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Chris Carlsson's Lost Odyssey (360)
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| [March 6, 2008 03:21:52 AM]
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Design 2 (15 hours in):
After 15 hours, the gameplay has not progressed much. Now that I have more than 5 people, I have to decide who to keep in my team and level up, and who to leave on the sidelines. This means balancing by switching characters in and out regularly and making sure no character gets too much attention. I feel like this interactivity is the kind of interactivity I don't wan to deal with though. They never explain why the whole team wouldn't be fighting, and having to switch characters out gives unnecessary responsibilty to characters without producing any incentive. Usually when you make a player commit an arduous task, you reward them with a new weapon. Instead of using positive reinforcement, they give a kind of passive aggressive punishment for not utilizing all of my characters. Fortunately a low level character levels up faster when fighting high level enemies, so playing catch-up is not too big of a deal.
Gameplay 2:
Despite the minor failures, I'm enjoying a classic RPG throw-back and a much needed game for the 360. I've been waiting for a good role playing game on my xbox, and I enjoy the simplicity that the game provides. The game does not demand too much interactivity, and I can play this like a popcorn game: sit back and watch the pretty aesthetics that 360 provides. Many have criticized the game for lacking innovation, but it's been too long since a decent turn-based RPG was released. Where the game fails in melodramatic minutia, and unnecessary tasks, it succeeds in letting the player skip cut scenes and making characters serve individual purposes so no single character is totally forgettable. The controls are easy and the graphics are great.
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| [March 6, 2008 03:21:25 AM]
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Summary:
Lost Odyssey is a recently released classic RPG from the creator of Final Fantasy. There has been a lot of hype surrounding the game's release and I am excited to see the result. The game follows Kiam Argonar: an immortal being that has suspiciously lost the thousand years of his memory. Kiam is a war-torn general who is sent to investigate a magical disturbance at “Grandstaff.” Grandstaff is the pinnacle achievement of his nation (Uhra is the name of his nation), and has recently been leaking magical energy. From there Kiam discovers that the man who sent him to Grandstaff is actually the head of a diabolical plot to rule the world.
Gameplay (5 hours into the game):
That last sentence being said, the game does not cover much new ground in the story or gameplay department. The core game mechanic is almost identical to all other turn based role playing games. Basically, select attack, magic, or skills and equip the right accessories for the given element of the land you are in. Fortunately I enjoy classic turn-based role playing games, and I knew what to expect when I bought the game.
The story line is very generic and melodramatic so far. There have been a lot of cut scenes that revolve around Kiam being a hard-ass but still being very in touch with his feelings. I have run into two kids that turned out to be Kiam's grandchildren. After thirty minutes I meet their mother (Kiam's daughter who he has a single memory of.) and within two minutes of meeting her she dies. Of course being a classic Japanese RPG, Kiam is overrun with grief for the daughter he doesn't remember. I was expecting a sappy story when I bought Lost Odyssey, thinking that the melodrama in the game was part of the charm, but having four discs on an Xbox 360 game and skipping cinematics on the first disc is kind of ominous.
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Chris Carlsson's Lost Odyssey (360)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Wednesday 5 March, 2008
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