Steambot Chronicles

"One of the more unique RPGs out there"

I really had no interest in Steambot Chronicles. It sure seems I start most reviews that way but really, few games make me run out and buy them as soon as possible. Steambot seemed like one of those quirky titles that you either get or don't. It also got bashed for its controls. How is the game though? Read on!

Steambot tells the story of a lad who is found washed up on the shore. A cute girl finds him and they end up trapped in a cove. He finds a Totobot which is a giant mech of sorts. He sues it to escape. The story is very linear so you can play it a number of ways. The plot is pretty good but it's the little choices you the player get to make and it has a good and bad side to the plot which you get to pick and change the entire second half of the game. This leads to multiple endings. It's really well done and I liked how I got to shape some of the characters.

Graphic wise this game is interesting. It has a distinct style of its own and that's a good thing. The game is pleasing to the eyes but not overly flashy. Animations are very smooth and look just right. The town and areas while seeming kind of sparse, look really good. A lot of though went into the look and feel of this game.

The sound in the game is great. Some really good sound effects were what I noticed first. Almost Hollywood summer Blockbuster quality. The voice work is pretty good; it never got on my nerves. The music in the game is excellent. Worth while to check the soundtrack out. There was one of the five or so vocal songs that was just painful at its end because of some high pitched note that would make any dog cower in a corner.

Ah, the control. I'll state this right up front but this is one of the few games were I have become so frustrated not only at the way the game controls but also myself because I couldn't wrap my mind around the controls. At times it felt natural and then about 96% of the time it was awkward and clumsy. I just wish I could alter the controls to suit me better instead of these slightly stiff controls. I think the problem is that you can easily screw the entire thing up with a few little miss steps which is easy to do. It's far from user friendly and even by the end of the game I was making many mistakes.

Steambot Chronicles plays like no other game I've ever played. To think of it's style one must combine a mecha game with Harvest moon with a little mission structure from Grand Theft Auto and then throw in a branching story line and multiple choice answers for almost every action in the game. What we get is a very unique game.

Once you get past the first area in the game and enter the town the game really opens up. Don't want to continue the story? Play around the town, perform concerts with one of numerous instruments which all play differently, even if it's the same song, the notes and everything are different for each song.

You can win money that way, you can just walk around and interact with people or you can advance the plot. The game play itself outside of living in this world is kind of questionable at times. It's not that the goals and stuff are absurd, they do make sense. It's the way the mech controls and it really leads to frustration.

Combat is fun when you are doing the controls correctly and the fact that you can mix and match your mech with parts and build one that suits you is a perfect thing in a game since most games feel like everything is handed to you.

Steambot Chronicles is a meaty game. It can be as long or as short as one likes. With multiple story paths and endings there is a lot to do with this game but it also isn't for everyone. It's almost a sim with its city aspects and if you're in the mood for that then you can log a ton of hours into this title.

I would actually recommend Steambot Chronicles. It's far from perfect but it's unique in almost everything it does and the flaws while big at times can be handled well and not be too problematic. The game is cheap these days so I think it's worth buying if you have any interest in the title at all. In 3 years, this game will be very hard to find.

Story - 9/10
Graphics - 9/10
Sound - 8/10
Control - 5/10
Game Play - 8/10
Replay Value - 9/10

Final Score - 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/12/07