Skies of Arcadia: Legends (GameCube)

...I can tell you that Skies Of Arcadia Legends is one of these games. Originally released on the SEGA Dreamcast as Skies Of Arcadia (or Eternal Arcadia in Japan) the game follows the story of a young Air Pirate named Vyse and his friends Aika (a fellow Air Pirate and Vyse's childhood friend) and Fina (a mysterious and shy girl who is rescued by Vyse and Aika at the beginning of the game) in the land of Arcadia, a world of floating islands amidst the ...
...not overly essential, aspect of Skies Of Arcadia. Throughout your quest you may sometimes see the compass rotating wildly whilst scouring the world map. This means that there's a secret discovery nearby, and finding it will award you gold and reputation. Some of these discoveries open up some new content, flying around the world for example advances the storyline, but for the most part you'll be racing against Domingo, a treasure hunter who if he ... more

Every so often a game comes along that simply blows you away. One that once you start playing it absorbs your very being and won't let you go until it leaves you shedding a quiet tear staring at the end credits many hours of playing later. It is these moments that for some of us make gaming so much more than a mere hobby. With such a strong emotional attatchment, these games become a sort of love affair and will hold a special place in our hearts for years to come.

It is with great pleasure, then, that I can tell you that Skies Of Arcadia Legends is one of these games. Originally released on the SEGA Dreamcast as Skies Of Arcadia (or Eternal Arcadia in Japan) the game follows the story of a young Air Pirate named Vyse and his friends Aika (a fellow Air Pirate and Vyse's childhood friend) and Fina (a mysterious and shy girl who is rescued by Vyse and Aika at the beginning of the game) in the land of Arcadia, a world of floating islands amidst the expansive sky. Whilst it's certainly not an original concept and it clings to almost every cliché in RPG (Role-Playing Game) history, Overworks have done a fantastic job of bringing life to the world, with varied islands and areas to explore and literally tonnes to do. So... where do I begin?

I guess I should start with the storyline itself, which is a crucial aspect of all games of the genre since an RPG is essentially an interactive storybook where you guide the characters through each chapter. As I've previously mentioned, Vyse and Aika are Air Pirates. But unlike the Black Pirates who rob and plunder anyone they come across, our protagonists are Blue Rogues who will only ever attack vessels larger than their own, usually belonging to the Valuan Empire who are attempting to unite the world under one rule: theirs. Vyse is the son of the captain of the Blue Rogues, and is hugely optimistic and upbeat, whilst always holding onto the values of equality and justice. Aika, on the other hand, was orphaned at a young age and was raised by Vyse's family. She has a very fiery personality at times, but is a fiercely loyal friend and sticks by Vyse through thick and thin. On a regular raid on a Valuan ship the young air pirates discover Fina, who has been kidnapped by the Imperial Armada and is being taken back to Valua for interrogation. She is a Silvite, a survivor of the next to extinct Silver Civilisation, but her shyness masks her resolve to complete the secret mission that she has been sent to carry out. See what I mean about cliché? But it really doesn't matter, the story is solid and features a large cast of secondary characters, some of whom are controllable and some which are only there for story purposes. And the story itself is one of the games main highlights. After rescuing Fina from the Valuan's, the Imperial Armada exact their revenge on the Blue Rogue's island base, sacking the place completely and taking all the inhabitants for execution. Vyse and Aika, who were away during the time of the attack, head off to rescue their friends and family it is from here that the game begins proper. What starts as a simple rescue mission becomes an intense struggle not only for survival, but ultimately to save the world from a devestating war that threatens all life. Whilst the game features very little voice acting, the text-based dialogue does a good job of telling the story as it unfolds, even if it is a little cheesy at times. Throughout the game you will control Vyse and Aika, and for the most part Fina too, each playing a different roll in the usual turn-based battle style. Vyse is the main damage dealer using his swords to dish out copious amounts of pain to his enemies, Aika can use magic to crispy-fry her opponents and give buffs to party members, and Fina is generally used for healing... although her pet Cupil can be used to dish out some physical attacks too. You can also control a fourth character for much of the game, and this character changes depending on how far into the story you are. Drachma is the first of these characters you will meet, a salty ex-fisherman with a vendetta against Rhaknam, a giant whale that took his right arm (which he has replaced with a mechanical one), his eye and his son. Then there's Gilder, who is an older Blue Rogue in search of the good life... and women. Laid-back and carrying twin pistols, Gilder is certainly a valuable asset to the team when he's available. Lastly there's Enrique, the son of Emporess Teodora, ruler of the Valuan Empire. He disagrees with his mother's imperialist policies and runs away to help the Blue Rogues after they escape from Valua. Each of these characters can only be played at specific times, although later in the game the player can choose which one is used which allows for a little personality in the way the game is played. Not much, but a little. It's a shame that the game forces you down a very linear path, with possibilities for exploration extremely limited especially during the opening few hours of the game, although due to the nature of the game and the quality of the journey it takes you on this slight flaw can be overlooked.

