Eternal Sonata
by Namco
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Video Game Reviews of Eternal Sonata
Customer Review: Touching, exciting, and adorable, albeit a bit long
Summary: 4 Stars
The story is the first thing to capture your attention. By the end of the game it becomes fighteningly strange. There are two halves to this story. First, there is a generic JRPG story - kill the bad guy, save the world. Second, there is a philosophical analysis and statement on the main character's situation (he is stuck in his own dream). Dealing with controversial topics like reality, war, politics, evil, activism/motivation, and suicide, I loved the story in this game. It was touching, and exciting.
Additionally, there are history lessons about Chopin's (famous pianist, who plays the main character in this game) life thrown into it, which always relate to the story.
The characters behave fairly realistically, which improved the story.
The graphics are pleasant, smooth, and just adorable. This is by far one of the cutest JRPGs I've played. The style of the world is consistent and has a very anime feel.
The game's action all occurs in static battlefields, initiated by encountering enemies that roam the areas freely. The battle system was really exciting, and well balanced. Regular enemies weren't too easy, and bosses were challenging. For a predetermined amount of time your characters are able to attack, and use skills and items in real time. Each character takes a turn based on their speed. Half the fun of battles was trying new skills and strategies. Players can do some really fascinating combos and skills if they wish to, which is great!
The gameplay consists of towns, dungeons, and of course battles. Towns have decent exploration. Dungeons are linear enough to explore all of it, but nonlinear enough to cause you some backtracking (if you choose). My only complaint here is that some dungeons are too long, causing a some boredom.
My only other complaint is that sometimes objectives aren't well explained. Often I found myself clueless where to go, although it's not too hard to figure it out yourself.
It's a strong game, though a bit long and tedious. I really enjoyed it. There is extra content, but I don't think I'd replay it.
Customer Review: A good addition to your RPG collection
Summary: 4 Stars
When Eternal Sonata was released, good RPGs for the Xbox 360 were not in great supply. This was a welcome addition to my library as it was musically brilliant, artistically beautiful and just fun to play. I enjoyed the story, which centered around Frederic Chopin at the end of his battle with tuberculosis. He finds himself in a dream world where he comes across a young girl named Polka. Polka has a rare ability to use magic, which in the dream world means that you are afflicted with a disease and are dying. Chopin finds that he too is able to wield magic and that Polka reminds him of his dead sister, Emilia. Between chapters which are named after Chopin's musical works, you get a bit of a history lesson of his life, which I felt was a nice touch. Throughout the game you are introduced to a cast of characters who are given a name dealing with music (Polka, Allegretto, Falsetto, Jazz) to name a few. The game is solid, and not too challenging (until you get near the end). You also will need to play through the game at least twice to unlock all the achievements available.
The one downside to this game is that the random battles tend to be mostly laughable and get to be tedious, but a lot of the time you are able to avoid random combat (You must contact an enemy to start the battle). Also it seemed the last third of the game is pretty much played with the same party members if you want to be effective
Overall I found that Eternal Sonata was a fun game, I enjoyed playing it and feel that it was entertaining enough that I will also be buying the release on the PS3 just to play the new content and with the new characters.
Customer Review: A long time gamer/musician perspective
Summary: 5 Stars
I'd have to say, this game isn't without it's flaws, but what game is truely flawless? (Please don't attempt to answer this...) As a long time gamer, I thought the playing style for this game was very unique. It turned every fight into a puzzle in which (the further you get in the game) the less time you had to react to. The true question was, to shadow or not to shadow. I'd also like to say that the music in the game is truely sublime! I loved every second of this soundtrack! It really did open my eyes to a whole genre of music that I had not been too familiar with. (I play drums and guitar) but I'd have to say that after getting this game, I've been listening to more classical piano than I have room for. It's absolutely magnificant! On another note, a lot of people really didn't like the cut scenes in between chapters that would tell you something about Chopin's life while listening to one of his brilliant works. To be honest, if you were really following the games storyline, you would see that all of the songs portray (and sometimes forshadow) what either happened in the previous chapter, or what may happen. This also brings about a strange form of awarness towards how Polands history is tied in directly with Chopin's playing. Which through his music, is then spread across the entire world. I'm not one to brag about games, but I will certainly never regret purchasing this game! I highly recommend it to any gamer or music lover!Customer Review: Eternally grateful for this JRPG
Summary: 5 Stars
Eternal Sonata has got to be one of the greatest RPGs of this console generation. The story focuses on the famous pianist and composer Frederick Choplin who we see in his own dream world in his last moments of life. A lot of interesting characters join Choplin and things get even more interesting. I love how each character has his or her own talents and personalities and the graphics bring them even more to life. The battle system is a combination of real-time and turn-based strategy which is rarely found in RPGs. The use of the light and dark system to incorporate special attacks and build combos is ingenious. I suggest this game to any RPG lover out there. I cannot wait for the PS3 version which will have additional content such as characters, costumes, side quests and so much more. Please get your copy today!Customer Review: Good blend of battle
Summary: 4 Stars
After playing the demo, I decided I could give this game a try, mainly because I find myself always wanting to try an RPG (especially if it is a Japanese RPG). I am glad I did. This game had much to offer.
The most interesting aspect of this game was its battle system. It is a combination of real-time and turn-based. Each character gets a "turn," and goes in order from the fastest to slowest. The character who is engaged in their turn has five seconds (later in the game four seconds) to fight the enemy. They can increase the time a little bit with every blow dealt to an enemy. Each normal attack can be used to build up a very simple, yet great, echo combo system. The combos acquired can then be used with the special attack, which varies from standing in a light area to standing in a dark area. Every blow that is dealt on your party can be blocked real-time for a substantial reduction in damage. Overall, the battle system was the most pleasing aspect of the game.
Moving on, we get to the story. The story revolves around Frederic Chopin, a renowned composer. The game starts in the "present," which is in the past when Chopin is on death bed. The world inside of Chopin's dream is what you play in. The cast of characters is delightful, each ranging with their own unique abilities; the only problem is that EVERY character and location, save for real word people, is named after a part of music (i.e. Forte, Allegretto, Waltz). The story progress along with Chopin existing in his dream. He constantly tells the participants in his dream that they are a fabrication of him. He begins questioning whether this world is still a dream as the game progresses.
There is a rather interesting twist in the game, which, suffice to say, really ruined the story in my opinion. I would disclose more information, but it is a major plot spoiler.
The voice acting was adequate and lacked the corny dialogue that many JRPG games have. The visuals suited the game really well. The learning curve was easy, but got steeper as the battle system got more complex after certain scripted events.
Overall, it was a great RPG to own, and I am glad that I purchased it.
Pros
+Battle system
+Graphics
+Character cast
+Soundtrack
+History "lessons" on Chopin
Cons
-Weird plot twist
-Annoying naming system
-Little replay value