Title	:	Final Fantasy X
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation 2
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	9.0
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

A year can no longer pass without a new Final Fantasy game. Square's tenth installment in this role-playing game (RPG) series is the first for the PlayStation 2, and is a remarkable maiden voyage on this new platform. 

The story is as plain as good versus evil, with only a few surprises tossed in. The cast of heroes is comprised mostly of sexually repressed, yet likable, teenagers with such nonsense names as Wakka and Lulu. The main character, Tidus, is a stranger in a strange land who's kept mainly in the dark, as is the audience. What we do know is that there's a destructive force of nature called Sin that's just asking to be vanquished, so pick up your sword and do your daring duty! 

In many ways, FFX is unlike any of its predecessors. For one, it's the first Final Fantasy to feature spoken dialogue. The cast has no recognizable voice actors, but they perform admirably — a solid first effort from Square, one that helps put FFX on a cinematic level comparable with the Final Fantasy Movie. 

Even more impressive, and what FFX will be best remembered for, is the game's graphics. Square has seemingly mastered the 128-bit platform in their first attempt. The game switches seamlessly between real-time animation and pre-rendered video sequences. Both are of higher quality than anything any previous Final Fantasy has offered, presenting more detail, more lifelike characters, and smoother animation than ever before seen. Even the battles' automatic camera work increases the dramatic feel of the game. 

Graphical expositions are popular for advancing the game's plot, in which the player has no control. Such storytelling results in a strictly linear gameplay experience. There is little opportunity for exploration, and no "world map" from which to choose a destination; such choices are not a part of FFX. Tidus and his party are railroaded from one battlefield to the next, with gamers going along for the ride. 

Unlike Dragon Warrior, which adheres rigidly to a traditional RPG formula, the Final Fantasy series has become a proving ground for new gameplay elements. For example, in most RPGs, combatants earn experience points for battles won; with enough points, they go up in level, which increases their various statistics. 

In FFX, there are no levels. Instead, characters are moved along paths on a game board known as the Sphere Grid, with each path offering different enhancements. It's an innovative system that gives the player some say in his characters' development. The grid requires constant attention after almost every battle, but attend to this chore and most conflicts will be resolved positively. The grid is also an obtuse measurement of a character's strength; it's more useful to answer "What level am I?" than it is "Where on the Sphere Grid am I?" 

In a further perversion of the RPG formula, FFX's weapons and armor are all equal in their offensive and defensive stats. A character's strength remains unchanged whether he's wearing a loincloth or chain mail, or wielding a baseball bat or a bazooka. If that doesn't make a gamer's blood run cold, I don't know what will. FFX's equipment instead has unique attributes which make them effective in different scenarios or against various foes. Players will need to mix, match, and create the proper gear for any situation. 

All Final Fantasy games feature a diversionary mini-game; in FFX it's Blitzball, a sporting event that boils down to a number comparison between players, reminiscent of a text-based soccer simulation on an old Apple II computer. This simplicity serves to make more apparent how frustratingly difficult it is to win a game of Blitzball. Time spent blitzing is better spent hunting Sin. 

When the first Final Fantasy came out for PlayStation, everyone was too impressed with the technical accomplishments to acknowledge the gameplay flaws. The same is likely to occur here. FFX is a refreshing entry in a familiar series, with much innovation and an amazing presentation. Whether it stands the test of time remains to be seen, but for now, it's a game worth a first impression.

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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, 07-Jan-02

Title	:	Final Fantasy Chronicles
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	9.0
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

The role-playing game (RPG) genre, for all its style and sales, has declined in substance in the eyes of many role-playing veterans. Gamers new to the pastime don't know what they're missing, but with the release of Final Fantasy Chronicles for the PlayStation, Square uncovers the past for new and old gamers alike to enjoy. 

Chronicles consists of two classic Super Nintendo games: Final Fantasy II and Chrono Trigger. In Final Fantasy, the dark knight Cecil rebels against his kingdom's new-found militarism which threatens the very fabric of life. Chrono Trigger is a time-travelling story in which players explore the world across various millennia to prevent a future apocalypse. 

Both games have undergone slight changes for this rerelease. 

