"Let
the sun shine"
Since its release in 2004 the Nintendo DS and its recent
successor the 3DS has had a bit of a rollercoaster ride in terms of popularity
amongst gamers such as myself. This has nothing however to do with the console
itself, which I personally believe is an amazing and hugely innovative piece of
kit, much like it's big brother the Wii.
The DS', and let's face it the Wii's, problems lie in the games - the majority of which are unfortunately slap-dash jobs put together by third party companies out to make a quick-buck. Now before the rage sets in and forces you to write some obscene comment below I am not saying all Nintendo games are like this, there are exceptions: notably anything Nintendo produces itself such as Zelda, Metroid, Mario and the focus of my review today the new chapter in Golden Sun series: Dark Dawn.
The DS', and let's face it the Wii's, problems lie in the games - the majority of which are unfortunately slap-dash jobs put together by third party companies out to make a quick-buck. Now before the rage sets in and forces you to write some obscene comment below I am not saying all Nintendo games are like this, there are exceptions: notably anything Nintendo produces itself such as Zelda, Metroid, Mario and the focus of my review today the new chapter in Golden Sun series: Dark Dawn.
Now I came late to the joys of the original games, stumbling
upon the first at an airport shop before a family holiday. Needless to say I
was stunned by the game and spent the whole two weeks frantically glued to my game
boy burning through triple A batteries as I followed the enjoyable tale of Isaac,
Garet, Ivan and Mia.
On completion, I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't played these gems, lets just say I spent ages roaming Spanish game shops trying to find a copy of Golden Sun 2. Once played these games are never forgotten, holding a special place of honour on my gaming shelf and travel with me where ever I go, just in case I get the urge to play them again. When the DS was released I thought it would only be a matter of time before a third instalment materialised but unfortunately I would have to wait until 2010 to get my wish.
Tragically, much like the first two games, Dark Dawn was released quietly, with little fuss and next to no advertising (it's probably sitting in the bargain bin of your local game store, hiding like long forgotten treasure). But does Dark Dawn live up to its ancestry and will it be joining its parents on my gaming shelf, well let's see...
On completion, I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't played these gems, lets just say I spent ages roaming Spanish game shops trying to find a copy of Golden Sun 2. Once played these games are never forgotten, holding a special place of honour on my gaming shelf and travel with me where ever I go, just in case I get the urge to play them again. When the DS was released I thought it would only be a matter of time before a third instalment materialised but unfortunately I would have to wait until 2010 to get my wish.
Tragically, much like the first two games, Dark Dawn was released quietly, with little fuss and next to no advertising (it's probably sitting in the bargain bin of your local game store, hiding like long forgotten treasure). But does Dark Dawn live up to its ancestry and will it be joining its parents on my gaming shelf, well let's see...
Dark Dawn is set 30 years after the climactic end of Golden Sun 2 (SPOILER ALERT) with our heroes setting off the fabled golden sun
event and saving the world. However, the release of alchemy has had a number of
rather negative side effects: Firstly, the continents have all shifted and
collided creating new countries and empires who are currently at war with each other for control. At the centre of this is the area that was once Vale and Sol Sanctum, or what remains of it, and Vale's fabled warriors (our original heroes) Isaac and Garet maintain their vigil at the edge of the crater as the rest of the world tries to rebuild and recover from the Golden Sun event.
The heroes we find now have a way of entering the Sanctum, thanks to Ivan's invention the Soarwing, and are about to do so when disaster strikes in the form of Garet's unruly and hot tempered son Tyrell who attempts to fly the device. Cue the opening tutorial on how to play the game as Isaac sends his son, Matthew, and Ivan's daughter, Karis, to save their friend.
Whilst this is necessary to learn the mechanics of the game and does have some useful and awesome dialogue scenes, it feels very lengthy for a tutorial. I often found that most of the chatter between the characters is neither helpful to the story or instructive and just plain bored me. However, once completed and Tyrell saved we are all sent packing to meet an old friend and find a rare part to repair the Soarwing.
The heroes we find now have a way of entering the Sanctum, thanks to Ivan's invention the Soarwing, and are about to do so when disaster strikes in the form of Garet's unruly and hot tempered son Tyrell who attempts to fly the device. Cue the opening tutorial on how to play the game as Isaac sends his son, Matthew, and Ivan's daughter, Karis, to save their friend.
Whilst this is necessary to learn the mechanics of the game and does have some useful and awesome dialogue scenes, it feels very lengthy for a tutorial. I often found that most of the chatter between the characters is neither helpful to the story or instructive and just plain bored me. However, once completed and Tyrell saved we are all sent packing to meet an old friend and find a rare part to repair the Soarwing.
As we continue to explore the world around Vale you begin to
get drawn into a quest much bigger than just recovering a rare part, but one
which may even be bigger than the journey undertaken by the original heroes of
vale. I won't go into too much detail as I really don't want to spoil any of
the excitement for you, as one of the true selling points of this game is it's in-depth
and intriguing story, and trust me Dark Dawn does not disappoint.
