Rogue Galaxy
SCORE: 61
I have had a personal preference for the game play style in the .hack series. If you are unfamilar with that style, then it is part hack n slash, and part role playing game. Players have their character, and two supporting characters. Random battles occur where the player must control the character into fighting off the monsters that appear. Rogue Galaxy takes that style, wraps it in cel shading, and includes all kinds of Star Wars references. Make no bones about it, this game is for the adults in the family. Children should not be allowed to see this game. Jaster is on a desert planet, where he is mistaken for (well I won’t spoil the plot for you) someone else. He goes on a space journey trying to stop two warring factions. He joins up with space pirates, who are technically criminals (editor: can we get a role playing game where we play a law abiding citizen some day?).
The graphics in Rogue Galaxy are really a mixed bag. There are some stunning graphical areas, and there are some real repetitive areas (mainly in long dungeons). Many of the movies are very epic. The main female characters seem to have forgotten their clothes. Which is strange because the men figured out how to get dressed.
The music is very nice, mellow, and relaxing. The voice acting is okay at first, and seems to improve. The worst part about the sounds are certain characters consistent profanities. I quickly went into the options and found a way to turn it off. There was still profanity in some of the cinema scenes though. There really is no need for such language, it only exhibits a weak mind.
The merging of items system is extremely deep, as is the Revelation system (using items to learn new attacks). Rogue Galaxy is a difficult game that will keep you busy leveling up for quite a few weeks. After beating the game then additional morally questionable content is unlocked.
The characters control well, and the designs of the levels show an intelligent design. I really liked random challenges that cropped up from time to time. The main problem with the game play for me is how many battles must be fought. Add into that how quickly the attack gauge drops, and the player must then defend or avoid. The merging system must be used in order to progress at a timely pace.
If Rogue Galaxy were a movie it would receive a ‘R’ rating in my book. I wish they would have included some way to turn off all of the profanities, and give the women some respectable attire to wear immediately. Women are more than sexual objects. There is also a part in this game where a blind girl is going to be sacrificed to appease a false god. Rogue Galaxy touches on some deep issues if you can survive all the dungeon crawling.
I may take a lot of heat
for this review from the fanboys, but I really do believe this game
could have been a lot better without all the adult only content.
- Paul
Graphics: 63%
Sound: 57%
Replay/Extras: 59%
Gameplay: 69%
Family Friendly Factor: 57%
System: Playstation 2
Publisher: Sony
Rating: 'T' for Teen
{Blood, Crude Humor, Mild Language, Mild Suggestive Themes, Use of
Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence}
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