 |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| The Entertainment Review |
| Genre: RPG Developer: Soft Enterprises Publisher: Namco Bandai |
If players were to take all of the clichés to be in role-playing, tossed them into a bag and poured them out, they would have their design
for the storyline for “MagnaCarta 2.” While there isn’t anything wrong with this sequel to a mildly received game for the PlayStation 2,
there isn’t really anything that hasn’t already been done before either. Without anything new being brought to the table, this Japanese
role-playing game lacks the excitement needed to keep players hooked on this two disc game.
Of course the story sounds very familiar. The game begins with a young boy named Juto who has lost his memory. He wakes up on a
remote island and is nursed back to heath while a civil war rages on the mainland. When the war spills over into his new homeland and
his mentor, Melissa, is defeated in battle, Juto sets off on a quest for revenge. Along the way he'll meet new friends, question whether
his motives are pure, and even grow in strength towards the ultimate unlocking of a special power inside of him.
Anyone who has ever played more than a handful of Eastern role-playing games, will have already heard this story before. Even the
twist that comes about two-thirds of the way through the game isn’t very original. It is a shame because early on in the game there are
several plot ideas that brought up before they essentially disappear into the cliché storyline. Even the characters in the game aren’t
anything original.
Sadly, players also won’t find much originality in the quest design either. Actually, a vast majority of the side quests in the game lack
more than a sentence or two of context and are carried out by simply collecting objects or killing a set number of creatures. A few
quests introduce small mini games that are tailored to the skills of one of the player’s six party members. The only reason players will
continue to work through the side quests is to level up for the next boss battle.
The combat system is the only bright spot in this game filled with mediocrity. It is all real time and takes place on the same screen
used for exploration, which keeps the pacing of the game high and reduces the number of loading screens. Up to three party members
can be active at one time, though only the leader is directly controlled by the player. The rest of the party is managed by a functional
artificial intelligence, though they do have major problems finding their way around obstacles.
As the game continues to progress and characters gain experience levels, new skills are unlocked including some that feature flashy
summons with cut scenes that aren’t able to be skipped and cooperative techniques. Characters also gain the ability to switch attack
styles by using a variety of different weapons and combos grow even longer. However, the combat system never dramatically changes
from the beginning of the game through the 30+ hours it takes to work through the game, or even longer for those that work through all
of side quests in the game. Once players get into overheating a character, activating a special move and then swapping to another
party member to carry out a chain of attacks, they will repeat this same action over and over again all the way to the end of the game.
The real-time combat in the game is a nice update for the sequel, but too much of the presentation is stalled in tradition that has been
outdated. Progress can only be saved at specific locations. Extended dialogue sections that feature stiff animated character models on
a static backdrop can’t be skipped. Death means plenty of repetition for players through sections of the game that have previously been
completed, but not yet saved, meaning that there is a lot of frustration, more than most players would be willing to sit through again.
Boss fights that happen on the first disc are used again on the second disc, along with many of the locations. Ultimately this is the
same game that many have been playing for years. However, those that are new to the genre should be aware that this traditional
design is not friendly to newcomers.
The visuals in the game are fairly mixed. Several of the summon spells are very attractive and a few of the regions look nice, though
there are an equal number of environments that lack any detail. The enemy and character design isn’t anything great, but it gets the job
done. The major problem with the look of the game comes with the camera. The real-time combat puts in a camera cut for just about
every move. This can cause all sorts of disasters as it cuts in and out of the environment. Moves that would look flashy in one game
often times look confusing in this game.
Anyone who has played more than a couple of Japanese RPGs will find that “MagnaCarta II” is a game that feels far too familiar from
the very beginning of the game. For those that are okay with buying a game that feels like it has already been played, this game is worth
looking at. However, for someone that is a newcomer to the genre will find a lot more to enjoy with this game, though there are better
games in this genre for the Xbox 360 that would be recommended as an introduction to the genre.
for the storyline for “MagnaCarta 2.” While there isn’t anything wrong with this sequel to a mildly received game for the PlayStation 2,
there isn’t really anything that hasn’t already been done before either. Without anything new being brought to the table, this Japanese
role-playing game lacks the excitement needed to keep players hooked on this two disc game.
Of course the story sounds very familiar. The game begins with a young boy named Juto who has lost his memory. He wakes up on a
remote island and is nursed back to heath while a civil war rages on the mainland. When the war spills over into his new homeland and
his mentor, Melissa, is defeated in battle, Juto sets off on a quest for revenge. Along the way he'll meet new friends, question whether
his motives are pure, and even grow in strength towards the ultimate unlocking of a special power inside of him.
Anyone who has ever played more than a handful of Eastern role-playing games, will have already heard this story before. Even the
twist that comes about two-thirds of the way through the game isn’t very original. It is a shame because early on in the game there are
several plot ideas that brought up before they essentially disappear into the cliché storyline. Even the characters in the game aren’t
anything original.
Sadly, players also won’t find much originality in the quest design either. Actually, a vast majority of the side quests in the game lack
more than a sentence or two of context and are carried out by simply collecting objects or killing a set number of creatures. A few
quests introduce small mini games that are tailored to the skills of one of the player’s six party members. The only reason players will
continue to work through the side quests is to level up for the next boss battle.
The combat system is the only bright spot in this game filled with mediocrity. It is all real time and takes place on the same screen
used for exploration, which keeps the pacing of the game high and reduces the number of loading screens. Up to three party members
can be active at one time, though only the leader is directly controlled by the player. The rest of the party is managed by a functional
artificial intelligence, though they do have major problems finding their way around obstacles.
As the game continues to progress and characters gain experience levels, new skills are unlocked including some that feature flashy
summons with cut scenes that aren’t able to be skipped and cooperative techniques. Characters also gain the ability to switch attack
styles by using a variety of different weapons and combos grow even longer. However, the combat system never dramatically changes
from the beginning of the game through the 30+ hours it takes to work through the game, or even longer for those that work through all
of side quests in the game. Once players get into overheating a character, activating a special move and then swapping to another
party member to carry out a chain of attacks, they will repeat this same action over and over again all the way to the end of the game.
The real-time combat in the game is a nice update for the sequel, but too much of the presentation is stalled in tradition that has been
outdated. Progress can only be saved at specific locations. Extended dialogue sections that feature stiff animated character models on
a static backdrop can’t be skipped. Death means plenty of repetition for players through sections of the game that have previously been
completed, but not yet saved, meaning that there is a lot of frustration, more than most players would be willing to sit through again.
Boss fights that happen on the first disc are used again on the second disc, along with many of the locations. Ultimately this is the
same game that many have been playing for years. However, those that are new to the genre should be aware that this traditional
design is not friendly to newcomers.
The visuals in the game are fairly mixed. Several of the summon spells are very attractive and a few of the regions look nice, though
there are an equal number of environments that lack any detail. The enemy and character design isn’t anything great, but it gets the job
done. The major problem with the look of the game comes with the camera. The real-time combat puts in a camera cut for just about
every move. This can cause all sorts of disasters as it cuts in and out of the environment. Moves that would look flashy in one game
often times look confusing in this game.
Anyone who has played more than a couple of Japanese RPGs will find that “MagnaCarta II” is a game that feels far too familiar from
the very beginning of the game. For those that are okay with buying a game that feels like it has already been played, this game is worth
looking at. However, for someone that is a newcomer to the genre will find a lot more to enjoy with this game, though there are better
games in this genre for the Xbox 360 that would be recommended as an introduction to the genre.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
