"The first RPG on Gamecube... surely not Final Fantasy but none the less a great game!"

The first RPG on Gamecube... surely not Final Fantasy but none the less a great game!

In a way this is a Gauntlet/Adventure RPG. The battles are some-what similar to Gauntlet and this is an adventure game after all! In a way this is a dialed-down version of Final Fantasy. Well here goes the review for the first RPG on the Gamecube!

STORY: 9/10
Well this game does have a very well done story . Not Final Fantasy but very good.

Argwyll. A very peaceful land in it's time. You would have never thought that horrible things could happen to such a happy land. However a mysterious Black Fog is taking over Argwyll as well as other countries inside of Argwyll. The fog is causing chaos, destruction, and worst of all, death. The brave King of Alanjeh was fighting the fog for his country and he was never seen of again. Things are starting to look hopeless for the people of Argwyll. However now it is up to Princess Katia to save her land and find the King. All she is armed with are some mysterious cards. These are no ordinary cards however. For these cards have extraordinary powers. Each card will summon a monster and the monster will help you in battle and in a time of need. The land of Argwyll may not live on.... Or will it?

Well this game's story is very well done. As I said before: ''Not Final Fantasy but very good.''

GAMEPLAY: 8/10
How fun is this? That is a very difficult question. While some parts of this game are fun others are annoying and hard. If you are a fan of games loaded with side quests this game may not be for you. With about 6 extra levels you will maybe spend about 2 hours on side quests. While in levels there are red fearies you may collect for a scholar named Alexander who will reward when you catch a certain amount he wants. So in a way there is a side quest in a level you must do.

TOUGHNESS OF THE GAME: ?/10

Is this game easy or hard? In MY opinion this game is easy and hard. Here are some examples of the game when it is hard. One example is you can have a deck of thirty cards in a level. Some cards are summons that will die when they are used. Therefore you can use the same card only once in each level. However once you beat a level you get all the cards that you used. Also there are weapon type cards that you can use 2-4 times for each card then it disappears for that level. Finally there are independents that will fight until they die. Also every card will take crystals from you. Crystals are like Magic Points. But if you run out of crystals you Health will be drained instead. Your health and crystals will increase as you find Rune Stones. However you can find cards in a level that you can add to your deck once you reach what I call a ''card sphere.'' Card spheres make the game easy because you will get all your health back but not crystals. Also when in battle every time you hit an enemy it will drop crystals that will replenish some of your magic while it gives every card in your deck experience. When an enemy gets killed by a card that card gets more experience than the others that didn't kill an enemy. Next once a card reaches a certain amount of experience he can transform into sometimes a better version of that card. However some cards could take a while to level up to get what you want. Also make sure you want what you get, because you can not get the card back that you transformed! So those are some things that make the both hard and easy at the same time.

CONTROL: 9/10

I must say, the control for this game is very well done! I love the fact that you can change camera angles by 90 degrees with the turn of the C-Stick. So you can easily adjust the angles to what fits you right. Also while in battle you can use for cards at a time. By using the ''A'', ''B'', ''X'',and ''Y'' buttons you can use four cards in a row. You have four cards that can be used by the corresponding button where the card is placed. There are four cards and the diagram looks like this:
1
2 3
4

The ''A'' button will use card number ''4'', ''B'' will use ''2'', ''Y'' will use ''1'', and ''X'' will use ''3''. So there's an easy-to-read diagram. Also when you want to do a capture throw (Where the enemy is very weak and you have a chance to capture it) all you have to do his hold the ''L'' button make sure you have 1 magic crystal, hit the enemy, and kill it, and you may just get that card! That is probably the most complicated control maneuver to execute. So to sum up the control of this game is not that hard at all! I learned in about 2 battles on how to do pretty much everything.

GRAPHICS: 6/10

I am sad to say I am not impressed at all! I have heard that this game was originally going to be out on Nintendo 64. If that was the case I would be in awe. Sadly that is not the case. These graphics for me are just too blocky. Also in some places there is (but very little) frame rate slow down. Another thing is that the graphics are very scratchy and almost hard to see. The only thing that keeps the graphics score above a 5 is the battle effects are very well done. That is pretty much the only plus to all the graphics in the game.

SOUND: 8/10

Now on to a good part of the game. The sound. I think the sound is the best Gamecube music so far. The only thing that beats it is the special effects in Melee. I love the battle music. I can't get it out of my head. And with tons of sound effects beautifully well done it is amazing! Also the music easily sets the mood of the story. Or even the place of the game you are in. When in a dungeon the music is creepy and eerie. Also when in a ice mountain the music is arctic-like. I'll buy the soundtrack.... Will you? You should!

REPLAY VALUE: ?/10

I gave it a ''?'' rating because if you beat the game you may no want to play it again. I beat it and I didn't play it again because it was way too easy for me the first time. And I heard you keep all of your cards that you had when you beat the game and you start from the beginning of the game. So to me that makes the game easier than it already was! That is why it got a ''?'' rating. However because I gave it a ''?'' rating that doesn't mean you don't have to replay it!

BUY OR RENT?: RENT FIRST!

I am saying this because the box of the game is saying something like 20 hours of Gameplay. Of course I beat the game in 5 hours and 43 minutes. So I strongly urge you to rent it first. If you really like you should buy it. I made the mistake of buying it first. Two days later it's beaten and I haven't played it in like a week.

SUMMARY OF GAME

Well done! I can say I am impressed! This is probably my favorite game on Gamecube right now.

Pros: Nice sound. Over 100 cards you can collect. Fun and Challenging.
Cons: Way to short. Bad graphics.

Overall Ratings:

Story: 9/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Toughness of game: ?/10
Control: 9/10
Graphics: 6/10
Sound: 8/10
Replay Value: ?/10
But or rent: RENT!

GRAND TOTAL: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/23/02, Updated 06/23/02