Title	:	Skies of Arcadia Legends
Platforms	:	Nintendo GameCube, Sega Dreamcast
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	8.7
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

It was an age of legend — an era of daring. And it was a time of airships. 

Where gravity is more a suggestion than a law, islands float and ships fly for the horizon. Pirates and empires join in battle in Skies of Arcadia Legends, a Nintendo GameCube role-playing game (RPG) adapted from a Sega Dreamcast title released three years ago. 

Players become Vyse, a young man starting his career as a Robin Hood of the skies. His life is interrupted by a visitor from another world who brings with her knowledge of ancient weapons of mass destruction. Vyse becomes embroiled in a race to save the world from the machinations of the Valua Empire, while making many colorful friends along the way. Their travels will take them through a world governed by six moons. Each moon has not only its own magic type, but a similar continent and culture. For example, the red moon symbolizes fire magic, and is represented by a scorching desert region. 

It may sound simple, but these lands are not populated with no cookie-cutter characters here, with each vibrantly alive person you control or meet having her own look and mannerisms. Our heroes are optimistic in such a way as to be sincerely inspiring, not disgustingly sweet. The story is genuinely fun, funny, and surprising — elements missing from many of today's darker stories. Yes, there are bad guys here, and they do bad things, but it just makes victory all the sweeter. Even the good guys have issues, but not the personal demons that would disable them from functioning as a team toward a positive goal. The plot twists that occur along the way are surprising and satisfying. 

The music fits this decor, with tunes that remind me somehow of Final Fantasy II or Wild Arms. After playing Final Fantasy X, Arcadia's written dialogue may seem antiquated, but the occasional one-liner helps give each hero some verbal personality. 

As with most RPGs, much time is spent battling foes. The format here is menu-driven, turn-based combat. Players choose actions for each team member, then watch the results of those actions as enemy and ally operate. Unique to Arcadia are strengths and weaknesses based on the color of one's weapon, which can be changed during battle. These colors also determine the magic each hero learns. Each hero can learn the same magic, which blurs the boundaries of similarity; but each character's unique Super Moves, which are often more offensively effective than magic, rejustifies his existence. 

The encounter rate is average, allowing players to do some exploration without getting bogged down in combat every five seconds. Most enemies can be overcome without much struggle, but the boss battles can worry a poorly-equipped player. Fortunately, players who succumb to superior strength can restart at the beginning of battle, without having to retrace their steps up to that point. 

More interesting are the rarer ship battles, which generally occur at critical plot points. This fatal, aerial ballet between two ships requires elements of strategy and endurance. Do not engage in these combats if you have to be somewhere anytime soon. 

After the Nintendo 64's dearth of RPGs, it's refreshing to see the genre supported on the GameCube. Sega needs to release more original titles for the console, instead of rehashing old titles, but Skies of Arcadia is good enough to not have suffered from age. It does both the genre and the GameCube proud.

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This article is copyright (c) 2003, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 15-Feb-03

Title	:	Skies Of Arcadia Legends
Platforms	:	Nintendo GameCube, Sega Dreamcast
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	8.7
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

It was an age of legend — an era of daring. And it was a time of airships. 

Where gravity is more a suggestion than a law, islands float and ships fly for the horizon. Pirates and empires join in battle in Skies of Arcadia Legends, a Nintendo GameCube role-playing game (RPG) adapted from a Sega Dreamcast title released three years ago. 

Players become Vyse, a young man starting his career as a Robin Hood of the skies. His life is interrupted by a visitor from another world who brings with her knowledge of ancient weapons of mass destruction. Vyse becomes embroiled in a race to save the world from the machinations of the Valua Empire, while making many colorful friends along the way. Their travels will take them through a world governed by six moons. Each moon has not only its own magic type, but a similar continent and culture. For example, the red moon symbolizes fire magic, and is represented by a scorching desert region. 

