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digibutter.nerr
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The Axolotl Sympathist
Geno
Werewolf
Joined: 26 Jul 2007
Posts: 8754
HP: 100 MP: 4 Lives: 1
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 Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 7:12 am
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I picked up this masterpiece yesterday evening before doing some quick driving lessons with my mother. D: I popped in the game, and from the very beginning movie scene, I could already tell this game was going to be epic.
First Impressions:
After a cutscene and some dialogue, you enter a battle for the first time, which you must run from. I was a bit confused for a while once I got into battling on both screens at the same time, but after only a small while, it became second nature. I was definitely impressed by the visuals, gameplay, and dialogue.
Story:
Without spoiling anything, I'll try to review the story... Neku, a 15-year-old, wakes up in the Shibuya district of Tokyo, Japan, not knowing how he got there or why he suddenly appeared. He meets Shiki, a 15-year-old fashion-savvy girl, who ends up partnering up with him. It is revealed that they are Players in the Game, hosted by the Reapers. There are several other Players as well as multiple Reapers. The Reapers assign missions to the Players, who get erased if the mission is not completed in the time limit given to them through text messages (thankfully, the time limit is strictly in-story, so when playing you need not worry about running out of time). The Game takes place over the course of 7 days, and if you survive, good for you. If not, you are "erased". Within only the first hour or so of the game, there are multiple twists and turns that are really interesting. The story for this game gets a 9/10
Graphics:
For a 2D game, the visuals are quite stunning. A lot of effects are implemented to the scenery and sprites, making it nothing like any 2D game I've ever played before. Battle effects are nice, and the cutscenes are beautifully done. One such effect that I have not seen in any 2D game I've played is the concept of depth. The sprites get smaller as they go farther away, and larger as they approach the "camera". As for the sprites themselves, they look great, and don't get very distorted when up-close. That's a very good thing in my book. The graphics get a 10/10 for all the different aspects that were implemented.
Gameplay/Controls:
Only one word can describe the handling of this game's controls: unique. Neku has his battles played out on the touch screen, using different controls via pins (more about them later). Shiki's attacks are played out on the top screen using the D-Pad (A,B,X,Y button's if you're a lefty). After a few battles, I was at ease with the controls, and as I gained more pins and abilities for both characters, I learned various control styles I didn't think I could handle. If you have a gut-wrenching feeling about controlling 2 screens at once, don't fret. There is an option that allows the top screen to pick up where you leave off, giving you more time to focus on Neku's battles. Gameplay and Controls get a 9/10.
Features:
Pins, pins, pins. The game wouldn’t be beatable without theses dandy things. Pins allow Neku to use abilities by moving the stylus in certain ways, such as slashing across an enemy, or drawing a circle in an empty space. However, some pins mix poorly, since a lot of pins require a similar motion to activate. This can lead to a pin not working correctly. Another important aspect is fashion. There are many brands that produce clothing items and pins. In each area of Shibuya has its own “Fashion Chart” that tells players which 3 brands are the most popular, and the one brand at the bottom. The top 3 brands have attack bonuses if you’re using their merchandise. The last place brand ends up halving your attack, so keeping a sharp eye for what’s “in” or not is really helpful. There are plenty more in-game features I have not covered, as well.
The World Ends with You has a lot of added bonuses, including a bumper car-like game involving pins (as the bumper cars). Each pin has its own “Tin Pin Slammer” stats that show you what it’ll be good at in this mini-game. There are a few other mini games as well. Also, for some reason, the game was said to have online capabilities, yet the box displays no Nintendo WFC logo. HOWEVER, on the inside, it comes with a Wi-Fi booklet like all online DS games. The features portion of this game gets a 8/10 for its overall uniqueness and variety, however the whole “online” thing bugs me and therefore lowers my score a tad.
