Chrono Trigger DS Review

Chrono Trigger is the game that jRPG fans will not shut up about. I had never played it, so I figured this would be a good opportunity to test those waters. Followers of this site will know that I have little patience for the Japanese school of RPG design, so take this as monumental praise: I finished it.

Now, Chrono Trigger is 13 years old, so my main complaints are likely a result of being spoiled by modern games. My chief gripe is that it’s easy to get lost. “Where do I go next?”, “What was I doing again?”, and other questions pop up at the start of nearly every session. All of that could be resolved with a few lines of text, e.g. a journal. That sort of feature would have been a greater improvement to me than the Monster Hunter-cum-Pokemon Trainer mode that they decided to add instead.

I’ve never felt compelled to capture and fight digital monsters. I was getting tired of Magic the Gathering when the first wave of Pokémon hit. The entire notion feels tired to me. I’m not going to complain, as it was included in the game for free and was never pushed on me, unlike the love story.

I’m sure the party selection feature was innovative for its time, but I wish the game recognized who I favored in my group. I never used the princess, opting instead for the incredibly cool Lucca as my female companion. The game’s story was oblivious to my disinterest in the princess. To be fair, I cannot think of a modern RPG that takes my favorite characters into account, so maybe it’s too difficult to do.

The cinematics are very well done. They capture Tetsuya Nomura’s style and help to set Chrono Trigger’s mood. It’s not for everyone, though – it looks a lot like Dragon Ball/DBZ. If that works for you, great, you’ll enjoy the sparse cut-scenes.

Speaking of Tetsuya Nomura, whoever decided to have a frog knight as a main character is either a cracked genius or insane. To make him one of the most useful characters? Balls nuts. I hated having a character named Frog in my party, but I was at a loss without him. On top of that, he was critical to the best story line in the game. Unbelievable.

This game is shows its age like an old woman sleeping as she drools on her knit cardigan, snore-whistling through brittle three-inch-long noise hair. Somehow it still manages to be charming, as it would be if the old woman was your grandma, and you know she’ll give you warm peanut butter cookies once she finishes her nap.

You’ll find yourself laughing at some of the dialog and Japanese humor. You may enjoy some of the clichés you encounter as they don’t seem terribly out of place. The game does its best to not abuse the time-travel mechanic until the very end – something more recent titles have yet to emulate correctly.

Skip it: If you really, really hate jRPGs and do not own a SNES, DS, or Playstation (1, 2, or 3).

Rent it: It might be difficult to get a full taste of this game during a rental. For the price you’d probably be better off just buying it if you’re interested.

Buy it: This classic may be older than you. If you’re a fan of Mistwalker or Square Enix you owe it to yourself to pick up this title.

Final Fantasy III Impressions

Editor: This review is provided by our friends at FullSigNull. Be sure to head over there for a great podcast and some excellent tech and gaming coverage.

JRPG fans seem to be few and far between these days as the market continues to bog with re-hash garbage. The wonderful thing about the Final Fantasy series is that you know what to expect before you even open up the game’s casing. For a series that’s been around since 1990, it’s pretty safe to say that it’s a key player in its genre.

Final Fantasy I and II certainly show their age in 2008 and will continue to become weathered and dated as the clock keeps a’tickin’. Final Fantasy III took what the first two didn’t have and ran with it: personality. We here at FullSignull are big fans of games that feel alive. Thankfully, the world in FF3 seems like a living, breathing ecosystem. Characters have finally been given a bit more “oomph” to compliment the already expansive library of jobs and equipment. The first two games felt extremely linear and featureless, whereas the third installment continues to grow right up until the final dungeon.

This game is highly acclaimed as being extremely difficult, which I would only halfway agree with. Sans the few hours of grinding when I had some spare time, the difficulty curve seemed to go right in line with where I should have been. The game presents itself in the typical JRPG progression style of: Town, Travel, Dungeon, Boss, Back to town, rinse, repeat. The interesting thing about Final Fantasy III is the difficulty progression between a dungeon’s monsters and its boss. You can absolutely count on the fact that you’re going to be able to one-shot most of the trash mobs while the boss is able to wipe the floor with you. This happened in every single dungeon in the game, though, I only died on the first few. Having found out the formula, 15-20 minutes of grinding before making a hard push through the dungeon should remedy all issues you may have.

