Infinite Undiscovery Review

By Dan Whitehead Published 8 September, 2008

Better keep looking.

Version tested: Xbox 360

That title. I mean, really. Are they even trying to make sense, or do Japanese RPG developers just shove random English words together these days and hope for the best? Will next year see the release of a 60-hour epic called Melancholy Windsock Concerto? Decoding its semantic tangle, I can only surmise than an "infinite undiscovery" refers a long-winded and fruitless task that feels like it'll never end. And, funnily enough, that's almost the perfect description of this deeply flawed effort from Star Ocean creator tri-Ace.

According to the pre-release hullabaloo, the idea was to create a revolutionary game that would shake up the staid world of JRPG with its bold ideas. What we've ended up with is a game that wallows in the exact same narrative clichés as its peers, while its attempts to break out of the traditions of turn-based combat and linear progression are either non-existent or hopelessly fumbled.

Our hero is Capell. He's a pretty young flute player, banged up in prison for having the wrong face. He's the exact double of Lord Sigmund, you see, leader of a band of rebels who are roaming the land breaking chains. Chains? Yes, the bad guys have tethered the planet to the moon with giant chains in order to steal its lunar power, and Sigmund is the only man who can destroy these monstrous bonds. Or is he?

Capell is sprung from his cell by Aya, a feisty Tifa-clone and one of Sigmund's warriors who makes the same mistake as the baddies. Thinking she's freeing her brave leader, she's understandably miffed to discover she's saddled with a mewling flautist for a sidekick. As luck would have it, despite all the early cut-scenes depicting Capell as a nervous kid who fears combat, during the actual gameplay he's an instantly proficient swordsman who has no problems leading all around him into deadly battles. Such is life in a JRPG.

'Infinite Undiscovery' Screenshot 1

Hideous child warrior Rico has the ability to engage in conversation with small animals. Sometimes this leads to secret areas. Mostly it just wastes your time.

Make no mistake, the first hours of Infinite Undiscovery are a real chore to get through. The game offers up precious little in the way of role-playing and instead forces you through a series of disjointed and horribly executed action segments, all of which seem purposefully designed to show off the game at its absolute worst. There's a mindless chase, marred by lousy environment design that means Capell is incapable of navigating even the slightest drop without trekking all the way around it. There's a horrible stealth section that finds you creeping around a forest in pitch darkness, trying to sneak up on enemies even though the extent of your stealth abilities is walking quite slowly. There's an obscure puzzle that relies on a hitherto unmentioned and unexplained support ability, hidden in the folds of the opaque menu system. There's a bit where you have to break down a castle gate using balsa wood catapults that fly to pieces after a couple of hits.

It's just a conveyor belt of patchwork game designs, crudely stitched together. Things improve as the game progresses, and the gimmicky mini-game nonsense becomes less prevalent, but while this is an improvement of sorts it still only raises the game to the level of mediocrity. The story is cookie cutter stuff, with plot twists signposted far in advance, while the enormous cast of characters results in a game with a lot of names, but few memorable personalities. The ones that do stand out, like the horrible whimsical children Rico and Rucha, do so for all the wrong reasons.

'Infinite Undiscovery' Screenshot 2

This far into the game, Capell's level is now higher than the frame-rate.

There are eighteen characters that can be swapped around in your team. Over half of those are introduced in the first few hours and most remain under-developed and under-used throughout the game. Unless you're a fan of mindless grinding for gold there's just not enough money available to keep everyone upgraded with the best armour and weapons, which is a real problem since the game has an irritating habit of forcing you to play with specific characters for lengthy period, and for no logical reason. This frequently lumbers you with characters that are far weaker than the ones you've favoured, and thus lowers your chances of success.

As with Star Ocean, the game is entirely real-time, with no pauses while selecting items, checking the map or organising your inventory. Enemies are visible in the game-world, and combat is initiated by attacking them, or if they spot you and fancy a ruck. It's better than the random battles that often blight the genre, but since the enemies respawn almost immediately, in the exact same spot, you'll still end up grinding through too many battles just to get from A to B.

You only ever have direct control of Capell, and the closest he comes to magical abilities is his flute, which can play tunes with different effects. If you want to utilise other attacks, you need to "Connect" with the other character's abilities, which enables you to direct their specific special attacks, or to aim ranged attacks. It sounds interesting, but it's an inelegant solution to a simple problem, and one that requires close proximity to the character in question and far too much button-fiddling for a game that gives you no breathing room in battle. You could get the exact same effect far more efficiently simply by swapping control to other characters completely, learning those abilities yourself or just being able to pause the game while in the menu. As with so many of the supposedly revolutionary features, it seems tri-Ace was so busy thinking up different ways to do the same old things, they didn't bother to check if the result actually improved the experience for the player.

