REVIEW - Hyrule Warriors [Zelda Muso] (2014)

Ahhh video game crossovers, truly a fans dream come true. Whether it's the classic fighting game crossovers such as Marvel vs. Capcom, The King of Fighters or Super Smash Brothers, or a more non-traditional crossover such as Fortune Street, Nintendo Land, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games or Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, crossovers are pretty neat overall. But, what if two franchises you would never expect to crossover did?

That's what happened when The Legend of Zelda met Dynasty Warriors in the Wii U exclusive (until the 3DS Version comes out) Hyrule Warriors.

Hyrule Warriors takes place in the mainstay location of Nintendo's Legend of Zelda series, Hyrule. Once again, Hyrule is under siege from evil forces, and it's upto Zelda, Impa, and Hyrulean Army Trainee Link to team up to halt the invasion. They are successful, however Zelda goes into hiding as the Sheikah warrior, Sheik for a while to make sure her piece of the Triforce - the item of power in the Zelda universe - is not stolen by the new villain for this game, the sorceress Cia (who might be the most sexualized character ever in a Nintendo game). Cia then tries to obtain the Triforce by splitting Sheik, Link and another new character, Lana into three dimensions based off of locations from three of the previous Zelda games; Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. The rest of the plot involves Cia trying to keep Link for herself since she's madly infatuated with him and we find out that the series main villain, Ganondorf, was controlling Cia all along and it all follows the standard Zelda formula from there. What sucks about this is that the back of the box states that Hyrule Warriors takes elements from all over the Zelda franchise, when it really only borrows from 4 games and no more. There's barely ANY Wind Waker or Majora's Mask callbacks in the bare game itself (DLC excluded) and it's rather underwhelming as a huge fan of the series. Even then, the plot works I guess but there's no real surprises. It's just a standard Zelda game really.

The Gameplay is where the Dynasty Warriors aspect of the game comes into play, although there are some Zelda elements thrown into the mix. You're basically taking on a giant horde of enemies and capturing keeps to restrain the flow of those enemies while also protecting your allies and keeps. You have a long list of combos, multiple characters and various weapons for each character, keeping things refreshing and interesting. You can upgrade your characters and weapons at the Bazzar using your collected Rupee's and materials collected in battle.This all comes at a cost: Hyrule Warriors is extremely repetitive, as with all games in the Dynasty Warriors franchise. It's fun but after a while, you will get tired, so the game is only fun in short bursts. There are various modes to play through

• Legend Mode: The Main Story Mode
• Free Mode: The Main Story but you can play as any character on Any Stage
• Challenge Mode: Complete Set tasks by defeating enemies
• Adventure Mode: Play through the map of the original 1986 Legend of Zelda as you complete challenges as you try to find and destroy the Dark Ruler of Hyrule.

Adventure Mode is where you'll be spending most of your time. There's 148 individual challenges, each with secrets and rewards for beating them (if you know your Zelda 1 you'll find the secrets easily). It's quite a time sink, especially if you're aiming to get all the Skulltullas, which give you extra illustrations and upgrade the Bazzar.

The game certainly looks really pretty, although it does have its technical issues. When playing multiplayer, one person has to play on the Wii U's gamepad, which decreases the frame rate and resolution on the TV. The game runs at 30FPS all the way through, and the models and environments look really nice. It's great to finally see a new original Zelda game in High Definition!

Musically, the game is excellent. The remixes of classic Zelda themes such as the original's overworld theme, Skyloft and Hyrule Field from Twilight Princess all sound excellent and will make you cry tears of joy. The original tracks, such as Focal Line, Solidus Cave and Eclipse of the Sun are all really good too.

Overall, despite being repetitive and rather lacking in the story, Hyrule Warriors is a love letter to fans of The Legend of Zelda. It's graphics and music, while not perfect, make the game just a little better. While I've never played a Dynasty Warriors game, I might consider it after playing this game.

