The forgotten lovechild of George Lucas and Hayao Miyazaki? Survey says...YES!
Our story begins with one Jaster Rogue, an orphaned teenage boy with a mysterious past. Jaster dreams of one day departing from the desolate desert planet of Rosa and exploring the whole of space...but he just doesn't have the means to make that possible. Luke Skywalker anyone?
…That is until a chance meeting with a shadowy man leads to a case of mistaken identity...and subsequently to Jaster's mysterious recruitment aboard the renowned space pirate vessel, The Dorgenark. He soon finds he is not the only recruit and what follows is an exciting and challenging adventure through lush forests, sprawling metropolises, arid deserts, and bit of the in-between as well.
Along the way Jaster and the gang are faced with hoards of beasts and menacing bosses but nothing will stop the valiant Captain Dorgengoa from continuing his mad quest across space! Help Jaster and company discover keys to their past and the galaxy's future!
Game Play:
As in many games, a tutorial is provided in Rogue Galaxy to instruct the player how to properly and effectively use the control scheme and how to navigate the main menus. Though I consider the learning curve a bit steep, it doesn't need to be if you pay very close attention to the tutorial and learn to set the strategy to meet your needs. I recommend you have the strategy set to "Go All-Out" which will allow the 2 party members you do not directly control to attack and use items at will. They cannot choose to use abilities on their own, but they will suggest abilities every few seconds. Simply pressing L1 or L2 will activate the chosen suggestion, allowing you to bypass menu use! The downside to this setup is that they may use items that are expensive or hard to find at certain points in the game and since the battle difficulty is so high they will use heal potions en masse. Keep careful tabs on your supply! Inadequate attention to healing item supply is a death wish. Ye be warned ya scury dog…sloth is a deadly sin for a reason! (It'll take time to get used to, but you'll love it)
At the same time, you'll find a weapon customization system as deep as anything out there. With the aid of a small amphibian friend, your used weapons can find new life when two are combined to form a new one! No similar weapons to combine? No problem! Just combine your used weapon with one of a number of stones that raise your weapons parameters! Armor, on the other hand, is virtually non-existent, but you'll never even notice after spending so much time working on your offense.
Score=10
Graphics:
Some of Rogue Galaxy is absolutely stunning, while others leave more to be desired. Overall though, the cell-shaded characters ala Dragon Quest etc. are very pleasing to the eye and always display any change in armor/weapons with of course the exception of beautiful scenes not rendered by the game engine. Distant cityscapes are well detailed and the grandeur of some places feels a bit like a pleasant return to Rabanastre…
Score=9
Sound:
As in most games there are tracks I love in Rogue Galaxy and there are tracks I would like to mute the television for after a while. The positive is that the opening song is beautiful and you will hear it several times at key points in the game. The voice acting is also above-average, though one Jar-Jar Binks-esque character in your party gets to be a really annoying fellow when he rambles on in the background. Overall though I can't help but be pleased, everything fits the game nicely.
Score=9
Story:
There isn't much more for me to say about the story without divulging top secret spoilers! But just between you and me, the story is a lot more engrossing than it seems at first glance. It seems our pal Jaster might not be the only crew member of The Dorgenark with a shadowy past…
Score=10
Value:
I am very near the end of the main quest of the game but haven't finished it yet so I cannot go into replay value, but I can tell you that at 35 hours I still have a very large number of side quests I have not spent much time on (the story has been too mesmerizing to divert my attention!).
Aside from a number of hunts similar to FFXII, there are mini-games involving weapon construction, "insectron" battling, and perhaps something else I haven't yet discovered…
Score=10
Summary:
Rogue Galaxy sat on my shelf for months after purchase and by chance I picked it up and gave it a go…I am really quite glad I did! I didn't hear too much talk about this little gem when it came out but I am confused as to why that was. Were a lot of people turned off by the difficulty in the early-going? I was for a little while, but once I learned to keep a closer eye on HP all my apprehension disappeared. If anything, this game leaves me wanting so much more of the same...alright, leave me alone now! I have to get back to the game!
Gameplay=10
Graphics=9
Sound=9
Story=10
Value=10
Overall=9.6 *Adjusted to 9.5 for GS*