Instead you spam away on the fast and strong attacks, using the same three combos over and over. Your companion's AI is actually extremely good, which means you rarely have to worry about them. The enemy, on the other hand, is hilariously stupid and so any team with a decent emphasis on healing spells and a stock of health potions is able to stomp through huge swathes of the game with little to no challenge. There are even moments where the whole cast is utilised, with you dividing the characters up into three different teams to fulfil different combat objectives at the same time. It's a great idea - one that could have defined the game with a more thoughtful design - but it's used so rarely and in such uninspired ways that it feels more like an afterthought than a stroke of genius.

'Infinite Undiscovery' Screenshot 3

That's not even the full cast of team members. Good luck equipping them all...and remembering their names.

That's probably just as well, since while combat is the game's dominant element it's also the most technically problematic. The frame-rate is a fragile beast, felled by the slightest activity on screen, and this isn't just an occasional dip under extraordinary circumstances. Every hit results in an explosive burst of light, and it seems this is just too much for the limping engine to handle. Just Capell's strong attack, used on its own against a couple of foes, can result in a frame-rate that looks more like a series of freeze frames. As you'd expect given this poor showing under basic conditions, as the battles become larger the game runs progressively slower. Mass Effect showed that a compelling game can overcome an imperfect graphics engine, but this level of near-constant slowdown is simply unacceptable.

It's not even as if the game is all that special to look at. The character models are decent, if oddly doll-like, but environments are empty and without interaction or features of note. Invisible walls block apparently open plains, while the way ahead almost always involves slogging around the map, looking for some unmarked canyon that will lead you to the next area. High-def aside, there's really nothing here that the PS2 couldn't have handled - and indeed did handle, with the more impressive sections of Final Fantasy XII. Even the audio is dodgy, with voice acting that ranges from passable to atrocious. At least, that's when the game is actually using dialogue. It frequently switches to silent subtitled narrative scenes, sometimes within the same story sequence, with jarring effect.

'Infinite Undiscovery' Screenshot 4

The token impressive CG cut-scene screenshot that makes the game look like Final Fantasy.

There's a modicum of replay value, since the different difficulty levels feature more content the harder they get, but these take the form of more (or different) story scenes rather than any serious amount of additional gameplay. Side quests, such as they are, simply involve stumbling across Person X, taking some item from them, and delivering it to Person Y in some distant town - usually the one you're conveniently headed towards. Although you're free to trek between maps, there's no quick way of moving around the game world and as the story keeps moving you in one direction, the incentive to explore dims with each passing hour. For those who keep track of such things, you can expect to spend between twenty and thirty hours on a normal playthrough.

With Star Ocean IV and Tales of Vesperia due next year, and Final Fantasy on its way to the 360, this needed to be something quite special to make its mark in a genre not known for its deviations from formula. Yet at its best Infinite Undiscovery is just another standard action JRPG following a strictly linear route through the same predictable story about another reluctant young hero overthrowing yet another evil empire. In its worst moments, it's an unwieldy collision of ill-conceived ideas and sloppy technical implementation that will test the patience of even the most hardened player. Such flaws are really only worth tolerating if you're so devoted to the JRPG genre that you'd settle for mediocrity rather than wait for the good stuff.

5 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (96) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • GuiltySpark #1 3 years ago

    That read more like a 6.

  • RedPanda #2 3 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • myke6699 #3 3 years ago

    I hope they bring this to PS3.

  • Windsong #4 3 years ago

    Gah..RROD aside, its looking less and less likely I'll get a 360 even on a clearance sale with turds like this being sold as "top tier" games. Oh well, guess I'm "stuck" with my dual core/x3870. Tsk Tsk..*anxiously awaits Dragon Age/Diablo3*

  • morriss #5 3 years ago

    Sounds like someone picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue.

  • morriss #6 3 years ago

    Windsong: what are you talking about?

  • Zomoniac #7 3 years ago

    'Top Tier'?? I've barely heard anything about it. I'm trying to remember if I'd even heard of it prior to noticing it appear on my friends list on Friday. I certainly don't think anyone was trying to push it as a system seller.

