"Robotic Gameplay and Graphics - Devoid of Genuine Interest"

The game has some serious problems with being boring and slow. Slow game play, slow battles, slow character development, slow everything. I've never seen a machine gun fire so slowly. The bullets and missiles feel like they travel at 45 mph. I'm a very patient gamer having defeated games like Phantasy Star II and Dragon Warrior 1 and 2. Strategy games should feel diverse enough that you are able to employ strategies and combinations to create functional tactics against a difficult enemy. This game on the other hand was boring and straight forward from the get-go. After defeating both story lines in Front Mission 3, taking a massive 100 hours or so, I couldn't wait to take upon the Wanzer battles of Front Mission 4. What I found was a unimaginative game with what seemed like simplistic design, graphics, and sound.

Graphics: 5/10

There is nothing spectacular here. Yes the FMV's are gorgeous and the close ups of the Wanzers are moderately satisfying, but with the PS2's capabilities I expect more from the actual game play graphics. I seriously found the graphics to the PSone's Front Mission 3 to be better and more accurate. The graphics for the environments were bland and might as well been built with LEGOS. There was simply no originality or progression to the Front Mission series made with this game. The graphics were completely average and a let down.

Music and Sound: 5/10
No memorable musical scores are to be found here. Something more electronic or mechanically rhythm based would've been more appropriate. There is no track to stand out, no sound effect that was inspiring. The game's sound and music are completely average. Whe purchasing a game by Square-Enix you expect at the very least to have an excellent musical score. Even the disaster SaGa Frontier had a great soundtrack, but with this you get drum machine with 1992 Casio Keyboard.

Gameplay: 5/10
What's the point of returning to a game if it doesn't offer something in the game play department. I've had more fun cleaning my house and utilized more strategy scrubbing toilets than playing this game. The training missions would take 15 minutes to complete even with incredibly powerful characters and speeding up all animations. I didn't get drawn into the game play like I did in Front Mission 3. There were no excessively challenging missions. Overall the game play was completely average. Games such as Vanguard Bandits and Vandal Hearts for the PSone were much more innovative and interesting than the game play elements of this game which seriously aren't worth mentioning.

Story: 6/10

The storyline has its moments and draws you in slightly, but I found the switching between the two main characters to be extremely annoying. Just when you start to get into a character and develop their skills, the game switches to another location and another party. I didn't find it to infuse the game with a much needed dramatic element or emotional grip. The threat in this game was mediocre and not worthy of a military background. The characters looked and acted like models in an urban magazine.

Additional Comments:
Purchasing this game to complete your Square-Enix collection isn't worth it. I own all the Square games for the PS2 and regret buying this one. Usually I will work on beating one of the games in my collection while waiting for the next blockbuster to come out, but with game play, graphics, sound and music like this there is no need to feel a responsibility to continue where the other Front Missions left off. Buy another game and if you're unsure rent it and see how deep it draws you in. I doubt you will tread water for more than a few hours before returning to something with better game play.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 09/20/06