While on the subject, it’s probably a good time to mention that there aren’t any save points in dungeons. The only place you can save your game is the world map. If you’ve played any other Final Fantasy games, you’re probably scratching your head. This was never a big issue for me, as the world map is where you’ll be spending most of your time anyway. The dungeons are quite short and never present any sort of “maze” element. There were very rarely and spots where I found myself wondering which way to go. There’s usually one straight-shot path, and one dead end corridor with a chest

The job system is what really sets this game apart from its first two predecessors. For the first time in the series, you have the option to choose between an expansive list of jobs. It’s got the typical Final Fantasy list (ie: Dragoon, Knight, Geomancer, White Mage, etc) with a few surprises. Increasing your job level yields monetary reward and switching jobs leaves you with a cooldown of 2-4 battles before you can start gaining job experience. Aside from the few unbelievably pointless jobs (black mage being one of them), It’s a system that works extremely well.

Final Fantasy fans are probably wondering about the quality of the soundtrack, right? The score is nowhere near the series’ best, but it’s still excellent. The battle music is catchy (it has to be, right?) as are the specific dungeon themes.

The only issue I had with Final Fantasy III is the difficulty of the last dungeon/boss. Contrary to what I said earlier, this is the only dungeon that will have you screaming “uncle” and tearing your hair out. I don’t want to give much away, but I spent 5 hours grinding just to deal with the last boss alone. Typically, the mobs in the dungeon were a sinch, though the last boss was more difficult than knocking out Mr. T in a pillow fight. To boot, even getting to the final encounter takes at least an hour’fifteen if you’re not running from random fights. Even then, there are four extremely difficult minibosses waiting in the room just before him. It’s an unbelievably frustrating situation, though worth every bit of the sore throat you’re bound to receive from screaming your curse word of choice.

All in all, Final Fantasy III is the first game in the series that comes off as an easily playable piece of art. Clocking in at almost 30 hours even, I don’t regret any minute of it. I felt like I was a part of the world, grew attached to the characters, and found myself extremely eager to see what was looming around the next corner. Though it suffers from “not-quite-there-yet syndrome,” it’s an excellent addition to your library. Be prepared for a tough experience if you don’t like random encounters, but patience pays off in the end, right? Final Fantasy III was a tremendous milestone for the genre and remains to be an easily lovable game.

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood

As an RPG SC:TDB relies on story. There has never been a good story in the Sonic. Three cartoon series, a comic book series, and a plethora of games have never produced a good tale. It’s a concessious among fans that the best of these stories is the Saturday Morning cartoon (called SatAM to distinguish it from the other cartoons) where Sonic (voiced by Jaleel White aka Steve Urkel) tools around with a crew of “Freedom Fighters” led by Princess Sally Acorn (a squirrel), with a supporting cast including mechanic walruses, half-robot rabbits, and other obvious archetypes. The comic used this setting as a starting point and went out to a fully developed universe. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still extremely cheesy, overly melodramatic, and fairly immature, but some thought went into it. It wasn’t “Let’s add more cute and fuzzy creatures!”

So BioWare is stuck with a universe that seems incapable of telling a story. They opted to go with the official video game universe, filled with characters like Shadow, Amy Rose, Big, Rogue, and the rest of the furry fodder. All I can expect from this story line is that plot point a lines up with plot point b, which it does.

/fanboy rant

Since the story is out, the game falls back on battle and puzzle mechanics to support it’s weight. First let’s take a look at battle. You’re in a turned based RPG, which I’m in favor of on mobile devices since it allows you to do other things (like your job) while you’re playing. This advantage is negated because special moves require timed actions to pull off or avoid. Using these special moves is fun for a while, but once you memorize the pattern for a special move you’ll lose the sense of challenge that made it engaging to begin with. It would have been nice if there were an option to randomize where the button you need to press appeared on the screen. Maybe next time.

