Fire Emblem Soul! - Awakening

Hey guys! It's been a long time since I've written a game review. Mostly because my free time has mostly been spent on Animes and Online Games but I would like to talk about Fire Emblem : Awakening for the 3DS because I got it a while back and played it but recently got back into it.

Fire Emblem is a long running tactical rpg dating back to the 1990s with each game being very character driven and relies on character interactions. Another thing that made the game unique was the fact that pre-Awakening, anytime a character died in battle, they were gone permanently. So every move, every fight and every attack counts. For perfectionists, this was both a drug and a nightmare as I watched Angell Soul replay a battle over and over because one character or another died.

Plot: The plot in fire emblem starts with your customizable character losing his/her memory and being found by Prince Chrom and his sister. He/she decide to join Chrom's adventures as a tactician as he fights against evil neighboring empires.

Opinion: On the surface, the game starts off very reminiscent of past Rpgs. A main character with no recollection of who he or she is and a Kingdom fighting against an evil empire but soon it turns into an epic adventure with an over-arching plot and plenty of subplots. 4/5 Soul

Setting and Graphics: The setting is medieval fantasy, characters fight with swords, bows and magic. There are mythical monsters such as Dragons and Wyverns and theres not a lot to touch on that has not been seen or said already.

The Graphics look pretty good for a 3DS game. The characters are portrayed as tiny chibi sprites and have anime portraits for dialogues. When attacking however, the characters turn into full size 3D versions of their sprites and it looks really good. 3/5 Soul

Characters: Here is where the game really shines, the game boasts 44 playable characters not including downloadable characters. Each character has unique interactions with other characters the more they fight together. That's more than a hundred unique dialogue between all the characters. Later on when their interaction reaches rank S, they can get married and the couple determines the stats and minor appearances (hair colour) of their offsprings. And then their offsprings can also marry. The potential is endless and I found myself shipping characters together because they'd look like a cute couple or an odd couple. 5/5 Soul

Gameplay: The game has you running from area to area as Chrom in an overhead map, interacting with it to start battles or go to a shop. The battles are reminiscent of Vanguard bandits in that the characters move on grids and when you attack or heal, it goes into a fighting scene showing the attack or spell or heals picked by the player beforehand. After the battle, you go into a menu to initiate interactions between the characters resulting from the previous battle, if any. 4/5 Soul

Overall: I really enjoy Fire Emblem - Awakening, it is my first Fire Emblem game and what a way to start. I've heard of the series before but had never found the interest to start it, but with traditional Jrpgs becoming a dying art form, I could not pass up the opportunity to  buy and try a series that has stood the test of time. I hope to be able to get a copy of Fire Emblem Fates soon and continue my love affair with the series! 4/5 Soul

Angell Soul Review (Jean d'Arc PSP)

Hello everyone, Angell Soul here again to review another tactical RPG. This time we’re going to take a look at the charming and somewhat bizarre Jeanne D’Arc for the PSP. A title that takes the historical story of Joan of Arc as inspiration for a high-fantasy story of magic, betrayal and the power of love.

Plot: Everyone knows the basics of Saint Joan’s life. She was a peasant girl who came out of nowhere to lead the French army in a short but brilliant string of victories during the 100 year war. Joan was eventually captured, betrayed by the French king she helped crown, and burned at the stake for heresy by Church officials loyal to the English side. This charming rpg takes the basic facts of Joan’s story to spin a tale of magic as the setting of the 100 year war is re-imagined in a fantastic France where demons and beastmen fight alongside and against the French and English armies. The first sections of the game follow the events of Joan’s campaign relatively faithfully but by the halfway mark the story takes a rapid turn and comes to a satisfying but somewhat predictable ending.

The story is told largely through in game cut scenes and a few key animated ones. The voice acting is at times awkward but quite unique due to the use of real French actors (and some Americans doing French accents).

Opinion: The plot takes a familiar story and reinvents it in a fun way. The story is not the most original tale ever told; it is basically a story of fated heroes battling against a seemingly undefeatable evil but eventually overcoming through their perseverance. You will see many of the twists coming but it is inventive enough to keep you interested and wanting to know how it will all turn out.
4/5 Soul



Character(s): The characters in Jeanne D’Arc include some historical characters and some invented ones. There are too many to cover all of the eventual party but I will cover the key memorable ones.

Jeanne: The eponymous heroine of the story is a headstrong character who sometimes lets her dedication to saving France from evil blind her judgment. However, she goes through significant growth as she moves from innocent peasant girl to overzealous avenger and finally ends up as a heroine who you can route for. She’s a strong female lead and I appreciated that she didn’t rely on men to save her, ultimately she’s the one who has to save the male lead.

