Luminous Arc

"Another solid strategy RPG from Atlus!"

Luminous Arc is a strategy RPG from Atlus that really shows of some of the quality technology the Nintendo DS is capable of producing. The game starts off with a gorgeous opening anime intro with a pretty good vocal song to go along with it. The story of the game centers around a young man named Alph and his group of companions as they go on a quest to stop the witches from destroying the world and reviving their god. Alph is a member of the Luminous Church and his companions, lead by a knight named Heath, are known as the Garden Children. Throughout the game there are fifteen different characters you will recruit and all of the characters are very different from one another in battle and each have a different unique personality. The game's story is decent, but it never reaches the epic story of a game like Final Fantasy Tactics. The cutscenes sometimes have voice acting, but not all of the voices are well done, and they don't really sound in tha great of quality coming from the DS. Another problem is when you are pressing A to skip the text, there are load times when the voices come on and off. Even with that issue, it is at least a nice touch to have some voice work rather than none. One other problem with the dialogue, is sometimes it is either very poorly written or it sound very cheesy. Some characters act so stupid, or they say something that no one would ever say in a certain situation. You will know better of what I'm trying to say once you play the game.

If you have played any strategy RPG before, then you will feel right at home with this game. It is very straightforward and plays like your typical strategy RPG. The game is divided into chapters (24 in all), and each chapter their is a destination to marked on the world map that you have to go to. Each place is connected by dots and you simply press A on the place you want to go, and Alph will automatically move their. After the intro cutscene to each chapter, you are allowed to shop, or use the action command, which allows you to optionally speak to some of your party members. When you are ready, you select the advance story command, another cutscene takes place, and then you usually fight a battle. Every chapter in the game follows the same format.

Battles take place on a isometric grid, like every other strategy RPG, and you move your units in squares, and then you have the option of attacking, using magic, items, etc. This game has something called Flash Drives, which are basically like a limit break. Each character has three of them, and are learned as you level up. To use them, each character must have the required amount of flash points (FP). Much later in the game, you can learn Synergy Attacks, which are combination attacks with another party member. After each battle you can talk to one of you party members to help build up Alph's relationship with them. The party member will say something to you, and the game will then give you a choice of three responses to choose from. If you pick the right one, the character will give you a present and will like you more.

Aside from the battles and main story, there isn't much else to say about or do in Luminous Arc. The music is really well composed and is by Yasunori Mitsuda, best known for his work on Chrono Trigger. The game is also on the short side, as it can easily be completed in about 15-20 hours, depending on your speed. There are no sidequests, but the game does allow you to start a new game+ when finished, and you unlock a music test, gallary, and cutscene viewer. You can also take your party and battle online with friends over Wi-Fi connection. After all is said and done, Luminous Arc is a solid, good game, but should only be purchased by hardcore fans of strategy RPGs. With not much other SRPG's on the DS, this becomes the one to try and has my recommendation. It is a good effort by Atlus and hopefully the next game or SRPG on the DS by them will improve in all of Luminous Arc's shortcomings.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/24/07