Music:
In short, the soundtrack to The World Ends with You is simply awesome. It revolves around a J-Pop theme, and it suits the game extraordinarily well. There are dozens and dozens of songs, and while most games have a set battle theme, this game has a long, long list of songs that are randomized, making every battle unique. Also, the music playing while roaming Shibuya is randomized. You can also customize the menu music for when you need to use items, change pins, or play mini-games. And what's better is that the farther you get in the game, the more songs you unlock for battles, Shibuya, and the menu (well, you have to purchase the menu songs). The music definitely gets a 10/10, as it is one of the most important elements in this game.
Overall:
Pros: Great story, impressive graphics and visuals, awesome battle system, countless features.
Cons: Some pins don’t work well together, online mode seems like a big lie at the moment (although, I haven't unlocked every feature quite yet).
Final score: 9.2/10
In other words, get the hell out there and buy this game!
Last edited by Geno on Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:05 pm; edited 4 times in total |
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oar
Super Maiq the Liar
Joined: 23 May 2007
Posts: 17919
HP: 100 MP: 10 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 8:43 am
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Square sure has a way with making every single character have no memory. 
M'aiq still doesn't care anywhere near enough to want to try this game. |
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Bartz Klauser
BAMFing ARCHER
Werewolf
Joined: 27 Sep 2007
Posts: 7637
HP: 100 MP: 5 Lives: 4
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| Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 9:11 am
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It's a Square game...it HAS to be good. |
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oar
Super Maiq the Liar
Joined: 23 May 2007
Posts: 17919
HP: 100 MP: 10 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 9:19 am
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| Pyroclasm wrote: | | It's a Square game...it HAS to be good. |
Bias =/= Quality
It's like saying Pokemon Channel was a good Pokemon game because GameFreak/Nintendo made it. |
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The Axolotl Sympathist
Geno
Werewolf
Joined: 26 Jul 2007
Posts: 8754
HP: 100 MP: 4 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2008 12:06 pm
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| Maiq the Liar wrote: | | Pyroclasm wrote: | | It's a Square game...it HAS to be good. |
Bias =/= Quality
It's like saying Pokemon Channel was a good Pokemon game because GameFreak/Nintendo made it. |
You can't compare this game to Pokemon Channel...
And anyway, why are you not interested enough to try it out? |
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bobz
bobzearth42
Joined: 26 Mar 2008
Posts: 11543
HP: 10 MP: 5 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2008 12:09 pm
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So this game is good... I was planning on trying it, and you confirmed that it's Epic.
Oh, and what about the music? Square usually has epic music... |
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The Axolotl Sympathist
Geno
Werewolf
Joined: 26 Jul 2007
Posts: 8754
HP: 100 MP: 4 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2008 12:11 pm
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| bobzearth42 wrote: | So this game is good... I was planning on trying it, and you confirmed that it's Epic.
Oh, and what about the music? Square usually has epic music... |
Oh, my, the soundtrack is AMAZING!
I forgot to add that! D: |
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Bartz Klauser
BAMFing ARCHER
Werewolf
Joined: 27 Sep 2007
Posts: 7637
HP: 100 MP: 5 Lives: 4
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| Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2008 6:27 pm
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| Maiq the Liar wrote: | | Pyroclasm wrote: | | It's a Square game...it HAS to be good. |
Bias =/= Quality
It's like saying Pokemon Channel was a good Pokemon game because GameFreak/Nintendo made it. |
Looking at Square's standard, there are only a few games the phailed on, and here are what I think they are:
FFXII (undeniably)
FFVII (arguably)
FFXI
FFII (Painful as hell to even bother completeing, from what I hear)
see, that's about four, maybe more, out of the tons they've made. Thus my point. |
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That rich guy
Pure-???
Vampire
Joined: 29 Apr 2007
Posts: 9560
HP: 88 MP: 5 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2008 7:44 pm
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| Pyroclasm wrote: | | Maiq the Liar wrote: | | Pyroclasm wrote: | | It's a Square game...it HAS to be good. |
Bias =/= Quality
It's like saying Pokemon Channel was a good Pokemon game because GameFreak/Nintendo made it. |
Looking at Square's standard, there are only a few games the phailed on, and here are what I think they are:
FFXII (undeniably)
FFVII (arguably)
FFXI
FFII (Painful as hell to even bother completeing, from what I hear)
see, that's about four, maybe more, out of the tons they've made. Thus my point. |
the battle theme is still awesome in that one. |
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Token Nazi?