  • locus2k1 #8 3 years ago

    damn, i pre-ordered this.... still hasnt arrived though. Wonder if play wont mind me sending it back sealed once it arrives lol

    bleh, may give it a try - havent played a JRPG since Lost Odyssey
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 08:29

  • LeD #9 3 years ago

    Reads more like a 3 actually.

  • Xerx3s #10 3 years ago

    An above average jrpg then? >:p

  • menage #11 3 years ago

    @Windsong

    Go find some friend to show off that great PC of yours instead of trolling mediocre 360 titles threads.

    I'm quite fond of the genre, but this looked pretty mediocre in the previews already (lame characters, horrible voice acting). Hope Last Remnant and Valkyria are better. Ah well, still have to finish LO.

  • actionfitz #12 3 years ago

    oooooouuuch.
    might have picked this up under different circumstances.
    :/

  • drumbaby #13 3 years ago

    Only on Xbox!

  • morriss #14 3 years ago

    /tries to remember the last PS3 JRPG

    Something is better than nothing lolamirite
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 09:05

  • Steroyd #15 3 years ago

    /tries to remember the last PS3 JRPG

    Disgaea 3 last week?

    Oh yeah lol Europe lmao.

  • menage #16 3 years ago

    God, even 5/10 JRPG threads end up in PS3lol, 360lol stuff. Even PC gamers gegting into the mix now. Someone should blow up the internet. Gives fanboys the chance to direct their energy in a positive way I say
    Edited by 2 at 08/09/08 @ 09:16

  • Walshicus #17 3 years ago

    I'm six hours into it so far, and it's not that bad. Feels like an MMO without the crap. The first hour was slow I'll grant, but combat is fun enough to keep pushing. And there are some funny tongue in cheek moments hidden away - for instance one of the characters' skill page lists him as a cunning linguist. Not gaffaw funny, but smirk inducing none-the-less.

    Ironic that EG's 5/10 for Mercenaries 2 pushed me to buy IU over it.

  • Widge #18 3 years ago

    Oh well, scrub this one off the radar. (I'm assuming its appearing on the PS3 with the blue box logo on the main page)
    To be honest, I found the Star Ocean 3 battle system a bit sucky too. Find effective move, spam on all enemies. Give me old Mr ATB anytime!

  • Dizzy #19 3 years ago

    JRPGs have been stuck in the same pattern for ages. Never look to JRPGs to bring something new. That being said... they have their fans (and for a reason).

  • DanMW #20 3 years ago

    Blue Dragon got a 5 from eurogamer too, and I quite enjoyed that one. If you get the chance to play it, do so and judge for yourself.

    I'll give IU it a rent for now, as I have other gaming priorities, all released within the next couple of months.

  • Vanmunt #21 3 years ago

    The review is pretty much right summing up the faults of the game, poor start, crap graphics etc.. however 18 hrs into the game and too be honest it is not that bad.

    It is a darn site better than that sh*te 'Eternal Sonata' that the critics raved about, if you like rpg's then add 2 to the score.. get this one wrapped up in time for the next 5 out of 10 'Force Unleashed'.

  • creepylizard #22 3 years ago

    I thought Blue Dragon was pants...and I love the genre.....at least I thought I did...

  • chrisno21 #23 3 years ago

    I've had this since thursday and haven't had a chance to start it yet. Think I'll start Star Ocean 3 again instead...

  • Walshicus #24 3 years ago

    The problem is that the reviewer points out all the flaws, and is absolutely right in his identifying of them... but I can't help but think the game is more than one minus the sum of its flaws. By rights it should be a 5/10, but there's something addictive about it.

  • Retroid #25 3 years ago

    Bless the fanboys, laying this game at the 360's door rather than SquareEnix themselves.

    I've not been awaiting this at all, Last Remnant looked more interesting. Hopefully it'll be less painfully average than this and more like Lost Odyssey which I rather liked!

  • riz23 #26 3 years ago

    The best thing about picking this game up on friday was after playing it for about an hour it made me go back and pick up Disc 4 of lost odyssey and now I'm having fun again trying to finish that off.

  • des #27 3 years ago

    Review is crap as usual,jrpg and western reviewer=disaster

  • jonsaan #28 3 years ago

    Worst name ever.

  • The-Bodybuilder #29 3 years ago

    final fantasy
    lost odyssey
    last remnant
    infinite undiscovery.


  • OnlyMe #30 3 years ago

    So, worse than Enchanted Arms?