STORY: 7

GAMEPLAY: 8.5

GRAPHICS: 8.5

SOUND: 10

PERSONAL ENJOYMENT: 8

FINAL SCORE FOR HYRULE WARRIORS: 8.4/10

REVIEW - SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (2006)

Okay, I'm not going to write a normal introduction for this game like I would any other review. I'm going to say this right now: There are way, way worse Sonic games than Sonic '06. The fanbase don't seem to realize that since 2006 there has been an onslaught of poor Sonic games, such as Sonic and the Secret Rings, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood and the Sonic Boom games. So, why do people STILL think that 2006's SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (yes all caps) is not only the worst Sonic game, but one of the worst games ever made? Simple: It was overhyped.

This game....this game is the template for how a game should not be rushed to meet a 15th Anniversary. I still find it funny how people blame Microsoft for the games rushed release, when it was SEGA and SEGA alone to blame. Going into the games developmental history, Sonic '06 was announced at the Tokyo Game Show in 2005 with a pretty fine trailer showing off the sense of speed the game would have and the art style. It would be released on the upcoming Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles. E3 2005 had a demo that was played behind closed doors, showing off the Physics engine. E3 2006 came about and people started to get both pretty damn hyped and slightly worried, particularly when they saw Dr. Eggman's redesign. The game was going to look photo-realistic, something strange for Sonic the Hedgehog standards, although with the series already becoming more 'serious' after 1998, SEGA then made the decision to split Sonic Team in two. Half would work on this game and another Sonic game for the Wii. The game was released in November 2006 on Xbox 360 and March 2007 on PlayStation 3.

And boy, did people hate it.

Sonic '06's story is probably the only part of the game that SEGA couldn't fix if they had actually tried doing what they originally wanted to. The writing and characterization in this game is bastardized beyond belief and it's one of the most confusing and poorly written things to have ever have come out. For fucks sake I'm not even going to properly go into it but basically, there's a girl called Elise who's the princess of a place called Soleanna. She possesses some shit called the Flames of Disaster which Dr.Eggman wants to rule the world. And so Sonic being the do-gooder decides to help protect Elise and by doing this the girl develops a ROMANTIC INTEREST IN A THREE FOOT TALL TALKING BLUE HEDGEHOG. It angers me to no end that SEGA actually thought bestiality was a good thing to put in a goddamn Sonic game. The story is the worst I've experience in a video game and considering the shit I've seen in some games that's saying a lot.

The gameplay varies on what character you play as, but the physics engine glitches out a lot. This leads to the game causing some deaths that you can't control. Sonic runs 'fast' (I use quotations because he doesn't really go fast) and has all his trademark moves along with a few broken upgrades (which enhance the fun to be honest.). He has special sections of certain levels which allow him to go at Mach Speed, and these sections, while thrilling in a sense, are completely broken. The control is stiff, you can't stop and the collision detection is so goddamn picky. The other characters are all weird but the worst is poor poor Knuckles, who ain't chuckling anymore. The engine allows him to get stuck on walls, leading to innocuous amounts of frustration and annoyance. The bland hub world and severe load time issues really defile the experience, but I have to say....Sonic's levels are actually a guilty pleasure, to me. The levels are wide and open to explore and it isn't really that bad minus the speed sections. I'd replay the levels if I were bored.

Grpahically, the game is alright for an early 7th generation game. Apart from a bland looking hub, the environments in this game have good colour schemes and are detailed to a good degree. it's nothing amazing, but the game does run at 60 FPS....Mostly. The game does framedrop a bit which does annoy me but it's nothing too bad.

The soundtrack is fucking amazing. Legit one of the best soundtracks to any game ever. His World, All Hail Shadow, Dream of an Absolution, Solaris Phase 2, Wave Ocean, White Acropolis, Kingdom Valley....so many good songs on this OST and I love them all so goddamn much.

Overall, Sonic '06 is a very mediocre video game that I would barely call playable. The story is shit, the gameplay is bad-okay at best, the graphics are okay and the soundtrack is eargasmic. It's a mixed shitty bag, but there are way...WAY worse Sonic games, trust me.

STORY: 0

GAMEPLAY: 5

GRAPHICS: 6

SOUNDTRACK: 10

PERSONAL ENJOYMENT: 3

FINAL SCORE FOR SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (2006): 4.8/10

REVIEW - Resident Evil 4 [BIOHAZARD 4] (2005)

Stagnation is prominent in the gaming industry. When you invent a new gameplay genre or series, yeah it's innovative for a while but eventually it becomes stale and people are sick of it. The Resident Evil series suffered from this (and is ironically doing it now again) in the early 2000's, and despite the REmake from 2002 being a fantastic game, the series had become stale.

