A game that while very enjoyable as an RPG looks quite dated, being among the earliest 3d RPGs. That shouldn't necessarily stop you from playing it though!
Graphics (15/30pts, judged based on system)- This game was created for the Saturn originally, so it's difficult to judge it fairly. The graphics are 2d sprites on 3d worlds. the animation of the sprites is well done, and there are many many creatures and PC/NPCs. While textures are very poor- pixels being very easily seen all the time, the sheer number of environments means there is constant variety, and the game is very colorful. Admirable, but the PSX was capable of more. Cutscenes are a mix of anime/2d and CGI and are generally decent to quite good at times. They are not an integral part of the game experience though.
Sound:FX/Voice (4/10pts): TERRIBLE voice acting- the actors destroy lines even when well written. There are also the typical "special move" and "victory" phrases that you can't turn off as far as I could see. And they are TERRIBLE too. If I have to hear Rapp say, "100-million degrees, take that!" one more time I am going to scream. UGH. Sounds are decent, and spell sound FX are nice.
Sound:Music (10/10pts): Awesome soundtrack- from whimsy to worldbeat, symphonic, to a theme that sounds at times like an 80's TV police drama or something. Usually the music fits, and makes, the mood.
Gameplay:Length (15/15): This game occupied me for about 42 hours, and I did not do a lot of excessive leveling up and did not tackle some completely optional dungeons. Not only is the game long, but it is enjoyable the whole way through. Areas are usually never more than 3 levels long so you are constantly changing environments. I could see this game going to 60 hours, but though very enjoyable it takes an even greater game than this to get me to max out the play value to its fullest, especially when some of the optional dungeons are DAMN hard.
Gameplay-Story (3/5): The story goes from extremely juvenile to complex, sometimes minute-by-minute. The dialog for the main characters can be very annoying. The main character Justin spends half the game motivated by simply being an adventurer- he's on an adventure because he wants to be a great adventurer. The story eventually (thankfully) centers around a typical Gaia legend (if you've seen Akira, Mononoke, FF the movie you are familiar) and blends SF and Fantasy quite well. Could be higher if it weren't for the overly juvenile parts. Imagine Mario Party-level story for hours, in a genre that is story-driven.
Gameplay-Game Design (25/30): The battle system is awesome. I must've fought a few hundred battles and enjoyed almost all of them. The real-time turn based system is quite nicely balanced and the use of spells/spell learning is well done. Item upgrading is easy and well-managed. I wouldn't give many RPGs high marks for innovation- most RPGs use similar concepts. However, as RPGs go this one has some nice twists, and is a combination of difficulty and complexity. The game is sufficiently difficult, with some boss battles that were quite difficult. The game keeps you on your toes and even when you are slaughtering the enemies it doesn't feel easy and boring. The many spells/skills and combining to learn more and the various item types make the game a little complex- seasoned RPGers will be fine, but I can see people getting a little confused at times. Towards the end I was still learning stuff.
Total- 72 rounded down to 70.
Notes: if graphics don't matter to you, consider this game 85, rounded up to 90. The game is very enjoyable. I'd probably view it this way, but I'm trying to give a more universal review. As such I'm leveling my critical eye at this game though graphics are not hugely important to me personally. If graphics are super-important to you, and you have little patience for old-skool graphics, view this as a 50-60.
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