The Final Fantasy II that America received ten years ago was based on an easy version of the Japanese game, Final Fantasy IV. This PlayStation adaptation has the more difficult version of FFIV as its source. New dungeons, story arcs, items, and character abilities are present in this edition. The game has been retranslated from the original to provide a more faithful and mature story. Players may now hold down a dash button to move more quickly, and share control of the battle with a second player — both features formerly present only in Final Fantasy III. 

Chrono Trigger now includes a gallery to view art, music, and other extras unlocked within the game. 

Both games now feature beginning and ending sequences of full-motion video, showcasing familiar characters in a way never before possible. In Final Fantasy's case, the opening sequence is pathetically short, but still more than the Super Nintendo could ever handle. 

Also new to these versions, especially Chrono Trigger, is a trait specific to the PlayStation hardware: loading times. The delay when entering a building or opening a menu can seem interminable to gamers weaned on the cartridge-based originals and their instant access. The fast disc access of the PlayStation 2 does nothing to ameliorate this condition. 

The only other disappointment is the lack of further additions. In Final Fantasy II, Square could have improved the shopping system to make apparent the relative strengths of weapons and armor prior to purchase. Many other items lack description, leaving the player to explore the manual for details; and nowhere are the effects of magic spells specified. Such minor mechanical details could easily have been updated without detriment to the overall game. 

Neither game has been fitted for use with the PlayStation analog control sticks. 

Despite the loading times and opportunities missed, Final Fantasy II and Chrono Trigger are no less the masterpieces than they were at their release. As progenitors of the RPG genre, these games' gameplay and plots rival today's RPGs, reflecting the genius of developers not that long ago. 

Final Fantasy II was the first RPG to feature Square's ATB (Active Time Battle) system, in which individual character and enemy turns are constantly occurring. When the battle's engaged, the screen changes from the standard overhead to side view in which good and evil face off. The background music changes to accompany standard skirmishes, decisive battles, or surprising encounters. The graphics display the world with the Mode 7 techniques that were new with the release of the Super Nintendo. It's not much by today's standards, but the graphics and sounds were landmarks back then. 

Chrono Trigger also has a unique battle system in which encounters occur on the standard exploration screen. Character positions play an important role, as most attacks are area-based: if an enemy lies beyond the realm of attack, the player must reposition the heroes or wait for the attackers to make a move. Each character learns unique battle techniques, or "techs," which can be combined with other fighters' techs with more damaging (and colorful) effects. 

Experienced gamers will relish the opportunity to replay these classics without dusting off their Super Nintendo systems. Other players accustomed to the showiness of PlayStation games may be deterred by the antiquated graphics and sound, but would be depriving themselves of the quintessential role-playing experience if they let that stop them.

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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, 09-Jul-01

Title	:	The Bouncer
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation 2
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	5.5
Review by	:	Larry Tipton

Something terrible has happened at a quaint little bar called Fate. Ninja soldiers from the evil Mikado Group have kidnapped a young girl named Dominique. It is up to three unlikely heroes to come to her rescue and right the wrong. So begins a shallow story to an even weaker game. 

The Bouncer is game that is full of promise and marketing hype. It was to include movie-like graphics while offering complete player control. The environment was to be incredibly rich with detail and include interactive features never before seen in a video game. The Bouncer was to be the first true next generation gaming experience. 

It has failed on all accounts. 

It seems that the folks at Square borrowed heavily from one of their old PSOne games — namely, Tobal — and tried to turn that style of fighting into a beat-em-up fighter like Final Fight. It could have worked, except the game play is neither fast nor fluid enough to stay interesting. 

There are three stereotypical male characters from which to choose: Volt, Sion, and Kou. I find it odd that there are no female characters, but there are none in the story mode. It is even stranger when you start to do battle against women characters. 

The Bouncer is set up in stages. You will do battle with guards, dogs, ninja, sub bosses and, of course, a final end game boss character. It seems that Square made no attempt at trying to do something a little different, relying instead on a "cookie cutter"-style fighting game featuring incredible graphics. 

The game's story mode is linear. There are no branches to the story. Fail, and the game is over but you can pick up where you left off by loading your previously saved game. As you play through the story mode you will be awarded points for successfully executing a fighting maneuver. You use these points to further strengthen your fighter. This sounds like a nice feature but it tends to break up the game's action too much. It really gets old quickly as you watch a video segment, a loading screen, play for about two to three minutes and then decide how to use the earned points. I guess it helps that you can choose to switch characters between fights. Other game modes include survival and multiplayer fighting brawl. This might be fun with four human players. 