Zelnor
Joined: 01 Jul 2007
Posts: 6425
HP: 10 MP: 7 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 9:05 am
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To quote Destructoid once more, here the
TEN GOLDEN RULES OF JAPANESE RPGs
Reviewer, please select how many apply.
| Destructoid.com wrote: |
1: Always make your main character brooding, tortured and thoroughly unlikeable:
It's common knowledge that nobody needs to identify with the hero of a story to enjoy themselves, in fact, being able to even remotely like the main character is a disaster waiting to happen. If players spent their time caring about whether the in-game avatar lives or dies, they wouldn't be able to invest valuable brain space in marveling about how pretty the graphics are or how cool everybody's hair looks.
To write a main character, the process is incredibly simple -- just find any Livejournal page that features hot pink text on a black background with Jack Skellington pictures, copy every single blog entry into Wordpad, and then make the hero read it all in a pretend gruff voice with sixty second long dramatic pauses. Bada bing, bada boom -- one instant hero, dripping in darkness and oozing mysterious melancholy from every pore.
2: Everybody in the main party has a sword, even if everyone else has guns:
It might not be logical, but this is a genre where steampunk robots can fight purple dragons -- sod your bloody logic! Even if the game is set in a dystopian future full of clanking death wagons and engines of wanton destruction, your main party of heroes must always be willing to match their bullets with a flash of cold, hard steel. If you don't think a skinny emo with a sword is enough to stop a ten story tall walking tank with railguns, missile launchers and a scorpion tail, then you're an idiot. They did that shit all the time in Vietnam.
For extra realism, try and make the swords ten feet tall, or at least the size of a Shetland pony. Despite their huge size, your girly-armed characters must be able to wield such meaty blades as if they were lighter than swan feathers with helium balloons tied to them. Again, see 'Nam for historical reference.
3: Your main party of heroes must include at least three (preferably all) of the following:
A. A really annoying child that is probably going to end up as hentai fodder within three minutes of the game's release.
B. A self-styled lady's man who has a weakness for drink and women. He is always hilarious.
C. An old timer who might be a little rough on the surface, but has a heart of gold hiding within him.
D. A female who is useless at fighting but can heal up a treat. Is in love with the main character.
E. A female who is intent on proving she is just as tough as men. Is in love with the main character.
F. An easily marketable animal of some kind. Could be in love with the main character, depending on your target audience.
G. A former villain who had a change of heart, possibly due to some newfound respect for his enemies. Over the course of the game, he will learn the true meaning of friendship. Fanboys think he is the best character.
4: Always include a gambling minigame:
Kids love to gamble, and no JRPG world is truly alive until it has a casino of some kind, promoting the risk-and-reward lifestyle that will lead many of our nation's children down a fun-fueled path of cocaine binges, spousal abuse and prostitution. From card games to roulette wheels, a JRPG needs some way of encouraging that "Daddy needs a new pair of Mithril boots," mindset from the player.
It doesn't matter how the minigame takes place, all that matters is that hardcore gambling is encouraged and applauded. If people want the ultimate weapons, well they're going to have to bet the shirts off their backs for it.
5: Partway through the game, split your party up into forced teams that includes characters the player clearly hasn't leveled up enough:
Everybody loves that moment in an RPG where all the playable characters are split into two teams and the player is forced to use characters they never wanted to play with, which have now become weak and useless by that point in the game. Some gamers have been known to simultaneously weep, laugh and orgasm with utter rapture at the thought of playing as Tootles McShitty who is still at Level 3 and has his beginning weapon.