It may sound simple, but these lands are not populated with no cookie-cutter characters here, with each vibrantly alive person you control or meet having her own look and mannerisms. Our heroes are optimistic in such a way as to be sincerely inspiring, not disgustingly sweet. The story is genuinely fun, funny, and surprising — elements missing from many of today's darker stories. Yes, there are bad guys here, and they do bad things, but it just makes victory all the sweeter. Even the good guys have issues, but not the personal demons that would disable them from functioning as a team toward a positive goal. The plot twists that occur along the way are surprising and satisfying. 

The music fits this decor, with tunes that remind me somehow of Final Fantasy II or Wild Arms. After playing Final Fantasy X, Arcadia's written dialogue may seem antiquated, but the occasional one-liner helps give each hero some verbal personality. 

As with most RPGs, much time is spent battling foes. The format here is menu-driven, turn-based combat. Players choose actions for each team member, then watch the results of those actions as enemy and ally operate. Unique to Arcadia are strengths and weaknesses based on the color of one's weapon, which can be changed during battle. These colors also determine the magic each hero learns. Each hero can learn the same magic, which blurs the boundaries of similarity; but each character's unique Super Moves, which are often more offensively effective than magic, rejustifies his existence. 

The encounter rate is average, allowing players to do some exploration without getting bogged down in combat every five seconds. Most enemies can be overcome without much struggle, but the boss battles can worry a poorly-equipped player. Fortunately, players who succumb to superior strength can restart at the beginning of battle, without having to retrace their steps up to that point. 

More interesting are the rarer ship battles, which generally occur at critical plot points. This fatal, aerial ballet between two ships requires elements of strategy and endurance. Do not engage in these combats if you have to be somewhere anytime soon. 

After the Nintendo 64's dearth of RPGs, it's refreshing to see the genre supported on the GameCube. Sega needs to release more original titles for the console, instead of rehashing old titles, but Skies of Arcadia is good enough to not have suffered from age. It does both the genre and the GameCube proud.

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This article is copyright (c) 2003, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 15-Feb-03

Title	:	Panzer Dragoon Orta
Platforms	:	Microsoft Xbox
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	9.0
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Its name is legendary. Its wrath, terrifying. And its power… is yours to control in Panzer Dragoon Orta, a Microsoft Xbox game from Sega. 

This game will be many people's first experience in the universe of Panzer Dragoon, a highly acclaimed series which previously languished on the ill-fated Sega Saturn. Veterans will appreciate the many references this fourth title makes to its predecessors, but newcomers will also find Orta welcoming. 

Or at least as welcoming as a desolate world ravaged by war can be. Ten millennia after the fall of the Ancients' advanced civilization, the secrets of their biotechnological warfare continue to lay waste to the world, making it home to aeon-old monsters, machines, and other hostile fauna. The draconian Empire is about to seize a young girl, Orta, who possesses an untold power, when she is suddenly rescued by a mythological dragon. Players assume control of this rider-and-mount duo as they uncover the secrets of Orta's past and undermine the Empire's intentions. 

PDO occupies the genre of rail shooter, though that is a simplification. A rail shooter is a 3D flying/shooting game that progresses along a fixed path at a set pace. In PDO, though it's true that Orta and her dragon are consistently flying forward, players can interact with the world in 360 degrees, turning the camera to either side or behind the winged beast, and above and below to some extent, to address offenses from many directions. The dragon can also speed up or slow down, be it for ramming enemies, maneuvering to their sides, or to evade attack. Each level offers varying branches, though these variations occur so subtly that several replays are required to notice what variables determine the path taken. Sadly, I've found no way to revisit a past level, as the game saves one's position and restarts there each time. 

When flying, Orta can instantly morph her dragon into three forms, each with different offensive and defensive capabilities suitable for various scenarios. Her main weapon is the ability to "paint" enemies, which are then locked-on with homing lasers. The frenetic pace, swarms of foes, and huge bosses make this game difficult, but only nearly impossible - requiring several replays to clear a single level. 