Since this is a 2.5d world (ala Sonic 3d Blast) they don’t rely heavily on running/jumping puzzles. When  you come to a loop-de-loop, for example, you press a button on the screen to make Sonic run through it. As a result the game is way more slow paced than you might expect. The puzzles you’re presented with come in two varieties, insanely simple, or inanely complex. I solved several puzzles without knowing what I was doing; even after the fact. One particular puzzle was like a game of “Simon,” with a twist. I did not realize what the twist was until I paid the game for a hint, which felt a little sloppy.

You have the option to collect chao, a special creature that will grant your characters various bonuses. Unlike previous titles (even Pokemon) there is no way to breed/raise them. Their abilities can become more effective as you use them and level, but once I acquired a few over-powered chao early on I never felt a difference.  I also never saw a need to change them after I found a set that worked for me.

All of that aside, this is the first Sonic game in a long time that I’ve felt compelled to play to completion.

Skip it: If you don’t like rpgs there’s not enough outside that element to keep you invested. If you’re not a fan of cutesy stories/characters, you’ll probably want to avoid this game as well.

Rent it: Hey, we’ve all been burned by Sonic games in the past. If you’re a gun-shy fan (and you should be) it is worth a rental to see how it floats your boat.

Buy it: If you’re a true blue (haw) Sonic fan you should go for it. If you’re already done with the SquareEnix releases for the DS and you need more RPG goodness this title certainly is competent.

Lego Batman Review

Here we are at the fourth Lego something game, and nothing has changed.

For me the charm of the franchise is wearing thin, and some of the tropes that were merely tolerable previously have become downright annoying. I’m looking at you, vehicle levels. I’d also like to call out levels that have off-screen entrances/exits in multiplayer. This series has been going long enough for the developers to know better.

The character selection doesn’t feel as rich as previous titles, but Batman has always been about Batman and Robin on the hero side, with a diverse cast of villains. The game tries to deliver, but it just feels short in terms of cast.

The only thing I can say that’s positive here is my wife still loves it. Your non-gaming family member might too; but I don’t think there’s enough here to hold your attention.

I really wish there was something substantive to say about this game, but it’s like Diet Coke. It’s nothing you’ll worry about your kids consuming, it doesn’t satisfy your cravings, it’s a pale imitation of something greater, and it’s probably bad for your health to consume in high doses.

Skip it: If you played any other title in the series and/or you will likely play alone.

Rent it: Fans of Batman will probably find something charming here; and if this is your first Lego game a rental is a solid option.

Buy it: It’s still good fodder for a family game night.

The Phoenix Wright Trilogy

Phoenix Wright is truly a unique experience. You play the role of a defense attorney who works a series of increasingly bazaar and complex murder cases. Because all three games use the same mechanics and you can probably do the entire trilogy in less than 30 hours I’m reviewing them together.

The games are broken into two parts, the investigation and the trail. Investigations play like simplified PC adventure games. You speak with potential witnesses and look around relevant sets for clues. In the trial you present the clues you’ve found or “press” witness testimony in order to uncover contradictions. In the second and third game you’re given a device that allows you to tell when someone’s lying during the investigation. You’re given the option to trigger a mini-game where you present a series of evidence to break the person’s lie, and you’re rewarded with a vital clue.

Like the old PC adventure games, Phoenix Wright is strictly linear. The story will not advance unless you uncover all of the clues available, and there is only one correct choice in any situation. To give a specific example of this without providing a spoiler is impossible, but there are times when one piece of evidence will refute an entire line of thinking, but the “correct” answer to present the evidence that directly matches the situation.

Most of the time there is no way to make the correct choice without knowing exactly what the answer is. Unfortunately you will occasionally need to present evidence to reveal the case’s twist. Maybe I was oblivious to clues that gave the twist away, or maybe there was a problem in the localization, but I found myself reaching for a FAQ once or twice a cartridge.

The story is fantastic. There is a lot of quirky humor surrounding very dark plots. While all the cases are about murder (normally motivated by revenge, greed, or betrayal) they often involve absurd characters like circus performers, spirit mediums, or transvestite French chefs, no offense to actual spirit mediums or transvestite French chefs.