Enter Resident Evil 4

Resident Evil 4 takes place in a vastly different location than the original games. RE4 takes place in some remote part of Spain, Europe. You assume the role of one Leon Scott Kennedy, one of the two protagonists in Resident Evil 2. The President of the USA's daughter has been kidnapped and Leon has been dispatched to rescue her. The plot then progresses as you'd expect, with some weird twists in the middle that twist the Resident Evil timeline in strange ways that convelout the timeline. The plot works, but it's nothing special and could do with work I guess.

The gameplay of Resident Evil 4 is the games biggest attraction and by damn God the gameplay in RE4 is fantastic. Gone are stiff Tank Controls and strange inventory management. In is a new over the shoulder aiming system which revolutionized not only Resident Evil but gaming in general because of how precise it was at the time. The inventory is assigned to Leon's case, which can hold whatever you want as long as it fits. You can arrange things whatever way you want in the case, which you can spend hours on (OCD sufferers stay away). The intensity of the gameplay is intense and it's absolutely amazing, nothing short of it.

ON A SIDE NOTE FUCK ASHLEY.

 Graphically, Resident Evil 4 looks spectacular for a GameCube game. The detail that went into the environments looks spectacular for a game that is almost 10 years old. Character models still hold up (Leon's hair game is still on point <3 ) and the guns looks really nice (minus the TMP which has aged quite badly). Textures nowadays look a bit muddy on the original version of the game, but there have been plenty of Remakes and remasters of RE 4 to go around.

Soundtrack isn't really great, I can remember 2 songs that I liked and that's it. Kinda lacking to be honest, very dull and dreary. Voice acting is stellar though, as is the rest of the sound design.

This game is not perfect, but damn, apart from maybe Ocarina of Time, Resident Evil 4 has the highest replay value of any game I have ever played due to it's addicting gameplay and insane unlockables which keep you wanting more. It's fun to look at but not to great to hear. It's a modern classic, what else can I say.

Story: 7

Gameplay: 10

Graphics: 9

Sound: 7

Personal Enjoyment: 10

FINAL SCORE FOR RESIDENT EVIL 4: 8.6/10

REVIEW - Resident Evil [BIOHAZARD] (1996)

Ahh, the mid-1990's. A time of grunge music, angsty anime protagonists and the dawn of the 3D Era of video games. With technology on the rise, gaming finally managed to make the full jump into the third dimension with consoles such as the SEGA Saturn, Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation. With the advent of CD Technology, game designers could have huuugggeee games stored onto CD's with high quality audio, voice acting and plenty of content. In 1996, all the Sony PlayStation needed was - apart from Final Fantasy VII - a decent horror game, and Capcom delivered....sort of

Ladies and Gentlemen, Resident Evil [Known in Japan as BIOHAZARD]

For it's own story, before the sequels would later come to rip this game up, the original Resident Evil has a fairly decent plot. In the American Midwest during the year 1998, grizzly murders have been occurring in the Arklay Mountains, close to Raccoon City. The Special Tactics And Rescue Squad (S.T.A.R.S) from the Raccoon Police Department have been sent out to investigate. After the Bravo Team's communications were cut for some unknown reason, S.T.A.R.S sends out it's Alpha Team to investigate. All of a sudden, dogs start to attack the team and kill one member of the squad. The rest all huddle up in a nearby abandoned mansion....but things start to go wrong as soon as they go into the foyer, where the game begins proper. What I love about the story is that it has plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested, and each character has several ending to achieve depending on how many items you got and how fast you were (like the Metroid series) however, the story has it's issues...mainly with how its presented but we'll get to that later. It works for what it is but, it's nothing too speical to be honest. The multiple playable characters really gives it some extra points though.