  • miiiguel #31 3 years ago

    "but the fact remains, that the very best JRPGs on the 360 are pretty much the bare minimum standard on the PS2, and now the DS."
    Care to comment the ones on PS3 ? are they all that? who are they?

  • vapour #32 3 years ago

    Some of the specialists like official Xbox have started awarding this with 8's, they say the game gets better the further you get into it - i'm not convinced by this review, it sounds like some of the ideas such as the connecting to other characters and the way its implemented goes down well in stuff like the Lego games, but gets dismissed here out of hand

  • FabricatedLunatic #33 3 years ago

    I'm around 13 hours in and while I broadly agree with this review, I'm enjoying the game nonetheless. There's something compulsive about the combat, even if everything else is mediocre.

  • Dizzy #34 3 years ago

    >Look! Another shit 360 exclusive!

    Look! Another hedbog trolling exclusive. 3/10 I would say.

    Lemme try as well. What about "Better shit exclusives than no exclusives?"

  • miiiguel #35 3 years ago

    "miiiguel can't read."
    True, and in english even worse.

  • miiiguel #36 3 years ago

    cant do math very well either. Mas português aposto que sei um bocadinho melhor que o sr..

    anyway, on topic I usual develop an esoteric retaliship with jRPGs and some just click like Blue Dragon, and found LO just average. Don´t know what's dood, sounds like a name of a bird. The PS3 comment was hinest though as I think there aren't many or any.
    Edited by 2 at 08/09/08 @ 10:20

  • NegativeZero #37 3 years ago

    I think the worst aspect of this is that if you're a JRPG fan and 360 owner this is basically your only option until Square shits out Last Remnant (which I suspect will also be terrible), because apparently while Square are capable of doing a worldwide release for a mediocre non-franchised game and have it available in every territory within the space of a couple of weeks, the significantly larger and more powerful Namco Bandai aren't even able to get the latest (and vastly superior) installment in their signature JRPG franchise out in Europe in the same fucking year. Apparently Tales of Vesperia doesn't even have a PAL publisher yet. I wish they'd stop being dicks over region coding.

  • seasidebaz #38 3 years ago

    "but the fact remains, that the very best JRPGs on the 360 are pretty much the bare minimum standard on the PS2, and now the DS."
    Care to comment the ones on PS3 ? are they all that? who are they?

    He said PS2, not PS3. And I would have to agree. The 360 might be getting a lot of JRPGs, but they aren't very good ones. In fact, I can't think of ANY good modern JRPGs on ANY format, and I used to love the things. (Disgaea isn't a JRPG, it's a turn-based strategy game)

    It would appear that the Japanese RPG developers are too stuck in tradition, and refuse to move away from it. Never mind.

  • DanWhitehead #39 3 years ago

    it sounds like some of the ideas such as the connecting to other characters and the way its implemented goes down well in stuff like the Lego games, but gets dismissed here out of hand

    The Connect system is nothing like anything in the Lego games, that's why. It's a clumsy multi-button way of doing something that should be very simple and, in a realtime RPG, that's a terrible design decision.

  • JediMasterMalik #40 3 years ago

    /called it

  • FabricatedLunatic #41 3 years ago

    The connect system is a big fat waste of time. Not once have I had the AI perform a spell in battle, partly because combat is not pausable, and partly because they do a decent enough job without my input. All I do is hammer away with the same combos, something I'm oddly content with.

  • ParanoidZombie #42 3 years ago

    seasidebaz wrote: "In fact, I can't think of ANY good modern JRPGs on ANY format"

    Check metacritics: blue dragon, eternal sonata, lost odyssey, tales of vesperia, just to name a few. If you don't like them, that's your problem.

  • anomagnus #43 3 years ago

    half way through this game, second disc last night

    i REALLY do not know what is up with Eurogamer anymore, i seriously think they dont know how to review games

    this is a 7, maybe a n 8. It plays way differently than most RPGS, and some of the action sequences are really good.

    my advice is, with any jprg, give it some time. Its fun, but short.

    Eurogamer basically is becoming one of the worst review sites i've ever come across

    The voice acting is variable, sigmund is good, i thought capell was good to. Its not going to set the world on fire, but it looks good, it plays a lot more like Mass Effect than Final Fantasy, but its an action romp.

    If oyu dont like JRPGS, this is different enough to interest you. If you do, it s ahort term fix. The Last Remenant is out in November, this at least is a small fix.

    Again, just ignore EG's review, they are INCREDIBLY out of touch and/or jaded with games. Recent failures include Viking, Too Human and Mercenaries.

