Like the First Impressions I gave a while ago, this is divided into seven sections: Story, Atmosphere, Music, Graphics, Gameplay, Miscellaneous (applies to importers), and Overall. If you just want a summary, skip ahead to Overall.
1) Story: 80%
I felt the story was quite good. It was in the vein of previous Lunar games, while it still had some new things to offer. There's a good deal of backstory explained about the dragons, dragonmasters, and Althena, as well as the background of the beastman-human divide that's already over in the official Lunar: Dragon Song page. And, I enjoyed the ending. There are a few surprises, so it might not be ideal for everyone, but it kept me interested.
The thing to keep in mind is that this is a handheld game. So the scope won't be as grand as previous Lunars. Both Silver Star and Eternal Blue had the capacity to make their story on an epic scale. Lunar: Dragon Song is excellent for a handheld, and you should expect the same kind of quality storytelling as previous Lunar games. But it won't be as long or as intense due to the format.
If you're curious, I clocked in at 48 hours for the game, but that was due to going overboard on some of the sidequest courier jobs (ending up around level 55 and with 100,000S to spare). Average playing time will probably be around 30-40 hours.
2) Atmosphere: 80%
The atmosphere was definitely the kind to expect in a good Lunar game. It felt much more like Lunar than, say, Magic School. The isometric viewpoint shouldn't deter anyone; familiar locations like the White Dragon Shrine, Wierd Woods, the Frontier, and even the rough location of the different continents keep it with a definite Lunar feel. All this is amplified by appropriate music in each area.
The only unfortunate down side is the absence of Vane. This takes place about 1000 years before TSS; and since Vane is about 1000 years old in TSS, its presence could've gone either way. Although, I don't see how it could have fit into the story, but even a minor role could have sufficed.
One thing I very much enjoyed was how the gameplay and storyline were interwoven via Jian's courier job. Having to find work for silver, instead of the usual "go and kill more monsters" solution made things more interesting. It made it feel as if fighting wasn't the only thing the game was about, and placed more importance on talking to other characters in towns and villages.
Also, the 'exploration' aspect for each town is still there. Although you select town locations on the map, you move the cursor around or choose from a list (with the touchpad) where to go. And, the town locations themselves are numerous and big enough to where you have plenty of NPCs to talk to if you wish. Large cities still felt like large cities, and villages still felt like villages, rather than just points on a map.
3) Music: 90%
I definitely enjoyed the music from the very beginning. The DS speakers I don't think do it enough justice (try connecting it to regular speakers via the headphone jack). It followed its predecessors in conveying the right emotion based on the location. There are some themes here I think that'll get stuck in your head--in a good way. And, although Noriyuki Iwadare wasn't the composer, it sounds remarkably like his work.
4) Graphics: 50%
The graphics were so-so. It definitely looks like programmers and designers are still working with how to make games look aesthetically pleasing on the DS (the best-looking games tend to all be first-party, so far). The sprites and backgrounds look ok, but there nothing too remarkable. During battles, also, monster sprites would occasionally spill into the top screen, which made things look a little awkward.
The graphics weren't too spectacular, but they did a good enough job to carry the story across and not detract from the game.
5) Gameplay: 55%
Gameplay is the hardest thing to evaluate still, because certain elements were done very well, while others were quite lacking.
The Good: the courier jobs. They provided optional 'sidequests' interspersed throughout the game, so that you didn't have to concentrate exclusively on the main storyline the entire way through. However, the courier jobs are the only way to make a decent sum of money to afford new equipment. I enjoyed this since it provides another solution to your problems besides "go out and kill more monsters." Occasionally you'd need to hunt down a few items (albeit quite easy once you have Gabryel and Jian's magic), and sometimes you could buy them in the port town on Wrick. Expectedly, courier orders that needed rarer items had higher payoffs--by the end, I managed to find some four-star jobs that paid around 10,000 silver.
The Bad: non-selection of enemies in battle. The characters will normally strike the weakest enemy on screen, without the player being able to select who to attack. I'm a big strategy game fan, so I like to plan out each battle. That wasn't possible to the same extent that I'm used to here, so it was a bit unnerving, though it wasn't a huge setback. Although, strategy during boss fights (when it really counts) is still just as significant, since there's normally only one boss enemy, and there's still some strategy involved with choosing when to use magic spells and when to conserve them.
