Vandal Hearts

"It's almost sad, because you know it could have been so much more."

Vandal Hearts was Konami's first stab at a strategy RPG (now referred to as SRPG), on the PS1 system. Being that it was released in 96 first (96 in Japan, 97 in NA), it was also one of the first, if not THE first, SRPG released on the PS1 system altogether. Being so, the graphics are sometimes dated looking, and the length of the game seems rather unimpressive as well. Still, this was back in the early stages of the PS1, and that should be taken into account.

Or should it? Much like Suikoden 1, Vandal Hearts really seems to miss a lot of bits and pieces that could have vaulted it into "great" status, or maybe even "godly." There certainly are problems with the game, none that would cause it serious harm... But problems all the same. And it's these problems that hold it back. It's almost like knowing someone who is incredibly smart and gifted be extremely lazy and not want to advance their life.

To be fair, VH1(shorthand for the game title, heh) does do a lot of good. It's an extremely fun game to play. The graphics are really nice, and the atmosphere is all there. The way you get to pick who you want to be is also an interesting take on the developmental side. So there are pluses... It's just annoying how they rarely outshine the negatives. It's like a seesaw.

Gameplay:

VH1 is a SRPG from Japan, which means it takes place on small battlefields where you'll move your characters one at a time. Much like regular RPGs, Japan's section of SRPGs and the rest of the world's section seem to differ greatly.

Japan's idea of a SRPG is turn-based, much like their RPGs. In other parts of the world, they(we) prefer real-time, or so do some. VH1 is no exception, as it's set in a turn-based fashion where you'll move one character at a time. After you've moved everyone, you'll select "Turn Over" and the computer will move all of their characters.

For all of you people out there who don't understand what that means, it's like Final Fantasy Tactics. If that still doesn't clear some confusion up, well... I have nothing more to really say. Anyway, VH1 shares some of that Final Fantasy Tactics feel, while eliminating certain things that made it great.

An example is the fact that who moves when isn't based on a stat. In fact, there are hardly no stats in VH1. There is no speed, no magic power, no evade. The only stats the game has to offer are Attack (physical attack damage), Defense (how much physical damage you take), and Agility (which either means how much of a chance you have to block or something else left up to the imagination).

While I may be moving too much into the technical side of things, it's important to see the lack of detail in the game's stat base. Sure, you level up... But when you level up, it doesn't increase much. Your range of movement, for example, is limited to what class you are rather than what your stats say. Your magic power is pretty much the same and so is everything else.

Classes are defined simply by what you decide to do. Each character, with the exception of the main, has two preset paths they can take. Once they hit level 10, they'll be able to be one class or another and, once they hit level 20, they'll be able to level that class up. Considering you won't make it past level 30 (31 if you focus on one guy rather than everyone), that's all the class leveling you'll be doing.

This system is interesting, but, much like the rest of the game, it's timid and short. Something tells me that if they had had more time, money, and a bigger production team; they could have made so much more of the system. But, then again, they'd have to add more battles, put in random battles, and add way more enemies.

Yup, there are no random battles in this game. When you're on the world map, you just select a destination and you automatically appear there. You can't even opt to enter a map you've already visited and do a random battle. It's just not there. The battlefields that are in the game are nicely done though. They all usually have some kind of item(s) in them that you can interact with. For example, there might be a boulder laying around that you can push off a hill that'll smack into your foes.

There also seems to be a rather short list of equipment and items in this game. You only get maybe 3 sets of equipment throughout the entire game that you can buy from stores. Most of the time they'll have the same equipment sets in every store in the chapter you're in. It's rather limited, timid, and short.

As far as game time goes, you'll be going through 6 chapters. Each chapter has about 5 or 6 battles in it, so the game isn't too long. I'd say you can get about 15 hours out of it if you're slow. The maps all have chests and hidden items laying about, and there is one side quest you can do that involves hidden items... But the game is certainly short.