Roger: Is a mysterious swordsman who showed up in Jeanne’s village a few years before the events of the game. Most players will instantly recognize him as the main love interest as the local friend. His dark past adds another element to the character that makes him stand out a bit as we wonder whether how his story will play out in the end.

Liane: The childhood friend of Jeanne and your go to mage for the early stages of the game. She’s dumb as a post and constantly needs saving. The game attempts to put her through some growth but the cost she pays to learn from her mistakes makes her turn around a bit less satisfying than it could have been.

Gilles: The historically savvy amongst you might recognize Gilles De Rais as the famous former comrade of Joan of Arc who eventually was executed for the mass murder and rape of possibly hundreds of children. Now he’s notorious as a serial killer, but the game oddly casts him as a just and loyal companion to Jeanne with a good head on his shoulders. He’s the reliable companion who helps guide Jeanne to her destiny. The character design actually makes Gilles seem a bit creepy and the conclusion of the game, which I won’t spoil here, goes some way to answer to why such a seemingly great guide might one day have become a horrible murderer.

Henry VI: The main villain for most of the game is the demon possessed boy king of England. His character is rather weak and since he’s pure evil there’s not much growth to speak about. The character design is also rather bland and unoriginal.

Bedford: The other main villain is Henry’s uncle Bedford who is more interesting as a misguided man who turned to demons because he thought it was the only way to save his nephew and England. However, the game doesn’t do enough to make us feel for him until the very end and at that point it feels a bit too forced and late.

In conclusion, the characters of Jeanne D’Arc put a refreshing spin on historical and original characters and they provide enough interest and originality to keep you interested until the conclusion. The villain design could have been somewhat better since pure evil is never really as interesting as a nuanced villain who has a bit of good to them.

4/5 Soul

Gameplay: The gameplay is nothing to write home about. It’s a pretty standard tactical rpg with grid based combat. There’s no class changing or customization in the game like you find in FFT and most strategic choices in the game are pretty obvious. By the later stages once you have the right abilities and equipment the last 20% of the game provides little difficulty and actually becomes just a chore as you try to get the next bit of the story. The lack of customization and the fact that stats are pretty much fixed for the characters means that the viable character selection for each stage is pretty much obvious. A little more challenge and tactical variety would have pushed this game into the top tier of trpgs, as it stands it’s only just competent.

2/5 Soul


Overall: Jeanne D’Arc is a game overflowing with charm. The plot, world design, art style and characters provide enough to keep you playing through what is under the surface a rather subpar tactical rpg. There’s a great deal of replay value provided by postgame stages, but this will appeal mostly to those who enjoy grinding; other games like Disgaea do this better though because of the wider variety of characters and abilities available. If not for its unique story this game would be instantly forgettable, but still I can’t help but say this is one worth checking out for its charm and story alone. 4/5 Soul

Blue Soul Review (Blue Dragon)

Blue Dragon is a really good game that goes back to the root of Jrpg while dragging it kicking and screaming into the next generation of consoles at the time. 


Plot: The game starts with 3 childhood friends, (Shu, Kluke and Jiro) dealing with the infamous purple cloud that has come to plague their village. They gain the power to summon blue familiars to help them fight and save the world from the evil Sorcerer Nene. On their journey they meet Zola and Marumaro and together they find the strength to destroy the evil entity.

Opinion: The plot is pretty standard, calling inspiration from Jrpgs of old while also managing to keep it somewhat fresh. 3/5 Soul

 

Setting and Graphics: The game has a fantasy setting mixed with steampunk technology (e.g the landshark etc) 

The game itself was beautiful for its time but it's not perfect, it has the early xbox 360 and ps3 problem which was play-dough looking graphics. It does not lack in heart though as it's done to the best of its ability. 3/5 Soul



Character(s): The characters in Blue Dragon are...there I guess. They're likeable enough but 4/5 of them are children and there's a lot of limitation to the narrative. It is however supposed to be a coming of age story and thus the characters come together well in the end. 2/5 Soul




Gameplay: The battle system is the ever glorious turn based battle. I love this battle style, and despite turn based battles dying out, the battle in blue dragon never gets stale.

There are a ton of customization depending on each character's familiar, also a very interesting job system more in the veins of FinalFantasy 9. 4/5 Soul


Overall: I really enjoyed Blue Dragon, it's was really nice to play a traditional Jrpg on the Xbox360 and though the game has it's hits and misses, it was still an enjoyable playing experience. 3/5 Soul

Angell Soul Reviews: Fire Emblem

Hello dear readers, I’m a friend of Rpg Soul and you can call me Angell Soul (it’s a pun on my actual name, trust me it’s funny). RPGs can be time consuming endeavors for even the most dedicated gamers. With some titles taking as much as 60+ hours to complete the main story alone, not many have the time to play every game that’s out there. I’ll be contributing reviews to the blog as much as I can to help make Rpg Soul’s job a little easier and making it possible for this blog to cover a wider range of topics.