The battles themselves are your typical turn-based affair, but with a slight twist. Whilst each party member can choose to attack, defend, use an item or what not, they also share a Spirit Bar which adds up over time, or when a character uses the Focus ability. This bar is vital to using special attacks, as instead of each player having their own mana pool they use points straight from the Spirit Bar at a cost of 1 MP. This can often mean careful planning of your moves, as going all out with a huge attacking move like Vyse's Cutlas Fury or Pirates Wrath can then leave your healers with no points with which to cast spells. The special attacks, however, are simply brilliant with a suitably epic cut-scene for each one. It's very Japanese, almost anime-esque, but hell if they don't look cool. They may get repetetive throughout the course of the game (each main character has five special moves to learn, whilst secondary characters only have three) but mercifully they are skippable should you want to speed through the battle as quickly as possible. Overall the battle system is solid, balanced and simple to learn... everything you should expect from a typical RPG.

The only possible downside to the random encounters is the sheer number of them. This was especially a problem in the original Dreamcast version, and whilst the number of chance encounters has been dropped in the GameCube version and the amount of experience rewarded slightly buffed, it can still get a little frustrating stopping every few seconds for a fight that you know you can easily win... especially when you're trying to traverse the expansive world map. That being said, you'll still find yourself plowing onward to advance the storyline and find out what happens next. And thanks to some sublimely directed cut-scenes and well written dialogue, it is always a joy to do so.

Alongside the normal fights where you control the characters themselves there are the less-common but no less brilliant ship battles. Typically a ship battle is for a bounty, but they also crop up in the main story as boss fights against enemy vessels or the giant Gigas, humungous organic weapons capable of destruction on a massive scale. Whilst still turn-based, these fights play out a little differently. Your ship, which you will be using to traverse the world map for the most part, can be upgraded with different weapons as your adventure progresses. Before each turn each of your characters selects a move, which can be either to fire one of the ships main weapons, imbue an attack with magic, focus to increase your spirit bar, or use an item to repair damage to the ship. Unlike in the normal battles, you select the order that these moves take place rather than leaving it to a "speed" attribute. The character you use plays a big part in whether or not the attack will hit, and also how much damage will be done. For example, using Vyse for manning the main gun will do more damage than Fina would dish out, but if Fina is out of MP you might need to designate a new healer whilst Fina deals some direct damage. It adds a slightly different flavour to the fights and in my opinion is all the better for it. True they can drag on for a while, especially in some of the boss battles, but they're still fun and there's nothing more satisfying than watching an enemy ship catch fire and dip beneath the clouds billowing smoke as you fly away practically unscathed.

The world map itself is extremely varied, which is surprising considering the seeming lack of possibilities that could so easily have arisen since you are basically flying around open sky. There are many different lands to visit, each falling under a different moon and sharing that moon's characteristics. The red moon, for example, is home of the city of Nasr, a very middle-eastern themed city surrounded by desert, whilst the green moon houses Ixa'Taka, a lush jungle area with a definite Amazonian feel. Again, it may seem awfully familiar to RPG fanatics out there but even so the game's variety of locales is infinitely preferable to hundreds of identikit islands just floating there waiting to be discovered.

Speaking of discoveries, this is an interesting, if not overly essential, aspect of Skies Of Arcadia. Throughout your quest you may sometimes see the compass rotating wildly whilst scouring the world map. This means that there's a secret discovery nearby, and finding it will award you gold and reputation. Some of these discoveries open up some new content, flying around the world for example advances the storyline, but for the most part you'll be racing against Domingo, a treasure hunter who if he finds a discovery before you the award for finding it will be significantly decreased. Once you get your own ship, however, Domingo will join your crew if you have made more than 30 discoveries and this is another feature worth mentioning.

