Lunar Legend

"A Little Less Magical...."

Normally,I wouldn't rate a ''Lunar'' game this low but I'm doing this because I am a Lunar fan,having played it on various systems,and I know what Lunar material is.In this review,I will be making various comparisons to the Lunar that was on the Playstation,Lunar:Silver Star Story Complete,since most people will probably be more familiar with that version than the Sega one.Here's the ''low-down'':

Graphics (8/10) :
The graphics,I have to say,look a tad better on the GBA than on the PS.The town/''in-game'' graphics are nice and easy one the eyes.The battle graphics are done equally as well,with what looks like hand-drawn backgrounds.The animated cut-scenes have been replaced by stills pictures of the characters-which is understandable-but this seems to lose some the game's charm and I think that people who have played Lunar on console systems will be a little disappointed.Also,the characters' dialogue pictures only seem to show a limited amount of expressions,usually being a regular or a sad/mad mood.Newbies will probably not know the difference.

Music/Sound (6/10):
Ouch!This is one of the areas were Lunar Legend falls short from many other RPG's for the GBA.While many familiar tunes from the console games are here the quality of the songs are quite low, because of the GBA's speaker,resulting in the songs sounding far-away,distorted,and forgettable.Even with the volume turned up all the way,the music still sounds distant.However,I had to actually turn down the speaker a little because of the sound.The sound effects are alright,but nothing special or exciting:some sword-swipes,some ''twinkles'' here and there,and then a 3-sec. humming of a song.

Story/Plot (7/10):
Lunar fans will probably feel let down the most here.Many parts,like the Sega CD-to-Sony Playstation conversion,were altered,and some even cut-out.Other than that,the whole Lunar story is about the same as it was in the console versions: beat the evil that plagues the land and save the girl.This is not bad though.The whole Lunar story is very well crafted,even if it has ''been done'' by other games.A downside to the plot is that many of the characters,that were once funny and lively,seem dull and emotionless (Ex:Nall's sarcastic one-liner remarks have been changed to boring,passable lines).Again,I don't think newbies will notice.Another part that's missing,while not really needed,is the bromides.I'm not sure if Nintendo had to ''clean-it-up'' or if Working Designs still owns them,but they're gone.Instead players collect monster ''cards''.All these ''cards'' are just in-game battle stills (a couple are animated) of monsters/characters and a number.That's it!No info on the cards,nothin'!Oh,and they're also about the size of a stamp.Very dull and there's not much of a point to collect them,except to do what the game has to offer.In the end,the over-all plot of LL is pretty linear since you have to follow and go along with the story.

Game Play (7/10):
The Lunar series has been around for some time.So,with that said,there is really no surprise that LL has an ''old-school'' RPG feel to it.Like many RPG's,you must buy items,armor,and weapons,fight enemies to gain money and experience,and then go back and buy better armor and weapons.Rinse and repeat.The battle system itself has a very ''old-school'' feel and both long time RPGers and fans of Lunar will know what to do.It's a basic turn-based system with characters taking turns with enemies in battle,doing various things such as attacking,defending,healing,and running.Compared to LSSSC,the battle system is pretty much the same except for two things:moving and the new ''Arts'' gauge.

1.Unlike the home versions,there is no range to how far you can move in battle- no matter where you are,you can attack an enemy.This takes away from the strategy of the game,as everyone can attack.The only part that takes strategy is knowing where to place your characters on the battle field (which is really more like common sense...).
2.There is now an ''Arts'' gauge that can help you in battle and is similar to Final Fantasy's Limit Breaks.As each character attacks,the gauge starts to build.When it is full,that character has the option to unleash an ''Art''.Depending on what the character excels in,the arts will have different effects,ranging from powerful attacks to healing your allies.This is a nice addition but it makes battles a lot easier.

Depending on how you like your RPG's,you'll either love the battle scheme or,hate it.

Replay (4/10):
There's really not much reason to play it over once you've beaten it,unless you either want to do something you missed or to re-live some memories.

Overall (6-7/10):
LL is a very average RPG,especially when you compare it to most of the other RPG's for the GBA.Depending on whether or not you've played a Lunar game before,your score should be different.I think that most RPGers who have never played other versions of this Lunar will like it,and it does have that ''old-school'' feel,so old-school fans are probably sure to like it.But for those of you out there who have played the home console versions,I suggest just sticking with those.Even though it is Lunar on-the-go,it probably isn't the way you remember it.

Buy or Rent?:
As with most other RPG's,you'll want to buy this since the chance of someone fully being able to enjoy this game will be to take their time with it.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 04/04/03, Updated 04/04/03