This is where Star Trek should've gone, it's truly a delight for the Sci-Fi fan.
From there, you explore a bit as Fayt, the main character, and his friend Sophia are on vacation on a planet, you check out the hotels, meet up with a couple characters, play a virtual game or two to get used to the battle system, then BAM! Suddenly the whole thing just goes straight into chaos, and it continues to get worse from there. You're separated, and end up on an under-developed planet, meaning to communicate with these people would be violating some act of sorts within the game.
That is just the beginning of course, I only gave a brief synapsis because I didn't want to give away all the juicy details, I want people to experience that for themselves, because Star Ocean is one of those games that you really can't put into words. It has to be experienced by the person playing it. It can either be breath-taking, or incredibly stinky. Fortunately, I fall into the former category.
The battle system is interesting, it's real time, and it does take a bit to get used to it, but when you do, either you love it, or hate it. I loved it myself after getting used to it, but it still does have it's moments where it can be frustrating, still, it's awesome overall in my books, one just needs to get used to the quirks surrounding it in order to truly get a feel for the meat within.
The gameplay has a ton of variety behind it with the invention workshops taking up a bulk of that, it'll keep you occupied, that's for sure. Trying to recruit the best inventors is definitely something that'll net you some nice profits, that's for sure, it's worth the time investing to really get the most out of this game.
The soundtrack is a treat to the ears for me, as Motoi Sakuraba is my favorite game composer, this has to be some of his best work to date. The many styles of music this man can do is amazing. He encompasses classical, pop, jazz, and the best one yet, rock! I love the guitar riffs that are used in some areas of the game, and when you fight certain bosses. Play the game to find out what I mean.
All in all, I feel that Star Ocean: 'Till the End of Time is a fine game, not perfect, but definitely one of the best RPGs I've ever played. Sakuraba's score really adds to the mood and atmosphere of the game, and the graphics are gorgeous, even still today they hold up in my books. The landscapes look amazing at times. Seriously folks, for 20 bucks, this game is a steal, give it a shot, I promise you won't be disappointed.