The only indication players have of the dragon's current form is recognizing its shape. In the heat of battle a teeming with missiles and lasers and with various evolutionary stages of each dragon form, it can be difficult to discern which one is present, and how many times to press the morph button to achieve the desired state. The targeting cursor can also sometimes be lost amidst the flurry of volleys. 

Such a pace would be unimaginable without clarity of graphics to depict it all. Not only does the Xbox assault players with a variety of monstrous foes, but the hostility of the environment itself is transmitted in images of ancient and barren vistas over which Orta flies. 

The graphics are occasionally accompanied by spoken dialogue which favors neither English nor Japanese, but uses "Panzereese", a fantasy tongue that combines the elements of many real world languages. It's softer on the ears than Klingon, while being assuredly foreign to any gamer. 

Expanding this fantasy is a cornucopia of unlockable bonuses, including encyclopedia entries, films and art galleries, and the entire original Panzer Dragoon game. Events in each previous Panzer Dragoon has contributed to the world in which Orta now finds herself, so reading or playing these extras helps bring her dead world to life. These cerebral extras exist outside gameplay, providing antipodal moments to the numbing and furious action players encounter when astride the dragon. 

Panzer Dragoon Orta gives a fully fleshed-out experience to gamers looking for a challenging shooting game. While the storyline is intriguing, when the game switches back to action, it's best to turn the mind off and simply shoot at anything that moves. Here's hoping this game is the success it should be, and that Sega continues with this series. 

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 Related reviews: 

 
• Panzer Dragoon Saga 

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This article is copyright (c) 2003, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 27-Jan-03

Title	:	Super Monkey Ball 2
Platforms	:	Nintendo GameCube
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Everyone
Game Rating	:	8.0
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Nothing's as fun as a gigabyte of monkeys. Sega, having successfully accompanied the launch of the Nintendo GameCube with the action-puzzle game Super Monkey Ball, returns with a sequel that's sure to drive everyone ape. 

Super Monkey Ball 2 challenges players to guide a monkey enclosed in a glass ball from one end of a stage to another. Bananas strewn about the course provide bonus points, while various environmental obstacles present threats to the simian's success. A mix of speed and caution will be necessary if players hope to be alive and gone before the one-minute timer expires. 

Enjoy the simplistic-sounding nature, because you'll soon find Monkey Ball 2 to be anything but. The first Monkey Ball featured nearly a hundred levels that took careful balance and coordination to defeat. In the sequel, the level design has taken a turn from ingenious to insane, prompting gamers to wonder how they are expected to ever finish each stage. There are tilting bridges, high-stepping arthropods, bouncing blobs, and more geometric obstructions than I can list. The levels are more puzzling than ever, and more than being hard, are often seemingly impossible. 

Though the Challenge mode is appropriately named, the Story mode grants players unlimited lives with which to attempt each level. In exchange for this bounty, we must endure a wrenching story of the four protagonists' efforts to rescue their bananas from the evil Dr. Bad-Boon. I can't tell what effect Sega was hoping to achieve with these scenes' corny dialogue and impossible situations. Whether it's a case of being intentionally cheesy, or the original Japanese not translating well, these exchanges are so bad, they're funny — but just barely. 

That's all in the solo mode; a main draw for this game is the multitude of multiplayer methods. Four players can attack the puzzle mode in turns or simultaneously, or compete head-to-head in a dozen different mini-games. Returning from the original Monkey Ball are six favorites such as Monkey Fight and Monkey Bowling, expanded with new levels and variations. New games include Monkey Dogfight, Monkey Soccer, and Monkey Baseball. The right to enjoy these diversions is earned in the one-player mode, though, at such a rate that more than 30 levels must be traversed before unlocking even one mini-game. Your friends will know you love them if you've the dedication to unlock all six new games. 