The gameplay is something that in 1996 would've been it's best aspect, now in 2015 it's become rather polarizing. This is due to several reasons, the most apparent of which is the fact that the controls are stiff. Characters can only move forward when you hold the up button, regardless of what direction you face, which means you have to turn manually if you wanna change direction from a standstill. Now, this control scheme was intentional to add to the games 'survival' element, and to be honest the survival part is excellent. Ammo and Health are limited and your inventory space is limited to 8 (6 if you're playing as Chris) item spaces, so you have to balance out your inventory with weapons, ammo, healing items and puzzle items. Yes, puzzles are a thing in this game and to be honest they're not too hard, just a bit frequent which breaks up the pace a bit too much (then again, the game is slow paced anyways). Avoiding fights is the best way to go due to how limited ammo is, and due to tight corridors, you're often faced with the dilemma of "fight or run" which adds so much tension. However, none of this makes up for the fact that the controls are stiff. Sometimes, intentionally does not always mean good, and this is a prime example.

Graphically, Resident Evil certainly shows its age. Textures look very muddy and character models look extremely blocky. The lighting is alright for a horror game but it's nothing special. Thankfully, Capcom would improve this aspect in the sequels but this original game doesn't look like anything special, even for the PS1's standards.

The audio depends on what version of the game you're playing, and it's safe to say the original 1996 version has the best OST out of the 3 original PS1 versions as it sets the atmosphere perfectly.....unlike the rather campy and infamous voice acting which I cannot even describe how bad it is. It's created so many damn memes that it's in a league of it's own, although this is probably due to the fucking horrendous writing which can make you facepalm in embarrassment.

Resident Evil is a victim of time. It's great atmosphere and survival elements are severely downplayed by the awful voice acting, dialogue and aged graphics. While it is definitely playable, the controls may turn off some, especially those who grew up on newer games in the series. It's a diving board for which the rest of the franchise could leap off from, but right now, Resident Evil is just...good. Not amazing, just good.

Story: 8
Gameplay: 7
Graphics: 4
Sound: 5
Personal Enjoyment: 7

FINAL SCORE FOR RESIDENT EVIL: 6.2/10

REVIEW - Fullmetal Alchemist [Hagane no Renkinjutsushi] (2003)

Manga is one of the biggest ways to earn money when it comes to making an anime. If there's a successful manga circulating in Japan, chances are it's more than likely going to be adapted into an anime in some way, shape or form. For some reason, this has always been a thing with Shounen manga, with things such as Naruto and One Piece and for a more recent example, Tokyo Ghoul being adapted into very popular anime. In 2003, a certain manga by Hiromu Arakawa was adapted into a 51 episode anime...with some varying degrees of success.

The Modern Classic that is Fullmetal Alchemist by Studio Bones

Fullmetal Alchemist is an adaptation of the Manga of the same name (which in Japanese actually means "Alchemist of Steel"). The story follows the manga for its first 25 episodes and then deviates from it to form its own story in the second half. The story centers around two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, who are young and budding alchemists in an alternate universe to our own, where alchemy overtook physics as the main science to use. Behind their cheery exteriors however, lies a dark and grim past. When they were young, their mother died and father abandoned them ( Oh boy It's time to spout "I Mustn't Run Away") leaving them to fend for themselves. However, they couldn't accept their mothers fate and so they decided to commit the ultimate sin to Alchemists: Human Transmutation. Of course, it goes horribly wrong as Edward loses one of his limbs and Alphonse loses his entire body. Edward, out of both anger, stupidity and love for his brother gives up another one of his limbs to attach Alphonse's soul to a suit of armour. With this in place, a man from the State Military comes to see the brothers and offers Edward a position as a State Alchemist. What follows is a story filled with action, drama, comedy, deceit and a bit of a messed up order to be honest. You see, the story is good, there's nothing wrong with the story itself but its the way the story is told is where I have a problem. The first two episodes take place a little bit into the story, then we see ALL the story upto that and them skip again to just after those first two episodes. It would've made more sense to have the viewing order be in chronological order (kinda like the Haruhi Suzumiya or Kara no Kyoukai series, but this does it to a lesser extent than those two shows). The narrative itself though is engaging and fun to watch, even if it is slow at some points (particularly at the start of the second half)

