This review contains spoilers
Gotta say, I don't get the super-high ratings. I've been reading reviews to try and feel out what others were saying, but the game didn't hit me the same way as it seemed to hit others. It's fun, but not without its issues.
The game really shines in its cutscenes, which feel like a big step up in content versus the usual back-and-forth dialogue boxes the second and third games had.
Otherwise visually, it seemed fine -- I really prefer the aesthetic of PSII over PSIV, but to each their own.
Speaking of, music varied from awful to fine for the most part -- the one standout gem for me being the updated version of a particular dungeon track from the first PS game. I did not like the shop tracks at all and Gryz's town music was obnoxious.
I liked the concept of returning to combat in the vehicles that you use throughout the game, but interface aside, it just felt like fights took longer if you weren't using something like N-Sphere (of which you have a limited number of uses). Restoring HP after each fight is fine, but I'd honestly prefer just walking my way to new areas and fighting the monsters that were significantly harder on the ground (this was especially a thing in Dezolis).
Story-wise, I didn't feel like it was a masterful work -- it was a nice conclusion to what was going on in the previous three games and explained a lot of answers to questions that didn't necessarily have to be asked. That's not a bad thing, just a note that they did a good job with deciding to link the games together (though it does feel like PSIII got only the most passing of nods to it).
Actual combat was mostly fine. PSIV still used the "here are some unusual names with no descriptions" idea with their spells, so experimentation or Google are your friends in that instance. The macro system is nice -- I know it's me looking back to dated design at the time, but I wish the macros could have been edited and not just deleted and replaced each time, but I don't hold that against the game design.
Enemies are a mix of stuff from previous games along with some new enemies. Since I'm a sucker for PSII, seeing old familiar enemies like the Locusta line or the Dezo Owl line were a nice touch for me.
I noticed that people said experience came a lot more easily in this game and I don't know if I agree. It still felt like it took forever to level in some instances and in a game where levels are important, the grind felt real to me in a few spots (looking at you, Air Castle!). I didn't run from any fights, but still found myself needing to grind up a couple of times in a really bad way. Previous games had this issue, but I think that because I enjoyed the soundtracks of previous games more (not counting PSIII), the grind never felt as bad in those.
The biggest crime (to me) is the dungeon design. I liked the labyrinthine layouts of the first three games and I didn't mind using a Hinas to peace-out if things got dicey and Ryuka back to town. Those dungeons got replaced by mostly corridor pathing with branches that usually lead to a dead end just a short way up the wrong path.
The first time you hit Valley Maze, you think it's going to be something tricky to navigate, but it's quite literally "walk into a room, grab a chest or note a dead end, walk back and take the other path." And it's about what...four, five rooms of that and you're through the dungeon?
A lot of dungeons have that feel. The first time you reach Zio's Fort and go digging beneath, there's an impression that things are crazy with lots of paths...but most of those paths are just a dead-end a few further steps off-screen or another dead-end with a chest. Sure, there were way more of those than in Valley Maze, but it doesn't change how simple the dungeon structure is for MOST of the areas.
I think it's a fun game, I think the story's pretty good overall (and Chaz gets a lot of character development, even if others are just largely support units), but I'd say of the main series of four games, it's probably the least entertaining one for me. Definitely worth a playthrough for anyone that's remotely interested, though.
The game really shines in its cutscenes, which feel like a big step up in content versus the usual back-and-forth dialogue boxes the second and third games had.
Otherwise visually, it seemed fine -- I really prefer the aesthetic of PSII over PSIV, but to each their own.
Speaking of, music varied from awful to fine for the most part -- the one standout gem for me being the updated version of a particular dungeon track from the first PS game. I did not like the shop tracks at all and Gryz's town music was obnoxious.
I liked the concept of returning to combat in the vehicles that you use throughout the game, but interface aside, it just felt like fights took longer if you weren't using something like N-Sphere (of which you have a limited number of uses). Restoring HP after each fight is fine, but I'd honestly prefer just walking my way to new areas and fighting the monsters that were significantly harder on the ground (this was especially a thing in Dezolis).
Story-wise, I didn't feel like it was a masterful work -- it was a nice conclusion to what was going on in the previous three games and explained a lot of answers to questions that didn't necessarily have to be asked. That's not a bad thing, just a note that they did a good job with deciding to link the games together (though it does feel like PSIII got only the most passing of nods to it).
Actual combat was mostly fine. PSIV still used the "here are some unusual names with no descriptions" idea with their spells, so experimentation or Google are your friends in that instance. The macro system is nice -- I know it's me looking back to dated design at the time, but I wish the macros could have been edited and not just deleted and replaced each time, but I don't hold that against the game design.
Enemies are a mix of stuff from previous games along with some new enemies. Since I'm a sucker for PSII, seeing old familiar enemies like the Locusta line or the Dezo Owl line were a nice touch for me.
I noticed that people said experience came a lot more easily in this game and I don't know if I agree. It still felt like it took forever to level in some instances and in a game where levels are important, the grind felt real to me in a few spots (looking at you, Air Castle!). I didn't run from any fights, but still found myself needing to grind up a couple of times in a really bad way. Previous games had this issue, but I think that because I enjoyed the soundtracks of previous games more (not counting PSIII), the grind never felt as bad in those.
The biggest crime (to me) is the dungeon design. I liked the labyrinthine layouts of the first three games and I didn't mind using a Hinas to peace-out if things got dicey and Ryuka back to town. Those dungeons got replaced by mostly corridor pathing with branches that usually lead to a dead end just a short way up the wrong path.
The first time you hit Valley Maze, you think it's going to be something tricky to navigate, but it's quite literally "walk into a room, grab a chest or note a dead end, walk back and take the other path." And it's about what...four, five rooms of that and you're through the dungeon?
A lot of dungeons have that feel. The first time you reach Zio's Fort and go digging beneath, there's an impression that things are crazy with lots of paths...but most of those paths are just a dead-end a few further steps off-screen or another dead-end with a chest. Sure, there were way more of those than in Valley Maze, but it doesn't change how simple the dungeon structure is for MOST of the areas.
I think it's a fun game, I think the story's pretty good overall (and Chaz gets a lot of character development, even if others are just largely support units), but I'd say of the main series of four games, it's probably the least entertaining one for me. Definitely worth a playthrough for anyone that's remotely interested, though.