CIMA: The Enemy

"Innovative, Captivating, but with a few flaws"

CIMA: The Enemy is one of those games where most people have never heard of, even though it isn't really that bad. It may not be among the best in the GBA library, but it certainly is a lot better than a lot of other games that have sold well. For example, licensed games based on movies or on T.V. shows. The gameplay is, as I put it in the title, "Innovative". There is a reason why innovative is put in parentheses, as you will soon find out.

***** The Story *****

You play as a gate guardian known as Ark. Gate Guardians are, to put it simply, bodyguards. They are there to protect people from things called CIMA. CIMA are a combination of elves and monsters. They feed off of people's life forces, or their hope ( Hence, the monster portion ). they can make things using magic or something close to it ( Hence, the elf portion ). Ark is assigned to the task of assisting some pioneers who are moving over to some new land. He is also assisted by his partner, Ivy. In fact, they are both assisting their teacher, Jester, who is one of the top 10 gate guardians. The people they are guarding are traveling to new lands by train. The entire train manages to be consumed in a giant portal and is trapped in a world created by the CIMA, and that is where the story begins... basically, everyone gets separated and you must find them in different dimensions or levels, where you enter through different "doorways" or these types of portal-thingys. You always end up back at the train at the end of each level. Anyways, you have to defeat the CIMA and leave safely with no casualties ( At least none you can prevent ). That's the whole point to the story. The story and the ending is a bit shallow, and you don't go very in depth with much of the characters. That's why it gets a 4 out of 10.

***** The Graphics *****

The graphics are above average. They aren't quite Golden Sun caliber, but they aren't too shabby. The portraits are quite detailed and look nice. The backgrounds, also look quite nice at first, but they get really repetitive. The graphics would get a 7 out of 10 in my book.

***** The Gameplay *****

The gameplay is a bit unusual. It is different from most games as in you lead a group of civilian-type people who, for some of people, would find boring. Around half of the people can't fight, and the ones who can fight, don't really fight. They mostly let themselves get attacked. The gameplay consists of you leading these people around like sheep, by menu commands and sending them where you command them to go. From there, you protect them as they go through various obstacles. Also, as the game progresses, the people begin trusting you. To earn their trust however, you must protect them when monsters get close and such. If they get attacked, they begin to lose their faith in you, But once you hit the point in which they neither believe in you or distrust you, you will get the option to let them make items for you. Everyone has different items they can make for you, and some can make the same types of items, but cost less material to make it. You acquire this material which you need to build things by killing monsters, who occasionally drop it. While this seems quite original, the reason why the gameplay is marked with quotations earlier on is due to the fact that the game is EXTREMELY REPETITIVE. Each new dungeon you go through you do the same thing. You command people to the end of the level, you protect them on the way, and then you go to the next area. Occasionally you play as a different character, but then afterwards you go back to Ark. You can't even level up in the game. What you do is upgrade your weapon during certain parts of the game. As a result, there is no reason to really fight in the game, besides to get material to make items. But you can coast through the game without even having to make items. You can simply use the items which you find and still beat the game. Even though this review may sound a little harsh, the gameplay is something that, even though it sounds bad, isn't as bad as it sounds. Repetitive as this game was, for some reason, I played it all the way through. I have to give it some merit for that. There are many games which I would consider plenty better than this that still lay unfinished in my stack of games. The game play would receive a 7 out of 10.

***** The Sound *****

The sound is so-so. It isn't so bad that you would want to turn off your speakers, but is the type of music that you would hear and never remember. So, for the sound, repetitive, but not very annoying, so it's tolerable. 5 out of 10 for being average. Plenty of room for improvement.

***** Replay Value *****

There is absolutely no incentive at all to replay the game. None that I found at least. It gets a 1 out of 10. The 1 is because I don't give 0's.

***** Overall *****

This game receives a 7 out of 10. It's a fairly decent game, but it could certainly do a lot better. This game also receives some points for charm, seeing how this game was made completely different from the gaming norm, with little advertising and it still managed to be released. The different style of gameplay might have turned some people off and the little advertising it had would have made it unknown to a lot of people who would rather buy something they knew was a safe bet. That's why this game receives a 7 out of 10 from me.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/05/06