Though SMB2's one-player mode is as addicting as it is irritating, it is the multiplayer modes that proclaim proclaimed as the ultimate party game; yet I predict Mario Party 4 will be a better title. As many monkey games as Sega can cram, there's still greater quality, quantity, and variety in the board-type video games that have recently become popular. In the meantime, go bananas.

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This article is copyright (c) 2002, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 09-Sep-02

Title	:	Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller
Platforms	:	Microsoft Xbox
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	8.3
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Racing games abound, and surprisingly few have a gimmick to make them stand out. Sega, innovator of genres for decades now, created the Crazy Taxi arcade game in response to that lack of creativity, yet exhibits some of that same staleness in Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller, for the Microsoft Xbox. 

Crazy Taxi grants players a license to insanity behind the wheel of a yellow cab, ferrying patrons from one point to another. The quicker the trip, the higher the fare, so forsake the rules of the road and do what it takes to satisfy your customer! 

CT3 provides more of the fun found in its predecessors. The innovations of CT2 are preserved, including the Crazy Hop (a jump button) and the ability to carry multiple passengers simultaneously. A level from each of the first two Crazy Taxis is joined by an all-new one, Glitter Oasis. This cityscape is based on Las Vegas, according CT3 its subtitle. Depicted at night, it shimmers and scintillates in the headlights of taxis and oncoming traffic, lights on the strip, and moonlight on a grand canyon. The layout has few situations that call for the Crazy Hop, which is fine by me; I've found the ability to launch one's vehicle into the air creates an uncomfortable number of exploratory possibilities, and separates the gameplay too much from actual taxiing. 

One of the best features of the Crazy Taxi line is the training mode, which doubles as a series of mini-games. CT3's "Crazy X" comprises 25 games, challenging players to climb towers, leap chasms, and knock over bowling pins. These games are as fun as they are demanding. 

Regardless of the game mode, players' vehicles are equipped with a variety of special maneuvers, easily executed with proper timing of the drive and reverse gears and gas and brake buttons. The Xbox controller's triggers simulate the experience of the original Crazy Taxi, but the Sega Dreamcast controller was never this uncomfortable. The inability to configure the position of the Crazy Hop button can create some very awkward moments. Steering itself is less dodgy in CT3 than previous Crazy Taxi incarnations, making the weaving in and out of traffic more pleasure than pain. 

In transitioning from the Dreamcast to the Xbox, a noticeable improvement in graphic quality has occurred. Landscapes are now more detailed, eliminating previously flat, uniform colors. Special effects make it easier to tell when a Crazy maneuver has been successfully performed. 

Like the levels, the soundtrack is a mix of new and old. Familiar tunes from music groups Offspring and Bad Religion complement new ones from Citizen Bird. These songs are likely to be well-known among even non-gamers, increasing the joy of racing to them. 

With more levels, drivers, and songs, Crazy Taxi 3 is a more polished rendition of Crazy Taxi 2. The gameplay has not changed since that title, leaving this sequel to satisfy gamers looking for a Crazy Taxi improvement with little new material.

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This article is copyright (c) 2002, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 12-Aug-02

Title	:	Virtua Fighter 4
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation 2
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	8.5
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

The venerable Virtua Fighter series was born ten years ago, with an arcade game that can now be found in the Smithsonian under the heading, "First 3D Video Game". Sega's fighter now appears for the first time on a non-Sega console with the release of Virtua Fighter 4, for the Sony PlayStation 2. 

Whether or not this game is for you depends on your preferred fighting style. There are essentially two modes of fighting games: fantastic and realistic. The former encompasses such games as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, where fireballs, gravity-defying hurricane kicks, and preposterous fatalities are the norm. Such attacks are usually executed individually using complex joystick motions. 

In comparison, in realistic games, such as Tekken and Virtua Fighter, characters' moves are modeled after actual fighting styles and consist primarily of punches and kicks. Single attacks are easy to perform, but must be strung together into deadly combinations for any real effect. 

