Rogue Galaxy is both a technical and artistic marvel. The game uses Level 5’s signature cel-shading style to produce a game that is as close to a cartoon as is possible on the PS2. Character designs are original and a bit quirky, but at the same time, everything feels grounded in some sort of reality. Even when some of the game’s more oddball elements like talking cats are thrown in, everything about the game’s presentation still feels like it belongs in the game’s universe. The multiple worlds you’ll visit are just as diverse as the cast, ranging from backwater desert planets, to primitive jungles to a world teeming with technology (and no, the Star Wars parallels are not lost on me).

More impressive than the game’s visual style is that you rarely, if ever, encounter load times. Battles break into exploration areas seamlessly. In addition, there are no long load times between gameplay and story sequences, which helps to keep the game’s pacing moving at a constant clip.

An excellent soundtrack and effects complete the presentation. Even the voicework sounds great. Each character has their own distinct personalities, right down to the talking cat, that really shine -- especially when paired with the excellent character designs.

Rogue Galaxy’s story is told episodically. The first half of the game introduces the game’s major players, as well as your party members. Once everything is in place, the story expands to include a military plot and the corporation that is seemingly behind every move it makes. The technique works, though some stories aren’t as good as others. In addition, it takes a while before you get to the meat of the plot, so for some time, things feel random.

You start out as Jaster Rogue, an orphan on the desert planet of Rosa that has been annexed by the Longardain Empire. The planet may not look like much, but it has the resources the empire needs. Jaster makes his living as a hunter, trading beasts he captures for food. Before long, a giant beast attacks the town. Jaster moves to save the town and, after defeating the beast, is mistaken for a great hunter. He is soon asked to join a rag-tag group of pirates. Jaster plays along, allowing him to finally travel the stars.

Battles take place in a system not unlike the one seen in Kingdom Hearts. Battles take place in real time, though they also have a menu-based component. As you wander through areas, you are attacked at random intervals, usually every 30 seconds to a minute. From here you (and your party) fight off the attackers using both ranged and melee attacks, as well as skills and potions. What makes the system different from other action-based RPGs is that a counter limits your attacks. Each action you take drains a skill meter just a little. If the meter is depleted, you must wait for it to refill. Although it may sound limiting, the system works and is very good. It adds a sense of strategy to fights normally seen in turn-based RPGs while also keeping action fast-paced without reducing it to a hack-fest.

At any time during a battle, you can use skills provided you have enough points in reserve. Skills are accessed through a menu that is accessed through a simple button press. Like many other elements in the game, the skill system works similar to systems found in other RPGs, though with changes that make it more accessible and allow it to easily integrate into the gameplay.

As you defeat enemies, they will randomly drop items that can be placed on your character’s skill grid. As these items are placed on the grid, which works like Final Fantasy X’s skill system, new abilities are unlocked. Unlocked skills are limited and are predetermined for your character. The skills are useful, though there isn’t that much freedom in how your character develops. Also, none of your characters ever learn a heal spell, which makes the act of healing a character a chore. You always have to have a stockpile of health items on hand and using them drains some of your attack meter.

You are usually joined in combat by two party members who you can take control of at any time. Each have their own combat skills and have their own uses in battle. The other two are controlled by a competent A.I. that will only bother you if they need to be healed, which you do by pressing one of the shoulder buttons. The member requiring help will usually call out your name and a big thought bubble will appear over your character’s head, so it isn’t too hard to know who needs help.

Completing the main story alone should take about 50 - 60 hours depending on restarts and leveling up characters. Outside that, there’s about 50+ more hours that can be derived from completing side tasks like becoming a top-ranked bounty hunter, capturing insects for a chess-like mini-game or any other various and assorted tasks.

Rogue Galaxy isn’t necessarily a hard game – it is just deceptive. The mechanics and, well everything about the game, look really easy and it doesn’t take long to get the basics down. At the same time, there are little nuances that you’ll have to pay attention to if you want to be successful.

For example, the important thing about combat isn’t that you are attacking, or sometimes even how powerful your attack is. Rather, it is all about how you attack. If you don’t use a charged attack on a shielded enemy, you’ll never do any damage. Also, some require that you either jump to hit them or, as in the case on some bosses, you’ll even have to run on top of them using a special platform-generating gun. It is a lot to have to think about, but it is always engaging and keeps the repetition of combat fun.

Some battles come with special bonus conditions, granting you special bonuses if you fulfill them. Meeting these goals adds a little more challenge to battles, but is worth the effort.

Once again, Rogue Galaxy’s combat system is very fast-paced and easy to learn. Characters have melee and ranged attacks, both of which are used in real time. Attacks drain a bar, at which point you’ll need to rest up a bit to either catch your breath or reload. Holding down the attack button charges a special move that does more damage and can penetrate shields. The downside is that this attack drains the attack meter quicker and leaves your character open for attack.

After battles, your weapons gain experience points. Once a weapon is maxed out, you can then combine it with another maxed out weapon to create a super weapon. How you combine weapons is up to you. If you are the experimental type, you can try different combinations or you can have the weapons analyzed and receive in-game recommendations. Like most things in the game, it is both easy and complicated at the same time. The basics are easy to grasp, but there is more to it that it initially seems.

Rogue Galaxy is as complete an RPG as you’re likely to find. Thought it doesn’t do anything amazingly original, it combines the best aspects of top tier RPGs and tweaks them in such a way that everything fits together into one amazing game.