Almost a great game.
Review 153
Released: June 30, 1995
Publisher: SCEI
Game Genre: Fantasy Turn-Based Strategy
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Opening Thoughts:
I celebrate my 153rd review by creating my first Playstation review. Arc The Lad was a Japanese game that somehow, in the advancement of time, found its way to America with translation.
Story: 30%
Gameplay: 40%
Graphics: 20%
Durability: 10%
Story (7/10)
I will spoil one thing in this category. The ending saves this game's storyline. It's a perfect setup for a sequel. Otherwise, the storyline is a typical save-the-world in an ancient era style.
The game opens with Kukuru, a descendent of the Sacred Clan. She's been tricked into extinguishing a flame that she at the time does not know releases an ancient demon after 3,000 years of being sealed.
Arc, the hero, then treks up the mountain to relight the flame. On the way he is attacked by the demon and is near death when a voice grants him the power of the Guardians, giving him the strength to continue his journey up the mountain. He relights the flame successfully, but a dark series of events has been set into motion.
Gameplay (8/10)
Arc The Lad has a very interesting style of turn-based play. As in most strategy games, you only have a select amount of spaces to move your character in a turn. The game successfully implements a fast-paced style that allows the gamer to get comfortable quick. There are very few menus and attacking is done simply by pressing the X button. Spells and more advanced features are learned slowly, along the way, which also allows a comfortable pace for any gamer.
However, the simple style of the game is a double-edged sword. Because it's so easy to get the hang of, it can get repetitive easily. Each character maxes out at Level 60. There is a surprising lack of balance with the characters as well. I had Arc and Tosh leveled up to 60 fairly early, and they took care of all the enemies throughout the rest of the game. None of the other characters reached level 40.
Graphics (7/10)
For such an early release, the graphics are decent. There are even a few cutscenes, most being at the end of the game or in the credits, sadly. There is also a lot of pixilation.
Durability (6/10)
The game will keep you interested long enough to beat the storyline. It also offers extra battlefields for you to train on, an arena to advance through, and a vast 50-level dungeon that could take up to 4 hours to get through.
Overall Score (7.3/10)
Rounded Score (7.5/10)