Virtua Fighter is very much a realistic fighting game. It is not something one can pick-up-and-play with any great success. The moves a character can perform vary depending even on his or her stance; understanding these subtleties takes practice. Though it's possible on easier difficulty settings to mash the buttons and pray for victory, fighting veterans will perforce dedicate themselves to learning the ins and outs of the game's mechanics and each fighter's repertoire. 

A player who becomes familiar with the flow of Virtua Fighter's style can perform works of art, however. Deflecting and countering attacks with moves normally seen in a Jet Li movie are not uncommon by those who know how to execute them. 

There are diverse modes in which to participate, including the standard Arcade and Vs. Kumite mode offers a variety of awards — usually costume accessories and other trinkets. Players can also train an artificial intelligence (A.I.), which will copycat players' moves and learn from them. This mode is a cross between a sports game's "Coach" mode and raising a virtual pet — neither of which is as good as the real thing. But while editing player and A.I. data, I was able to consistently crash the game, forcing a reboot. 

The deep gameplay is accompanied by impressive presentation. The characters are lifelike, though their frames of animation do not always flow smoothly from one routine to another — especially for the player who is randomly hitting buttons and not making an effort to connect his attacks. 

The backgrounds can be stunning, with numerous moving figures and plenty of detail. The spacious arenas are ringed with walls which may or not be breakable, the penetration of which can result in an instant "Ring Out" defeat. Other effects can also be altered by player action, such as snow on the ground which is pressed flat during a fight. 

Virtua Fighter is an exemplary title in the genre of realistic fighters. It offers plenty to reward the player serious about his gameplay, and a fantastic presentation and variety of fighting styles and gameplay modes that will immediately appeal to anyone. It can also be an intimidating game for those new to the series. Approach with caution.

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This article is copyright (c) 2002, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 08-Apr-02

Title	:	Rez
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation 2
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Everyone
Game Rating	:	5.6
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

This month marks the DVD release of the 20th Anniversary Edition of Tron. What warrants this movie being one of my Favorite Movies of All Time is not only its sleek computer graphics and video game-inspired theme, but that it was produced two decades ago. Taken in context of its era, Tron is a masterpiece — but it would never fly today. 

Neither does Rez, a shooter and Sega's first original game for the PlayStation 2. 

In Rez, the world's computer network is collapsing under the strain of too much information. A digital avatar is created to go inside the computer, eliminate the viruses and firewalls, and restore the artificial intelligence to full operating status. 

The avatar glides through the network pathways, unable to alter direction or momentum. Players hold down a button to lock a targeting cursor onto any enemies it overlaps, and release the button to send shots that unerringly strike their marks. The challenge lies in shooting the myriad swarms of viruses before they damage the fragile avatar. Their strength and quantity increases, as does the complexity of their movements, but the gamer's responsibility retains its constant simplicity. 

The graphics accurately depict what a network may look like from the inside: stark, bleak, and simple. The graphical motif is obviously inspired by Tron, but is more desolate. There are little or no curves, texture maps, or other expected details; the environments are almost entirely empty wire frames. Lighting, strobe effects, and background patterns keep the screen looking busy, though. If vector-based graphics, used for early arcade games such as Asteroids and Star Wars, were pumped up to 128 bits of processing power yet remained vector-based, you'd have Rez. 

The graphics are linked to the game's sound, both of which respond to the gamer's actions. Every enemy destroyed explodes in a burst of light, making a tone that automatically synchs with the soundtrack. The more viruses eliminated simultaneously, the greater the effect — yet it's still simple, meaningless tones set to the overall music. The technique fails to make a Pavlov's dog of players: though the sound effects are complementary to the player's actions, they serve no gameplay purpose, and could be muted without causing the player to suffer any disability. Synthesized instruments comprise a non-vocal techno beat for the rest of the soundtrack. 

