Despite the spit-shine that WD has given LUNAR SSS, it shows it's age. The graphics are 2D, with SD characters, the music is, good, but not great, the game has little to no replay valuse, etcetera etcetera.
However, not all of these things mean it's a bad game, because it isn't. Let's start with graphics. If you're looking for the kind of 3D realism you'll find in games like Final Fantasy VIII, you're in the wrong place. LUNAR's graphics, as already mentioned, feature SD (Super Deformed-Big head, big eyes, cartoony) characters that look kind of cutesy, and the backgrounds are 2D and mostly non-interactive. However, the game is very colorful, unlike many of the 3D titles, and the cartoony look works well with the light-hearted spirit of the quest.
One place where LUNAR's graphics do shine above the norm is in it's appx 50min of Anime cutscenes. Some of them convey strong emotions, such as Luna on the Boat, some have jaw-dropping visuals and sound, such as the Dark Godess raising Althena's fortress from the ground, and some are simply hilarious, like Kyle drunk in a cell blowing a snot bubble, or your first encounter with Myght. It's like watching a high-quality movie.
The sound, primarily voice acting, is also done well. John Truitt (I think I spelled that right) stands out as the voice of Ghaleon, but other voices, like those of Kyle, Jessica, Mia and Quark are also noteworthy. At first Nall's babyish voice kinda grated my nerves, but you get over that. One thing that is annoying about the sound is the battle shouting. Most of them aren't so bad, but in the final battle for example, Ghaleon endlessly spouting "Time to Die!" for the 20 minutes it took to win that fight got so annoying I put it on mute.
Combat is standard menu-based. It has AI (artificail Intelligence), which I don't reccomend, Attack, Defend, Magic, Items and Run commands. There are only 2 unusual things here. Number one, everyone has their own individual Item inventory instead of a communal one, making it necessary to exchange Items with friends and such. Also each person's inventory (Except Nall's) has a limited amount of space, so beware. The other thing is that combat is mostly Icon driven instead of text driven. The lack of commands like Steal or Deathblow or any other commands, make it kind of monotonous, and it can get easy to fall into a rut, but it's still difficult enough to provide a challenge.
Despite being moderately difficult, the game is short! I beat it in about 20 Hrs (20:05 to be exact). The thing is, there was no need to make it longer. The story is complete as it is. My only complaint is that there is only one sidequest, collecting the bromides (cool looking pictures).
The story itself is interesting, and diffrent enough from the Sega CD version to make it interesting even for a vetran of that game. (Plot specifics follow, skip ahead to avoid spoilers). Specifically, as is my understanding (I've only played TSS for 20 min or so), Dyne died fighting the Black Dragon, which drove Ghaleon nuts, causing him to do what he did. In the PSX version, Dyne merely lost his power helping Althena be reborn as Luna, and becomes Laike. Ghaleon viewed the plan of Althena and Dyne as foolishness, and decided to resurrect the spirit of Althena and fulfill his own selfish ambitions.
In general, if you're looking for an innovative RPG, then LUNAR is not for you. However, if you want a nostalgic trip back to a classic game, coupled with awesome anime and a challenging quest, then you might want to give it a spin.
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