Last week there
was a sale on Sony’s PSN Store, and I decided to purchase Star
Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness. This game was made by Square
Enix, one of the biggest producers of Japanese RPG’s in the
industry, and for good reason—they do it well. Epic stories,
likable and intriguing characters, immersive and detailed settings
with deep world building, stylish graphical design, and memorable
soundtracks all contribute to making their games a fun and often
powerful experience. As soon as I began the game and completed the
tutorial, I was plunged into a story with characters that made me
want to know more about what was going on and what my place was in a
world that already felt like it had an expansive history waiting to
be uncovered. Yet all this felt familiar to me, like I was finally
home after being away for a long time. The magic of a well-made JPRG
always does this to me—I felt the same way with the Dragon Quest,
Final Fantasy, and Tales series, among others. This week, I want to
examine what it is about JRPG’s that has kept them as a viable,
competitive genre in the video game market.
No comments:
Post a Comment