PC) group of various classes of soldiers: medics, snipers, mages, and such against the Nazi forces. The gameplay seems to be a by-the-book FFT/Shining Force experince. Combat is done turn-based, as each person takes a turn shooting and using magic on his/her turn, and also involves moving around the rather-large combat areas.
What's unique to the SRPG experience is obstacles: unlike most SRPGs that involve height checks, the game will focus more along the lines of a favorite of mine UFO: Aftermath. Instead of being out in the open against a Nazi Vampire, just hide behind that old 1936 Volkswagen, and pray the Vampire doesn't have a Panzerfaust.
Also, it is going to feature online multiplayer, as many upcoming games are. This will be one of the first, and few SRPGs to feature online multiplayer. I believe it's going to be 4 player online, but don't quite me on this.
Critical Reception:
None as of yet.
You Should Buy This Game If....
It ever comes stateside. Obviously WW2 shooters aren't everyones cup of tea, but with the promise of incorporating World War 2 into an RPG sounds like a great experience. The fact is, the game, although appearing to be a budget title, should promise to inject the Xbox 360 with some much-needed Strategy RPG gaming - even if it does involve WW2. I would expect a US release date, as the game just needs to re-work the text to be released here.
Mass Effect
Release Date: 11/01/2007 (US), November PAL Release, Unknown JP Release Dates; $59.99 (Norm, Est)
Story:
(from IGN)Set 200 years in the future in an epic universe, Mass Effect places gamers in a vast galactic community in danger of being conquered by a legendary agent gone rogue. A spectacular new vision from legendary developers BioWare, Mass Effect challenges players to lead a squad of freedom fighters as they struggle against threatening armies to restore peace in the land.
Mass Effect is the first in a trilogy of games with an overarching story. As the first human Specter – sworn defenders of galactic peace – your mission is to halt the advancing armies of a legendary agent gone rogue. But as you lead your elite team across hostile alien worlds, you will discover the true threat is far greater than anyone imagined.
Gameplay:
BioWare's Xbox offerings have been known to have a very similar style of ultra-refined A-RPG gaming, and Mass Effect won't be deviating from their mastery of the system. In Mass Effect, you'll be controlling a squad of 3 people, ala many RPGs. However, this game seems to be borrowing far more shooter elements than the typical BioWare game.
Like many BioWare games, expect a huge boon to the game to be the thematic nature of the game. Screenshots really don't justify how the game looks and plays in actual trailers: characters talk, and move vastly more realilistic than any other RPG ever made. Dialogue is real, brutal, honest, and more open-ended than any other RPG, and plays a huge part in the game - diplomacy allows for new characters to join your party, or get mowed down if they bother you too much. Experience points and level ups are typical WRPG fare: When you get EXP, your not notified, but it's certainly there. When you level up, you can spend skill points in KOTOR fasion: you might unlock new talents (ie magics), or skills with your weapon mastery (2 vulcan laser cannons at once maybe?)
Also, the customization aspects seem to be very strong: Like KOTOR, and other BioWare RPGs, expect huge customization options for your character (ala Oblivion), as well as a more definitive path of skill progression, complete with light/dark alignment paths: something KOTOR did so well at.
Also, the exploration seems to take a more JRPG-ish approach. There are many various "hot point" locations (such as planets, ship wreckages, and such), and you must travel to them. This should be a welcome difference than the go-anywhere do-anything sandbox RPGs we've all seen in the West as of late.
And finally, you have the party combat system. The system is unique in the fact that it's a hybrid system: if you want to pause the game (ie KOTOR), issue commands, and orders, you can. Or do it real-time GRAW-style and tell party members to cover, take fire, use magic, or run. This is the glory of the BioWare RPG - you can intricately command each member like a turn based JRPG, down to the minute, or just try to run-n-gun and hope that you have the stats to win the battle.
Time of Completion: Judging from other BioWare Games; expect 30-40hrs and the need for multiple playthroughs.