The characters are the main reason why most people love Fullmetal Alchemist and I can certainly see why. Edward Elric is an extremely likable main character who has a lot of drive and determination with plenty of great moments. His drama is balanced out by his great comedy and sarcasm which really makes him shine. Alphonse Elric is a serviceable second-to-lead, as he does a great job at motivating Edward and is sort of a conscience to Edward, telling him valuable advice for life. His chemistry with Edward is fantastic and makes for some hilarious moments. However, neither of these characters are a match for the man that is Lt. Colonel Roy Mustang, AKA The fucking boss. Mustang is the best character in anime for so many goddamn reasons. He's snarky, cocky, funny as hell and can back up all his shit talking with his amazing use of Fire Alchemy. His attitude and design make him extremely likable in my opinion, and Travis Willingham does a FANTASTIC job on him in the English dub. The rest of the cast are serviceable, particularly Winry Rockbell, Alex Louis Armstrong & Lust. Although, I couldn't care less about the shows main villain. Kinda felt thrown in there at the last second to me and it was completely random as to who it actually was.

*Sighs*

I Have to talk about the animation now don't I?

Look, I'll be honest....it's dull and depressing. Despite a few glorious moments in the earlier episodes, the colouration of the animation in this show is bloody boring. The main reasoning for this is because the majority of the show takes place in one of two areas: Inside a Grey Building, or out in the desert/canyon regions. Like, the movement and actual animation of characters is fine and is done well, as are the fight scenes but, the colour scheme is really, REALLY boring and ruins the immersion sometimes. Also, there are occasional animation hiccups where characters faces can look well....idiotic to be frank.

The soundtrack isn't mind blowing like say, Evangelion or Attack on Titan but it definitely fits the show well, especially the pieces that feel like they're from a Legend of Zelda game. The standout track is of course, Brothers but that's not really the standout track across the whole OST.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Melissa:

That opening was stuck in my head for the longest time and is my favourite out of the four openings. However, as regards openings I only like one other opening, that being the Second one, Ready, Steady, Go! and the Ending themes, minus the first one didn't really catch my eye to be honest.

 Overall, Fullmetal Alchemist is a brilliant but flawed anime. Its characters are extremely likable and the story is pretty damn good to say the least. The animation, poor villain and mostly forgettable OP/ED selection mar the show, but it's definitely enjoyable to watch. As fr dub or sub, either way to be honest although i personally prefer the dub because Vic Mignogna and Travis Willingham are just wow.

Story: 9

Characters: 9

Animation: 5

Sound: 8

Personal Enjoyment: 7

FINAL SCORE FOR FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST:  7.6/10

REVIEW - Tokyo Ghoul (2014) (Plus some extra Thank You stuff)

First things first, Damn, I missed the blogs anniversary!!! I'm so sorry that I didn't do anything special for the anniversary! Anyways, it has been a great year for this blog. I'm surprised that people actually visit this site every day just to read my reviews in some random Game or Anime, so to all of you who actively read my blog I want to say a huge thank you to you guys. I may not update so frequently (considering that in December 2013 I did a review a day) but whenever I do I'm glad at least some people are reading this. Also it may be almosta  week late, but Merry Christmas to all of you who believe in Jesus Christ (I don't but if you do, more power to you) or to be more politically correct, Happy Holidays to all of you.

Anyways, time to do a review. And I guess we'd better close off the year with 2014's most talked about anime (at least on Facebook and Tumblr anyways).

Studio Perriot's adaptation of Tokyo Ghoul by Sui Ishida

Tokyo Ghoul is a 12 Episode long series produced by Studio Perriot. The essential basics of this story almost feel a bit like Attack on Titan's to a certain extent. In modern day Tokyo, humans live in fear of creatures known as Ghouls. Ghouls are basically the exact same as humans apart from their sense of taste and digestive system. Ghouls taste differs in that everything they eat - minus the flesh of a human being or coffee- tastes like something dirty or slimy. Their hunger can only be satisfied by the consumption of human flesh. Of course the Japanese government has a contingency plan in the form of the CCG, an organization which deals with the elimination of Ghouls. The Ghouls go into hiding so to speak, only eating when they need to. Enter one Ken Kaneki, a college student who's to be honest a pretty normal and decent guy. Halfway through the first episode, Ken's world and life comes crushing down (almost literally in a sense) as he struggles to come to terms with a reality he must face and accept, which to me is what is Tokyo Ghoul's driving force. The story is told through Ken's view of the world as he slowly descends into madness, which is what I love. The action is also a justifiable reason to view this show as it's amazingly well done. What makes the plot work so well though is that, although it's a gruesome horror story, Tokyo Ghoul is a tragedy story which involves physical and psychological torture. It's definitely not for the feint of heart. 

