A very special game that was bound to glue on my mind and turn into precious memory
I admit I never finished this game, but this was a game I wish I had, just for memory's sake. Its a special game, in a special period, so its hard to criticise it, even tough it does might have areas to be.
There was hard times in the game where I remember getting stuck in the progress, not only one time, because you often needed to have one certain character to pass trought. I don't mind now. So, its a RPG with a little bit of good puzzle elements, something that would happen for any real adventure at some momement, were you need to find/fix something, or manage to enter some place by another method.
First off, this game have Maya, your main character that is very charismatic, and so much, that I could compare her to characters like Sonic for exemple. She have a good visual, nice cloths and that amazingly always upgradable weapon of hers. By that time I didn't knew much english to understand all in the the intro and story, but it have a good and atmopheric intro, eveything in this game is very well done in terms of atmosphere. The intro was very misterious, with interesting characters in it that you wouldn't know but sound powerfull, and they have some discussions. This game have a unique style, really, very unique.
I don't have exact memories of the game now, just instances. You begin in a city, where there are stores to buy weapons and cores I think, I remember the stores interiors being pretty nice. Soon you get to know a second character that is a good inventor, and have a huge robot dog. Now thinking of it today, I think Valve copied the robot dog idea from this game when making Half Life2 if they didn't had it on the first. But anyway, returning to a great game, after you leave the city to head to the investors house that was your friend seems like you help him fix the dog or something. The dog is a powerfull party member I remember. From the beggning has you advance a little, I record going trough a desert place with lots of scorpions, they were hard for me at that time. Every ambient, like crossing the scorpions in the desert, felt solid and balanced on the gameplay in a way you should be carefull, but you was always free has you could get stronger if you want to, but at some moments wasn't possible yet; maybe you should advance first to make you weapon better, maybe wait some companion or find a better place. But you were free.
The combat mechanics are just like final fantasy if you are wondering. These old school RPG games were very enterteining, they for exemple, didn't put limits on you. Monsters could respawn, and you had the choice keep leveling if you want to and even colect itens. I remember one time I kept killing zombies till I filled my bag with the precious bread. I could do it all day if I had to, I was immersed with the game, my party, the character and their cause, even without knowing exacly what was ocurring. I could understand a bit, about the worlds and etc, but some things were confusing (not like a bad thing) and very surreal. There were these huge ships and their world was almost destroyed, many places were junky and desert. The worlds float separatelly arround the core or something.
I remember when more characters were comming, and they were great, but maybe wasn't very well introducted because I don't remember like some of them came into play. They were great tough, and all very balanced. They came with better power already than the first characters on the beggning, but the first ones were already lvled, so you should make a choice because of the party size limit. I often just couldn't leave some old conrads behind, even though some newer was more powerfull, because of how attached I was with them. I liked them very much.
**Minor Spoiler about some characters you encounter**
All characters had some kind of special ability, there was a thief guy (the one I had to use in the part I was stuck has I found later), a mechanic blond girl, the inventor (from the very beggning) with his punk hair, the dog, a blong guy with blades and even more. There were many characters, I even didin't got to see them all.
**End Spoiler**
This is a very catchy game with an appealing story and appealing characters. I can't even read what the people who gave it lower scores think of it. Its just magical really. I get very curious with the people who acomplish a marvel game so Ill see if they made another gem. Mind you, this an old school game not meant for anyone. It requers patience, and have foults from other times but still lesser than many games today. Its very ejoyable if you have the time to apreciete it and its dificulties. Its not a game to be harsh with on the things you consider has foults, it is about immersive atmosphere, story, characters, challenges (and some were you really might get stuck, like I was and left it for some days) and lots of battles. It is a game from 99 has you can see.
Hope some day I can get it again somehow and finish it, but sometimes is hard to go trought old emotions, thats the only problem. Sometimes is the best to leave old thing sit still. But this one I should have finish damn. If you are someone capable of really enjoy this masterpiece, buy it and do it for me ok?
I regard you with much love Septerra Core, it was a immeasurable pleasure to met you. Farewell Maya and companions. *cry* lol.
Thanks for reading, see ya :). Ill let a trully interesting story below for you. Hope you like it too as much as I do.
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A bit about one of the greatest thing in this game: Its story. The best most original and surreal story I ever saw for a game. Its official brief I only added little info in the two [ ]'s. There are no spoilers. Spoiler Free.
"Enter a world where the laws of nature work in strange new ways allowing continents to orbit at different elevations around the planet. [These masses of land that float arround the Core at different levels, are called Shells and Layers by the inhabitants. All the world is very misterious, has the different nations (including some different races) live separatelly from each other and not much aware of eachother buzziness.] Living battleships float overhead and Junk Pirates roam the darkness. This is a world who's very Core is a living computer, quietly watching over the fruits of its master's creation.
On the Outer Shell Layer above, the ancient society of the Chosen live an extravagant lifestyle, consuming mass amounts of energy and dumping their waste onto the Layers below. [The ones from below, long used to it, live from the technology trash always descending from the Outer Shell.] Now the Chosen have discovered secrets about the world in which they live, and begin a descent towards the inner Core, caring not who gets in their way.
Into these events you are drawn. You take the role of Maya, a Junk Scavenger from World Shell 2, directly below the Chosen's Layer. It is here that you make your living, sifting through the trash to find useful items to sell, always wary of the giant ships that darken the skies above. As the Chosen and their fleet of battleships begin their descent to the Core, war looms over the land. The many nations of the Lower Levels, including your own, are threatened by the exodus and fear the destruction to come.
Leaving her home behind, Maya strikes out intending to warn the Lower nations of the coming Chosen, and soon finds herself in the middle of the battle for freedom.
Standing against Maya are the forces of Doskias, a Chosen Lord who sees himself as the savior of Septerra, a man who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. In his desire to obtain the power of the Core he upsets the delicate clockwork of the planet ... dooming the world to destruction.
Maya must stand against him. Finding allies as well as enemies in the society of the Chosen, she begins to unravel what Doskias has wrought, and starts down the path to obtaining the Gift of the Creator, prophesied as the power that will save the world.
In a world where the boundaries of good and evil are blurred, only the strong will survive to see a new dawn ... and a new era, as you solve the Legacy ... and look upon the face of the Creator."