Today’s review will focus on one of the most successful and well known series of tactical role playing games, Fire Emblem. Previously, Nintendo had shied away from translating the games into English because they were afraid the series’ notorious difficulty would turn off Western gamers. However, the inclusion of two characters from the series, Marth and Roy, in Super Smash Bros. Melee generated enough interest in the property to justify a localization of their next title in 2004. So, let’s take a good look at Fire Emblem for the Game Boy Advance, the game that made Fire Emblem a staple of tactical rpgs the world over.

The most famous gameplay element that most people probably know about Fire Emblem (until the introduction of casual modes in the most recent games) even if they haven’t played it before is the fact that characters stay dead once they die in battle. If any of the three main characters die the game ends and you have to restart the level, if any of the supporting characters die they are gone from your party for the remainder of the game. For anyone with even the slightest OCD tendencies this element of the game can be infuriating: especially, when a lucky critical strike from an enemy takes out one of your favourite characters with a single hit. We’ll go into more detail about the gameplay later on. For now let’s go on to discussing the story elements.

Plot: Most people would probably tell you that the plot of a tactical rpg really isn’t that important, what really matters is the tactical depth and difficulty the game provides. The story of Fire Emblem is pretty much a straightforward jrpg plot that doesn’t provide many surprises. A small group of heroes and their band of followers are drawn into a conflict that quickly evolves into a fight to save the whole world from a shadowy sorcerer and his evil army. The group eventually rescues a pair of siblings who the big bad wants to sacrifice for nefarious purposes. Eventually, the secret of the brother and sister is revealed and evil is defeated. The setting is typical of a medieval sword and sorcery style fantasy world and includes mystical creatures like pegasuses and wyverns.

Opinion: The plot provides very little that is particularly memorable. It checks all the usual boxes: brave heroes, fight against evil, grand consequences. It’s truly the rewarding gameplay and the memorable characters that make people continue to sing the praise of this game. The story is nothing terrible, but nothing notable either.
2/5 Soul

Character(s): The characters in Fire Emblem are probably as equally forgettable as the plot is. However, the aforementioned permadeath feature of the game does keep you strangely attached to them. The key way you learn about the individual stories of your faithful companions is through character conversations that can be triggered in combat. That means if you want to learn more about your favourite characters you have to use them in combat, which then means that they might die before you get to see their relationships flourish! 

There’s an element of dating sim to the matching of characters. If you successful get their relationships up to the max level and keep them alive to the end, then certain characters will have special paired endings. Most of those endings usually involve some sort of romantic outcome like marriage.

Despite most of the supporting characters being basic anime stereotypes the way we learn about them does have a tendency to make us get invested in the characters. However, this doesn’t apply so much to the three main characters who are fairly bland.

Lyn, the lead heroine, is a brave and honest warrior who believes in what is right and fights for the greater good. Elliwood and Hector are basically the same but they have penises instead. The player character is a nameless and faceless tactician who the main characters consult with before battles. Your character has no personality whatsoever.

3/5 Soul


Gameplay: Gameplay is of course where Fire Emblem shines at its best. The battles are challenging and the game provides you with a variety of different kinds of settings and win conditions which keep the game feeling fresh all the way to the end. Combat is based around a simple to master rock-paper-scissors system for weapons and magic. There are a limited number of stages available so you also have to be careful how you use your characters to make sure they level up appropriately. You also have limited weapons stock and money that you have to keep an eye on to make sure you are equipped properly for battle. The battles in Fire Emblem provide a fun mix of storytelling and character building with challenging high stakes combat because of the permanent death feature. This is the winning formula that made Fire Emblem the enduring hit it has become today.

5/5 Soul

Overall: Fire Emblem has definitely become a classic as the first English language version of the game to be released. The battles are still challenging and fun to play even to this day. However, the story doesn’t quite hold my interest as much as other tactical rpgs. The Final Fantasy Tactics series have shown that tactical rpgs don’t have to sacrifice story for gameplay, you can have the best of both worlds. Despite its sometimes generic packaging, Fire Emblem remains a great game well worth your time, I cannot wait for the new Fire Emblem Fates. 4/5 Soul

Pokemon 20th Anniversary Soul (Leaf Green) Road to Brock!

