Unique MMORPG simulation that has a strong immersive core but desperately needed to be condensed into a single focused experience rather than stay as 3 separate, mind-numbingly repetitive games with awkward save transfers.
+ heavenly melancholic soundtrack
+ great main character arc involving serious personality growth
+ insane amount of lore to read about in constantly updating message and news boards
+ some really impressive action cutscenes (for its time)
+/- clear directions for any and all objectives
- relies on having watched the previous anime series for context
- repeatedly copy-pasted "boss fights" that pose no challenge and still show instructions every time
- slow walking speed not helped by the clunky vehicle
- ubiquitous static conversations that can't be sped up
- cryptic story which only gets interesting after dozens of hours
- trivial difficulty until the third volume where lots of grinding is needed
- no NPC interactions outside of the main plot (even party compositions are ignored)
- basic action combat that can't support the large amount of unavoidable fighting and often gets frustrating due to utterly absurd stun locks
- very low number of boring dungeons and quests reused over and over (and over...) again