Arc the Lad Collection

"75 bucks is nothing, when you get everything"

Arc the Lad Collection, is the biggest, baddest collection of Video Games stuff you have ever seen. Not only does it have 4 sweet games, it comes with a making of Arc the Lad CD for your PSX, and an omake box(that's extra in Japanese)which has 4 anaolg joystick pads, 30 little standups and has a memory card holder. This complete collection is just about the greatest and coolest thing around.

Story 10/10
Since it is 3 complete strategy/RPGs I will describe Arc the Lad 1's story. It tells of Arc a young man going on a quest to find his father Yoshua. Along his path he finds friends which help him on his journey. It is one heck of a game and the other 2 are even better.

Graphics 10/10
Considering the times the first two games came out, the graphics are pretty dang good. They are sprites and are very good. Each sprite has its own emotion for happy, sad excited, etc. etc. Very good. But Arc 3 has 3-D characters and worlds and is VERY good looking. It is at about quality with squaresoft on that part. Very cool stuff from Working designs.

Sound 10/10
The melodys in Arc the Lad games, is some of the finest in the gaming industry. Not only do they set the mood for the event it also sets the pace. From sad and quivering to fast and furious. The man who composed the songs has big things in his future.

Control 10/10
Simply the best. Working Designs never fails in this area.

Gameplay 10/10
My favorite part of Arc the Lad has got to be the gameplay. Not only does it have a unique battle system but it also has challenging gameplay, unlike the fly through games of final fantasy. It is a STRATEGY/rpg so do not but this game looking for a regular RPG. What is really cool is the mannor of attacking. You learn moves from leveling up like most games, but you get to do these moves, some for no points taken off so it seems like a perfect plan. Dont' underestimate the power of the Lad.

Overall Score 10/10
This game is one of the ones on my ''hey this game is actual good'' shelf. I can't wait for Arc 4 on PS2. Its gonna be colossal.

Buy or Rent?
I don't know if you even can rent it, because of its hugeness, but if you can, you may want to rent it. Especially if your new to strategy RPG's.

Arc the Lad Collection: Buy it. Play it. Beat it. Play it again.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 06/02/02, Updated 06/14/03