Shining Force Exa (2007/ps2)
All in all, Shining Force EXA is a solid game that doesn't quite compare to its predecessor. The core of the two games remains relatively the same (focusing almost solely on the aesthetics of countless other hack-and-slash dungeon crawlers), but the inclusion of a second playable character (who's forced upon the gamer) and a Suikoden-esque series of castle defense battles brings things down a notch. Add in a slightly lower challenge level and it falls just a bit short of Neo. Despite this weakness, it's an entertaining and lengthy adventure whose charm overcomes most of its flaws. If nothing else, these new iterations of Shining Force prove that Sega can eventually take franchises in radically different directions and still make compelling games—but I still wish they'd give us another Shining Force strategy RPG. Given the Shining Force series’ recent track record, I was fully prepared to hate on some generic anime-infused hack n’ slash garbage for this review. Imagine my surprise when I started having some genuine fun with it.
Shining Force Exa 2007 Ps2 Review
The basic combat is entertaining though the enemies are dumb as posts, and the scenarios you find yourself in showcase some creativity now and then. The two main characters even play totally differently! Even so, these good elements aren’t anything more than what we should expect out of a modern action/RPG.
Nothing stands out here to make this a must-play title in any sense of the word. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying some average-quality anime-infused hack n’ slash, though. I'm a pretty pathetic guy, truth be told. I enjoy games pretty much regardless of how terrible they are, and I did enjoy Shining Force EXA. But I'm not writing this for me, I'm writing it for you, and that means it's time to deliver the hard truth.
Shining Force EXA is not worth your money. It may be worth renting, as I managed to beat it in a week, but I'm sure you can find better. While not the worst game I've played, the combination of a dumb story, repetetive gameplay, and those damn in-battle voice clips made me have to relegate it to the scrap pile. On a positive note, if you didn't get enough button mashing during the game, there is an optional dungeon after you beat it that requires you to button mash some more. Y'know, cuz that's cool and all. The bottom line is this: Shining Force EXA and Shining Force Neo are twin games.
Their storylines may differ, and there are a few new features in EXA, but they resemble each other far too closely. Developer Neverland clearly took the easy way out to churn out a sequel quickly and earn themselves a few extra bucks without putting in enough effort. Although the game plays just as well as SF Neo (and so it should), you can still get the same experience out of both games, plus SF Neo doesn't have irritating defensive battles to jar the experience. This game also lacks a certain charm that the original had.
If I had to recommend one over the other, Neo would get my vote. EXA is not a bad game, but it just didn't appeal to me like the other one did. But, to each his own, I guess. Whichever you choose, you will get a decent game. Ultimately, EXA's failings stem from well-intentioned but poorly executed attempts at mixing things up. Once the illusion of customization falls through, the game presents a shallow battle system that offers little more than frequent taps of X and a few presses of Triangle for special attacks. Nor does the repetitive action change between either of the two playable characters, though their distinct approaches towards combat may upset some as the game forces players to switch between the two.
Add in the problems of a fixed camera, no co-op multiplayer, plus some annoying voice samples, and Shining Force EXA falls short of its potential. Despite all its negatives, Shining Force EXA isn't a bad game. It's got all the ingredients for a successful hack-and-slash, but falls short in enough areas to discredit itself to all but hardcore fans of the genre. If you're looking for Sega to come out with another true Shining Force game, you'd be better off not looking here; much like NEO before it, the title has neither the spirit nor the enjoyability of the original series. The game as a whole seems more like an expansion of NEO because there's very little new here, and if you didn't like NEO, you probably won't like EXA. If you can find it on the cheap or as a rental, go ahead and give it a try, but be wary of putting down a full $40-$50 on it, as it's certainly not worth a price tag that size.
While I have some qualms about EXA, I do think that it offers a solid role-playing game experience. It's certainly better than Shining Tears, but it is by no means as good as those classic Shining titles. It's all well and good that Sega wants to create real-time entries in this series but fans and it's profit margins would be better served with a return to the series' original trademark gameplay. At the end of the day I feel comfortable recommending EXA to fans of the series all the way back to the heyday of the Sega Genesis, as long as fans keep in mind the few caveats I’ve mentioned above. It is certainly very playable, offers some fun moments and will keep action RPG fans busy for countless hours. For those cautious folk among the masses out there I recommend a rental first. Shining Force EXA promises nothing short of a sequel, of sorts, to Neo.
In that regard, it succeeds on a level that makes it a must buy. The fact that the advancements in the game are so miniscule that you don't even really notice them harms the game on a level that would prevent a fan of the series to rush out and buy it. That said, if you are looking for a title to give the RPG fix, without the necessity of strategizing every turn you make, this is the title for you. Sega has had rough roads to travel on as of late, and it doesn't appear that they are interested paving a smooth road for any of us to travel on with this title. In the end, we've gotten another mediocre title that has the Shining slapped on it and packaged for sale. Bearing no likeness to the past masters, the series remains blissfully ensnared in a vile web of putridness that keeps it from being anything other than mediocre.
Shining Force Ps2
It has it's moments and you'll certainly enjoy some of the hack and slash elements, but there is nothing here that you haven't seen or played before and that's a shame when it comes down to it. Seriously, Shining either needs to return to the roots from whence it came or simply be taken out back behind the shed and taken out. If you're in the market for some mindless hack and slash (a short adventure, I might add), this is a great game to get. However, I can easily say that most people, especially fans waiting from that special Shining installment, will avoid it like the plague. If one word were used to describe Shining Force EXA, it would be mediocre.