Controlling each bouncer is simple enough. Each has high, medium and low attacks. There is a block button and a special move button. The input response from each button press is not as responsive as it should be. It is not terrible but it could have been better. 

The music is pretty good overall with a rock guitar motif throughout for the most part. The in game sound effects are pretty typical for a beat-em-up. The voice acting is not bad considering that the story is pretty weak overall. 

The Bouncer's graphics are without peer. They are the best to appear on the PlayStation 2 to date. The onscreen characters are highly detailed, as are their countless adversaries. The backgrounds are richly detailed. The use of dramatic lighting is unmatched. The Bouncer is packed with beautiful cut scenes. In fact, you'll no doubt spend more time viewing the cut scenes than playing the game. But these things cannot save The Bouncer from being a mediocre game. 

It is quite surprising that a game of this size requiring the storage space of a DVD is only about three hours in length. Some will get added enjoyment with the other game modes available but most will no doubt be disappointed. I know I am. 

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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, 02-Apr-01

Title	:	Final Fantasy IX
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	8.5
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Why would anyone use a sword to take down a gun-toting maniac? Questions like this have plagued me as Final Fantasy, a role-playing game (RPG) series from SquareSoft, has adopted a more "steampunk" setting, blending magic and technology. Such infusions have contributed to Final Fantasy's darker stories and flawed characters, a far cry from the series' brighter, pre-PlayStation days. 

Final Fantasy IX takes a step back, and returns to the series' fairy tale origin, putting the focus back where it belongs: on the Fantasy. 

Fans of the earlier Final Fantasy's will be familiar with much of this game's setting. This world is no more advanced than the steam engine, leaving the world populated by magic and airships, not televisions and motorcycles. Previously-forgotten characters will be quickly identified, including black, white, and red mages of old, and characters undisguised as thieves and fighters. Moogles, chocobos, and other figures of Final Fantasy lore round out the fantastical cast in a story that isn't as gloomy as previous tales. 

The story opens with the thief Zidane kidnapping the Princess Garnet, with a clumsy knight and insecure wizard getting caught in the conspiracy. It is soon revealed that the Queen is amassing magical weaponry, but is being manipulated by an even greater power. The slow-building plot, likable, sometimes comical, characters, and more clear-cut conflicts are a change from the deeply-troubled people and world of previous Final Fantasy's. 

The battle system abandons many past problems. There's no complicated Guardian Force or Junctioning, spell drawing, or indiscriminate magic use. Accoutered equipment teaches new abilities unique to the character wearing them. By taking multiple hits, heroes can fall into a temporary Trance that puts powerful commands at their disposal. Some bosses present a surprising challenge, but not to the point that repetitive level-building is necessary. 

Except for the literally brighter atmosphere, the graphics haven't evolved much. Zidane and company explore colorful towns and dungeons from a variety of perspectives. When these scenes shift, a small amount of pixelation can sometimes be seen. But the most cinematic moments are saved for full-motion video (FMV) sequences, which include dramatic escapes and high-speed airship chases. It is clear to see from the people in these movies that FFIX is not trying to be realistic. Unlike the tall, lifelike figures of FFVIII, these people are completely disproportionate, with short bodies and big heads. 

The music, as always, is an integral part of the Final Fantasy atmosphere, and in FFIX, it's as symphonic as it's always been: at one moment quirky, the next mysterious, and then stirring. Sound effects employ stereo effectively, with Zidane's footfalls echoing from the appropriate speaker as he nears stage left or right. 

Final Fantasy IX is a step in the right direction. Square has taken the focus off visual glamour and put it back on content and style. Not everyone will find FFIX to be a stunning RPG, and let's face it, it's hardly innovative — but it is the first Final Fantasy in awhile that I've enjoyed playing, and that's saying a lot. 

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This article is copyright (c) 2000, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 27-Nov-00

Title	:	Chrono Cross
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	7.4
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

The latest in a flurry of Sony PlayStation role-playing games, Chrono Cross is Square's sequel to the Super Nintendo classic Chrono Trigger. In that game, players traversed time and space to prevent the end of the world, manipulating existence itself and creating time paradoxes. In the sequel, the time-travelling most players will be doing is remembering the original game, which the sequel fails to live up to. 