There are many characters that can be recruited to your cause as the game progresses. Whilst they are not controllable, each will benefit you in some form or another. For example, some will help you build things on your new base (once you have progressed so far into the game) and others will sell you items which will come in handy for future battles. Whilst out of combat this is all that they can do (apart from offering dialogue which for the most part has no bearing on the story but develops their character somewhat) building up a sizable crew can definitely help you when it comes to combat... in particular boss fights. Remember that Spirit Bar I mentioned? Well, maxing it out once you've made your base will open up a new option... Crew Special. You basically have two options here, both of which consume all your spirit points but deliver a hugely powerful blow and can become a very important part of battles, especially in the later boss fights. The Blue Rogues attack basically utilises every crew member you have selected and, depending on your set up, can be attack-based or heal-based. Either way, you're going to do a lot of damage to your opponent and give your playable characters a decent boost to their health. The other option, Prophecy, is only available if all four of your playable characters are alive... and will summon a moon to crash into your foe dealing a frankly ridiculous amount of damage, accompanied by a crazy cut-scene a la Final Fantasy. It became my favourite move of the game and I would sometimes occasionally just build up my Spirit Bar against weak monsters just so I could see the cool attack scene.

Remembering that this was originally a Dreamcast game, the graphics are not all that bad. True they did increase the polygon count and resolution for the GameCube version, but if truth be told they did not reach the full potential of the Cube's power, and they definitely pale in comparision to next-generation releases. That being said, the game features well designed and varied graphics which gives life to the world of Arcadia in a way that even some of the newer releases could learn a thing or too from. It's all well and good making everything look smooth, but if you don't have the design team working on overtime you're just gonna end up with something drab and boring... and Skies Of Arcadia is certainly not guilty of that. Even the overworld, which had all the potential of being just a massive block of blue, is brought to life with small NPC vessels traversing the skies and schools of flying fish darting around trying to evade capture (you can catch the fish by flying into them, and sell them for gold). Also of special note is the choreography of the battles. Whilst the camera concentrates on a single character whilst they are performing an action during combat you can see your teammates running around attacking enemies all the time. It may not affect the game, but it is a nice touch which does look pretty cool at first. The same idea is used for the ship battles, but unfortunately it doesn't take long before the manoeuvres begin to repeat and this can get a little dull during longer fights. That said it is a nice touch and certainly makes the game look more interesting than just having two ships flying side-by-side until one explodes.

As with most games in the genre, the music in Skies is a mixture of the sublime and the forgettable. Yutaka Minobe and Takayuki Maeda have done a simply fantastic job with some of the tracks, especially the opening video and title screen, but the soundtrack is unfortunately let down by some of the in-game offerings. Don't get me wrong, none of the music in the game is bad, but let's just say you won't be humming it the next day on your way to work. Still, the music is at least relevant at the worst of times, and simply brilliant at best. In fact, here's probably the best way to sum it up. My brother played the title music to me a while back without telling me what it was from. It took me a few seconds, but I did guess right, and hearing it brought flooding back memories of epic battles aboard a floating ship, saving the world from a demented empire, and living my life in the skies as a Blue Rogue. So whilst it may not be instantly recognisable in the same way as, say music from the Mario or Zelda franchises, it is still emotive and special in it's own right.

I sit here now, rounding up this review, dabbing a quiet tear from my eye as the Skies Of Arcadia ending music plays softly in the background and the closing moments of the game playing over and over in my head. It truly is a very special moment, and it's only in video games such as this that you can begin to experience the same rush of emotions, those of excitement and love, but also of a deep sadness that there is no more. It's like reading the final Harry Potter book for the first time, or sitting through the last Lord Of The Rings film, you sit there enshrouded in a blissful contentment. The Japanese have a word for this feeling: moé. I have two more words... bloody brilliance.

The fact that there is currently no sequel is simply criminal, and hopefully this will be rectified as quickly as possible. It is also surprising that relatively few people have actually heard of this game, let alone played it as everyone I have talked to who has played the game has had exactly the same to say about it... that it is one of the greatest games of modern times. If you're even slightly interested in RPGs then this is one game you really cannot afford to miss out on. 

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