A few oddballs are prone to complaints about this fantastic gaming innovation, but they are heretics and possibly murderers so must be ignored. If they didn't level up every single character in preperation for something like this happening, then it's their fault -- it's a JRPG, so they have only themselves to blame for not expecting to have to finally play as the whiny kid who screams "Alright," in a high pitched voice whenever he gets the killing blow in a battle.
6: Your main villain must be one of the following, and ONLY one of the following:
A. A close friend or ally who has turned traitor in a shocking twist that you didn't see coming within three seconds of setting eyes on the smirking prick. He might be a mentor to the main hero, or a friendly rival, but either way, his unorthodox methods and shirking of authority will provide no clues to his completely unforeseeable betrayal.
B. An ancient evil that has been sealed away long ago. Evils are always ancient, and are never killed like they should be. Instead, some bearded old fools locked it up in a mirror or a tree or something -- y'know, a really secure place.
C. Someone who randomly and suddenly replaces the guy you thought was the actual main villain. You'll spend hours waiting to fight the main baddie, only to find he was little more than a sub-villain for the main event. It is always surprising when this happens.
D. Gay.
7: NPCs are complete idiots:
Just like in real life, other people in RPGs are nothing but drooling morons with only myopic and worthless things to say, and they'll say those things over and over again. The best part is, even though it's clear that in a town full of wandering NPCs, the only relevant people are the ones running the Inn and the Weapon Shop, the player is still compelled to wander up to each one to hear about how some jackass loves the smell of freshly baked cookies or how they're expecting their husband home any minute (a minute that lasts until the end of time, it would seem).
Freeze framed in their own never ending moments of eternal stupidity, NPCs should always be the kinds of people you just want to punch in the face until both of you are bleeding.
8: NPCs never lock their doors and let you wander around their homes:
NPCs are so interested in telling you about their love of freshly baked cookies that they don't even care that you burst into their homes uninvited and subsequently trod soil and dragon blood into their carpets. They'll happily stand there, grinning like complete and utter mongoloids, thinking about their one asinine train of thought while you walk all over private property, opening cupboards and helping yourself to whatever cash and potions they might possess.
Again, just like real life.
9: Never ever question why the world's global economy isn't in tatters when a man can't step foot outside his home town without being attacked by monsters:
Seriously, just don't *crag* think about it, okay!?
10: The last dungeon requires so much level grinding that the player's fingers wear down to thimbles:
No JRPG can truly call itself complete without having an end dungeon packed so full of the toughest monsters that it requires an additional twenty hours of "gameplay" just to get through the first screen. When the final furlong approaches, the game technically screeches to a halt, and what ensues is a magical new game where one runs around the same spot in circles, then presses attack a lot, and then runs around in circles again. For days.
The reason why this is necessary is because of the point of all RPGs -- to accumulate so much power, to be so incredibly strong, and to possess so many ultimate weapons, that the final boss is pathetically crushed within two minutes, reducing the past several days of repetitive labor and hard work into something that doesn't even last as long as most wanks.
While this pitiful whimper of an ending could help the player question why he's wasting his life, this is never the result. He just goes out and buys something NIS made so they can get to level 9999.
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That rich guy
Pure-???
Vampire
Joined: 29 Apr 2007
Posts: 9560
HP: 88 MP: 5 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 9:46 am
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| Zelnor wrote: | To quote Destructoid once more, here the
TEN GOLDEN RULES OF JAPANESE RPGs
Reviewer, please select how many apply.
| Destructoid.com wrote: |
1: Always make your main character brooding, tortured and thoroughly unlikeable:
It's common knowledge that nobody needs to identify with the hero of a story to enjoy themselves, in fact, being able to even remotely like the main character is a disaster waiting to happen. If players spent their time caring about whether the in-game avatar lives or dies, they wouldn't be able to invest valuable brain space in marveling about how pretty the graphics are or how cool everybody's hair looks.
To write a main character, the process is incredibly simple -- just find any Livejournal page that features hot pink text on a black background with Jack Skellington pictures, copy every single blog entry into Wordpad, and then make the hero read it all in a pretend gruff voice with sixty second long dramatic pauses. Bada bing, bada boom -- one instant hero, dripping in darkness and oozing mysterious melancholy from every pore.