Chrono Cross's hero is young Serge, who mysteriously finds himself in a parallel dimension. In this other world, something happened ten years ago to cause a very different timeline to unravel. Players must slide back and forth between dimensions to solve this riddle, with the fate of humanity at stake. Unlike most Square sequels, Chrono Cross shares the same continuum as Chrono Trigger, with a few familiar faces showing up; exactly how the two games tie in with each other is yet another puzzle. 

The battle system is unlike any other. Combatants have stamina points which determine when and to what degree they can act, and how tired they'll be after each action. Physical attacks come in different strengths and accuracies; successful blows earn characters element points, which can be used to cast magic. Magic spells can be cast once each per battle and must be equipped on a grid before battle. The grid determines how many points are necessary to cast the spell, and how effective it will be. Plus, spells come in various colors, with characters being predisposed to certain colors, and opposite colors reacting powerfully. Each character can combine his or her (or its) unique "tech" attacks with other characters'. 

Confused yet? These options force the player to make a variety of decisions in each battle. Though some gamers may enjoy such micro-management, most will find it bogs down the game. There's a lot to learn and consider for every single battle. This system makes boss battles more dramatic, but is absolutely grating when employed with regularity. Why not have a "novice" or "dungeon crawl" mode where the choices are quicker and simpler? 

The characters Serge meets are much too random. The dialogue could be interesting, if the script editors hadn't been so hung up on dialects. There's a French clown, a German mad scientist, and an Irish burglar. Character names are unimaginative, and sometimes downright painful: enemy soldiers Solt and Peppor, a young girl named Kid, the masked man Guile, the painter Van and his son Gogh. 

Players may not even realize when story branches occur. These divisions can be as obvious as a menu choice — "Do you want to do this or this?" - or as innocuous as who you talk to first in a new town. Several people will join your party at the drop of a hat, without their history or intentions being explained or having much relevance. Compare this to Chrono Trigger, where we got to know people like Marle and Robo quite well and what place they held in the game as a matter of course before they joined the party. 

The graphics are a bit pixelated, but are colorful and detailed. Cities and dungeons are displayed from fixed angles, much like in the Final Fantasy series. Full-motion videos are gorgeous — what do you expect from Square — but short and without drama. 

Meeting another Square standard is the music. The soundtrack features a diverse instrumentation that makes every town, dungeon, and encounter unique. 

Chrono Cross is a game that calls for patience and commitment. The presentation is not lacking; it's the execution that's complicated. The battle system is powerful, but takes time to get used to. The story also picks up as the game progresses. Both aspects were clearer and better done in Chrono Trigger, but there's no time travelling back to those simpler days. 

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This article is copyright (c) 2000, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 14-Aug-00

Title	:	Legend of Mana
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Everyone
Game Rating	:	3.0
Review by	:	Richard Rae

Squaresoft's "Legend of Mana", for Sony PlayStation, is a graphically pretty game, which immediately struck me as trying to fuse elements from old 8-bit RPGs, Grandia, and even Monster Farm into a "new generation" classic RPG. 

All the artwork and characters are presented in a very elaborately drawn 2D style reminiscent of a finely illustrated fantasy or children's book, with fanciful character designs. Anthropomorphic animal and plant characters populate this world just as freely as do elf-like humanoids, one of which you play: your choice male or female, as your decision has no effect on the game progression. In addition, later the game also lets the player hatch and train monsters from eggs he or she acquires during the game, then train the resulting monster until it has grown enough to join your party. Players also can acquire the ability to construct "Golems" in a special workshop, and you also can incorporate a Golem as a questing companion. 

Unlike typical RPGs, "Legend of Mana" offers a unique concept: you "build your own world" by placing the Mana Tree "artifacts" you acquire anywhere on the "continent" it's allowed, at your whim. These "artifacts" (blocks, etc) will morph into new locations and towns, some of which will be friendly, and others hostile. As you explore these areas you'll acquire more artifacts and meet more characters, acquire money, and — of course — battle all sorts of fanciful creatures. 

