Skies of Arcadia: Legends

[Ninjaa]

As some of you may know, the game is coming out for GameCube in a couple of days. Sega Overworks just gave some commentary on how they improved the game for the GameCube release, and I thought you SoA veterans might like to read it. Also, there's some hinting at a sequel. I would have bought this game anyway, but with a sequel promised if the game sells well, I assure you I am buying this game with my next living allowance cheque, which is due in early February. I will not play or rent it until such time. I am entirely trusting reviewers, and the people of this board. I expect to play the first AAA RPG on a Nintendo system since Mario RPG all those long years ago. (I never found time to play Paper Mario... or had the opportunity.)

In a recent conference call to inform the media about its upcoming GameCube RPG, Skies of Arcadia Legends, Sega offered a summary of the game's concept and improvements since the original Dreamcast version, then answered questions about specific aspects of the game. The game’s producer at Sega of America, Rich Briggs, began by explaining the game’s story, which is mostly unchanged from the original Dreamcast version.

Skies of Arcadia Legends takes place in the Arcadia, a land of floating continents in which people travel on airships. The region of Valua is ruled by an evil queen, and to counteract her crimes, there is a gang of kind-hearted pirates called the Blue Rogues. Led by a man named Dyne, the Blue Rogues take from the rich and give to the poor, just like Robin Hood. Dyne’s son, Vyse, is the game’s main character. Vyse and Aika, his friend since childhood, discover a mysterious young princess named Fina. The three embark on a journey to rid the land of the evil Valuan Empire and discover the secrets of Fina’s past.

Vyse is an unusual main character for an RPG in that he is very positive and adventurous. Throughout the game, a “swashbuckling meter” keeps track of your valor both in and out of battle. Keeping the meter high will affect how people react to your presence. The main objective of Vyse’s quest is to obtain and protect the six Moonstones, which the empire is trying to use to control an ancient evil called the Gigas. The characters explore this vast world with their very own airship and the help of a magical treasure map.

The GameCube version of this critically-acclaimed Dreamcast RPG is basically a “Director’s Cut”, a more complete game incorporating many elements that developer Overworks was not able to include the first time. The graphic improvements are focused on the main characters, who have all been packed with significantly more polygons than before. For instance, they have individual fingers now, and Aika has been given a more “curvaceous” figure. The characters’ faces have also been given more detail.

In response to feedback from gamers who bought the Dreamcast version, Overworks has tweaked the battle system quite a bit. There are now fewer random encounters, and each one awards more experience points than before. Within the battles, the pacing has been bumped up, and both heroes and enemies have better movement routes, so that they no longer get stuck in corners or approach in circular paths. Overall, battles are faster, smoother, and less annoying than before.

There are no new playable characters; however, there is a new female bounty hunter, named Piastol, who is hunting down Vyse and his friends. Players will have the opportunity to confront her at several points in the game, and the encounters are optional for the most part. The reward for defeating Piastol is new background information on Vyse, such as how he received the scar on his face.

Moonfish are another new element. These magical items are scattered all over the game’s world, and when you find enough of them, you can give them to a sick child to nurse her back to health. In turn, the child’s doctor will give you vital story information about the game’s final boss.

There are also new discoveries – local rumors and legends that you can prove or disprove through exploration. As you make these discoveries, the information you uncover becomes part of the local dialogue. Finally, there are eight new gangs of evil pirates, each with a successively larger bounty on its head. These “wanted battles” are totally optional and quite challenging, but victory will result in huge cash rewards.

Most of the new content is clearly designed for hardcore fans of the original game. Sega says that while the game’s overall difficulty level has not really changed (other than battles being less frustrating), some of the new bits, especially the wanted battles, are quite difficult.

GameCube was chosen as the target platform for two reasons. First, Nintendo systems have had few RPGs in recent years, so there is little competition for Skies of Arcadia Legends. Second, Sega thinks the game’s positive, swashbuckling attitude will appeal strongly to the system’s slightly younger demographic as well as older players. Although the conversion took a year to complete, it was not a difficult process; Overworks simply wanted to take their time and do a clean job of it, rather than ship it off to an outside developer for a quick and dirty port. The game features Dolby Pro Logic II support, but not progressive scan. The Dreamcast version’s VMU mini-game was not carried over to GameCube, mainly because there wasn’t a good way to insert it into the game itself without it seeming out of place. However, all of the content originally downloadable via the Dreamcast’s modem has been inserted into the GameCube version as secret material. For instance, the characters’ ultimate weapons are now obtained by defeating certain bosses or accomplishing other tasks.

