Eternal Sonata
Review
Complete package: epic story, stunning visuals, gorgeous music..
by T3HDX
reviewed on X360
Turn-based hack'n'slash
There are several things to say about the interface that is more notable on than others. The battle system is fairly unique, with basically turn-based combat but with a touch of hack and slash feel to it. You have a certain amount of time in which to attack, which is called battle time. You initially start with 5 seconds of battle time, which you may not think is that long, but you’re also given something called tactical time, 'TT', in which you can assess your situation and plan for that round ahead. However, while playing through the game, this decision time becomes increasingly shorter as your party level rises.
When you gain a new party level, you gain and lose certain parts of your battle round for each character. It is not such a bad idea to reduce your tactical time and battle time at the game progresses. This allows you less time to think and act, and makes the game progressively harder as it progresses. This approach to difficulty makes up for the overall lack of difficulty in the game.
One bonus with a higher party level is that you are allotted more special attack slots. Special attacks are gained as you level up and hit certain levels, and they can be assigned to your character once you have learnt them. You have different special attacks in daylight and darkness and you can mix them up into various kinds of combos. This variation makes the battles feel more fresh and you need to think of new strategies for different encounters and situations. However, learning to master the combos effectively and efficiently takes a lot of time and patience.
Lastly, the battle interface allows you to guard and counter attack. Straight off the bat, you have the ability to block enemy attacks, as long as you're facing that enemy. It takes a bit of practice to get used to the timings, as well as learning when enemies strike and their attack patterns. All this adds to the long, if not steep, learning curve in the game. When you reach a higher party level, you will have the ability to fight back with special counter-attacks. They have the same principle as blocking, but take more time to get to grips with, especially after having got used to only using the button for blocking attacks. Counter-attacks appear less often than guard chances, and it take a while to get used to the different sounds that they make to tell which is which, and what button to press at the right time.
The menu system is incredibly easy to understand. It splits everything up into relevant sections, and you're able to find whatever you're looking for. All in all, it's a cleverly put together battle system, with easy to use menu searching.
Some restrictions and repetitiveness
Your first mission in the pretty dreamworld is to control Allegretto on his quest to deliver some bread to hungry children. You soon find yourself in your first battle, and it's simple enough to pick up the basic mechanics of the fighting system. The turn-based combat with a hack and slash type battling really gets you involved in the game more than just pushing a button or moving the stick to select your attack. When the battle round starts, there is a gap between your party and the enemies, meaning you have to go to them, or let them come to you.
8.0
fun score
No Pros and Cons at this time
