[PS2] Soul Nomad (RPG)

.DX.

Power Member
IGN: The PS2 gets yet another RPG

The characters are squat and fierce, the story is epic, and you won't get through it without leveling or casting a few spells. Yes, that's an RPG I'm talking about and it's headed for PS2. Yes, that's right. A few studios still have hot IPs headed for the aging but wildly popular system, and Nippon Ichi Software is no exception.

If you remember the popular game Disgaea, and you liked it, then this title is right up your alley. Outside of the fact that Soul Nomad is made by the same team that gave us Disgaea, it borrows the grid strategy from that game as well. But before we get to that, what's the story all about?

The hero of Soul Nomad carries a young fellow with quite a task ahead of him. He must destroy three powerful demons that are stalking the planet. They went to sleep long ago when a wizard capture their master, Gig, and sealed him in a sword. Well someone has awakened them, and it's up to our hero to stop them. Now he's gotten his hands on the sword with the evil overlord. The two of them have managed to strike a deal.

The overlord plans to grant our hero great power to help him stop the demons. This power is so great in fact, that he can access enough to destroy the end boss from the beginning of the game. The problem with that is every time he uses Gig's power, he takes one step closer to damnation, and loses control of his body, bit by bit. The end result inevitably is Gig returning to the physical world. It's a tragic trade-off, but sacrifices are necessary in such critical times.

As far as customizing your experience goes, you can choose from up to 25 different units. There are Knights, Archers, Nerneids, and Griphos Knights, each equipped with their own set of abilities. One of the more interesting addendums made to customization is the approach to leveling here. When you pick up a new character, you don't have to worry about running around and leveling him up to make him useful. You can do it manually, and set the character's level up to that of the main characters.

When it's time to actually fight, you can do a little recon and evaluate what you're up against. From there, you can figure how you want to combine certain abilities in your units so you can get the best results out of your teams. When you're done fighting the baddies in the field, you can go after innocent townspeople, and steal anything of value you desire. If you come across someone that looks like a pretty good fighter, you can conscript them into your army.

Yes it seems as though the gritty tone of games like the GTA have made their way into Japanese RPGs. Don't let the doe-eyed faces fool you. This game seems to reward the player's most carnal impulses, all the while giving deep customization features and Disgaea-esque strategy.

http://ps2.ign.com/articles/777/777180p1.html

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Video: http://www.tothegame.com/game_video.asp?gameid=6675

pre-order €39,99 *****
Dispo: 20 de Junho
 
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