Notably, there's no voice acting, and all interaction with non-player characters is accomplished via standard dialogue boxes and menus you must step through to make your answer choices. Battles are easy enough to fight using simply two buttons, and the game has hundreds of items and weapons with which you can equip your player character as you find or buy them. Statistics and experience screens are of course present, as are a surprisingly large number of inventory screens and equipment utilization tools. 

But how is "Legend of Mana" as an RPG? To put it frankly, I was bored to tears. 

An opening OP cutscene shows the Mana Tree dying and spreading its death concentrically across the land of Fa'Diel, and the world falling apart to fragment into any number of artifacts which become scattered to the Four Winds. But after that, the game does nothing further to grab you at the start, nor does the story advance in anything remotely resembling a cinematic fashion. While the game does posit some nice philosophy at times, it moves excruciatingly slowly. 

Though this is a new game, you'd hardly know it to look at it. The game looks like nothing more than a much prettier version of an 8-bit or 16-bit 2D RPG, and has no 3D graphics or CGI renderings. The atmosphere, in fact, struck me as extremely "retro" and very old-fashioned. The game does little to excite the player graphics- or mechanics-wise. 

Most notably, its imaginative "design the game world as you'd like it" innovation also proves to be its downfall. There is no strong "linking story" to make what appears to be some sort of general accomplishment worthwhile. In fact, the player winds up going on a huge number of "mini-quests" (usually one or so within each newly placed location) with minor goals that sometimes don't even need to be completed to allow a player to simply "move on". Of course, the number of locations to visit are proportional to the number of "artifacts" or "mailboxes" you acquire and place. 

The game music is initially nicely done, but the endlessly repetitive tunes and fairyland sound of the music often becomes so cloying and irritating that you may want to turn the volume off. 

While the game does have a sizable number of characters, I found that none of those I encountered were the least bit compelling. Most of the male humans look female, and vice versa- except for the animal and plant critters, who look like they should be in a Beatrix Potter book. 

"Legend of Mana" overall comes across as very disjointed, unfocused, and more like a casual "software toy" to be played with and abandoned whenever the player wishes than an RPG. Underneath the initially clever "world creation" concept lies pretty much the "same old thing" with no real innovations in game play or new worlds to dazzle the player. 

I personally found my interest in the game waning considerably the more I played it. There was nothing compelling me to keep going back to it, I didn't care about the characters, I stopped caring whether I fought monsters or not, and didn't even care about building Golems or training monsters for my party. In other words, I wasn't having any fun nor was my imagination or sense of fantasy being engaged. 

"Legend of Mana" isn't a game I can recommend to the average player. While "Legend of Mana" may ultimately have its proponents among die-hard RPG players or fans of its ancient predecessor "Secret of Mana," I found nothing technologically to make this any different from "old school" elf/fairy quest RPGs of 10 years ago. It doesn't "wow" one as a PlayStation title should, let alone one from Squaresoft, and I imagine you'll have more fun leaving it on the shelf than investing your time into the fragmented world of Fa'Diel. 

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This article is copyright (c) 2000, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Video Gaming Central (CompuServe), 07-Jul-00

Title	:	SaGa Frontier 2
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
ESRB Rating	:	Teen
Game Rating	:	5.3
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Some sagas just won't die… even when they should. 

When Square, makers of Final Fantasy, released SaGa Frontier for the PlayStation, they left a blemish on their sterling RPG record. It was a strictly standard role-playing game, except for its non-linearity. While granting players the freedom to go wherever and do whatever they wanted, it lacked the direction necessary for a compelling story and game. 

For whatever reason, Square has now released the sequel in America. SaGa Frontier 2 continues the tradition set by its predecessor of a tedious game from an otherwise excellent company. 

SaGa Frontier 2 is set in 13th century England. Yet, the only similarity to that time period is the medieval village setting, which is typical of any fantasy role-playing game. This world's citizens can wield nature-based "Anima" magic - except for young Gustave, exiled heir to the throne. When Gustave finds other people like himself, they raise a nation built on machinery and technology, becoming a threat to his homeland. The storyline plays out from the perspective of several people, with players choosing to switch story lines at various points. 

Each storyline is less chaotic than the original SaGa Frontier, but the story itself is not better. The characters are boring and their exploits unspectacular. Some story segments have players scrolling through lines of dialogue from beginning to end. More interaction would be a better incentive for a player to even bother choosing to play another segment. 

