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No matter what I do, I never seem to finish a game by Japanese developer Level 5. After 10 hours, my interest abates and I end up playing something else. It has happened three times so far, with Dark Cloud 2, Dragon Quest VIII, and just recently Rogue Galaxy. Level 5 is certainly a great RPG developer, and it's obvious they put a great deal of effort into their games, but there is always something missing. No matter how fun the combat system may be, or side-quests, the story is never compelling enough to endure 40+ hours of gameplay. Not when there are other great RPGs out there that have the complete package of good gameplay and story.
Let's start with the original Dark Cloud. I fell for the advertising campaign that stated it would be the next "Zelda-killer," so I bought it and the strategy guide without even checking reviews. Big mistake there. The game wasn't terrible; I still had a good amount of fun playing it, but the gameplay mechanics just weren't all there. The georama building system was nice and something different, though. It was fun having a Sim City like setup in an RPG. I'm not a fan of random dungeons, and so, I didn't enjoy the dungeon-crawling aspect of the game. The hunger and thirst meters were a terrible implementation, in my opinion. Though realistic, having your character drink and eat to keep from dying is just not fun. Next thing you know, your character will have to go to the restroom to take care of business. And I still don't understand the concept of breakable weapons. Though that is also realistic, there's nothing like breaking a weapon you worked so hard to build up. Not fun. All in all, the game just wasn't that enjoyable. Nonetheless, I did manage to beat it. I was younger and my perception of fun games was much more open. Well, things change.
Next came Dark Cloud 2. Though much-improved over its predecessor, there was something missing from the sequel that made me decide to quit. One thing was that the characters and story were completely lacking any sort of value. There was just no reason to care for either of the main characters, save for the fact that a female warrior is always sexy, indeed. What attracted me most about the game were the cell-shaded graphics. I became a fan of that style ever since I played Jet Grind Radio back on the failing Dreamcast. But Squaresoft's The Bouncer for the PS2 taught me that a pretty game does not always equal a good game. However, Dark Cloud 2 received great reviews all around, so it could just be me. But I didn't see what was so great about it. The georama system became tiresome at that point, since it limited the freedom of the player, and there just wasn't any motivation to go on. Perhaps it got better after the point where I stopped. I'll never know.
Then, after playing a short demo, I decided to give Dragon Quest VIII, easily Level 5's most successful and famous RPG, a try. I figured I would like it since I enjoy cell-shaded graphics and a light-hearted tone from time to time. Every now and again, it's nice to play a game that doesn't take itself too seriously. When I began playing, I got hooked. I loved the graphics, the voice acting, gameplay, story, characters, music, and the charm. Just about every part of the game was enjoyable. There's no doubt about it; Dragon Quest VIII is a well-made RPG. But playing the game brought into question my desire to play old-school style RPGs. After being exposed to new types of combat systems, deep and involving story lines, and the end of random battles, it was hard to go back. So, after ten hours of questing, I gave up. Nonetheless, I realize that it was a mistake to stop playing Dragon Quest VIII. It is indeed a great game. I just have to come back with a different mindset that the game is not trying to be something it's not. It's just a simple, challenging old-school RPG with charm. What's not to like about that?
I recently picked up Rogue Galaxy thinking it would be something like Dragon Quest. After all, both games were created by the same developer. Well, things didn't turn out so well. I was drawn in by the fun combat system and, once again, the cell-shaded graphics. I had been warned several times that the story wasn't all that great, so I kept that in mind and decided to focus on the gameplay. But that didn't last so long when I discovered how horribly repetitive the game was. First off, combat is severely limited. The characters perform the same combos over and over with little to no variation. That's not appealing, not in the least bit. Secondly, the environments look the same. I got lost very quickly and quite often, simply because just about every corridor looks exactly the same. That's not fun at all. Finally, the story is just terrible. I forgave it for a while, but when I began to see how bloody similar many characters were to Star Wars characters, and how predictable the story was, I found no point in continuing. Once again, I stopped around the 10 hour point. Unlike with Dragon Quest VIII however, I don't plan on going back. Why would I want to torture myself when I have so many other options? That doesn't make sense.
Level 5 has some things going for it. They have some great ideas; they just lack compelling story and gameplay elements. They are still at it, making decent RPGs. I don't plan on buying Jeanne D' Arc unless it receives great reviews, and we'll just have to see about White Knight Story. I have a feeling that if Level 5 gets their act together and discovers a great formula they may just end up being an amazing game developer on par with Square Enix. Hey, it could happen. Now, if I could just get past level 5 and move on to level 6. Level 5 must be at the 10 hour mark.
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