Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift (DS)

The "War and Peace," Director's Cut, of DS Games.
7/1/2008 6:33 PM | 0 Comments | Page 2 of 3

Let it be noted that the gameplay graphics are not substantially improved over the Game Boy Advance graphics. Cut scenes have much better cartoons and gameplay is much more involved, however. The previous version was of "War and Peace" length as it was. Grimoire is more like "War and Peace: The Director's Cut." Long-ass.

And, while the gameplay lasts a long enough for you to grow a ZZ Top-worthy beard, the play becomes banal after the first 20 hours. I mean, how many missions and fights on a grid system with your team can you deal with? Yes, you have to compliment Square for putting what amounts to a PC-based RPG on the DS, albeit with lower quality gameplay graphics. But what of what benefit is extended gameplay when the adventure seems so tried and true?

Personally, I don't feel compelled to play as Luso. He has a little bit of attitude, but not enough to make him come alive. He's no Neku from Square's The World Ends With You. That game that not only broke new ground, the character sported the angst of every teen who's been depressed. And because his personality was so untamed, angry and authentic, he was indeed "outside of society" -- the underdog for whom you always root. Luso doesn't have that personality. He's a team player who occasionally questions authority. I guess that's perfect for a role-playing game where you must be part of a squad to move your pals along the grid squares to fight monsters and complete missions. But once he's out of school, Luso's going to put on a tie and work for the nice corporation and have a growing 401K plan filled with all the conservative stocks. And all this stuff with the Grimoire? He'll probably tuck that away and think about it only when his wife steps out because he's bringing home the bacon, but not the romance.

As a tactical RPG, there are more jobs (56!), more missions and a supposedly more facile grid system on which to move as you plan battles. Again, while there's a lot to do (400 quests!), it's the kind of thing you've seen before: Go to a pub and buy a quest. Then go fight your turn-based fight, level up, and make money. While you can control the game with the stylus, it is sometimes too easy to make mistakes. And by using the DS' buttons instead, you'll feel like you're wasting time.

Then you've got these Judges who lay down the law with the perspicacity of Supreme Court Justice Alito on coke. These guys can be nice, but they're meddlesome. When they stop you from using a power you have, it's not only intimidating, it's maddening, because you may never be able to complete the particular quest you're on. I mean, who died and made them Judges?