Hello everyone! Rpg Soul here with a new series commemorating the 20th Anniversary of Pokemon by replaying Pokemon the first generation! I will be playing the remake for the Gameboy Advance so the pictures look a little more colorful. 

This NEW Series will be divided by gyms and a quick overview of what I went through before fighting the gym leaders. I will try and catch as many Pokemons as I can manage along the way but I will not be attempting the insane task of  'Gotta Catch em' All'. Also the format and how I write these posts might change as I do them. Let's GO!

So I named my character Soul (ik cute) and my Rival, Xillia after the worst game I've reviewed so far. After the intro, I'm introduced to prof. Oak who asks me to pick one of 3 pokemon.

I chose Squirtle as it's the most obvious choice because 1) it's a water squirrel! and 2) it leaves the rival with the worst pokemon of the 3, Bulbasaur! Now with our pokemon in tow, let's head towards the first gym leader, Brock~

Along the way, Pokemons were caught (+1 Weedle, I forgot to take a picture of it)

Pokemons evolved. (P.S: My soul is always free like a Butterfree)

Finally I arrived in Pewter City to challenge the sight impaired Gym Leader.

But not before sightseeing and visiting the Museum of extinct Pokemons.

Finally I was ready to face the Gym leader and my Pokemons we're pumped and ready.

The battle was short with both Mankey and Squirtle being strong against Rock type Pokemons.

Sorry Brock, but with you down it's time to make my way to the always wet Gym Leader, Misty!

Top 10 Soulful Final Fantasy Games Part 2

Number 4




Final Fantasy 5 was not the first game to introduced a job system but it was the first title that let you delve into the changing of jobs and character customization. I played it when it came out for the Playstation 1, along with Chrono Trigger and til this day it's still the funnest of the SNES FF Triglogy.

Top 10 Soulful Final Fantasy Games (Based on my PERSONAL OPINION) Part 1

Final Fantasy has grown and evolved over the years with the recent games being near unrecognizable to fans of the old installment of the series. With Final Fantasy 15 coming out this year, I've decided to make a top 10 list of my favorite games in the main flagship titles. I will start with...


Number 10

Despite being a sequel, many fans consider this game part of the main series. With bizarre Jpop music and a job changing system involving dresses, the game comes off more like a love letter to the fans of Final Fantasy 10 and boy did we enjoy the journey. Amust play if you're a fan of FF 10 

Number 9

The first FF game to come out for the Playstation 2 and the return to turn based battle for the series since FF3. A jumble of plots and twist, some make sense while some created plot holes. It was a beautiful game for its time but was marred with bad voice acting and strange creative choices. I still enjoyed it.

Number 8

One of two Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game to carry the flagship title. An online game second only to World of Warcraft and boasting upwards of 5 million account subscribed. It helped recoup the loss Final Fantasy 13 had on Square Enix and a good game in it's own right. If you're into MMORPGs, this is a must-try!

Number 7

Notice how I used Ashe's picture instead of one with Vaan for Final Fantasy 12? Had she been the main character I would have placed this game much higher. Vaan had no interesting story or character arc and instead followed Ashe around as the story revolved around her. And yes FF10 had the same concept but Yuna was no main character material, Ashe was. The battle system was hot off the heels of their first MMORPG FF11 and it showed. The game and world felt huge and had a sense of grand adventure.

Number 6

In the number 6 slot is Final Fantasy 4. I know a lot of people, my brother included would place this game a lot higher on their list and honestly I would have too but I was not a fan of switching out the party members constantly to fit the storyline. It's still a very good game and was the first in the series to have a proper narrative and paved the way for the rest of the series.

Number 5

With graphics that leave the games that came before it in tears, Final Fantasy 6 is the title you'll find in the top spot for a lot of Final Fantasy lists. The story took risks and it boasts one of the biggest cast of playable characters in the series. Featuring the first female main character in the flagship titles, Terra had paved the way for stronger and bigger females for the games after it. Kudos FF6.

End of part 1.

Sad Soul Strikes Back (Dragon Quest IX Review)

Let me start this review by saying I liked this game, I played it and finished it but I felt like certain parts of the game failed while the good parts were expected from a flasgship DQ title. There will be no character section for this game and immediately gets a 0/5 Soul from me because of reasons I will state in the gameplay section. Ready? Let's tango!

Plot: The plot for DQ9 is centered around angels and the world tree Yggdrasil. The angels are trying to get into a higher plane via a fruit called Fygg. They earned it but right before take off, the train is shot down by a mysterious force causing the main character to lose his/her wings and ending up in the human realm. It's up to him/her to help the humans, as a human him/herself.

