As the PlayStation 2 enters its twilight, “Rogue Galaxy” may prove to be one of its last great games. Kind of a Star-Wars-meets-anime-meets-“Dark Cloud” action-RPG with pirates, “Rogue Galaxy” offers beautiful cell-shaded graphics, top-notch production values and a bounty of gameplay.
In a galaxy far, far away you play starry-eyed teen Jaster Rogue, who leaves home on the desert planet Rosa to join a group of space pirates aboard the Dorgenark – a flying pirate ship, complete with sails.
As war rages on between the Longardia Commonwealth and the Draxian Empire, the ragtag crew searches for the mythical land of Eden, home to the greatest treasure in the galaxy. The only thing that stands in your way is the Daytron Corporation and its evil president, Valkog Drazer.
On paper the plot hardly sounds enthralling, but the quirky characters and dialogue help drive an experience that’s as engaging as it is silly.
The fights, on the other hand, are no laughing matter. It doesn’t take long for this game to serve you your ass on a silver platter.
In combat you control one of three party members at a time, with the option of switching as you please. The two A.I-controlled characters react based on the selected battle-formation – fight separately, attack the same enemy, go all out, or step back.
Each character can execute moves until their action-meter depletes, at which point you have to wait for it to recharge. At anytime you can hit triangle to stop the gameplay to access each of the three character’s special abilities.
The combat system works great, but unfortunately for you, your A.I.-controlled teammates are like alcoholics at an open bar – turn your attention away for just one second and you’ll find them passed out on the floor. As a result, you’ll be spending a lot of time reviving them in battle.
The key to success is to learn how to control the pacing of the fights through the menu options. At first this seems to defeat the point of an action-RPG, but once you get into it, you realize just how strategic the combat can be.
To ease the pain, the developers implemented an excellent save system. Walk into a save-point and not only will your characters be completely healed, but you will also be able to teleport to any other previously-visited save-point on that planet. If the battle is getting rough, simply teleport to a shop and stock up on some much-needed supplies.
Some RPG fans may be turned off by the linear nature of the first 15 hours of gameplay. However, once “Rogue Galaxy” opens up, you really get a sense of just how much there is to do. There are tons of side-missions and mini-games to keep completists happy for quite some time.
One of the more notable distractions is a factory mini-game that’s much in the same vein of the developer’s other RPG franchise, “Dark Cloud.” In it you create your own items based off blueprints you find on your journey. Once created, these items are sold in various shops throughout the galaxy.
If you play “Rogue Galaxy” in a straight-line you can beat it in the average-RPG time of about 50 hours. Should you take your time and see everything it has to offer, however, you’re looking at a good 100 hours of gameplay.
With the three next-generation systems all battling for supremacy, it’s easy to see a game like “Rogue Galaxy” getting lost in the shuffle. While hardly the type of game to lure new fans to the RPG genre, “Rogue Galaxy” is reason enough not to shelve your PS2 just yet.
|
WHAM! Rating:
|
8.3 out of 10
|
|
ESRB Rating:
|
T (Teen)
|
|
Official Web Site:
|
|
|