The game's graphics and mildly-deformed characters are slightly reminiscent of the classic Super Nintendo game, Chrono Trigger. The world the characters explore is composed of 2D watercolor environments. Though beautiful, these painted backgrounds are dull and static, separating the player from the game. Instead of a world living and breathing with magic, there's a distinct "look, but don't touch" atmosphere. 

In their journeys, players will encounter monsters. These foes are visible on the screen and can be avoided. When a meeting occurs, the turn-by-turn battle system is invoked in one of three ways. "Team" battles pit the heroes against the monsters in standard style, with players inputting attack commands then watching the parties duke it out. Or, players can elect for a representative of each side to battle one-on-one in "Duel" mode. Here, players have more control over their characters and more options from which to choose. Multiple moves can be selected per turn and strung together to form combos, similar to the system used in Legend of Legaia. Later in the game, when Gustave's nation goes to war, armies are matched against armies in "Strategic" mode. These various styles of fighting give players a good variety with which to wading through hordes of monsters and exploit their characters' strengths and weaknesses. 

Players can save their progress most anytime, though the Quick Save feature is also handy. This option temporarily saves game data without using a memory card, and stores the data until the system is turned off. It's handy for those long gaming sessions, though something tells me there won't be many of those. 

SaGa Frontier 2 is better than the original — but that's not saying much. Uninspired gameplay and plot is weighed down, not enhanced, by a clumsy storytelling device. It's possible SaGa Frontier 2 will appeal to the casual role-player who enjoys non-linearity. For others, you'd have to be more bored than bold to explore this frontier.

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This article is copyright (c) 2000, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 21-Feb-00

Title	:	Ehrgeiz
Platforms	:	Sony PlayStation
Publisher	:	Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.
Game Rating	:	8.1
Review by	:	Ken Gagne

Long ago, a best-of-the-best fighting tournament was held. To the victor went the otherworldly weapon Ehrgeiz. Today, Ehrgeiz is discovered to be the key to a door in an ancient ruins, behind which may lie the secret of immortality. In the pursuit of never-ending life, there will be much bloodshed, in Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring, a PlayStation fighting game from SquareSoft. 

Ehrgeiz is a 3D free-roaming fighting game. Two opponents battle it out in a variety of multi-level arenas in which they may move about freely. Each stage is small and does not have its own inherent pitfalls and dangers, rightly keeping the focus on fighting. 

Control is divided into high, middle, low, and special attacks, with guard and jump nearby. Special moves are combinations of these buttons, with the directional buttons rarely coming into any complex play. This keeps the gameplay fast, simple, and easy to learn, but also shallow. Tekken players may not find Ehrgeiz suited to their tastes. 

Fighter strength is not well balanced. Cloud Strife, one of the five characters from Final Fantasy VII to appear in Ehrgeiz, has punishing moves simple to execute. After a moment's practice and some button mashing, even a first-time player will be able to zip through the one-player mode. 

The graphics are the best of any free-roaming fighter. As characters jump, run, climb, and attack, their animations are extremely fluid. The minor amount of zooming is smooth, and pixelation never occurs. At sixty frames per second, the graphics keep up with the action effortlessly. And, now a standard for Square, the opening and closing full motion video sequences are gorgeous. 

The music is eclectic and enjoyable, with a variety of rock styles prevalent. Sound effects are noticeable but not memorable. 

Ehrgeiz is a fair but shallow fighter. Were that all the disc offered, it wouldn't last five minutes on anyone's front burner. 

But many mini-games and side quests greatly extend the replay value. The mini-games include a battle version of the classic board strategy game Othello; track and field; a foot race; and an endurance battle. 

Quest Mode is a classic dungeon crawl, complete with monsters, traps, armor and equipment, spells, and more. Battles happen in real-time as in Secret of Mana. Stock up in your base camp and see how deeply you can delve before forced to retreat — if you can! 

With an excellent dungeon mode for one player, fighting mode for two, and mini-games for both, Ehrgeiz has a lot to offer. None of it is too taxing or complex; the variety and simplicity is as much a strength as a weakness — a worthy trade-off.

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This article is copyright (c) 1999, 2007 by Ken Gagne. All rights reserved. Not to be distributed without permission.

Original publication: Sentinel & Enterprise, 24-May-99