    Basically, i think EG is no longer prepared to even consider a game anymore unless its perfect in every fucking regard. They have no patience, or love for the genre anymore.

    I think their entire review team should be taken off, and replaced, as it is, i have zero faith in them to write a review anymore
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 10:53

  • menage #44 3 years ago

    Yeah, always funny how people come screaming into a JRPG thread saying the whole genre sucks. Maybe it does for them, but that won't make me play em less.





  • spookyzombie #45 3 years ago

    I'm playing through this at the moment and although it's not perfect, it's still very enjoyable. The game as a whole reminds me of Rogue Galaxy. It may not be up there with Eternal Sonata or Lost Odyssey, but it's certainly better than Enchanted Arms.

  • ParanoidZombie #46 3 years ago

    This thread reminds me of the blue dragon's thread 1 year ago... Does that mean that IU is as good as BD? I hope so, I really enjoyed BD, and was shocked by the 5/10 review.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #47 3 years ago

    I had high hopes in this after playing the fantastic Eternal Sonata and I am a bit disappointed now. On the other hand there are many good games coming out now that the summer break is over that I'm somewhat glad I can skip this. I wanted it to be good but I really don't think that I will have trouble filling the 40 hours or so this game would have taken me with other games.

  • ParanoidZombie #48 3 years ago

    @frod: I hope FF12 cries, god I hate this game so much I wish it was a ninja gaiden 2 boss so I could obliterate him.

  • spookyzombie #49 3 years ago

    It may not be up there with Eternal Sonata or Lost Odyssey

    Persona 3 and FFXII are crying :'(

    Which is fine if you want to take the Delorean for a spin looking for a storm on your journey to the early noughties ; /

  • mjhoward #50 3 years ago

    I'm about 7 hours in and enjoying this quite a lot. It has a fair few flaws, and that early section in the forest is utterly horrible, but everything since that has OK for me.

    I'd lump this with Earth Defense Force, and Dead Rising; good bad games, flawed but fun.



  • menage #51 3 years ago

    FFXII cries? That's more emotion right there then than the whole 16 hours I put into before dumping that boring piece of shit.

    Persona 3 is fun though:p

  • MisterFahrenheit #52 3 years ago

    /really enjoyed Enchanted Arms

  • Krelle #53 3 years ago

    *baiting*

    Everyone who didnt like FF12 just aint clever/intelligent enough to be able to appreciate it.

  • muftak #54 3 years ago

    @anomagnus

    you do understand what the word opinion is dont you?

    may be he didnt like it same with heavnly sword crap review but i enjoyed it

  • Widge #55 3 years ago

    Its not the gameplay mechanic of FFXII that got to me, its the lack of involving characters and story. I quite liked the size/gameplay.

  • menage #56 3 years ago

    @Widge

    I agree. The game was fine. But I just couldn't be bothered playing through something I had no involvement in what soever. Kept thinking, what the hell am I doing this for anyway. Who is this guy again I'm talking to, where the hell are we heading now, why the fuck did we enter this cave, etc.



  • ParanoidZombie #57 3 years ago

    @krelle: you mispelled it: it's FFXII, not FF12. Heretic!

  • toy_brain #58 3 years ago

    Eurogamer isnt the only site to give IU a bad score y'know. I'm sure metacritic will be happy to point you to other less-than-glowing reviews.

    Anyway, bit dissapointed that it turned out bad/mediocre. Even more dissapointed that Tales of Vesparia is being delayed till spring. Still, this slight gap in RPG's has allowed me to return to my enormous PS2 and DS RPG pile and start making some progress with them.
    I'm hoping to get Atelier Iris 3, Shadow Hearts 3, Devil Summoner and Summon Night: Twin Age done and dusted before the year is out.

  • slivir #59 3 years ago

    Glad I didn't buy this POS.

  • samaran #60 3 years ago

    'the bad guys have tethered the planet to the moon with giant chains in order to steal its lunar power'

    'The story is cookie cutter stuff'

    sounds like i've been reading the wrong books...

  • spookyzombie #61 3 years ago

    'Eurogamer isnt the only site to give IU a bad score y'know. I'm sure metacritic will be happy to point you to other less-than-glowing reviews.'