As you play through the game you begin to develop real favourites amongst your team as the games hints, subtle dialogue and plot twists really draw you into the golden sun world, making you want to continue on just to find the next item or get to the next town to discover that next secret.
Fans of the previous games will also be pleased to hear that you visit some familiar places in your travels in Dark Dawn, as well as new ones and encounter some old friends.
Now hand in hand with an intriguing story is the use of complex puzzles and riddles that exist in the golden sun games and Dark Dawn is no exception. In the original these puzzles where often challenging and sometimes downright diabolical to figure out, especially the ones needed to capture all the Djinn (those really used to frustrate me!). Dark Dawn did initially disappoint as the opening few puzzles where ridiculously easy but like my childhood swimming lessons, (there's a puddle, now go jump in the sea) you are quickly catapulted to some highly complex and inventive challenges that require some real thought and skill.
As you play through the game you begin to develop real favourites amongst your team as the games hints, subtle dialogue and plot twists really draw you into the golden sun world, making you want to continue on just to find the next item or get to the next town to discover that next secret.
Fans of the previous games will also be pleased to hear that you visit some familiar places in your travels in Dark Dawn, as well as new ones and encounter some old friends.
Now hand in hand with an intriguing story is the use of complex puzzles and riddles that exist in the golden sun games and Dark Dawn is no exception. In the original these puzzles where often challenging and sometimes downright diabolical to figure out, especially the ones needed to capture all the Djinn (those really used to frustrate me!). Dark Dawn did initially disappoint as the opening few puzzles where ridiculously easy but like my childhood swimming lessons, (there's a puddle, now go jump in the sea) you are quickly catapulted to some highly complex and inventive challenges that require some real thought and skill.
 |
| Those three guards have no idea the hell that's about to rain on them ... Muhahahahahahaha |
The game play is nothing new to veterans of most RPG games and follows the same turn based system used in the previous games, which is no
complaint. This system is a classic and hasn't been changed for a reason, it
works (a lesson I feel some other games could learn from).
The mix of random battles, puzzles, exploration and narrative helps keep the game alive for the player, it never feels boring or repetitive. True, there may be times when a random monster encounter ruins your train of thought whilst solving a puzzle, but then again it just might be the break you need to spot the solution (failing that you can always unleash a 4 Djinn summon on them and make them pay for their error!).
There have been some minor improvements made however from the last two games that really make a difference: Firstly the addition of a player interactive element to the dialogue allows you to further become immersed into the story, however it does little to effect the outcome of a conversation with the other characters in the dialogue. Secondly, a big improvement is that if you target an enemy with a single hit attack, and that enemy dies before your attack your character will switch to a new enemy meaning that no longer will you be plagued by having characters forcibly defend, whom could have attacked another enemy, just because your lead man got a critical hit and killed him first.
Graphically the game is what you'd expect from a game released on a handheld console first released in 2004; the landscapes are colourful, entertaining and do the job of portraying the world quite accurately, he close quarters fights and the cut scenes are skilfully done and very good quality considering the age of the console.
Its only flaw is the cliff hanger that leaves you wanting more!
The mix of random battles, puzzles, exploration and narrative helps keep the game alive for the player, it never feels boring or repetitive. True, there may be times when a random monster encounter ruins your train of thought whilst solving a puzzle, but then again it just might be the break you need to spot the solution (failing that you can always unleash a 4 Djinn summon on them and make them pay for their error!).
There have been some minor improvements made however from the last two games that really make a difference: Firstly the addition of a player interactive element to the dialogue allows you to further become immersed into the story, however it does little to effect the outcome of a conversation with the other characters in the dialogue. Secondly, a big improvement is that if you target an enemy with a single hit attack, and that enemy dies before your attack your character will switch to a new enemy meaning that no longer will you be plagued by having characters forcibly defend, whom could have attacked another enemy, just because your lead man got a critical hit and killed him first.
Graphically the game is what you'd expect from a game released on a handheld console first released in 2004; the landscapes are colourful, entertaining and do the job of portraying the world quite accurately, he close quarters fights and the cut scenes are skilfully done and very good quality considering the age of the console.
Its only flaw is the cliff hanger that leaves you wanting more!
Overall this is an excellent game and well worth the £14 (yes £14, as I said check your bargain bin at your local store) I paid for it
and is well deserving of the 9/10.
Here to tantalise your imaginations are the words of Hiroyuki Takahashi "the first two games are prologues of this series. From this game on, it's the main story",... personally I cannot wait for the next one,...
Here to tantalise your imaginations are the words of Hiroyuki Takahashi "the first two games are prologues of this series. From this game on, it's the main story",... personally I cannot wait for the next one,...
Infinity Feed Score 9/10
No comments:
Post a Comment