Finally, when asked if there will be a true sequel to Skies of Arcadia, Sega couldn’t confirm anything. They did say that both they and Overworks would like to make a sequel, but it really depends on how Legends sells on GameCube. So, you hardcore fans who want a sequel go out in droves and buy Skies of Arcadia Legends when it comes out in North America on January 28.

PS: I might mention that as usual, Sega is totally misinformed about Nintendo's primary audience. Please pay no attention to that paragraph.

---

Last edited by Ninja; January 26th, 2003 at 04:22..

[Syed Fawad]

Hmmm, I may be playing the original Skies of Arcadia on DC. Ninja, if you have plans to get this game then don't forget to post a review. I know I will post a DC review sometime after MAY.

__________________

Asus K8N (nForce3)
AMD64 3000+ (754)
768MB DDR 400MHz (PC 3200)
nVidia Geforce 6600GT 128MB (AGP)

Aquamark3 - 53,000

"Good friends mustn't always be together. It is the feeling of oneness when distant that proves a lasting friendship"

[Ninjaa]

I WILL get this game. It's as sure as the fact that I WILL be getting Zelda. I can't afford it right now, and still make rent, but I will not eat until I get the game.

From what I hear, the decreased number of random battles will be a HUGE improvement to the game. I will post a review once I finish the game. Don't expect that until mid February though.

Bah. I always wanted to play this game on the dreamcast but never got the opurtunity. Hopefully in a few months. If it's really good I'll get me a gamecube for this game. But I am spent out lately on cash.

[Ninjaa]

EGM gave it the Game of the Month award, but EGM is composed of retards. Still, I gather they don't like Nintendo too much, so it's got to mean something.

[Syed Fawad]

SoA is DEFINETLY a DC gem. SoA on GC earns the game of the month award for January?

Was there any competition?

__________________

Asus K8N (nForce3)
AMD64 3000+ (754)
768MB DDR 400MHz (PC 3200)
nVidia Geforce 6600GT 128MB (AGP)

Aquamark3 - 53,000

"Good friends mustn't always be together. It is the feeling of oneness when distant that proves a lasting friendship"

[Ninjaa]

Not on GameCube. I'm sure there was something or other on PS2 or Xbox though. Nice new avatar btw.

[Syed Fawad]

Originally posted by Ninja
Not on GameCube. I'm sure there was something or other on PS2 or Xbox though. Nice new avatar btw.

I ain't sure about any PS2 biggie as well.

As for the avatar, I need to adjust the outline a bit.

__________________

Asus K8N (nForce3)
AMD64 3000+ (754)
768MB DDR 400MHz (PC 3200)
nVidia Geforce 6600GT 128MB (AGP)

Aquamark3 - 53,000

"Good friends mustn't always be together. It is the feeling of oneness when distant that proves a lasting friendship"

[Ninjaa]

They gave it a pretty freaking high score at any rate.

[Nameless]

Yet another reason to add to my list of "why should I get a Game Cube?"

__________________
--To every problem, there is a solution (other than death, of course ). So, just smile!!.....okay that's a load of crap but you already know that. 3 years and still fighting!!

Systems:
- Modified Mac Mini: 2GHz Core Duo, 2GB RAM, 100GB 7200RPM HD, Dual-Boot Mac & XP
- HP Tablet PC TC1100: 1.1GHz Centrino, 1GB RAM, 60GB 7200RPM HD, Vista Ultimate

[Syed Fawad]

What happened to your "getting an xbox" plans?

__________________

Asus K8N (nForce3)
AMD64 3000+ (754)
768MB DDR 400MHz (PC 3200)
nVidia Geforce 6600GT 128MB (AGP)

Aquamark3 - 53,000

"Good friends mustn't always be together. It is the feeling of oneness when distant that proves a lasting friendship"

[Nameless]

Didn't I tell at the end of the thread that I only did that thread to see WHY people hate the Xbox other than it being from Microsoft??! Besides, that was "Why NOT to get an Xbox?" question

__________________
--To every problem, there is a solution (other than death, of course ). So, just smile!!.....okay that's a load of crap but you already know that. 3 years and still fighting!!