2: Everybody in the main party has a sword, even if everyone else has guns:
It might not be logical, but this is a genre where steampunk robots can fight purple dragons -- sod your bloody logic! Even if the game is set in a dystopian future full of clanking death wagons and engines of wanton destruction, your main party of heroes must always be willing to match their bullets with a flash of cold, hard steel. If you don't think a skinny emo with a sword is enough to stop a ten story tall walking tank with railguns, missile launchers and a scorpion tail, then you're an idiot. They did that shit all the time in Vietnam.
For extra realism, try and make the swords ten feet tall, or at least the size of a Shetland pony. Despite their huge size, your girly-armed characters must be able to wield such meaty blades as if they were lighter than swan feathers with helium balloons tied to them. Again, see 'Nam for historical reference.
3: Your main party of heroes must include at least three (preferably all) of the following:
A. A really annoying child that is probably going to end up as hentai fodder within three minutes of the game's release.
B. A self-styled lady's man who has a weakness for drink and women. He is always hilarious.
C. An old timer who might be a little rough on the surface, but has a heart of gold hiding within him.
D. A female who is useless at fighting but can heal up a treat. Is in love with the main character.
E. A female who is intent on proving she is just as tough as men. Is in love with the main character.
F. An easily marketable animal of some kind. Could be in love with the main character, depending on your target audience.
G. A former villain who had a change of heart, possibly due to some newfound respect for his enemies. Over the course of the game, he will learn the true meaning of friendship. Fanboys think he is the best character.
4: Always include a gambling minigame:
Kids love to gamble, and no JRPG world is truly alive until it has a casino of some kind, promoting the risk-and-reward lifestyle that will lead many of our nation's children down a fun-fueled path of cocaine binges, spousal abuse and prostitution. From card games to roulette wheels, a JRPG needs some way of encouraging that "Daddy needs a new pair of Mithril boots," mindset from the player.
It doesn't matter how the minigame takes place, all that matters is that hardcore gambling is encouraged and applauded. If people want the ultimate weapons, well they're going to have to bet the shirts off their backs for it.
5: Partway through the game, split your party up into forced teams that includes characters the player clearly hasn't leveled up enough:
Everybody loves that moment in an RPG where all the playable characters are split into two teams and the player is forced to use characters they never wanted to play with, which have now become weak and useless by that point in the game. Some gamers have been known to simultaneously weep, laugh and orgasm with utter rapture at the thought of playing as Tootles McShitty who is still at Level 3 and has his beginning weapon.
A few oddballs are prone to complaints about this fantastic gaming innovation, but they are heretics and possibly murderers so must be ignored. If they didn't level up every single character in preperation for something like this happening, then it's their fault -- it's a JRPG, so they have only themselves to blame for not expecting to have to finally play as the whiny kid who screams "Alright," in a high pitched voice whenever he gets the killing blow in a battle.
6: Your main villain must be one of the following, and ONLY one of the following:
A. A close friend or ally who has turned traitor in a shocking twist that you didn't see coming within three seconds of setting eyes on the smirking prick. He might be a mentor to the main hero, or a friendly rival, but either way, his unorthodox methods and shirking of authority will provide no clues to his completely unforeseeable betrayal.
B. An ancient evil that has been sealed away long ago. Evils are always ancient, and are never killed like they should be. Instead, some bearded old fools locked it up in a mirror or a tree or something -- y'know, a really secure place.
C. Someone who randomly and suddenly replaces the guy you thought was the actual main villain. You'll spend hours waiting to fight the main baddie, only to find he was little more than a sub-villain for the main event. It is always surprising when this happens.
D. Gay.
7: NPCs are complete idiots:
Just like in real life, other people in RPGs are nothing but drooling morons with only myopic and worthless things to say, and they'll say those things over and over again. The best part is, even though it's clear that in a town full of wandering NPCs, the only relevant people are the ones running the Inn and the Weapon Shop, the player is still compelled to wander up to each one to hear about how some jackass loves the smell of freshly baked cookies or how they're expecting their husband home any minute (a minute that lasts until the end of time, it would seem).
