Sudeki

"A Tale of Wasted Potential"

You don't have to tell X-Box owners that their console lacks a solid line-up within the genre known as the RPG. Sure, there have been some GREAT ones, most notably 'Morrowind' and 'Knights of the Old Republic', but even those have been few & far between. All the more reason for a new title to aspire to be more than just a 'hack & slash' affair or a button-masher ... and it really appears as though "Sudeki" could have been, and SHOULD have been, a much more rewarding experience than the one which seems like it was "shoved out the door."

STORY (6)

I had to start here, as this category actually caused me to lower my overall game score. Why?? You ask ?? Precisely because the story is actually VERY GOOD, but almost criminally UNDER-realized. Interesting characters and sub-plots, such as the overbearing & strict father who blames his remaining son for the brother's death, or the sinister & shadowy Lord Talos are barely scratched on the surface. And the game's ending has a very rushed & hasty feel to it, committing one of those "What the Hell just happened ... who the heck's severed head was that ... wow are those the credits ... where's the story wrap-up ... ... WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED ....??" I just cannot explain why someone would spend countless hours on a game title and then just end it with so little polish.

GRAPHICS (9)

The title really shines here ... and I do mean 'shines'. The world is vibrant & colorful, and load times are practically non-existent. The only issue I have here is the lack of enemy variety. It seems near the end of the game that you are fighting the same 6-10 enemies over and over again.

SOUND (6)

The 'sounds' of the game are awesome ... birds chirp in the distance and ambient nature sounds are quite well done. But the voice-overs leave something to be desired. Who thought of the English/German accents I would like to know and thought they'd be "cool" ? And since all the characters can be talked to, would it have been too hard for them to have something to say other than bland re-hashed dialogue EVERY time you meet them?? Example : GUARD - " I'm on duty ... I don't have time for the likes of you." Ummm , excuse me MR. GUARD, but you're talking to the freaking Princess here DUDE ... wouldn't that type of comment get you a guillotine or something from most Royal families ????

GAMEPLAY (8)

The fighting system is done very well here. I loved the Item system, where you could put 4 items onto 'hot keys' and the fact that you could change players on the fly during combat. The one problem was that I couldn't help but feel that this system must have broken down during Boss battles, as these are almost always One On One affairs ... with the game deciding which player would do the fighting. Why spend all that time building up your characters ( the bread & butter of the RPG experience ) and then discover that you shoulda been putting all those Orbs (your level ups) onto character A .... as characters B,C, & D are only gonna fight in one Boss Battle and in a later portion of the game be replaced entirely within the party.

MISCELLANEOUS (3)

I basically just included this category to grumble about the things that bothered me about Sudeki . First, the MAPS. They are completely USELESS and it begs the question as to why they are even there in the first place. The game is VERY linear with few branching paths, but should you need to use a map, this one is about as worthwhile as trying to find a local highway using a GLOBE. Second, the WEAPONS & ARMOR. They seem like they are upgradable, but the upgrades seem to make no sense. A power upgrade on one item raises it 35 points, but on another raises it 4 , for the SAME character... and once you have the totem weapons, the majority of the others become so much clutter . Plus, the one character doesn't get his armor until near the very end of the game, which adds to the feeling like there was ALOT more game planned after this point that was lopped off like a butcher using his cleaver. Third, the LOCKED DOORS. Why the heck was so much of the game locked off to you I wondered when it was over. While playing, I figured these locales would open up as the storyline progressed ... I mean, "they're not going to leave all these doors locked are they?"... YUP.... In fact, I passed by one location that I swore by my RPG-ers license would be opening up "anytime now" ... and I sit by the keyboard STILL waiting.

OVERALL (6)

I can't help but think of what 'Sudeki" COULD have been. It is like that movie that has so much potential, but then fails to deliver on it. This game is definitely a RENTAL, as the main quest will clock in at about 20 hours, but you could add another 5 by doing all the side quests. But again, these were nothing more than 'fetch-quests' where you had to get 3 of this, 5 of that, 10 of those, bring them to me ... now get 5 more .... oh, c'mon ...another 5 please .... OK, here's an ORB of the moment for you .... now get 3 of .... you get the picture.
The replay value is NIL as well, as the various locales are travelled through time & again, and the few hidden items are long discovered by the end of the game. Plus, there is no after game carry-over. A new game is precisely that, and since you have no doubt seen everything by the game's ending anyway, I can see no reason to replay it.

Again, I cannot stress enough that Sudeki has elements which could have propelled it into the 'great' game category. But under-utilized plot elements, combined with under-used character abilities and a 'wham-bamm-what the hell was that again' ending combine to make Sudeki an experience that leaves you wishing it had been so much more.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/31/04