Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings reviewed |
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Square Enix's Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings for the DS is finally here, and we're glad that Square Enix managed to pull off a great hybrid of real-time strategy and role-playing. Following our quick preview of the Japanese version of the game a few months ago, we now give you QJ.NET's full review!
Revenant Wings' storyline is a sequel of sorts to the original Final Fantasy XII. It lacks a deep story rife with political conflicts, but rather focuses on Vaan, who is preoccupied in his efforts in becoming someone worthy of the Sky Pirate title, with his own airship. After getting part of the Cache of Glabados with Balthier, Vaan then travels with Penelo and the gang and manages to nab their own airship. They somehow find themselves in the Lemurés continent, where they bump into the flying Aegyl race, and the other Sky Pirates who are also preoccupied in making mischief.
At first glance, the gameplay of Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings plays so much like another Square Enix real-time strategy game, Heroes of Mana, and the similarity is most noticeable in the first few battles where character movement, especially during walking, is so darned slow. We couldn't help but wince while staring at Vaan walk the vast expanse of the battlefield en route to an enemy encounter.
However, what sets Revenant Wings apart from Heroes of Mana is the inclusion of the Gambit feature in the game. Revenant Wings' Gambit system is not the very same one found in Final Fantasy XII for the PlayStation 2. Each of the characters can do only one Gambit at a time, unlike the prequel, severely limiting their AI.
Aside from the Gambit configurations, you also have to make sure that your characters attack enemies suited to their battle type. All characters are grouped into any of these three categories: melee, flying, ranged. The key to every battle is to make sure all of your units are fighting enemies that are weaker to their type: Melee characters are weak to Flying units, while Flying units are more prone to damage dealt by Ranged characters, and in turn the Ranged characters receive severe damage from Melee fighters.
It's pretty simple at first glance, but once you end up with a screenful of units hacking each other - especially when the summoned espers are in the mix - it may be a bit difficult to keep track of who your units are fighting against. Sometimes, it gets to the point that selecting an individual unit is a bit hard, adding a whole new level of frustration if even you find yourself being pushed to the wall.
Speaking of espers, one of the more interesting features in the game is Revenant Wing's unique Summoning system, where characters can activate summoning gates using the gems they acquire during the course of the game. Espers that get summoned become additional units that support and add additional firepower for the main squad. Since you can summon a lot of espers down your queue, you can have a find yourself fighting in an incredibly crowded battleground, which is an impressive sight in itself.
Knowing which esper to bring into battle is also a vital part of a good Revenant Wings strategy plan. Espers are categorized in tiers, with one type of Esper for every element (Water, Fire, Earth, and so on) in each tier. As to be expected from the Final Fantasy title, most Summons and FF monsters we know and love, such as Shiva, Ifrit, and even Tonberry, are back to kick some enemy butt.
One of the little things we liked in Revenant Wings is being able to save after every successful mission, eliminating the need to run into a savepoint after you achieved something in the game. It saves precious time, which is of utmost importance in handhelds where you may have to turn off your unit at a moment's notice.
Neither too hard nor too easy, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings gives handheld gamers another nice RPG/RTS to chew on while on the go. Even if the game is not record-breakingly great, Revenant Wings is proof that the Final Fantasy franchise still has a lot of blood left in it.
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