But its gameplay riffs effectively off the greats, and there are enough worthwhile ideas buried in the story to offer a nice bonus on top of that. It doesn’t quite match the genre’s two pinnacles, Final Fantasy Tactics and Tactics Ogre, which coupled great gameplay with powerful, meaningful stories. The net effect is that while the story as a whole is not good, enough of it was for me to stay interested.Īt the end of the day, then, Jeanne is a good game rather than a great one. There are some clever twists on history, some very striking individual moments, and one subplot steals the show with its character development (both in the sense that the characters involved change over time, and in the sense that they make painful decisions that reveal their true selves). What partly redeems it is that, after a slow start, some bits of that mishmash become much better than others. The plot is a mishmash of competing and often incoherent plot elements, populated by characters who wander on- and off-stage with little rhyme or reason. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do that for Jeanne. I do want to talk a bit about story, which is what so often elevates tactical RPGs from “good” to “great”. From a mechanical perspective, Jeanne is well-designed and largely well-executed (although it does seem a bit laggy compared to its peers), and that forms its main draw. There’s not much more I can say on that subject! It’s “lighter” – easier, less complex, less time-consuming and grindy – than the typical tactical RPG, but that’s an observation rather than a criticism. This post is really an addendum to Monday’s discussion of Jeanne’s gameplay. Now that I’ve finished Jeanne d’Arc (PSP, 2007), I can give my verdict! This entry is part 2 of 2 in the series Jeanne d'Arc Lastly, this promotional video is worth a watch: That moniker should give you a clue as to the game’s mood! However, if the gameplay has remained the same, the Steam version will be well worth $10 (and especially worth the current discounted price of $9). The original game was a fast-paced, funny homage to the RPGs of yesteryear I’m not familiar with what may have changed in the PC version apart from the title, which has expanded to Half Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax Ultimate Boy. (In practice, you have a little longer than that, since you can buy increasingly expensive extensions from the Goddess of Time.) I played the original Half-Minute Hero on the PSP last year its conceit is that each level is an entire 8-bit RPG, boiled down to fit a 30-second time limit! In that time, you have to grind, buy better gear, recruit NPC allies, and leave enough time to make it to (and beat!) the boss. Half-Minute Hero, a remarkably clever and fun Japanese indie indie-esque ( correction: its imaginative concept, general feel, and price tag are all incredibly indie-ish, but I don’t think it meets the technical definition) game, has now landed on Steam!
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