Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals

"Discover the greatest RPG of all time"

Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals by Natsume takes you on a long, epic oldschool RPG adventure with many unique puzzles and innovative features. It also features a very interesting storyline and many wonderful features, all-in-all making it one of the greatest, if not the greatest game ever made for any system.

Graphics: 10
The graphics take on a mature cartoonish look, and the environs are very colorful. The monster artwork is quite detailed and has it's own unique touch. The mountaintops views provide some of the most beautiful scenery in the game, however, the best graphics are when you encounter one of the LEGENDARY Sinistrals. It's literally breathtaking. The capsule monster art is also very well done. Overall, Lufia II has absolutely superb graphics, with no flaws whatsoever in this department.

Sound: 10
The music in Lufia II is not just standard RPG fanfare. It contains some of the best tracks and most memorable music in RPG history. The overworld music very mysterious and adventurous, while the heart-pounding rising action music in a Sinistral battle will make your adrenaline race. Great stuff.

Gameplay: 10
The progression from town to town in this game is very smooth and interesting, never seeming to grow old. The style and flow of this game makes it incredibly replayable, never at any time boring. The battles are turn-based, with a cross-shaped Fight/Item/Magic/Run command box ala the original Lufia and the Breath of Fire series. The battle system is relatively simple, although it does require some careful planning, as well as the use of special attacks, which are imbued within the various weapons, armors and relics you discover throughout the game. The overall difficulty of this game is considerably high, with a very long quest and many tough battles. The most challenging part, however, are the masses of thought-provoking puzzles found through every dungeon in the game, some necessary to proceed forward, while others lead to wonderful treasures. Lufia II contains the best puzzles in any RPG ever created, perhaps any game ever created. There are also capsule monsters with several classes whom your party can obtain. These intrigueing beasts will aid you in combat and grow ever stronger as the game progresses. Their strength also corresponds to the way that you feed them. This adds another wonderful replay-value element to the game, along with such things as a casino, the infamous Ancient Cave(play the game and find out-it will be something you'll never regret), a replay mode after you initially beat the game similar to Chrono Trigger, Gift mode, and several lengthy side quest just to name a few. There are tons and tons of interesting equipment and items in this game, each with their own nuances, so if you're an oldschool Weapon, Armor and Accessory statistic freak, you'll have a great time finding and trying out all of the various treasures in this game. The controls are perfect, being very loose and silky smooth, but not too smooth to the point where they're hypersensitive; rather, the controls are just right. The storyline is intricate and moreso interesting. Some of the games greatest moments come from the assortment of hilarious one-liners that your characters will say as the game progresses.

Overall: 9.8

Overall, this game has no major flaws whatsoever, and not even any minor flaws that I can think of, even after playing it for(literally) hundreds of hours of my life. It has almost infinite replay value, unforgettable graphics and sound, and, above all, the 4 greatest bosses of all time, the mighty Sinistrals! If you never play another game again, at least play this game through. It's an experience that will last you a lifetime.

Lufia II receives a final score of 98%. The two points off of a perfect 100% come from the game not being even longer(not that it isn't incredibly long already!), since you're so hooked once you play it that you're sad when you beat it. Regardless, it still is the greatest RPG of all time, even outpassing the absolutely legendary Chrono Trigger by a very slim margin.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 12/05/01, Updated 12/05/01