Excluding fans of the Shining Force series, this game cannot be wholeheartedly recommended. Although EXA has some of the elements that one would want in a role-playing game, it never fully takes advantage of any of them. With such a well-established gaming pedigree, it's a shame that the Shining Force series has gone so far downhill in recent years. Hopefully, in the future, the developers will get things back on track. But, until then, you best stay away from Shining Force EXA. There are a lot of things wrong with this game. There is hardly any strategy at all, the battles often consist of mindlessly hitting the X button over and over, and the various quests do seem to feel the same after a while.
If the game was limited to those flaws, it wouldn’t be too bad. Unfortunately the PS2’s engine isn’t powerful enough to properly run this game so it bogs down significantly during battles with many opponents. This occurs frequently and it ruins the rhythm and feel of the combat system. Even so, for a role playing fan like myself I had fun playing through this adventure. It’s just too bad that there was nearly as much irritation and excitement. This would make a good rental.
There are two issues with this, however. The first is the huge amount of slowdown that plagues the game because of the large numbers of monsters that crop up onscreen during many battles. It's impressive that the game can display up to 30 or more enemies on screen at the same time, tracking each one's special attacks, fallen status and possible loot released upon death. The flip side to this is that the game will often chug through these sequences until enough monsters have been killed to bring the frame rate back up to normal. The other problem is that the game doesn't always understand the string of button presses that you throw at it, so pulling off charge attacks or special attacks in the midst of battle can be hit or miss. In fact, some weapons will disregard that you've completed a combo, and will only recognize a special attack if you trigger the move in the middle of an animation swing. Issues like this can definitely hamper play.
That doesn't really help when you consider that combat plays a huge role within the game, whether you're taking on monsters in the field, entering an ancient arena or testing your skills in Prisons of Rock or Paths of Carnage, bonus areas that provide additional treasure and experience. In fact, you'll often need to switch characters during quests just to ensure that Toma and Cyrille gain enough experience to be useful.
Otherwise, the character that isn't being used will accumulate levels at a much slower rate and become fodder for any monsters around. Since the difficulty level in the field quickly ramps up, this can lead to tons of frustrating restarts. This is especially true when you realize that the Geo-Fortress will get attacked randomly, and the character remaining in the castle is the only one that can defend against the waves of monsters attempting to destroy your keep.
If your defender is weak, your castle will fall and the game will end. This is my boom spell.Just be careful of the slowdown.
At least players will have the ability to train in the Geo-Fortress' internal training ground, which provides a little way for under-skilled characters to strengthen their stats and skills, giving them a better chance to survive quests and defensive battles. In fact, as the game progresses, you'll acquire various types of metal, which can be used to upgrade and strengthen the various features of the fortress. Players can boost features such as the power of the fortress' cannons or the number of robots servicing the keep overall, defending it during invasion attempts.
Since there's a limited amount of metal to be found overall, there's a lot more strategy involved in choosing which sections of the castle you want to improve and which ones can go by the wayside. This is especially true when you realize that there are some aspects of Fortress improvement that are helpful to your combat situation. For example, by strengthening your radar, you can detect items, monsters and other information that you can use in the field to help you defeat enemies. The Geo-Fortress is also where you'll buy, sell and upgrade your weapons, thanks to the various merchants that you'll collect along the way.
Shining Force Exa 2007 Ps2 Emulator
Additionally, this is where you'll improve your character's various Power and Secret Arts. Finally, as you activate more functions of the castle, you'll have the ability to turn it into different kinds of structures, with offensive, defensive and reconnaissance configurations. However, there is a caveat to the overall Geo-Fortress system, which is that its reliance on metal can sometimes take so long that you aren't gaining the upgrades that you need or desire, which can trickle down to the rest of the gameplay. For example, one benchmark that I noticed was after six chapters and over forty hours of play, I still hadn't found what I needed to unlock some of the stations of the Geo-Fortress.
While that definitely speaks to the length of play, it also is a bit dissuading to know that you can sink that much time and effort into the title and not really get anywhere. With so many monsters, it's time to play, 'Where's Toma?'
Visually, Shining Force EXA is eye-catching, with an anime-inspired look that feels somewhat reminiscent of Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter with its colorful, almost cel-shaded mix of monsters, characters and environments. There's a nice mix of creatures that you'll face off against also, ranging from giant spiders to flying beasts and golems made out of ice, so you should be kept somewhat on your toes as you hack your way through the numerous monsters in the game. Camera work is surprisingly good and tracks onscreen action quite well, with the exception of the slowdown that I previously mentioned. Plus, the interspersed cutscenes are quite nice, and add to the overall development of certain plot points.
Unfortunately, the sound work could use a lot of help. With light exploring themes and tame, but pulsing combat beats in the background, the music isn't so bad. Nor are some of the sound effects.
The voice acting, however, is HORRIBLE. Just about ever single spoken line will make you wince. 7 Presentation A large number of menu screens, skill upgrade pages and shop windows are bland, but easy to navigate, although you wish there was more to match the colorful game world. 7 Graphics Apart from the frame rate issues that constantly crop up in battle, this is a vibrant title with lots of eye-catching character models and monsters.
6 Sound The music and sound effects are good. The voice acting, on the other hand, is painful. 7 Gameplay Combat is the major Achilles heel with the game, with limited strategy, hampered special attacks and a high level of difficulty for many battles. 7 Lasting Appeal The game is quite long, easily lasting more than 50 hours of play and providing some aspects of base strategy. However, you may not feel like you've gotten anywhere after that much time investment.