Critical Reception:
None at this time, but very likely will be RPG GOTY, and has a shot at GOTY, or the top-3.
Get This Game If...
You have to find a job to buy the game. BioWare RPGs are like new actual Mario sequels: They are gems to treasure and savor. Mass Effect isn't going to have the hinderances a cliche' KOTOR had, but maintain the integrety of a 90%+ reviewer rating. Obviously WRPGs aren't for everyone, but if you must buy one WRPG, buy Mass Effect.
Lost Odyssey
Release Date: December 2007 (US/JP/PAL); Price $49.99 (Norm, Est)
Story:
(from IGN)
The second of two epic RPG projects for Microsoft by Mistwalker, the studio founded by Square-Enix's Hironobu Sakaguchi. You play as Kaim, a man who's been sentenced to live for 1,000 years. The game's storyline takes you through Kaim's life as he lives through multiple generations, becomes a part of many families, falls in and out of love and gets into conflicts. All this is set in a world that is on the verge of a "mystical industrial revolution," where mankind has attained dark powers.
Gameplay:
The unique aspect of Lost Odyssey, as compared to other JRPG's is that the core gameplay mechanic revolves around the story, and not a cliche "new" idea for the tired old JRPG genre. Dark and foreboding for a game, the largest, most critical aspect of Lost Odyssey revolves around Kaim's immortality - and the lack thereof of anyone else. What does this mean? A core component is that when party members, as wonderful as they are, die....They actually die. No phoenix downs, no cheezy restoration. Just pure un-answerable mortality. When a playable character dies, Kaim asorbs their attributes, which to my knowledge, is going to play a huge part in the story. From the trailers, we know that Kaim was a soldier in an army, and a strange meteorite kills his compatriots, most likely infusing him with god-like strength (ala The One).
And again, to speak of the story - the game, unlike many others, has actually been written by Japanese fantasy novelist, Kiyoshi Shigematsu. Dark and foreboding, the game seems that the story will be very nihilistic - a stark contrast from Blue Dragon, and more akin to some of the JRPG greats such as Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy 7, and Phantasy Star 2.
Actual play-wise, expect a still-standard JRPG treat in the vein of Final Fantasy and Blue Dragon. It's still turn based, although Sakaguchi has promised more additions to the turn based format ala Blue Dragon. From previews, we can expect a timed-attack system similar to Super Mario RPG, and the defensive structuring of Eternal Sonata (an active offense/defense system) - to where you must press a corresponding button during the attack, spell, or defense to avoid full damage.
Not only this, battles are leaving the forced-camera systems of the past behind for a free-roaming camera - during an attack sequence, you are free to zoom in or out of an attack or spell, and possibly even find some sort of weaknesses or certain responses from an enemy during the attack. But outside of these scant details, not a whole lot is known, despite the game being near it's final build. Sakaguchi must want to hold out till the LO blowout starts.
Time to Complete (est): 70+ Hours according to development staff (not including side-quests!)
Critical Reception:
None
You Should Buy This Game If....
You've ever played a JRPG. Very few know, but Blue Dragon was actually quite thrown-together as opposed to Lost Odessy. Mistwaker Studios assembled their all-star cast for Lost Odyssey (ie, Uematsu and Sakaguchi), but decided to make Blue Dragon as a hold-over until Lost Odyssey was finished, and also wanted Blue Dragon to grow the X360 fanbase before LO hit shelves. Lost Oddessey developers have been going nuts in their interviews about how fantastic the game is compared to Lost Odssey. Everyone says "hopefully this plays like Final Fantasy", but it looks like, if true, everyone will be saying "I hope FFXIII is as good as Lost Odyssey". Also, remember, Artoon, a near-unknown developer actually made Blue Dragon, not Mistwaker (aside from production and supervision roles). Why? So Mistwaker + Feel Plus (a subsidiary of Mistwaker made and paid by for by MS) could put their entire efforts into Lost Odyssey. It should pay off as gamers benefit later this year.
