Vampko's Game Review thread

[vampko]

This is where I'll put reviews for the games I've played. No point in making tons of threads, so I figured to just have it all be in one thread. Probably will have separate posts for the different reviews as this post gets too long or something. Not sure how it will be organized exactly, but I'll do my best to keep it clean. Like a certain site I will have the 'biased' and 'unbiased' scoring system. This will probably be slow growing though.

[PSX]
[PS2]
[Wii]
[PSP]
[DS]
[PS3]

Spoiler:

- Ar tonelico Qoga: The Knell of Ar Ciel

[360]
[Vita]
[3DS]

[vampko]

First up,

Yes, it's the final swan song of the beloved Ar tonelico franchise. Does it live up to the name of the games which preceded it? By the end of this review, I hope you'll agree that it does~

Story -

Spoiler:

This is definitely one of the stronger points of the game. The story starts off pretty typical for a JRPG. Aoto, the main character, is whisked away from his hometown due to a strange girl he suddenly meets. Yet, there's much more to it, and it really gets more interesting as you get further in. I'm not sure if you can count the Dive sequences as story, but they are very in-depth, and lend a lot to the development of the characters, so I felt it important to put them in here as well. Now, the Cosmospheres do a very great job of fleshing out the heroines, and even Aoto at some points. They also are done in a way where you don't feel like it's 'busywork' to get through. Yet, even with all of that, the story still wouldn't be considered something as 'epic' as say Steins;Gate, but it still is a great story that should bring entertainment to any person who enjoys RPGs. Maybe even to those who don't enjoy RPGs.
6.5/10.0

Graphics -

Spoiler:

Arguably the weakest point of this game. While the previous games got away with being called 'graphical junk', the PS3 era brought in a mindset that things NEEDED to be 3D. As such, Gust tried their best. Sadly, as one of their first forays, it really doesn't hold up to what the system is capable of. The character models lack detail, and the areas are handdrawn 2D planes set up in a 3D manner. It doesn't mesh well at all, and generally looks like a mess. The only time when visually it's not a pain, is when you're looking at the 2D portraits. But, outside of that, it's just horrible from a technical standpoint.
1.5/10.0

Gameplay -

Spoiler:

This one is less easy to diagnose. The battle system has many nice concepts, and can be quite enjoyable, yet at the same time can become cumbersome when you're fighting weaker enemies. The purge system is a great way to try and add spice to the battles, but unless you're really devoted, you likely won't take advantage of the way using rhythm can help you get your purge ready much faster. I didn't really find this out until my 5th or so playthrough. Before then, I mostly just button mashed when the bars were higher. I also learned that the hyuuma you have equipped has a great deal of influence on how the bars work, because it changes the song. There's quite a bit of depth to be found, but at the same time it's unnecessary in the end is the problem. Outside of combat, you have the always helpful Ar tonelico encounter gauge.

This helps to alleviate the frustration of random battles. How it works, is you have a bar that starts out full. When you finish a battle, the bar depletes based on various things about the battle you just fought. When it's completely depleted, you can run around freely without any fear of being attacked by a random encounter. This is nice for collectors who are scratching their heads trying to find a treasure chest. Very useful, and I'm sure everyone's wishing that something like this would have been available in the RPG's of yore with random encounters. Last thing to talk about would probably be how exploration works out.

Exploration is one of two things: travelling on foot, or using the world map to QT between places. You can walk to any place on foot if you really want to, but there's still a quick travel function if you want to get somewhere quick and without worrying about random encounters. The QT system was also implemented well, because at certain points in the story when it would make no sense for you to actually go to some places you've been before, it won't let you go those places. Now, while exploring, you also can run across treasures, or talk topics. Talk topics are what are needed to be able to dive further in a reyvateil. Diving is basically how you get to know a reyvateil partner better, and a large part of the Ar tonelico experience. So, these talk topics are important to look for. And then there's the synthesis system, and I think that covers the gameplay in a nutshell. there's probably a lot more that could be said, but I've already dragged on this section long enough.
8.5/10.0

Sound -

Spoiler:

This is where Ar tonelico games really shine. From start to end, every track really fits what's going on. Whether it's an entrancing melody to fit the mystical things that are going on, or a fun loving song to help convey a comical situation. This game has you covered. The dub itself was also done quite well on both ends. There are less voiced scenes in the EN dub, but still what is voiced is done well, and doesn't get in the way of the story at all. But, there is one problem. When listening to the JP dub, there is one scene in a cosmosphere that is bugged quite horribly. During this scene, all of the lines will be behind the actual text box. This lasts for quite a while, and really hurts the experience. The EN dub did not have this problem. Though, in the original Japanese copy of the game, this problem did not exist either. There are a few other problems as well. But, for the most part, it was done very well and pretty much bug-free. The one area I can't give much good points to though would be the sound effects in battle. They're not very creative or interesting.
9.0/10.0

Replayability -

Spoiler:

The replayability of this game is QUITE high. There are about 8 endings that can be gotten, and 4 'routes' that you can take. And each 'route' you take really does offer a different experience. The endings are all done well, and it doesn't feel like things were just 'tacked on' so you feel like you want to see the other endings. Also, to help getting endings better, you have newgame+. This lets you carry over levels and other things which can greatly aid you in getting through battles faster. You can also change the difficulty system freely by the menu, and this will not affect story or anything at all. Now, for those who don't want to see the same story over again, there is a skip button. Unlike many skip buttons, this will only skip the scenes you've already seen. Well, most of the time. There are a few bugs here and there, but it works pretty solid. A very nice feature indeed. There's also DLC which can increase replayability. The Harvestasha personality DLC. These are all free, and change how a certain character in the game acts, and also changes the reactions of your characters to what that character says. They're just for fun, but can offer a very different and interesting experience (as well as some quite funny scenes!) depending on which you pick. Highly recommended to try these out after you've had one playthrough with the normal Harvestasha.
9.5/10