The characters in Tokyo Ghoul are for the most part very well done, minus one glaring exception. Ken Kaneki is a good main protagonist who reminds me a lot of Shinji Ikari from Neon Genesis Evangelion because he's whiny, soft and doesn't quite understand the situation he's involved in, and it's Ken that really pushed Tokyo Ghoul to be the tragedy it is. Touka Kirishima is however, one of the most negative and downright unlikeable characters I've seen in anime. She's so negative and so dismissive of almost everything Ken does that it's almost unbearably annoying in later episodes. She does have her moments yes in the second half, but she's not quite the character that Tumblr fangirls make her out to be. The rest of the cast, without going into too much detail, are all interesting in their own unique ways (particularly Amon of the CCG and the Café owner) and help to flesh out the world a bit more, which I like a lot.

As regards animation, Tokyo Ghoul is visually appealing as it's filled with colour (particularly red, although there's no need to explain why) throughout. It also moves quite fluidly, even during the most intense of action sequences. The scenery - especially during the night - looks breathtaking to say the least, and the characters all look particularly well drawn. Out of any show that came out this year, Tokyo Ghoul I think easily looks the best.

The soundtrack is Mediocre to say the least. There's no real standout BGM track I could really find on the OST that could grab my attention. The ED is the same kinda story, it's a generic rock song that just doesn't appeal to me in the slightest.

HOWEVER

I do not know how in the name of God they pulled it off but, the opening is even better than that of Evangelion's  or Attack on Titan's. The song is Unravel by TK from Long Suitre, and my God it's just an out of this world Opening. The build up, the vocals and the instrumental all go well with animation that fits the show's themes and events to a tee. It's the best opening I've heard in anime without a doubt in my mind.

Tokyo Ghoul is an anime that just blew my expectations out of the water. I heard some bad things about this show such as the horrific TV Version's censoring (which isn't an issue now thanks to the BRD Version) and the fact that the main character is a 'whimp' but, does a whimp make an entire show bad? No, no it doesn't. In fact Ken Kaneki's story is one of the best I saw this year in terms of anime. With beautiful visuals, great but sometimes flawed characters and a fantastic story, Tokyo Ghoul is an anime that should be watched by those who love the horror/thriller genre.

Story: 10
Characters: 8
Visuals: 10
Sound: 7
Personal Enjoyment: 10

FINAL SCORE FOR TOKYO GHOUL: 9/10

REVIEW - Tales of Xillia 2 (2014)

Boy it's been a LONG time since I last did a game review. When was it, May with the Bioshock review? I guess a game review is long overdue, and I'm returning with one heck of a weight on my shoulders. I've said it before in the past that this games prequel is my favourite game that I have ever played, so when I got this game day one I didn't know what to initially think.

Luckily, Namco Bandai's Tales of Xillia 2 is a worthy sequel, though flawed in it's own ways.

The story in Tales of Xillia 2 is by far its greatest strength, and what is arguably one of the most depressing, powerfuk and somewhat topical game stories anymore. The schisim dividing Rieze Maxia and Elympios has been dispelled by Milla Maxwell and Jude Mathis, so now the two nations have been connected by a Bridge of Unity at the town of Marksburg. Elsewhere in Elympios, aspiring cook and rarely spoken (he literally only speaks in grunts, short one word replies or an occasional 'OH CRAP!') Ludger Will Kresnik wakes up late on his first day at being a cook at the Spirius Corporation in Trigleph. On his way to work he gets caught up in some nasty business with a little girl, Elle Marta who accuses Ludger of robbery or something (do you really expect me to remember such a minute detail) and Ludger chases her onto the train where he also meets up with Jude Mathis, complete with an EDGY redesign. What follows is a terrorist attack on said train and Ludger is thrown into debt by a fucking dick named Rideaux which wouldn't be a bad thing if IT WASN'T A 20,000,000 GALD DEBT. What follows these events are some of the most emotionally involving and depressing moments in gaming history. Seriously, Xillia 2 plays on and amplifies the originals biggest strength - the characters - and puts them into some dire situations, heightened even more by the fact that characters have their own side-stories now which you can undertake throughout the main storyline. I also love the way it subtly hints at racism aswell, showing the divide between Rieze Maxians and Elympions quite well (one character side story is purely about fixing relations between the two nations). Also added to Xillia 2 was a choice system. At certain parts of the story, you're given the option to chose one of two choices. Sometimes, they're kinda insignificant and only change a characters immediate reply but most of the time it helps build affinity with other characters and also change the ending you get. To conclude, It gets its points across perfectly and never becomes too complex or convoluted, and is one hell of an emotional story.