    Good point and looking at that, the average score is 72/100.
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 12:03

  • Miths #62 3 years ago

    I only really have one question - why is that seemingly every Japanese game (Metal Gear Solid being an exception) has a child protagonist (or several)?
    I've tried my best playing perhaps six or seven JRPGs over the last few years (PS2 and XBox 360), but even the few where I actually rather enjoyed the gameplay, I was seriously put off by the whole androgynous emo teenager aspect (or in a few cases I think, equally androgynous and childlike emo immortal).
    I do seem to recall reading somewhere that they have a bit of an obsession with youth in Japan, but really? Teenagers and little kids as warriors and army generals? And few or none of them looking Asian for that matter.

  • legendmir #63 3 years ago

    i didnt have too much of a problem with the ff12 story, thought it was pretty cool actually, nethicite, judges, big airships, it was cool! having said that it definitely could have been a lot better with more cut scenes and interaction between the charachters. Their relationships never seemed to develop much.

  • menage #64 3 years ago

    @Miths

    Well, DMC, LO, Ninja Gaiden, beg to differ:p

    It's mostly the anime style game which do this. And thta's because the target anime market is probably exactly that age.

  • FabricatedLunatic #65 3 years ago

    why is that seemingly every Japanese game (Metal Gear Solid being an exception) has a child protagonist (or several)?

    Probably because teenagers are the target audience for JRPGs. It's also why most anime protagonists are young 'uns.

  • anomagnus #66 3 years ago

    @ muftak

    i am well aware of the word opinion. however, with something as arbitrary as came score reviews, where an entire opinion is summed up in a single digit, more time and effort should be out into a review

    at the very least, what i want from any review are multiple points of view, not one person that looked at a game, and said 'nah, i dont like it'

    and quite frankly, their track history of late has been less than steller, its come to the point where i simply dont trust it anymore

  • samaran #67 3 years ago

    okay, go away then.

  • YeOldeGamer #68 3 years ago

    anomagnus
    "and quite frankly, their track history of late has been less than steller, its come to the point where i simply dont trust it anymore"

    Or to put it another, more honest, way...

    "Eurogamer's reviews are rubbish because they don't give the score *I* think they should".

    Look, JRPG's are much like fighting games. It's been done. Lots of times. Way too many times and the genre is dead. There's simply nowhere else to go.
    IU has 'fail' written all over it from day 1. It has nothing to offer over Eternal Sonata, Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey etc and the last-gen graphics seal it's fate as pure failage. (BTW, I'm not a graphics whore, but I expect people to at least make an effort when I've spent £1000 on my HD gaming setup).
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 13:09

  • Steroyd #69 3 years ago

    (Disgaea isn't a JRPG, it's a turn-based strategy game)

    What the hell!?

    An RPG from Japan = JRPG

    ARPG (Action) and SRPG (Strategy) are sub-genre's within the genre's, if you just look at JRPG's at stuff just turn based of course you're going to see them stuck in traditional ways.

  • FabricatedLunatic #70 3 years ago

    not one person that looked at a game, and said 'nah, i dont like it'

    You know, he did provide plenty of reasons why he didn't like it. Perhaps you should address the points in the review that you disagree with rather than making silly statements like "the entire review team should be replaced".

  • seasidebaz #71 3 years ago

    @Steroyd:

    What I meant is that Disgaea is different. It doesn't feel like a JRPG, it doesn't play like a JRPG, so shouldn't be classed as one. I enjoy Disgaea, but the last proper JRPG I enjoyed was FFXII. Even Blue Dragon, that I had hopes for, turned out to be shite (played the demo, didn't like it)

    I hear Persona is a good 'un, so will likely play that too. Let's hope Star Ocean doesn't suck so hard though, I have fond memories of the series.

  • menage #72 3 years ago

    @seaside

    I know a lot of people who don't like BD, but that demo was one of the worst demo's in the history of demo's. Luckily the game is a lot better, if you like that kind of stuff. (I really don't know what's wrong with it, I enjoyed it, it may be a niche taste, but in know way is it a bad game)

    @YeOldgamer

    Seeing as SF4 is coming and SC already sold buckets I'd hardly say it's dead.
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 13:56

  • JediMasterMalik #73 3 years ago

    @seaside - How does it not feel like an RPG, exactly? How exactly should an RPG feel? If disgaea is an SRPG, it is by definition and name an RPG. Stop being weird.

  • yupyup #74 3 years ago

    I still haven't found what I'm not looking for.

  • sneetch #75 3 years ago

    I'm enjoying this at the moment, the slow down in battles is a pain in the ass but not a deal breaker for me (mind you, as I'm not that far in I'm sure it will get worse and worse).

