Pros:
+ the writing is often funny and remarkably irreverent
+ stripped down combat leads to smart inversions of RPG tropes
+ soundtrack is colorful and the final fight track slaps hard
+ original Final Fantasy sprites are a cute homage (but don't tell Square...)
+ Three Man fight is the best
+ battle sprites have a distinct style ...
Cons:
- ... but the character portraits are rough
- unwinnable fights cannot be skipped
- sprite layer issues and scrolling is choppy
- a word map would have been nice
- late stage story twists are pretty silly and lack cohesion
Magic Bit of Writing: "I see the makings of an autocracy, and have been branded a dissident."
Verdict:
This is clearly a labor of love by creatr Samanthuel Louise Gillson, who released this for free for anyone to enjoy. The homages to and inversion of 2D RPGs of the past will make fans of the genre rejoice and the attention to detail and just plain love for the genre is felt at every turn and every new suprise, of which there are plenty. However, as great as some of the early writing is, the ending feels like a missed opportunity to actually say something about the genre and its tropes and felt like a missed opportunity. If you can look past that, Franken is certainly worth a quick, 30+ minute playthrough.
+ the writing is often funny and remarkably irreverent
+ stripped down combat leads to smart inversions of RPG tropes
+ soundtrack is colorful and the final fight track slaps hard
+ original Final Fantasy sprites are a cute homage (but don't tell Square...)
+ Three Man fight is the best
+ battle sprites have a distinct style ...
Cons:
- ... but the character portraits are rough
- unwinnable fights cannot be skipped
- sprite layer issues and scrolling is choppy
- a word map would have been nice
- late stage story twists are pretty silly and lack cohesion
Magic Bit of Writing: "I see the makings of an autocracy, and have been branded a dissident."
Verdict:
This is clearly a labor of love by creatr Samanthuel Louise Gillson, who released this for free for anyone to enjoy. The homages to and inversion of 2D RPGs of the past will make fans of the genre rejoice and the attention to detail and just plain love for the genre is felt at every turn and every new suprise, of which there are plenty. However, as great as some of the early writing is, the ending feels like a missed opportunity to actually say something about the genre and its tropes and felt like a missed opportunity. If you can look past that, Franken is certainly worth a quick, 30+ minute playthrough.