Post by alienfetucine on Jul 28, 2007 8:20:26 GMT -5
Skies of Arcadia originally came out for the dreamcast. It was later cleaned up a little and ported to the Gamecube. I've only played Legends, so that's what I'm basing this review on. >.>
Graphics: 8/10
They aren't breathtaking, or amazing, or anything like that. But that doesn't mean the graphics are bad, either. The GameCube version Legends has cleaned up graphics, making everything look slightly better. They're not XBox360 or PS3 quality, but they don't really need to be.
Sound/Music: 10/10
No complaints at all here. Not really a big sound person, sorry. >.>
Dungeons: 10/10
The dungeons fit perfectly. The puzzles didn't really seem like they were just there to hinder progress, it felt like they were part of the temple or wherever it was. They flowed just right, and they felt right for where they were. Meh, I just can't explain it.
Bosses: 9/10
The bosses had the right level of difficulty, and felt like they were in the right place. They weren't particularly epic, due to the turn-based battle system, which is where they lost a point.
Difficulty
No rating for this part. As long as you have the right special moves, magic, and are at roughly at the right level, you shouldn't have too much trouble.
Side quests: 9/10
Legends added a few new side quests, from 12 new almost boss battles, to finding invisible fish, to finding discoveries. However, finding the discoveries can get pretty boring after awhile.
Gameplay:8/10
Battle System: The battle system is turn based, but instead of everyone lining up and taking shots at the enemies like in the older Final Fantasies, enemies are moving around and fake attacking. It just makes it much more interesting. However, there a just a few too many battles.
Magic: Magic only takes one MP to cast, but takes different amounts of Spirit to cast. Spirit is regenerated at the beginning of each round, but it's not until you get to around level twenty for you to be able to generate enough to actually do anything other than directly attacking on the first round. After a battle, you get AP, which goes toward you learning new magic depending what element your weapon was when the battle ended. So if your weapon was yellow, you would get AP toward learning lightning magic.
Ship Battles: The main method of transportation in the game is via ships which can somehow fly. >.> You get to pilot a variety of different ships, and eventually are able to own your own around 1/3 of the way through the game. This ship will be constantly upgraded to open new areas for you to go to. You will also get into battles using the ships themselves. These battles are very different from the random encounters, but I'm too lazy to explain it right now.
Discoveries: When you are near a discovery, your compass will start to spin around, and if you press A, you will find it, which you can then sell at the nearest Sailor's Guild. They are a main source of income in this game. However, since there are more than eighty of them in the game, it can get pretty boring hunting them down.
Special Moves: The special moves are like the magic, except they are generally stronger and don't cost MP. You learn the moves by finding items called Moonberries that you can find after battles and in chests. You then give them to the character you want to learn the move. However, the more powerful the move is, the more moonberries it takes to learn the move. For example, Lunar Blessing, is one of the characters first moves. It only costs one Moonberry. Whereas Pirate's Wrath, one of the most powerful moves in the game, costs four Moonberries.
Story: 10/10
It don't want to spoil anything, so... But trust me, the story is great.
First review. ^.^ Tell me if I missed anything.
Graphics: 8/10
They aren't breathtaking, or amazing, or anything like that. But that doesn't mean the graphics are bad, either. The GameCube version Legends has cleaned up graphics, making everything look slightly better. They're not XBox360 or PS3 quality, but they don't really need to be.
Sound/Music: 10/10
No complaints at all here. Not really a big sound person, sorry. >.>
Dungeons: 10/10
The dungeons fit perfectly. The puzzles didn't really seem like they were just there to hinder progress, it felt like they were part of the temple or wherever it was. They flowed just right, and they felt right for where they were. Meh, I just can't explain it.
Bosses: 9/10
The bosses had the right level of difficulty, and felt like they were in the right place. They weren't particularly epic, due to the turn-based battle system, which is where they lost a point.
Difficulty
No rating for this part. As long as you have the right special moves, magic, and are at roughly at the right level, you shouldn't have too much trouble.
Side quests: 9/10
Legends added a few new side quests, from 12 new almost boss battles, to finding invisible fish, to finding discoveries. However, finding the discoveries can get pretty boring after awhile.
Gameplay:8/10
Battle System: The battle system is turn based, but instead of everyone lining up and taking shots at the enemies like in the older Final Fantasies, enemies are moving around and fake attacking. It just makes it much more interesting. However, there a just a few too many battles.
Magic: Magic only takes one MP to cast, but takes different amounts of Spirit to cast. Spirit is regenerated at the beginning of each round, but it's not until you get to around level twenty for you to be able to generate enough to actually do anything other than directly attacking on the first round. After a battle, you get AP, which goes toward you learning new magic depending what element your weapon was when the battle ended. So if your weapon was yellow, you would get AP toward learning lightning magic.
Ship Battles: The main method of transportation in the game is via ships which can somehow fly. >.> You get to pilot a variety of different ships, and eventually are able to own your own around 1/3 of the way through the game. This ship will be constantly upgraded to open new areas for you to go to. You will also get into battles using the ships themselves. These battles are very different from the random encounters, but I'm too lazy to explain it right now.
Discoveries: When you are near a discovery, your compass will start to spin around, and if you press A, you will find it, which you can then sell at the nearest Sailor's Guild. They are a main source of income in this game. However, since there are more than eighty of them in the game, it can get pretty boring hunting them down.
Special Moves: The special moves are like the magic, except they are generally stronger and don't cost MP. You learn the moves by finding items called Moonberries that you can find after battles and in chests. You then give them to the character you want to learn the move. However, the more powerful the move is, the more moonberries it takes to learn the move. For example, Lunar Blessing, is one of the characters first moves. It only costs one Moonberry. Whereas Pirate's Wrath, one of the most powerful moves in the game, costs four Moonberries.
Story: 10/10
It don't want to spoil anything, so... But trust me, the story is great.
First review. ^.^ Tell me if I missed anything.