Reviews Written by malevolent_star
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April 23, 2003
Great game.
4 of 4 Yahoo! Users found this review helpful FFX is a superb game, but personally, I still think FF6 and FF7 are better. The best thing about this game, other than the graphics and sound, is the battle system. Never before, in a Final Fantasy game, have I seen a better battle system, with the option the swap other party members in and out. Not really too much to badmouth in this game, although, it was fairly linear, (except at the end) a somewhat lackluster story, the quests to get some of the more important items, (Lulus Sigil, Tidus Sigil, etc.) and Blitzball is the most frustrating FF mini-game to date (FF8s card game is a close second with its stupid-ass rules that get spread.) Flaws nonwithstanding, a pinnacle in RPG games! ... -
September 9, 2002
So much is wrong with this game.
Star Ocean could have easily been a good game, but it got lost somewhere along the way. Let me start off by praising Star Ocean for what it did right. The item creation/skill aspect of this game is truly its shining point. Skills such as cooking, sketching, singing, etc. can be learned and used to create helpful items. Sadly, that seems to be the only good thing I can say about this game. The dialogue is horrible, almost worse than that of The Legend of Dragoon (due to a botched translation job.) The graphics are decent, as is the sound, but those two features don't make a game in my opinion. An RPG is all about playability and storyline, and Star Ocean fails in those two areas too. The story is completely unoriginal, the characters are weak, as is their development. Star Ocean, however, does have a substantial amount of replay value, considering there are roughly 80 endings. However, it's highly unlikely that any person would want to, considering achieving one ending was already disheartening enough. I can't recommend this game, unless you can find it for less than $10, otherwise, I advise avoiding it altogether. ... -
September 9, 2002
Chrono Cross is no Chrono Trigger.
1 of 2 Yahoo! Users found this review helpful Chrono Trigger, in my opinion, is one of the greatest games of all-time, in terms of RPGs. I must admit, I eagerly anticipated Chrono Cross' arrival, however, upon playing it, I suddenly came to the conclusion that Chrono Cross is no Chrono Trigger. Now I realize that CC isn't an official sequel to CT, but therein lies the problem. Chrono Cross should have been a sequel, and even though it makes an abundant amount of references to Chrono Trigger, in truth, Chrono Cross is a sub-story of sorts. The game itself succeeds on many levels. The graphics are vivid and lush, pushing the Playstation to its limits, and the music is fantastic. The story is intriguing, yet it is also perplexing. The battle system is also interesting, but lackluster in that it pretty much is useless. The double-tech and triple-tech abilities are still intact, well, sort of. Only certain characters are able to perform them, and speaking of characters, that is another weakness of this game. There's too many of them to be developed thoroughly. Some of the characters peaked my interest, while others, I quite honestly, didn't give a rat's ass for. Another flaw of this game, is the length and challenge: too short and too easy. Any decent RPG should take at least 60 hours minimum to complete, and Chrono Cross takes a third of that. The battles are entirely too easy, with bosses being the biggest culprits, in that they don't provide any sort of challenge (such as decimating your party.) I felt as though Chrono Cross was a sub-par effort, because it just didn't capitalize on Chrono Trigger as much as it should have, and that is the biggest disappointment a Chrono Trigger fan could experience. Decent, but not phenominal, try Chrono Trigger instead. ... -
September 9, 2002
Superb, but flawed...
FF Tactics, quite simply, is an awesome and addictive game. The job/class system is truly the most commendable feature in the game. The graphics are crisp and colorful and the sound is top notch. However, the one true flaw in this game is the botched translation job. For the most part, much of the game's dialogue can be understood, but many of the battle quotes make little or no sense at all. Also, the camera angles can be a hassle at times, often disallowing viewing of actions, characters, etc. Yet, these flaws aside, FF Tactics is nonetheless, an excellent buy for anyone interested in strategy/rpgs. ... -
March 30, 2002
Mediocre RPG experience.
1 of 1 Yahoo! Users found this review helpful I really wanted to like this game, but so many things prevented that from happening. My main complaint is the dialogue, which sounds robotic. A crappy translation job is to blame here. I also felt the story was very lackluster and the character development was really weak, as I didn't care much for any of them. The graphics and sound are slightly above average, and I must say the environments that some of the towns reside in, are quite exquisite. The only thing I can really praise about this game is the battle system, which is somewhat unique, but nevertheless, frustrating at times. A good start, but needs to be revamped. Hopefully the sequel improves on the original. ...
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Xtremely disappointing...
Pros: Great battle system, very dungeon-crawling oriented (if you like that sort of thing)
Cons: Questionable voice acting, lame story, very linear
The Grandia series could be regarded as one of the top tiers in the RPG world, however, Grandia Xtreme fails to further that notion. A highlight of the Grandia series has always been character development, as well as storyline, which Grandia Xtreme is totally devoid of. While voice acting has never been the Grandia series' strength, it was tolerable in Grandia 1 & 2, whereas in Grandia Xtreme, it borderlines on unbearable. Throw in some mediocre graphics (at best), an absence of any locales to visit, linear plotline (which has always plagued the Grandia series), and that makes for a somewhat lackluster effort. However, one notable strength for Grandia Xtreme is the battle system, which has always been commendable among all the Grandia games. If you like dungeon-crawling and experience gaining, this is your RPG. Otherwise, I can't really recommend Grandia Xtreme for anyone else. ...