It took a number of hours to really come to appreciate the originality of the styles and design that this game bring to the Gamecube (GC). There is an amazing amount of imagination in the models, textures, and levels that were executed perfectly by Square-Enix. This universe is a departure from the existing manifest that has previously dictated style to the other Final Fantasy series releases. As a player you are allowed to create a character from one of four races with four variations on the look of that race. Each race has a definite identifiable strength and this serves to suggest a role that they can serve in combat, but no race is confined to a specific role. There is a serious amount of cuteness that has gone into all the characters of the game and some of the early monsters that you fight. However the cuteness ceases when you challenge the boss of the level. The models are these amazingly detailed models that tower over your poor little characters. The game, at its core is an action game relying mostly on the player's dexterity do damage, defend, or move from harm's way. The control is simply executed on the nintendo game controller and the gameboy advance (GBA). The gameplay is often fast and can at times be confusing and maybe a little frustrating as there is a limiting sphere characters must stay within to remain alive. The introduction of the GBA for multiplayer operation can be a little tricky at first but luckily the game allows players to become comfortable over time. The game can be in both single and multiplayer mode, but as many other reviewers of the game I definitely recommend that the game be played in a game of three or more players. Which means that you have to have three friends and three GBAs at your disposal. However, the game really begins to shine when a group of this size sits down to play as the cooperative and competitive goals come into play. Teamwork is encouraged first and foremost in the distribution of the multiple maps to each GBA screen. Each level a player is given a unique map of the battlefield varying from a mini-map, the location of the chests, the location of the monsters, or information about the last monster fought. This allows for players to communicate with each other, or perhaps not communicate, about where the party should head towards or what they should watch out for. It creats another great oppurtunity for players to communicate while playing. The most important feature of the game encourages players to synchronize their magic and charge attacks. The attacks combine to form new spells, magic strikes, or more powerful version of a spell. This form of teamwork is not essential in the beginning of the game but later becomes the very core of being successful. But again the need to perfect this ability can be acommplished over time, allowing a team to refine this ability of timing. Single player goals are emphasised every level by the use of secret goals which encourage you to use a certain form of attack, grab all the money, or even take damage. If you piously follow these goals throughout the entire level you will be rewarded with first choice of the loot when the level is complete. A small note though, sometimes it is extremely easy to adhere to the rule that is given to you on the level while other times its nearly impossible. These goals are random and so while you might be assuredly last choice one round, you might be back on top next round. I feel that that the game really only struggles when it comes to equipping your units with new weapons and armor. Throughout the game you collect designs for items, recipes, and the components to create these items. This perhaps is the hardest part of the game to come to understand when you first play and is often very difficult to accomplish unless you are in a good group that is willing to share components and designs. The designs are limited often to a particular race or rare components, but that is solved by allowing you to always enter into areas that you have previously accomplished to gather more items. Which isn't as mundane as it sounds, because the areas are often infested with new monsters or more chests. Other than this crafting feature the action is quite often fast and interesting. I cannot rave enough about the graphics, sound, and style of the game as it departs from the traditional anime style that has existed previously. There are so many fine touches to the game that the universe, while bare of a really heavy story, often allows the player to enjoy the character and the surroundings. From the voice over introductions a new area, the beauty of the overworld map, and even the letters that are sent from your family members. However, I think that the hardware requirements (GBA per player) and the scope of the game really limit the audience that this game could reach. As the game doesn't appeal to those that simply want to jump in and game and it also lacks serious depth that most RPG fans really desire. Finding the right configuration of friends with enough equipment might be hard but it's not like waiting for the stars to align. If this configuration is well within your reach, I recommend that you give this game a try as it's stylish, pretty, and compelling.
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