    Mind you, FFVII was the last JRPG I played before Blue Dragon so maybe I just haven't "burned out" on the genre. A lot of the reviews I've seen so far read more like reviews of the JRPGs genre and not this particular example; they end up slamming it because it doesn't change the formula enough. Now maybe that's fair, Square Enix apparently hyped this one up a lot and then failed to deliver. However, I somehow missed that hype so I'll leave 'em alone.

  • anomagnus #76 3 years ago

    @FabricatedLunatic

    Fine, some of his points-

    1)- Yea, its slow to get started, all JRPGS are. But the ramp up time on this is FAR shorter than other games. Within one hour, the game will have progressed to a point where its engageable and enjoyable.

    2) - his comment where the frame rate falls as soon as their is any activity is pure hyperbole bullshit. Yea, frame rate drops, but you need a lot happening. At the end of disc 2, there were 2 bosses, 7 playable characters, and 5 random enemies, and i experienced no slow down, despite special moves popping all over the place. His woeful review makes it sound like a sword swipe drops the frame rate which is untrue and unfair.

    3) - His complaint that the game, despite its promises, doesn't shake things up, Having played JRPGS for 15 years, this is a very different beast to the majority of them. It is VERY accessible to those that don't like. Leveling all the party is no longer a chore, and despite his snide little comment in a picture box, inventory management is pretty easy

    4) - Empty environments - i'm puzzled by this comment. There are enemies on all the maps, always within sight. I'm not saying its jammed packed with them, but if it was, you'd be going from the PAIN that is random battles, to the pain of not being able to move five steps without an enemy. If there are going to be real time battles, you can't FLOOD the area with monsters.

    5) - Stealth elements = walk slowly - pretty much the same as almost every stealth game i've seen, and more to the point a minor and trival part of the games

    6) - forcing you to play with characters he feels make no sense - they actually fit the story. nothing else to say about that, perhaps he didnt get the story

    Now, i;m not saying its perfect, its not a 9/10, heck even an 8/10. The switch to silent cutscenes should be a thing of the past. Combat is repetative button smashing, and its short, MUCH shorter than most JRPG's. 7/10 would have been much fairer

    All i;m saying is, when it gets going, this is far from a 5/10.

    @ YeOldeGamer

    They have been wrong on more than this. The review of Viking was criminal. Too Human has proven to be a revelation for me, i'm more than 60 hours in at this stage, and mercs on co-op is more fun than i've had in ages. Each of these games has flaws, yes, but of Eurogamer can't look below the surface, why bother reviewing. From a review, i expect more than an 'fast as i can' run through of the game. No time seems to be taken in appreciating the games, unless its a AAA platinum launch

    I've also said that single person reviews are a bad idea. I expect a review that contains multiple points of view.

    Anyway, all my criticism is from my point of view. So while you lot bleat on about how its their opinion, my opinion is they have review four games now, 3 in quick succession, and their review scores differ WILDLY from my play experience, which brings me back to my point of view, i dont trust their reviewers to do a good job, unless its a major release.
    Edited by 1 at 08/09/08 @ 14:43

  • seasidebaz #77 3 years ago

    @menage: Cheers for the clearup about the demo, will get BD then next week, it's about a tenner now isn't it?

    @malik: I can't help being weird ;) I just think my tastes have evolved slightly since playing all the SNES RPGs, and as such don't think that SRPGs necessarily fit into the RPG category. Just my opinion though ;)

  • darc #78 3 years ago

    This game even looks bad in the television commercials, where it should be easy to find a few pretty snips and cast things in a favorable - if misleading - light. Not a good sign. At least visually, this is a big step backward for Square Enix. Anyway, not my genre.

  • Aphexman #79 3 years ago

    another 360 exclusive turns to be a shit

  • Ranger101 #80 3 years ago

    The last time I played and completed an RPG, they didn't used to have the J infront of the genre name.

  • andywilkie35 #81 3 years ago

    Blue Dragon got 5 out of 10 and I thought that was shitting brilliant, so with any luck this'll be just as good. should be waiting at home for me...

  • andywilkie35 #82 3 years ago

    @ anomagnus

    I do like Eurogamer but sometimes I get the same impression of the reviews. The one that will always stick in my mind if the 8/10 for MGS4.

    The next game that'll get brilliant scores everywhere and get 6/10 or something like that on here will be Fallout 3. Unless Dead Space, Fable 2 or Saints Row 2 can get there first

  • menage #83 3 years ago

    I think SR will go down that way, spraying manure isn't my thing so wouldn't care anyway:p

  • BillyBrush #84 3 years ago

    Vesperia is going to be the one...not sure why it's 2009 though as it'll be the same as the US version which is already out..

    the animation bits from production I.G look lovely, and the rest of it is nicely DQish in look..