The Good: running. I know, you've probably heard about losing HP during running, but the rate is about 3-4HP per second. If you count it out, that's pretty slow, even if you're running through an entire dungeon. In the beginning, it can be a bother to where you should just walk around until you hit level 7 or 8 (which you'll likely be at by the time you hit the first major dungeon at Delri Shrine). After the first third of the game or so, you can usually run everywhere without it being a huge problem. The reason I think this isn't a bad feature is because it's worlds better than the running in Eternal Blue and Silver Star Story for the Playstation, with the short dashes. You could run through an entire area and avoid every battle this way, which I liked when I just wanted to run from one town to the next, or was too low on HP/MP. Not to mention that the 30% HP/MP restoration you get once you clear all enemies in Virtue mode from an area usually refills what you lose by running.
The Bad: high MP cost for spells. For most of the game, the MP cost for regenerative spells was too high. You pick up some items which reduce this cost at a few points in the game, at which point it's fine. But, it was more useful to just use the 99-potions (or 99 Heal Gums) strategy instead. Oh, and MP-restoration items can only be picked up in treasure chests, not bought in towns. There are about 30 or so throughout the game, but I didn't like not being able to restore MP with purchased items. Oddly enough, this ties into the story itself, since Dragon Song takes place when magical ability is an extremely rare thing. It takes some getting used to... but they could've at least used some shops selling Mental Gums (cheapest MP restoration) around.
The Good: town exploration. I already mentioned under Atmosphere that the 'exploration' aspect is still carried over from previous Lunars, although in a different format. Beyond that, when you're running into town to deliver some goods, it's convenient being able to select where to go as opposed to running clear across town. Since it's a handheld game and smaller in scale, they seem to have struck a decent balance between convenience of movement and the openness of exploration.
Midway: the dual battle system. There are two ways to fight, in Virtue Mode and Normal Mode. Virtue Mode earns you experience points, but you can't pick up items that way (and hence it's not profitable). Normal Mode gets you items and cards, but you can't earn EXP and can't open blue treasure chests if they're on-screen. This isn't really good nor bad, since it changes the strategy by which you approach the game. Occasionally you'll be more interested in acquiring items, particularly if you're filling out an order for work, but your first time in an area you'll more likely be interested in clearing out enemies and opening the occasional blue treasure chest. Since the levelling up rate is pretty rapid, there's not a huge trade-off involved between EXP and money as it might seem.
There are a few other minor down-sides. It's irritating having some enemies able to steal or destroy equipment, even if it's usually just some miscellaneous items. The occasional battle that gets Jian paralyzed or asleep can also extend the fight even a minute or two. Also, Jian's main magic spells can only be cast when he has a ring equipped (later in the game), and this requires de-equipping the ring which allows him to counter-attack. Though, this is in line with the era of the game, where magic is an extremely uncommon thing that few people have access to, save for healing and support magic.
In all, the gameplay has some very nice and original elements, while a few that were implemented poorly. If gameplay is the only thing you care about in a game, then you'll probably find something in there to criticize. But if you just need good enough gameplay to enjoy playing, then the above shouldn't deter you from getting Lunar: Dragon Song.
6) Miscellaneous: N/A
These are a few notes that won't factor into your decision to buy the domestic US release. I mentioned last time that the only thing that really bugged me about the text was the overabundance of kana (phonetic characters) with very little kanji (symoblic characters) to break it up. I think they may have been aiming for a wider audience, and perhaps trying to conserve some cartridge memory, but it just starts looking funny after reading a whole lot of it.
If you're considering importing, then it's best if you understand enough Japanese to get by. The 'consultation' feature lets you know exactly where you are in the game and clues you in on what to do next, though a basic knowledge is enough to get you by on that. The main problem would be with earning money, as if you can't read the text, then it's hard to figure out (a) who to deliver the goods to, and (b) what goods to deliver (and (c) where to find them). About 1-2 years' worth would do you fine, though you might miss out on some of the better points of the story.
But, with the US release less than two weeks away, if you don't have it already, then don't import. Just buy the US release. The translation is going to be one of UbiSoft's better jobs. While Lunar Legend was a bit rushed, Lunar: Dragon Song has enough good editors on it to where the text will come out sounding much better.
7) Overall: 75%
Overall, I found Lunar: Genesis to be a great handheld RPG. The main things which brought it down were a few problems with gameplay, mediocre graphics, and a storyline that was a little short. However, the storyline was quite adequate for a handheld game, and it was more than enough to satisfy me. Beyond that, the gameplay and graphics were really, really minor issues in comparison to the storyline, music, and the well-executed gameplay elements.
I'd say, if you just need good enough gameplay to get by, then the rest of Lunar: Dragon Song will be worth your money, as there are a lot of good aspects of this game. It rates a 75% for me overall, below my opinion of Silver Star or Eternal Blue (but above that for Magic School). So, I'd say preorder the game and enjoy it for what it's worth. |