Difficulty? Well, I'm sure if it's your first time you might have some difficulty. But, for the most part, it's a rather easy game. It plays out a lot like rock-paper-scissors in that certain classes are stronger than others, etc. The computer AI isn't very smart though. I think the order the enemies move is always predetermined, so worrying about healers and stuff isn't bad at all. I'd say the game is easy.

Cosmetics:

The game certainly is attractive considering the time it was released, but the graphics are way outdated. Of course, I'm also one of the ones who say FFVII is ugly, although I thought that game was ugly at the time of its release... Oh well.

But, yeah, the game's graphics are decent. They aren't as polished or crisp as Final Fantasy Tactics, but they certainly handle their own. The CGI cut scenes in the game are also decent, but they don't hold a candle to anything ever done by Square-Enix, even for the time it was released. Still, VH1 at least had cut scenes.

It also has voice acting... Imagine that. However, the only voice acting that the game has is during the CGI scenes, and maybe a few screams or whatnot here and there. Still, the voice that is in the game isn't bad at all. A little weird at first, but you get used to it quickly.

The character portraits aren't exactly amazing. Actually, they're rather boring looking, if you ask me. They have this SNES cartoony look to them that I'm not too fond of. However, they DO animate in certain ways, and you might even get different facial expressions depending on what's going on. Decent enough.

Sound-wise, the game is okay. There aren't many sound effects to speak of really... The magic sound effects are kind of weird, and feel like they came out of an Apple II game. However, the best sound effect ever is when you kill a dude. Not only is the sound effect cool, but blood pours out of the guy in an extremely over-the-top fashion. It's a lot like Kill Bill, heh.

Musically, the game isn't exactly a masterpiece. Still, I prefer it a lot to Final Fantasy Tactics simply because it didn't seem to repeat itself too much. Then again, that may just have been because VH1 is extremely short. Oh well, the music that WAS there was still pretty good.

Storyline:

The game is political. Much like, oh say, Tactics Ogre, it's centered around a few people who are trying to stop a government from hurting the world they live in. However, in its true core, it isn't really political. It's more about one guy trying to destroy the world, like a Final Fantasy game. Sure, there are a lot of politics going on, but it's no Suikoden.

In a Suikoden game, everything's divided into factions and people have war with each other. It's more about saving your country from being overtaken rather than wiped out completely. And, who knows, the other side might not even have bad intentions. However, in VH1, it's clear that the main "bad guy" is really a... Bad... Guy...

So you take the role of Ash, as he starts his story off in the Security Forces. You're patrolling the neighboring lands looking for thieves and stuff when you get caught up in a grand scheme by someone to get a hold of an item that'll help them get power. Needless to say, you end up in a bad situation and you're country is headed for doom. Not much else to say there... The story is decent, but it's way too short. Kind of like the rest of the game.

The villains in this game are some of my favorite ever. I'm not entirely sure why they are, they just are. Maybe it's that badass motif they seem to pull off so well. Maybe it's the whole, "we're a gang of amazing soldiers who you can't beat," thing... Who knows.

The character development is strong as far as the story length goes, but in a decently lengthed story, it'd fall short. Still, it does what it has to do, and you can find something to either love or hate about with each character. They all have their personalities, and show it at least once during the game. Still, you can't help but feel the game's way too short. The story is short, and therefore, so is the character development.

Overall/Explanation/Recommendation:

The bottom line is that this game is too short. That's seriously what is the main problem in the game. It's almost like a footnote to something greater that hasn't been released yet. As if they were trying to butter people up for some epic that was coming down the road. Granted, they gave us Vandal Hearts II, but I really felt no connection between the two games other than their names and the item the game is named after.

In any case, there was a lot more they could have done with the game. And in that sense, I say that really... A rental is good enough. You can probably, if dedicated, beat this game in two days, so there might not be reason enough to purchase it. Yet still, it's a fun game... So maybe you should buy it. It's really up to you.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 12/20/06