Opinion: I like the story, I love the lore surrounding angels and I think it's done tastefully in this game. Also I like the idea of angels losing their wings and learning to adapt and fight their way back to the top. 5/5 Soul



Setting and graphics: The setting for Dragon Quest 9 does not stray far from it's predecessor. It's a fantasy medieval world that is full of life and cute quirky feeling to them. It's done very well and the graphics looked so well done for a massive game on the Nintendo DS. 5/5 Soul



Gameplay: The game retains most of its charm and adventure from the previous installments. The game feels massive and grand and the areas are beautiful. The towns feel lively with npcs bustling around and has an interesting cast of supporting characters.

The biggest flaw in my OPINION is the main characters. The playable characters in your party are created by you and have 0 impact outside of battles. I know a lot of people like this feature but I'm sadly in the minority. It felt lonely travelling with hired puppets. This feature was added to encourage multiplayer, but this required having friends with their own Nintendo DS and I never had gamer friends. The only one I had was my brother and we shared the same DS. Big sad face!

As I've already given the character section 0/5 Soul , I will be judging the gameplay separately and give it a 4/5 Soul


Overall: Dragon Quest IX was a fun play and I enjoyed being able to re-enter the world of Dragon Quest. This is not my favorite in the series as that honor belongs to Dragon Quest VII, but it's a solid addition. I wanted to be able to rip into this game (as its supposed to be my bad game review) but I cant. Despite giving the character section 0/5 Soul, I will have to give the overall game 4/5 Soul just for being everything I know and remember from Dragon Quest.

Join me soon as I review Beyond the Beyond (1995) for the Nostalgia Soul Series!

Moe Soul :3 (Atelier Rorona Plus: Alchemist of Arland Review)

Hey everyone, it's Rpg Soul back with a game I enjoyed very much. Atelier Rorona was one of the first Jrpg to come out for the Playstation 3 and not being to afford the console, I dreamt about playing it for a long time. It's a great game and I can't wait to review it! Ikuyooo!

Plot: Rorona is a clumsy alchemist in-training with big dreams of opening her own workshop one day. Her life gets turned upside down when her teacher abandons her and she's forced to work for the Ministry or risk having her teacher's workshop closed down. In her adventures she meets a colourful set of characters with goals that coincide with hers and a love interest who used to date her teacher (!!)

Opinion: With the exception of the Atelier Iris series for the Playstation 2, the Atelier series has never had very dark or complicated plots. They're normally light-hearted and fun. I enjoy it as a nice alternative in the Jrpg genre, it is more in the veins of a Harvest Moon game with it's lightheartedness. 3/5 Soul

 

Setting: The setting of Atelier Rorona is very simple, it's a medieval fantasy setting with lots of magical creatures and colourful monsters. You're based in a town so you prepare from trips around the area to gather materials and it's all beautiful animated with its cell shaded graphics. 4/5 Soul

Characters: The characters in Rorona are not the most fleshed out characters in all of gaming, they have traits about them that stands out a lot more than others and some are sadly lame stereotypes like the tsundere and the bad drunk. But it's okay because this game is not supposed to be about the about character depth.

This does not mean the characters are unlikeable or shallow. A lot of them have backstories that help keep you invested in these guys and some are sadder than others.

Rorona's character is ditzy and can be annoying at times as the aim is to be as MOEEE as possible. This game is a moe game and doesn't try to hide it, in fact it embraces it with all its moe glory.

3/5 Soul

Gameplay: The game revolves around Rorona going to dangerous monster filled areas to collect materials for Alchemy. Each play through has a 3+1 year and every month you'll have to submit items made from Alchemy to the Ministry. You are then judged on the quality and/or quantity of the item(s). Along the way you also craft weapons, armor and character quest items for the other playable characters.

The battle is straight up turn based and it's awesome! I love turn based combat and Rorona keeps it simple while keeping the battles hard as balls. I did 3play throughs with new game+ and am still unable to defeat some of the optional bosses in the final year and with how fun the game mechanic is and how charming the characters are, it's only a matter of time before I start my 4th Playthrough. 4/5 Soul

Overall: I thoroughly enjoy Atelier Rorona but I understand that it's marketed towards a niche group of English players. I, fortunately, am part of the niche. It also helped that I grew up on Atelier Iris and Mana Khemia, so I am familiar with the interesting play-style. Overall I give the game a very biased and very MOE! 4/5 Soul Because of how much passion and soul went into the production of this game. A passion for fun game making that was carried over and perfected in the next two Atelier Arland series and lost in the newer Trilogy.

Please Follow me as I do my next review in the Nostalgia Soul series....Earthbound