Lagoon

"Nice. Flawed. But still cool!"

Hey everyone out there in gamerland!
Here's a real gem of an old action RPG. It came about in 92 and was developed by... Capcom I believe. Some say it was a mindless Zelda-clone (They say that about every action RPG don't they?) but I say it's a classic. Not very popular when it first came out, it was low-grossing so it didn't get much hype. Now on to the:

Graphics: 7 of 10
One of the game's best features, the graphics show some work. Enemy sprites look nicely drawn and bosses are especially colorful. Some of the characters are a bit hard to see, but for the most part the graphics seem to hold their own. Also, the character animation is slightly more detailed than one may expect. Cape blowing and eyes blinking are very unnoticed, but they are there.

Music: 6 of 10
Many say this is where games shine. I love good game music, and am not picky, but some of the tunes in the game are VERY short and repetitive and some are nearly non-existent. In one town, a dwarf town I believe, there is a single sound effect played over and over for music. There went a star. But in others, like the moon stone cave*, the music is VERY good. Even memorable. Oop! That star just jumped back in.

Gameplay: 5 of 10
Needless to say, this is what sold games in the early 90's. It's a simple hack-n'-slash with a few weapons and armor to collect and a slightly interesting magic system. There are four staffs that you will come upon and also four stones: wind, fire water and electricity. You mix and match the stones with staffs to use different spells that correspond with how much MP you want to use. The last staff combos are element dragons, very nice. Not the newest system, but it's a welcome addition. Also, HP can be regained simply by standing. Hmmmm... how much time will we spend in a corner?

Story: 6 of 10
There is a little bit here, and my total score got a whole extra star because in key moments in the game there are some wide-screen CG cinemas. Very good addition to any game.

Overall: 7 of 10
Alright and worth 10 to 15 dollars, but not wonderful.

Buy/rent: It has decent difficulty if your a novice to moderate RPGer, but for me I could do it in a rent. (I'd say buy for the lesser gamer. How do you know if your a lesser gamer? How long did it take you to beat Super Mario World WITHOUT cheats? Lesser gamers take more than about 3 or 4 hours.)

That concludes this rating. Cya!

*Moon Stone? POKEMON COPYCAT? GAAAAAKKK!!!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/02/04