  • itsfuzzy #85 3 years ago

    Why why why. . . . Was hoping for a great JRPG or RPG.

  • Waldo #86 3 years ago

    Divine Divinity is no longer the worst title in gaming.

  • Ergates_Antius #87 3 years ago

    @des "Review is crap as usual,jrpg and western reviewer=disaster"

    So you're saying that westerners shouldn't be allowed to review JRPGs? What do you suggest - that EG should bring in a specialist JRPG reviewer from Japan? (Or maybe just a foaming mouth otaku JRPG fanboy who desperately *wants* to be Japanese?)

  • redneon Verified Programmer, SUMO Digital #88 3 years ago

    I really don't understand this review. I'm eight hours in and loving it.

    Like everyone else, I admit the first hour is pretty bad. In fact, I stopped after this hour and contemplated returning it. I'm glad I gave it a second chance, though.

    I also enjoyed Blue Dragon but this is far better. Don't get me wrong, it's nothing ground-breaking but I'd give it a 7/10, based on what I've played so far.

    Each to their own, I guess.

  • tinners #89 3 years ago

    WOW you finally reviewed it EG?

    well done :thumbs up: ......... :/

  • rotmm #90 3 years ago

    More anti-MS bias here at Eurogamer

    ;)

  • Slipstream #91 3 years ago

    "since the enemies respawn almost immediately, in the exact same spot, you'll still end up grinding through too many battles just to get from A to B."

    For the enemies to respaen you hae to move quite a distance from the area ctually, otherwise once you defeat an emey that's it, they will not respaen whilst you are there.

    I agree with many points in this review also, in attempt to glorify the JRPG scene, some clumsy decisions were indeed made, but I will be seeing this one through to the end as the game has really started to pick up now. May even go at it again on the Hard difficulty too for the extra plot points.

  • Kryon #92 3 years ago

    Yeah, pretty much like Blue Dragon, this game is a 7/10 imo. Anyway, at least one of the 'next gen' systems is giving fans of the genre something to play (even if this title isn't anything amazing) it's better than nothing, I mean the PS3 is great if you only like FPS and racers but I prefer a bit of variety... Oh, and FFXII was a total bore-fest with a crap battle system, Persona 3 was the dullest JRPG I've ever played but both games received good reviews, it seems supposed 'innovation' is more important than fun these days...

  • Raziel #93 3 years ago

    Such flaws are really only worth tolerating if you're so devoted to the JRPG genre that you'd settle for mediocrity rather than wait for the good stuff.

    There arn't any other semi-big RPG's coming out this month, so yeah, I'll settle for it.
    About 10 hours in and still enjoying it, not as much as expected, but still enjoying it.

  • Les #94 3 years ago

    "Everyone who didnt like FF12 just aint clever/intelligent enough to be able to appreciate it."

    FF XII is a great game but not suitable for people that have little free time. If you have the time to finish the game within a month or so it might make sense. But most of the time I drop in and out of games (not playing them for weeks or months) and that play style doesn't fit with FF XII. The gameplay is good though, although grinding is a chore. But after experiencing the SMT games I must admit that I like them much better than FF.

  • saku_luk #95 3 years ago

    Framerate issues in a RPG GAME is already a fail for me lol..... I planned to buy x360 even in its shitest arcade version just for IU and Tales of Vesperia, but if the game is as bad as this review states than its only vesperia, which sadly isnt region free = gotta wait till march 2009 at least.....I wished that Namco wasn't behind tales games, they suck when it comes to publishing anything here in EU...

    Anyway Ill keep waiting for tales, maybe x360 will get a price drop next year in PAL so I might get it for vesperia finally :/

  • andywilkie35 #96 3 years ago

    I think the first hour wasn't great but then I can't think of many RPGs where the first few hours are that brilliant either. Dragon Quest 8 is one of my favourites and the first few hours in that were a real slog. FFVII was great from the opening tho

    I'm 5 hours in and I'm loving it so far to be fair, it seems like a mix between Star Ocean 3 and Final Fantasy 12. Voice acting is a bit duff but again, can't think of many games (Metal Gear aside of course) where the voice acting is good throughout. in RPGs with speech bubbles coming from characters I always turn off the voices if I can anyway, unfortunately its just subtitles in this though so have to keep it on...