The localization was great, especially for a DS game, but sometimes it was done too well. I assumed the court system used America’s judicial system – especially the notion of reasonable doubt. The first time I cast significant doubt on the notion my client was the killer I was taken back when the prosecutor demanded I prove it. Not only did I have to prove there was no possible way my client was guilty, I had to prove that someone else was. I would have preferred the setting be in some fictional Western country; if not Japan where the character’s physical appearance would seem more at home.

I found myself actually interested in the recurring characters. I admired how the relationship between Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth, the main prosecutor in the first game, was developed. I actually felt the begrudged respect between the two characters in a way that I could not have in another form of media. Bravo Capcom, Bravo.

Skip them: If logic puzzles and adventure games aren’t up your ally you’ll never get anywhere in this game. It is an original game, but it borrows heavily from existing genres.

Rent them: The first game would be a solid rental if you’re interested in a story driven game for your DS. I wouldn’t suggest starting in the middle, but they’re all complete experiences if you’re in a pinch.

Buy them: If you’re the kind of person who longs for a return to early 90’s PC gaming, this title is a must have. Even if you’re not, these games are for sale for about $15 each, so it’s very easy to justify picking them up one at a time. There’s very little wrong with the games technically, and they do a lot right.

Pokemon Diamond

Buy it here!

 

 

The storyline is the same as it was in the past for all the other Pokemon games. You start out as a young trainer and take on different gym leaders of various themed Pokemon teams and other trainers to become the best trainer in the Pokemon world. Earning the different badges then challenging the elite 4. Again we have some wacky group trying to mess with something in the world using legendary Pokemon as well.

 

Sprites, animations and settings as well as the design for the Pokemon have a nice upgrade in detail because of the DS. Colors are all bright and are wonderfully done for attack animations as well as for the Pokemon themselves.

 

Sound and music for the game are well placed and fitting for the game. Nothing stood out as annoying and the sounds the Pokemon make are crisp and differ from each other.

 

Collecting Pokemon is achieved in a few new ways. Some can be found if you have the older GBA Pokemon games. Inserting them into the DS while you play Diamond/Pearl will have certain Pokemon appearing in different places around the world. You can also trade over Wi-Fi to find Pokemon you are looking. Some old staples are here such as breeding Pokemon from eggs, the swarm concept where you talk to some one and they tell you they heard of Pokemon in a certain area in the world. Day and night have an effect also to find certain Pokemon and on Fridays a new Pokemon will appear at a certain spot in the game. Plenty of storage is available for the Pokemon you want as well as for the items you find this time around. A new set of Pokemon have been added bringing the total to 493.

 

Theres plenty of people still playing this game over Wi-Fi after months of being released because of fan supported communities. It is easy to find people to play that are willing to give friend codes and many websites even host their own tournaments. This is subject to cheating of course by some people, thats hard to get around in a game like this but you can still find communities that set up gym challenges with out cheating, providing different battle formats and some even give out rewards for winning. No more buying wires to connect to other players to trade and battle. Thank you Nintendo!

 

Other features in this game include a battle tower to put your favorite team to the test and see how long you you can keep battling. Fossil Pokemon, which are Pokemon you bring to a scientist in a town bring it back to life, are found by digging in the underground this time around, all the previous ones are available as well as 2 new monsters. Digging involves finding a spot in the underground marked by a small star and then hitting a button at that spot, a screen comes up and you try to dig out various items or fossils before it collapses on you. Theres a game you can play that I have not been able to experience in the underground as well that has you setting up traps to catch other players. I am not sure of the purpose of this but it may be entertaining if you have some friends you can play with as it is intended for local play and not over Wi-Fi. Hidden bases make a return as well and are used underground this time instead of various places in the world. All of these are just some examples of the things you can do in Diamond/Pearl as well with more that I have not mentioned.

 

Skip it – Spend lots of time Collecting items as well as training monsters to fight with, its RPG at its core, don’t buy if you’re not an RPG fan at least, or if you are looking for an actual interesting story.

 

Rent it – Have some interest in the Pokemon series this is the one to start out with, its jam packed with features.

 

Buy it – This is probably the best release of the series so far, Wi-Fi battling and trading just adds a new dimension to Pokemon that makes it much more fun.