Post by theshadowman on Feb 14, 2005 12:31:17 GMT -5
Yes, folks, it's time for another Chaz Karas review. Ready? Didn't think so. Let's start with some category explanations.
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Controls: An explanation of the basic controls of the game, followed by a rating based on how easy it is to grasp said control scheme.
Graphics: An explanation of the game's graphics, followed by a rating of how... pretty they are. 2D and 3D games will not be judged on the same scale, meaning that Donkey Kong will not be judged the same way Resident Evil 4 would.
Sound: A highly disregarded element in most games, the music is key to setting the mood of a game. This will be judged not by taste, but by how involved it is with the game itself.
Gameplay: Probably the category that means the most to us gamers. Games will be judged not on how well they draw you in, but by how your experience is while playing.
Story: If Gameplay is not what you're looking for, it's most likely the story. A captivating story will always keep you coming back for more. Evidence? Final Fantasy VII. "Nuff said.
Replay Value: Another highly disregarded element, Replay Value is just about as important as Gameplay. I mean, who wants to spend fifty bucks on a game that they beat in a week, then get bored on their second go-round? Not I, said the cat.
Overall: The game's overall rating is NOT an average of the other ratings. It is the overall rating of the gaem... duh.
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La Pucelle Tactics
Playstation 2
Mastiff/Nippon Ichi Software
Control: La Pucelle is a strategy game, so you're not gonna be too worried about controls in this game. I find myself often eating or talking on the phone with one hand, and playing with the other. Yup; that simple.
You'll probably press X the most often, but that's expected in most games. There's not really too much to explain, really.
8/10; Simple
Graphics: La Pucelle isn't visually stunning, but it's a 2D game. Character models are well put-together, and backgrounds look great. The 3D models in the game, such as rocks and trees are subpar, but you can't just let it go because it's a strategy game... Especially for a game produced in the past two years.
7/10; Colorful
Sound: This game excels in the SOund department. The voice acting is wonderful, even better than some cartoons. Voices wonderfully fit the characters, especially those of Prier, Croix, and Homard. The music is lively, and it changes to fit situations well. Come on, you don't expect the music to be fully orchestrated or anything, and it isn't. Doesn't disappoint, though.
9/10; Awesome Voice-overs
Gameplay: The Gameplay of La Pucelle Tactics is very involved, and it has to be in a strategy game. Characters each have the generic "Attack" command, as expected, but all characters will also learn personalized special attacks. You'll find yourself constantly replaying levels to gain more experience and learn more, even better special attacks.
Characters cannot be personalized as much as in other strategy games, but rightfully so; these characters have per-written personalities, and you don't wanna ruin that. Everyone can learn magic, though, and characters can equip any item they'd like; you can equip purely magic items to characters meant to attack physically if you want.
8/10; Involved
Story: La Pucelle's story begins with simple explanations of who you are and what you're doing, and quickly gets to your main goal.
The story itself is nothing completely new; story elemnts were clearly inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics, and you may catch some similarities to FFVII if you look pay attention.
7/10; Rehashed
Replay Value: The Replay Value of strategy games are possibly the highest of any other game out there, excluding GTA-esque games (which people just play because they like shooting shit... the games themselves aren't that great...). La Pucelle does not disappoint when it comes to Replay Value, because you will keep coming back to play again due to differing party possibilities. Trust me on this one.
10/10; OUTSTANDING
Overall: La Pucelle is a very amusing and engaging ride through everything you love about strategy RPGs. I bought the game to get back into strategy games, but I'm keeping it becuase you can always better your last party, and although the story stays the same, the way you play changes each time you begin again.
7.5/10; Waste more time playing a game than you ever have... Remember, although many things can kill you, nothing shortens your life like video games... i've got 60 hours of playtime on my thrid time through the game, which is 2 1/2 days... I must have wasted a week and a half of my life on this game already, and I've only owned it for a month or so...
---
Controls: An explanation of the basic controls of the game, followed by a rating based on how easy it is to grasp said control scheme.
Graphics: An explanation of the game's graphics, followed by a rating of how... pretty they are. 2D and 3D games will not be judged on the same scale, meaning that Donkey Kong will not be judged the same way Resident Evil 4 would.
Sound: A highly disregarded element in most games, the music is key to setting the mood of a game. This will be judged not by taste, but by how involved it is with the game itself.
Gameplay: Probably the category that means the most to us gamers. Games will be judged not on how well they draw you in, but by how your experience is while playing.
Story: If Gameplay is not what you're looking for, it's most likely the story. A captivating story will always keep you coming back for more. Evidence? Final Fantasy VII. "Nuff said.
Replay Value: Another highly disregarded element, Replay Value is just about as important as Gameplay. I mean, who wants to spend fifty bucks on a game that they beat in a week, then get bored on their second go-round? Not I, said the cat.
Overall: The game's overall rating is NOT an average of the other ratings. It is the overall rating of the gaem... duh.
---
La Pucelle Tactics
Playstation 2
Mastiff/Nippon Ichi Software
Control: La Pucelle is a strategy game, so you're not gonna be too worried about controls in this game. I find myself often eating or talking on the phone with one hand, and playing with the other. Yup; that simple.
You'll probably press X the most often, but that's expected in most games. There's not really too much to explain, really.
8/10; Simple
Graphics: La Pucelle isn't visually stunning, but it's a 2D game. Character models are well put-together, and backgrounds look great. The 3D models in the game, such as rocks and trees are subpar, but you can't just let it go because it's a strategy game... Especially for a game produced in the past two years.
7/10; Colorful
Sound: This game excels in the SOund department. The voice acting is wonderful, even better than some cartoons. Voices wonderfully fit the characters, especially those of Prier, Croix, and Homard. The music is lively, and it changes to fit situations well. Come on, you don't expect the music to be fully orchestrated or anything, and it isn't. Doesn't disappoint, though.
9/10; Awesome Voice-overs
Gameplay: The Gameplay of La Pucelle Tactics is very involved, and it has to be in a strategy game. Characters each have the generic "Attack" command, as expected, but all characters will also learn personalized special attacks. You'll find yourself constantly replaying levels to gain more experience and learn more, even better special attacks.
Characters cannot be personalized as much as in other strategy games, but rightfully so; these characters have per-written personalities, and you don't wanna ruin that. Everyone can learn magic, though, and characters can equip any item they'd like; you can equip purely magic items to characters meant to attack physically if you want.
8/10; Involved
Story: La Pucelle's story begins with simple explanations of who you are and what you're doing, and quickly gets to your main goal.
The story itself is nothing completely new; story elemnts were clearly inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics, and you may catch some similarities to FFVII if you look pay attention.
7/10; Rehashed
Replay Value: The Replay Value of strategy games are possibly the highest of any other game out there, excluding GTA-esque games (which people just play because they like shooting shit... the games themselves aren't that great...). La Pucelle does not disappoint when it comes to Replay Value, because you will keep coming back to play again due to differing party possibilities. Trust me on this one.
10/10; OUTSTANDING
Overall: La Pucelle is a very amusing and engaging ride through everything you love about strategy RPGs. I bought the game to get back into strategy games, but I'm keeping it becuase you can always better your last party, and although the story stays the same, the way you play changes each time you begin again.
7.5/10; Waste more time playing a game than you ever have... Remember, although many things can kill you, nothing shortens your life like video games... i've got 60 hours of playtime on my thrid time through the game, which is 2 1/2 days... I must have wasted a week and a half of my life on this game already, and I've only owned it for a month or so...