Freeze framed in their own never ending moments of eternal stupidity, NPCs should always be the kinds of people you just want to punch in the face until both of you are bleeding.
8: NPCs never lock their doors and let you wander around their homes:
NPCs are so interested in telling you about their love of freshly baked cookies that they don't even care that you burst into their homes uninvited and subsequently trod soil and dragon blood into their carpets. They'll happily stand there, grinning like complete and utter mongoloids, thinking about their one asinine train of thought while you walk all over private property, opening cupboards and helping yourself to whatever cash and potions they might possess.
Again, just like real life.
9: Never ever question why the world's global economy isn't in tatters when a man can't step foot outside his home town without being attacked by monsters:
Seriously, just don't *crag* think about it, okay!?
10: The last dungeon requires so much level grinding that the player's fingers wear down to thimbles:
No JRPG can truly call itself complete without having an end dungeon packed so full of the toughest monsters that it requires an additional twenty hours of "gameplay" just to get through the first screen. When the final furlong approaches, the game technically screeches to a halt, and what ensues is a magical new game where one runs around the same spot in circles, then presses attack a lot, and then runs around in circles again. For days.
The reason why this is necessary is because of the point of all RPGs -- to accumulate so much power, to be so incredibly strong, and to possess so many ultimate weapons, that the final boss is pathetically crushed within two minutes, reducing the past several days of repetitive labor and hard work into something that doesn't even last as long as most wanks.
While this pitiful whimper of an ending could help the player question why he's wasting his life, this is never the result. He just goes out and buys something NIS made so they can get to level 9999.
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I doubt any of those apply.
this game is sopposed to be like nothing else anywhere ever.
it's also supposed to kickass.
AND STOP QUOTING THAT *crag* SITE. >_>
And the grand list of RPG cliches is much better than that.
http://project-apollo.net/text/rpg.html |
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Token Nazi?
Zelnor
Joined: 01 Jul 2007
Posts: 6425
HP: 10 MP: 7 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 9:57 am
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I think Destructoid is a well-research and funny written site. I read many new things on here, so why should I not quote it ? |
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TooManyToasters
Paper_Waluigi
Joined: 20 May 2007
Posts: 10343
HP: 100 MP: 10 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:00 am
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Did you have to capitalize "The Game"? |
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The Axolotl Sympathist
Geno
Werewolf
Joined: 26 Jul 2007
Posts: 8754
HP: 100 MP: 4 Lives: 1
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:28 am
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| Rasto wrote: | | Did you have to capitalize "The Game"? |
Yes, because that's how it is. The game in the game is called "the Game". XD
And Zelnor, let's see how many apply:
1: To a degree.
2: Nope
3: Possibly "G", but not 100% sure.
4: Nope
5: Nope
6: A, but not sure how it turns out, though.
7: They don't interact, and therefore you can only read their minds, which are humorous things...
8: Nope. You can't enter buildings not marked with a Reaper symbol, and the only buildings open are stores.
9: You decide when you want to fight the Noise (monsters)
10: There are no "levels", only areas, and even then it's not too hard to level up enough, because you're most likely at the right level to begin with. And once you reach a certain level, the low-level Noise go away so you can fight the high-level stuff anywhere.
Soooo, yeah, The World Ends with You is nothing like any RPG I've ever seen before. |
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That rich guy
Pure-???
Vampire
Joined: 29 Apr 2007
Posts: 9560
HP: 88 MP: 5 Lives: 0
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 1:30 pm
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| Zelnor wrote: | | I think Destructoid is a well-research and funny written site. I read many new things on here, so why should I not quote it ? |
just because you like somethign doesn't mean everyone else will.
in the past, many poeple have disagreed with you on many things.
also, HAH! I was right and stuff.
that cliches list is awesome either wya. read it. |
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