Rez neglects to offer extensive challenge or gameplay. Moving a targeting cursor is the extent of the player's input; even with extra gameplay modes to explore, the main game will last only an hour or two. Being a PlayStation 2 disc, that's a pretty expensive hour. 

Rez is a game one would expect to find in an Eighties arcade. It offers little gameplay, variety, or challenge, and only a modicum of graphics and music. Sega can do better, and so can you. 

If you want something that's half the price of Rez, lasts twice as long, and has 20 years of replay value, I highly recommend Tron.

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This article is copyright (c) 2002, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 21-Jan-02

Title	:	Tennis 2K2
Platforms	:	Sega Dreamcast
Publisher	:	Sega
ESRB Rating	:	Everyone
Game Rating	:	8.8
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

ieMagazine editorialist Pete Gallagher recently reminisced on the wonderful simplicity of Pong, and how today's gamers would consider such a game beneath them. 

Yet dress it up right and even Pong can be as fun today as it was back then. That's what Sega's done with Tennis 2K2, for the Dreamcast. 

A sequel to Virtua Tennis, Tennis 2K2 builds on the addictive qualities and simple, fast-paced action of the original while adding and changing features. The athlete roster now includes eight women players, for a total of sixteen real-life sportsmen from Cedric Pioline to Serena Williams and Alexandra Stevenson. One to four gamers can pit these athletes in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles tennis matches. 

The lone player will likely spend most of his time in World Tour mode, which is an opportunity for players to develop a unique tennis pro all their own, at the cost of playing as an "unknown" and not a real-world star. In Tour, players create in name, body, and skill a pair of athletes to compete in a calendar of events. The tour continues until every annual event on the calendar has been won. Mini-games, which imitate anything from Space Invaders to othello, will increase the players' skills in areas such as serve, volley, and footwork, allowing them to qualify for more advanced matches. Virtua Tennis' mini-games were more fun; in Tennis 2K2, they are played for the necessity of player development, not the luxury of cash prizes — and duly, repeatedly, since both male and female athletes require constant maturation. 

Prize money from matches can be spent on outfits, access to additional arenas, and contracts with partners for double matches. These are fine incentives, but nothing as seductive as unlocking additional players, as was offered in Virtua Tennis. 

Actual gameplay has changed little. Topspin, slice, and lob shots require quick thought for the ball to be placed where the opponent can't reach it. It's harder to pull off a satisfying smash, and easier to hit the ball out of bounds. The camera has moved a bit closer to the court, making it appear larger but giving players on the far end of the court a disadvantage. 

In doubles matches, your partner can be schizophrenic in his confidence. Often a ball will pass through his territory unchallenged; other times, he'll roam the court freely, hogging the ball. These mood swings can cause your partner to be frustratingly unreliable. 

Sega missed the ball on this one: Tennis is the only entry in the Sega Sports 2K2 lineup to not feature Internet play. This game is a perfect candidate for online matchups; its absence leaves the sequel short of surpassing its predecessor. 

If you take a moment between all the frantic racing and diving about the court, you'll notice some incredibly fluid animation in the character models. Whether they're standing, serving, or stroking, the athletes move as their real-life counterparts would. Between matches, doubles offer their partners congratulations, but skewed collision detection leaves them slapping each other's wrists and elbows as often as hands. Blurred slow motion replays highlight scoring moments, but the action is too blurred to be distinguishable. 

The realistic graphics are accompanied by authentic voiceovers. Announcers keep score as the game progresses, declaring the winners when appropriate. Since players are free to name their World Tour custom character as they like, the announcer cannot identify him winning a match or deuce advantage. It's expected, but conspicuous, since the computer players are regularly announced. 

Despite missed opportunities, Tennis 2K2 is an addictive game that all players can enjoy. Fans of the original seeking a different, if not altogether better, challenge, and a more complete athlete roster, will find it here.

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This article is copyright (c) 2001, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 05-Nov-01