What annoys me about Xillia 2's gameplay the most - apart from the debt system which I'll get to in a second - is the new level up system, which has been changed to be needlessly complex and complicated. Rather than expanding on the Lilium Orb system from the original, Xillia 2 introduces the Alium Orb. The Alium Orb extracts skills and artes from elements such as Fire and Light as you level up, which is fine but the game never really explains how it actually works and how it affects your stats, unlike the original which gave a decent tutorial on how the Lilium Orb worked. Moving onto the other negative change; adding the Debt. The debt is literally one of the stupidest ideas in the history of the Japanese Role Playing Game. Not because its bad from a plot perspective or because you don't get rewarded (which you do actually) but its because its such a pace breaker. As soon as you complete a chapter, you have to pay off some more of your debt before you can advance which is so annoying especially if a chapter ends on a real OMG moment. Moving onto the positives, and oh my GOD has combat been improved (something I thought not even possible due to the sheer perfection which is the originals battle system). Ludger doesn't have one, not two but THREE INTERCHANGEABLE ON THE FLY Weapons to use in battle, all of which come with their own strengths and weaknesses (some more than others mind you). Another improvement is the new Chromatus system which is basically a temporary God like mode where you can unleash a can of whoop-ass on your opponent with no risk to your own health. The combat is addicting as fast, but also noticeably more difficult than before, due to the INSANE HP of the boss monsters (Even on Easy some of them gave me a hard time) and some ridiculous strategies (CHRONOS I'M LOOKING AT YOU, YOU FUCKER). Most of these bosses come in the form of rare monsters you can find on the new job bulletin, which is basically there for fetch quests, monster hunts and other things just to help repay that awful debt.

Graphically, not much has changed in a year has it? I mean it still looks amazing and the anime cutscenes by studio ufotable ( of Kara no Kyoukai fame ) look gorgeous but...there are a LOT of reused environments from the first game. Now this isn't really a bad thing since there are plenty of new places aswell but I was expecting more from this game (perhaps my hopes were just a bit too high). The game does have a more noir and tech-esque tone to it though, which does save it to bring that graphical fidelity back upt a 10 (the world looks bloody fantastic I have to say)

Tales of Xillia had my favourite gaming soundtrack of all time because it gave the world a perfect atmosphere (remember the first time you went on the Aladhi Trail in the original game and the music started playing? THE FEELS MAN), and thankfully - even though a lot of it is a reused soundtrack - Tales of Xillia 2 keeps the ball rolling with an almost excellent soundtrack, the highlights being the final boss theme (which is a remix of the lackluster Main Theme 'Song 4 U by Ayumi Hamasaki, which is a shame since she did so amazingly well in the original game) and the games first battle theme which is so catchy and is STILL Stuck in my head.

 

 

FUCKING MADOKA MAGICA DLC

Overall....Tales of Xillia 2 is a masterpiece in storytelling, direction, tone, and character although its flawed gameplay, heavy reliance on the original games resources and music do bring it down from being one of the best games ever. While it may not be a perfect game by any means of the imagination, I do think it's one of the best sequels in gaming and a perfect way of showing the importance and power of choice in video games.

STORY: 10
GAMEPLAY: 9
GRAPHICS: 10
SOUNDTRACK: 9
PERSONAL ENJOYMENT: 10

FINAL SCORE FOR TALES OF XILLIA 2: 9.6/10