Personal categories (These are the ones that are more biased in nature)
Characters -

Spoiler:

I love the cast of characters! And there are SO MANY to choose from! Cocona is my personal favorite, but all of them are amazing ~ I even grew to like Saki a little by the time I had finished playing through the game. Aoto is surprisingly likable. He's like a typical JRPG protag but not really. It's a bit hard to explain, but that's the best I can put it. And I could probably gush on and on about the entire cast really. Who else could manage to make a VERY butch and muscle-bound woman to be sooooo adorable!? Course, she's adorable in other ways as well, but I liked her personality even before that was revealed. And, Cocona...~ I'm really happy that we got to learn so much more about her and see so much more of her this time around. I loved her in MoM, but she just didn't get much development. That all gets fixed in this game. And, Tyria, you're so lovable and dorky, and it's hard to describe you, but I really like you! Ar Ru...your biofield or whatever it was called was one of the most enjoyable moments in the game for me, even if it cost me IRL money to experience ~ really, I could go on and on, but I must stop here.
10/10

Visuals -

Spoiler:

The art on this game first turned me away, I do admit. But, as I played the game, it really grew on me, and I really wouldn't have it any other way! I just wish that we could have seen this art with the same quality of models that Ayesha is getting now. It would have been the most beautiful game I'm sure ~ So, while it may leave a bad first impression on you, give it a chance, and you may just find that it's quite the delectable visage!
10/10

Soundtrack -

Spoiler:

Gosh...the music in this game is just amazing! Other people I've read saying things like 'it wasn't until point x that I felt like I was playing an Ar tonelico game', but for me 'point x' was when I started the game! It really is a feast for the ears, as only Gust knows how to pull off~ Yet, for me, the soundtrack wasn't as enjoyable as say Ar tonelico 2, or a game like Atelier Totori. It was definitely amazing, but I just couldn't give it a 10 status.
9.5/10

Overall Personal Score:
8.1/10
Overall official Score - 7.6/10

A solid JRPG, with a slightly above average story, many technical flaws, and rich music. Any PS3 owner who enjoys RPGs should give this at least one whirl. And I highly recommend anime fans to give it a try. If you don't like RPGs, then it likely won't be your cup of tea, as games like this rely highly on character interactions to keep the player interested. As a piece of the Ar tonelico franchise I believe it fits quite nicely. It really does have all the traits that make Ar tonelico games so enjoyable~

Special categories (HIGHLY BASED ON MY OPINIONS!)
Ecchi level -

Spoiler:

There's a LOT of suggestive dialog in this (Girl A: Let's take off our clothes and rub our bodies together), and there are scenes which really get the imagination rolling, like when Aoto is messing with Finnel's crystal. Especially the sounds and movements that go on during that scene. But, it never actually crosses the line. Then there are the purge scenes, which can get pretty ecchi. You see underage looking girls in their underwear, and mature-looking women in their underwear. 'Underwear' being very relative to who is losing their clothes. At the same time, there's some service in their for the ladies as well, when you get to see a man in a....well I'm not sure what it's called at this moment, but it's like a speedo. And you also get to see Aoto clad only in shorts. It's not as much service as they're giving to their target male audience, but at least it's something.
7.5/10.0

Yuri factor -

Spoiler:

Oh man....there's a LOT of this going on. The two most prominent 'couples' that I saw were Finnel and Akane, and Cocona and Finnel. But, there are other possible pairings throughout. Those are just the two which have the most backing to. I think the latter's the strongest, because there are several scenes where it's Cocona who's helping Finnel, and there is lots of cute dialog between them. You even get to see the two of them sleeping in a bed together ~ Of course, this is all subtext, and none of it actually goes anywhere, but there's a lot of potential there. This is pretty common in Ar tonelico games actually. Having a yuri pairing here or there being hinted at.
5.5/10.0

[Beedlebud]

Really nice review Vampko! I've been on the fence about this game for awhile, but I think you've finally made me put it on the list of games I need to get! I do have one question though: Will I be lost if I play this without playing the other 2 Ar Tonelico games?

[vampko]

Really nice review Vampko! I've been on the fence about this game for awhile, but I think you've finally made me put it on the list of games I need to get! I do have one question though: Will I be lost if I play this without playing the other 2 Ar Tonelico games?

Well, one character does return from the previous game and has a major part in it, plus another character comes with that character and has a pretty big part as well, and there's terminology and stuff that you won't know right away, but there is an in-game encyclopedia which goes over the stuff in detail. You'll be okay, but your experience would be better if you managed to play the first two games. The second one especially.

[AsukaNeumaki]

Really nice review Vampko! I've been on the fence about this game for awhile, but I think you've finally made me put it on the list of games I need to get! I do have one question though: Will I be lost if I play this without playing the other 2 Ar Tonelico games?

I played this game with minimal knowledge of the first two since I couldn't ever find them anywhere besides the beautiful interwebs and it didn't hamper my experience.

[vampko]

Really nice review Vampko! I've been on the fence about this game for awhile, but I think you've finally made me put it on the list of games I need to get! I do have one question though: Will I be lost if I play this without playing the other 2 Ar Tonelico games?

I played this game with minimal knowledge of the first two since I couldn't ever find them anywhere besides the beautiful interwebs and it didn't hamper my experience.

Yeah, you can still enjoy it quite a bit, there's just extra enjoyment if you've played the previous games. But it's not required by any means.

[suttonmitchell]

I would like to get to trying this out as well! Nice review. I got a few other things to make sure I have the funds secured for, then I will probably pick this up.