The last of the jRPG holdouts
Unlike the rest of the XBox 360 world that is online playing Halo, I just finished the Eternal Sonata demo. I'm really impressed with the graphics and the music. The gameplay? Honestly, kinda hard to say...
Here's the thing - it's very difficult to get across the game engine of a turn-based jRPG in a 30-minute demo. In games like that, the true depth of the system start to come alive as you progress through the game and build your characters. If you're only going to let me play through one stage and a boss, it's just not gonna happen.
This is a recurring theme with jRPG demos that can be downloaded from XBox Live. They really don't do much to sell the full version of the game. It's always like "navigate your way through dungeon X and then defeat the evil dragon at the end". Ok, well, why am I in the dungeon? Why are we hunting this dragon? And for that matter, who am I and who are my friends??
I think what jRPG demos need to shill is their storylines. This is really the last strong suite that this style of game has over other genres. Even that's fading away really. But, regardless, my point is this - make me care about the characters... If you can't do that, at least make me curious about what's going to happen next. Either that or, hey, why not hammer out a truly novel combat system that brings the fun back to turn-based gameplay? On second thought, that'd take too many resources. There are profit margins to meet, people!
So, to sum it up, if you're just going to give me Final Fantasy 863 in the gameplay department, at least get me interested in the story & characters. Otherwise, my $60 can better spent in many other places.
Here's the thing - it's very difficult to get across the game engine of a turn-based jRPG in a 30-minute demo. In games like that, the true depth of the system start to come alive as you progress through the game and build your characters. If you're only going to let me play through one stage and a boss, it's just not gonna happen.
This is a recurring theme with jRPG demos that can be downloaded from XBox Live. They really don't do much to sell the full version of the game. It's always like "navigate your way through dungeon X and then defeat the evil dragon at the end". Ok, well, why am I in the dungeon? Why are we hunting this dragon? And for that matter, who am I and who are my friends??
I think what jRPG demos need to shill is their storylines. This is really the last strong suite that this style of game has over other genres. Even that's fading away really. But, regardless, my point is this - make me care about the characters... If you can't do that, at least make me curious about what's going to happen next. Either that or, hey, why not hammer out a truly novel combat system that brings the fun back to turn-based gameplay? On second thought, that'd take too many resources. There are profit margins to meet, people!
So, to sum it up, if you're just going to give me Final Fantasy 863 in the gameplay department, at least get me interested in the story & characters. Otherwise, my $60 can better spent in many other places.