Thursday, March 30, 2006
Quickview
Good: Classic 16-bit RPG
Bad: Clunky battle system
Wanted: More chefs!
Yet another classic from the 16-bit era has landed onto the GBA but this one isn't just a remake. Tales of Phantasia was released more than a decade ago in Japan on the Super Famicom and it's taken that long for the game to make a Western world appearance. Surprisingly the game's presentation and overall gameplay doesn't show its age because of the updated art. The battle system is unique from other RPG's but unique doesn't always mean better. There are fundamental problems with the battle system preventing it from being intuitive and long-lasting.
Tales of Phantasia falls in line with the typical Japanese RPG storyline. In other words, it's time for Cress to save the world. Much of the story is told through scrolling text, but the game does have moments where digitized voice work is used. Even though the quality of the voices isn't top notch, in fact I had moments were I struggled to understand the dialogue, overall it's a nice addition.
The music is definitely charming but nothing memorable. The game also delivers its visuals with on old school SNES look. A good amount of detail was put into character design along with weapon and armor design. Each piece of armor and weapon has its own look, unlike most 16-bit RPG's. This way you'll be able to see the different designs each weapon bodes. Overall the presentation and looks of the game are above the standard and are always important factors in determining how immersive the experience is.
As unique as the battle system is, there are definitely some major improvements that can be done for future titles. Instead of going with a traditional turn-based combat system, ToP implements a real-time action side scroller. You'll control Cress or anybody else in your party while the computer handles the other members automatically. If you've played Tales of Symphonia on the Gamecube, expect something similar. The system gets the job done, but the flaws stand out a bit.
First of all, the framerate lag can be devastating sometimes and the response to button pushing seems to be a bit off. It's almost as if you'll need to anticipate your own actions by pressing the buttons a tad bit early, otherwise you'll be late on some of your timing. The system feels clunky and responds clunky. To top it off, the game runs off random battles that seem to spawn beyond the capacities of being enjoyable. It's as if a large amount of random battles occur in order to lengthen the play time of the adventure. After time the battle system does get easier and a bit more comfortable, but the main problem is that by then the occurrences will have become tedious and annoying.
ToP may just fall a bit short in the battle system, but makes up for it by with an amazing non-linear path. ToP really feels like an adventure because the game doesn't constantly have an arrow pointing you in the right direction. You'll need to figure things out through puzzles, clues, etc. The side adventures are numerous where you'll find secret items. It's the side adventures that truly make the game an experience. Perhaps you feel like making some money today, or the next day you can explore new areas and perhaps find a hidden weapon. The pay off of finding these hidden weapons again relates back to each one having its own artwork. Carrying around a sword that is twice the size of your body and glistens with an epic glow is quite a great feeling.
Not only are there items to collect, ToP features a cooking system where the food you conjure can be used in battle to restore health, buff your party, etc. Recipes are scattered throughout the world and by finding these you'll learn stronger and better recipes. It's an interesting system because you could literally take as long as you want to work on your profession and to be quite honest, it becomes an addiction. I got so involved with finding recipes and cooking them that I almost forgot what point I was at in the main story.
I enjoyed my time with ToP even thought it's not without flaws. Luckily the good aspects of the game outshine the bad ones. The great presentation and open endedness of the adventure make this title worth a look for any RPG fan.
Graphics: B-
Sound: C+
First Play: C-
Last Play: C-
Gameplay: C-
Overall: 74% C
