Thousand Arms
Score: 95% ESRB: Teen Publisher: Atlus Developer: Red Company Media: CD/2 Players: 1 Genre: RPG
Graphics & Sound: The graphics in Thousand Arms come in two different flavors. There are the map graphics, which are your typical SD sprites walking around in a nicely real-time rendered 3D world. And then there are the cutscene and battle graphics, which sport gorgeous full cell drawings of the characters as they fight or talk or do whatever they do. This game looks great, after you get used to the rather silly look of your character on the map screen. It's almost like they deliberately poked fun at the 'shrunken RPG dude' convention. The sound in this game is good, with your typical sound effects. The voice acting, however, is top notch, with all of the womenfolk having their own personality and yourself being just the sort of whiny philanderer that you'd expect. The voice acting really draws you into the game. I'm glad to see it's a tool that more and more people are using.
Gameplay: If you've ever kept track of Japanese games, you know that they're really big into dating simulations. Consider this game an RPG/dating simulator, and you'll have a really good grasp of how the game is played. The storyline is your typical RPG fare, a slowly unfolding story of finding your place in society while not hitting on the womenfolk. Being a Spirit Blacksmith, you as Meis learn that the only way to make stronger weapons is to have a woman with you that has a high 'Intimacy Level.' Of course, to get said Intimacy Level up, you've got to wine, dine, gift, and beg the girl so that she likes you. This all makes for a very interesting, if sometimes frustrating little game-within-a-game, where you try your best to keep your current date as happy as possible in hopes that she'll put out... strong enough vibes to make your weapon more powerful. Yeah, that's it. The battle system is unique, in a kitschy sort of way -- only the lead character can attack, with the other characters in the party playing a supporting role. It's effectively a one-on-one battle, with a little help from your friends. It's different than most anything out today, and to me feels something like if someone had made Dragon Warrior I's battles iteractive... with much, much better graphics. I like it. You may think that the amalgam of gameplay just wouldn't work right, but in the anime-style world of Thousand Arms, it works just perfectly. And the added goodies you get with the game -- stickers, a little hologram card, and a multimedia CD -- only add to the coolness. Atlus went all out on presentation of this superb little game, and they did a damn fine job. All of these enhance the gameplay much like all the add-ons for Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete added considerably to the game. They all add up to make a more emmersive environment, one where you become genuinely interested in what's going to happen to Meis and his ladies. This is something that is becoming more and more rare in the RPGs of today, and I was very pleasantly surprised to see it happen here. In short, Thousand Arms' gameplay is damn sweet.
Difficulty: This game's not all that difficult, but the real fun lies in figuring out just how to get the attention of that special girl, and what will keep her attention. It's sort of like a puzzle game at times. It's plenty of fun, though, and that's all that matters.
Game Mechanics: The game plays smoothly, and the digital pad is a superb way to control movement (as it is in most RPGs). The overworld map gets confusing at times, and it took me a while to figure out just how I could know where I was heading. But after that initial learning curve, the game moves on smoothly. The graphics are lush, the control scheme is easy, and this game rocks in its own Anime way. I highly recommend it. Its unique blend of RPG elements and dating simulator style will leave you craving for more -- here's to hoping Atlus will bring over even more crazy Japanese games that we as game-fiends could only previously dream about.
-Sunfall to-Ennien, GameVortex Communications AKA Phil Bordelon
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