Shadow Hearts

"Warning: Final Fantasy Comparisons Ahead!!!"

So you would like to know how this game stacks up against squares big boss in the RPG business? Would you believe that it doesn't at all? Shadow Hearts is a definitive RPG by midway that takes an RPG lover to truly savor but any gamer to see the hard work and intriguing design put into such a game. Complete with comparisons, high points and iniquities, here is the review of PS2's newest RPG!

Game Play 9: Final Fantasy set a standard of gameplay for RPG's a good 13 or so years ago and it seems that every RPG development company since has been wrecking their brains to break free of it. It seems SH's Development has done just that. Using what is called a ''judgment ring'' for every attack or definitive action in battle, characters are promoted to press the action button when a thin line on a spinner spins over certain lighted areas on the spinner. Successfully doing this will allow you to use your full attack on the enemy. While some may regard this as an annoying diversion, those are the same people who are use to holding the controller in one hand and fingering the attack button until the battle is over. Your main character (named Yuri by the way) can also fuse with monsters that are accumulated as you gain experience in the game. Killing monsters however, can have a negative affect due to the new malice system that builds up until you go to a graveyard from Yuri's dreams to silence it. It is here where you acquire the new monsters that you can turn into after defeating them. With 20 in all, you will find this to another welcome addition to the FF breaking battle system. Aside from the stay awake and pay attention style of battle, the game is actually very well put together. Unfortunately, it is also the most linear game that I have ever seen. Using a map much like that in final fantasy 10 (accept you can't backtrack) you navigate the game as if your reading a storybook. But man, what a story book! With its dark themes, brilliantly translated text speech and trilling character design and development, this game ranks up there with some of the best for overall presentation. Might I add that any game where your main character is constantly referred to as a monster is undoubtedly kick @$$!

Sound 8: I wasn't particularly impressed with the music when I first began playing. Those who are use to Final Fantasy's harmonious and utterly breath taking score are going to find SH's music to be somewhat underwelming. However, upon closer examination, you will find that the music, very well fits the game itself providing moods that you never thought you would feel in an RPG! The battle music is a soft but upbeat song with haunting singing throughout. The Boss theme is an upbeat jungle rhythm type song with soft chanting and fitting string sessions. This music won't have you snapping your fingers any time in the near future but some themes like the happy theme usually associated with Zhuken, seemingly drunk and wise old compatriot of yours can get kinda catchy after hearing it a few times. As for the sound effects, you won't be surprised. The FF spoiled among us (you know who you are) may expect some exaggerated BOP! sound when the main character punches the enemy. I am not sure where the developers got these sounds but more than anything, they are fairly accurate. Like every thing else in this game, it will take a while to realize. Oh yes!! The voice acting! Poor at best I'm afraid but for different reasons than usual. The voices in the cut scenes are overly exaggerated and the battle voices are a confused mix of Engish, French, Japanese, and Chinese... sometimes for the same damn character!!! Perhaps this would be over lookable if the voice acting was good but...sigh*!

Graphics 9: This is going to be a short description. The games graphics are just very well done. the pre rends in this game stand out as being razor sharp and just as detailed (although not half as diverse) as any thing that final fantasy has thrown out yet. The characters are the however are what make this game a looker. From Ass whoopin to book bashing to staff slinging to gun toting to sword slashing, this game moves like a dream. Although some of the characters appear blocky or lacking texture up close, that is inturn made up for by the wide variety of character design put into making characters like Yuri, Zhuken and Alice. The first time you see Yuri wail on an enemy full force in battle, Zell and Tifa will start looking like Jack and Jill! Unfortunately, it still fails to stand to final fantasy's character designing capabilities but that’s a hell of a fight they put up!

Story 10: Here’s the charm folks! This is the reason you waste your miserable lives playing RPG's is for stories like these. A dark esque story that pits you on an alternate
earth in the early 1900s. You are what they call a Harmonixer who has spent most of his life since his father disappeared and his mother was killed, following an a voice in his head that has this time lead him on the same train as the young heroine of the story. This girl, Alice Elliot is the daughter of a murdered priest who has amazing powers and is being hunted by powers in Shanghai and Japan for several different reasons. As Yuri, you start by rescuing her from the antagonist sumpemo: Roger Bacon (kind of a odd ball name for such a sinister bad guy). There are more plot twist in this game than dough twists in a jumbo pretzel! While the game usually just center's around keeping Allice out of danger and Divulging facts about Yuri's past, it is still a very engaging and dark storyline with mature themes to boot. Compared to a final fantasy story, it comes off very linear and somewhat like the telling of a story. However, it still amasses about 40 hours of story that will keep you under a spell until the last text box is closed.

Control 9: Moves and feels like final fantasy. No real innovations here besides the judgment ring and all. Because using the judgment ring can become alittle annoying when your just trying to use a healing item, the score had to be dropped allitle. But a HYPER COMPREHENSIVE HELP MENU, a history of monsters you have battled and people you have met and a FAQ that builds as you advance through the game, keeps the score rolling on high.

Overall 9: Is it really time for this to end? This game is an amazing RPG considering the earlier RPG's for the playstation 2. After such a long drought, you should snatch this one up and play as much of it as you can before final fantasy ten spoils you all over again. This is an exceptional RPG that has its high points and its low points but overall stands alone as being an amazing and well thought out game with very few ties to the ''big brother'' of the RPG platform.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/26/01, Updated 12/26/01