Also, it should be noted about the quality of Blue Dragon vs. Lost Odyssey. Remember that Artoon did alot of the coding/work for Blue Dragon? Guess what their other most recent, notable title was: Vampire Rain. Enough said about questioning how vastly superior Lost Odyssey will be.
Culdcept Saga
Release Date: 11/22/06 (JP), January 15th, 2008 (US/PAL); Price $39.99 (Norm.)
Story:
(from IGN) In Culdcept Saga, individuals known as Cepters move around a game board by the roll of the dice, using magical cards to call upon creatures and cast spells to occupy each area they encounter. Using cards, players can customize different decks to assist in their struggle for territorial dominance. As they maneuver their way around the board and land on occupied properties, opponents can opt to pay a fee for their brief stay or attack the guarding creature to inhabit the zone. Players can fortify their decks and develop strategies in single player mode, then apply those tactics against up to 3 friends on Xbox Live or on a single console. Gamers can further modify the game with their own style when they alter their characters’ appearances using parts won during matches.
Gameplay:
As stated in the "story" part, the game is an innovative, interactive hybrid trading card game + RPG. The game revolves around collecting hundreds of very cool card/weapon combinations. The Japanese version featured over 500 unique monsters to collect in battle. The US/PAL version is reported to have even more than 500 monsters. Yes, collection freaks, that's pretty much more than Pokemon and Monster Hunter have ever had.
The game revolves around a simple role of the dice: like Monopoly, you roll the dice, and decide where your characters can and cannot go. But in this game, you don't goto jail, or pass go - you take the fight to the CPU and attempt to capture their territory. Luck plays a huge part in the game: a poor dice roll can severely hamper your moves to a weak elemental slot, allowing the CPU for a much-favored advantage in a battle. Gold also plays a huge part, as you must pay for the map areas you conquer, and garrison your units to. Become a big spender too early, and you'll find yourself at the losing end of a 1 hour battle, and vast ammounts of fusteration.
However, not everyting is set to luck: like Magic or other TCGs, during your playthrough, you can build your deck up to contain only the deadliest and most powerful of the 500+ monsters. The game rewards you with some of the coolest, most innovative characters and monsters a card game, or RPG has ever had. The monsters are inventive, unique, and the designs can't all be shown on just a few screenshots.
Another great aspect of Culdcept Saga is the fact that it was designed with multiplayer in mind. The game supports upto 4 players via Xbox Live. There were issues with the XBL support in the Japanese version; which should entirely be fixed for the US/PAL releases of the game.
The best part about this game? It's a budget title. Yes, your going to get your TCG RPG'ing on for under $40. And for a game that has individual battles lasting from 30 minutes to 3 hours, your getting your money's worth here.
Time to Complete: 100+ hours (multiple hundreds if you must "Catch 'em all"
Critical Reception:
Critical Reception for Culdcept Saga was actually pretty decent for such a quirky, different kind of RPG. Famitsu gave the game a 34/40 (8-9-8-9), and a Western magazine/site, GameBrink, gave CS a 8.5 out of 10. However, reviews for this will/are largely based on if you they like the oddity of CS.
Consumer wise, Culdicept Saga launched near the same time DOAX2 did. It preformed rather well in light of the impending uber-seller (for the userbase) of Blue Dragon. Sales in Japan have been around 30,000-40,000. Which was/is rather decent for such a niche RPG.
You Should Buy This Game If...
You love Trading Card Games with RPG elements. Culdicept Saga is one of the hardest, most engrossing TCGs on the market, and the small fanbase is one of the most rabid out there. However, even if your not a huge TCG buff, a promised $39.99 price point will ensure that you can take a good hard look at the game without really breaking your budget - and with hundreds of hours to complete the single-player quests, you are certain to get your cash worth.
Back from the dead, I'm afraid.
