 Review By: J. Michael Neal |
Developer: | Nippon Ichi Software |
| Publisher: | NIS America | |
| Genre: | Strategy RPG | |
| ESRB: | Teen | |
| # Of Players: | 1 | |
| Online Play: | No | |
| Accessories: | Memory Card | |
| Buy Now: |   |
Nippon Ichi has made a fine name for itself preaching to the choir. Their strategy RPGs are strictly fan-only affairs, yet they have become some of the most sought-after games for the PS2. Don't expect anything to change with Makai Kingdom: Chronicles of the Sacred Tome, a game that does little to further the genre, but is solid enough to sate fans until the next Nippon Ichi release. If you aren't already interested in turn-based, menu heavy gameplay presented in Sega Saturn-quality visuals and sound, you probably aren't reading this review and you'll never give Makai Kingdom the time of day. If you are, you've probably already horded 27 copies to sell on eBay in 5 years. So I guess this is for those on the fence…
Makai Kingdom furthers Nippon Ichi's mythology of demons, overlords, netherworlds, and Prinnies with another tongue-in-cheek tale of petty squabbling and power grabs in the Underworld. You play as Overlord Zetta, or what's left of him anyway, as you try to reclaim your kingdom, and your body, while being imprisoned in the pages of a sacred tome. The story's not Psychonauts quality, but it's definitely smile inducing (and not just because of how much has been skewed in translation). Along the way, Nippon Ichi fans will run into some familiar faces while being treated to a light-hearted, humorous, and surprisingly original story that weaves its way through complex gameplay.
Being a book means you can't move on your own, what having no limbs and all. Therefore all combat is done with units you've created. New units are created from inanimate objects in the environment, with different objects offering different stat bonuses and penalties. You can then choose from the game's over 60 classes, including vehicles and characters from previous Nippon Ichi games, and command your army through randomly generating dungeons. To conquer a dungeon you need to earn a set number of points, points being rewarded for each enemy you eliminate. This means you don't have to completely clear a level to leave it, something very important to know when outgunned. Some enemies also carry keys, which once retrieved, reveals a new section of the dungeon, complete with more baddies and collectable objects.
Combat works much like any other turn-based strategy RPG, save for the elimination of the grid movement format. Instead of pushing your warriors around chessboard-like playing fields, all movement is done within a sphere around the character that's size depends on class and equipment. Attacks are handled in the same manner, with many attacks covering an area rather than a single target. It's a nice stab at invention, but is perhaps the game's biggest failing. Moving units takes more effort than it should, and there's an unnecessary amount of strategy involved in simple attacks. Trying to position yourself so that the enemy is in range and friendly units are not can take several attempts. The camera doesn't help much, either, skewing the distance between units and making targeting an annoyance. Frankly, for a game that hinges on the combat, something like this is inexcusable.
The camera problem is the fault of the throwback visuals. It's hard to continue to defend low detail 2D sprite-based characters on top of uninspired 3D backgrounds as an artistic choice. At some point, it has to become laziness. It was quaint at first, even appealing in a strange, "hey, I remember when games use to look like that" way, but at a time when games like God of War and Resident Evil 4 are pushing the PS2 to its limit, it's difficult for all but the most die-hard fans of the genre to give a game like Makai Kingdom 20 hours of their life when they could be putting them into something more rewarding. I'm not saying Nippon Ichi has to start turning out photorealistic environments to make enjoyable games, but there is so much more that can be down with the presentation style they have chosen.
Of course, fans will be pleased with the minor innovations enough to probably put in those 20 hours, but not enough to overshadow Disgaea as the current king of the genre. Makai Kingdom doesn't have anything as deep as Disgaea's Item World, a sub-game that unlocked 100 descending levels of dungeons for each and every item in the game that increased the items stats as they were conquered, or Geopanels, which added variety and difficulty to each battle by giving tiles on the environment random traits. You can create your own dungeons by spending Mana points, but this is far less accessible as they have high premiums, are very difficult to escape from once in, and disappear once used. Creating new characters out of objects in the environment is an interesting twist, but somehow never provides as much depth or strategy as you would expect.
The game is also bizarrely balanced. Whether a map will be completed in one or two turns, or whether it will lead to several failed attempts seems picked at random, and since there is no venue like the Item World to work out, beef your army up, you are often stuck relying on luck and strategies learned through much trial-and-error. It'll wear your patience thin, especially as you gaze at the amazing stack of games in your library and have to remind yourself why you're playing this one instead.
For the most part, Makai Kingdom plays it safe. It's a by-the-numbers strategy RPG that should keep fans happy until the next drops, but everyone else can pass this by without missing anything special. Harmless, safe, uninspired - satisfactory? Yes, it's like a bowl of unflavored oatmeal - warm, filling, and that's all. It won't win you over if you don't already have an interest in this type of fair.
Bottom Line:
If you have a shelf full of strategy RPGs, Makai Kingdom will fit in nicely with them. It's a perfectly standard entry in the genre that, with the exception of the somewhat clunky movement and targeting system, rocks no boat and delivers the minimum expectation of enjoyment. Is it a bad purchase? No, not if you are a fan of Disgaea, La Pucelle: Tactics, and Phantom Brave, but don't expect it to do much for you.
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7.5 |
Posted: 2005-12-05 11:13:38 PST