Systems:
- Modified Mac Mini: 2GHz Core Duo, 2GB RAM, 100GB 7200RPM HD, Dual-Boot Mac & XP
- HP Tablet PC TC1100: 1.1GHz Centrino, 1GB RAM, 60GB 7200RPM HD, Vista Ultimate

[REi_FoX]

or maybe why not have a PC port....

__________________
FoR PiNoYs WhO WanTs To BuY CheAp ParTs CliCk Here also Here

Processor - Intel Quad 2 Quad q6600 G0 Stepping [Stock Settings]
Memory - 2GB Team Elite 800mhz
Graphics Card - Palit Daytone Geforce 8800 GT 512 MB
Mobo - Abit IP-35-E
OS - Dual Boot Windows XP Professional SP3 and Ubuntu Linux
Pad - PS1 and PS2 > USB Adapter
3DMark05 Score - 35082

[Dark Watcher]

First off we must say the SOA DC is indeed a gem...storyline, battles, etc..all refreshing.....the only gripe we have to agree with is the constant enemy encounters...it wouldn't be so bad if there was a variety of enemies...but in most cases it is the same enemies common in that given area....most are pallette swapped....

We haven't completed the DC version yet (almost)..but it makes us wonder if the GC version does in fact warrent a new purchase...we will have to rent and judge first...but if this is your first "Go" at SOA...then definately go for it..

__________________

[Kaiser Sigma]

For the pics and a video I have seen the graphics have been improved a bit (not that much, as the game itself doesn't need much of a graphic enhancement). The awful quantity of encounters is the only flag of that fantastic RPG.
IMO SoA is one of the best RPGs that I've played, it has some things that made me say "wow, this is epic"... however I hope the game turns out to be a great seller on GC as I look forward to its sequel...

[Nameless]

Originally posted by rei_fox
or maybe why not have a PC port....

Too bad that's too much to hope for nowadays

And Dark Watcher, I think the enemy encounter rate will be reduced in this version

__________________
--To every problem, there is a solution (other than death, of course ). So, just smile!!.....okay that's a load of crap but you already know that. 3 years and still fighting!!

Systems:
- Modified Mac Mini: 2GHz Core Duo, 2GB RAM, 100GB 7200RPM HD, Dual-Boot Mac & XP
- HP Tablet PC TC1100: 1.1GHz Centrino, 1GB RAM, 60GB 7200RPM HD, Vista Ultimate

[Kaiser Sigma]

I just hope that they also take out of the game the annoying "voices" of the characters... man Aika's laugh still haunts me on my nightmares...

[Sanhime]

The article mention to amount of encounters/battles. I thought they were just fine. Did anyone here fine the battle annoying? I'm sure evey RPG have some annoying aspect when it comes to battles/gameplay.

[Dark Watcher]

The encounter rate was awful as already mentioned...and facing the same enemy over and over grows tiresome...at least in some RPG's with similar problems you will get an occasional different enemy...In SOA DC it appears to be the same enemies, but the amount of them changes...If we saw another pallette swapped "Loopy" we are gonna flip!

ah yes...Aika's laugh was annoying...and the after battle phrases grew tiresome after a while also...

another gripe...if they are gonna make so much use of pole climbing..could they speed it up somewhat!

Other then that..phenomenal game....a must have...

__________________

[Kane]

That was one of my major complaints with Star Ocean 2. There were far too many random battles, even with the encounter rate low.

__________________

>Site Live<
Pop over to my site for help with setting up PSX emulators.
Help for the Final Fantasies and other RPGs avalaible
Celes: (Desktop) Athlon 64 X2 4200+, 2Gb 400MHz DDR Ram, MSI K8N Platinum, GeForce 8800 GTS 320Mb, 500Gb RAID HDD, Vista Business
Erika: (MCPC) Athlon XP 2400+, 1Gb 400MHz DDR Ram, geForce 6800 256Mb, 80Gb Hdd, XP 2005 MCE
Kimiko: (Desktop 2) Athlon 64 3000+, 512Mb 400MHz DDR Ram, Asus K8V, geForce 6800 128Mb