Shouta
Member
I finished this game a few months ago but have been dawdling on doing a write up about it for awhile. If anyone's interested in the previous games, here are my write-ups on them.
http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread.php?t=17974
http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread.php?t=16749
So, last summer while I was in Japan I picked up Growlanser and finished Growlanser for the Playstation in anticipation of Growlanser Generations (US release of Growlanser II and Growlanser III). As you can see by my ramblings above, I loved all 3 games. Well, on top of picking up the original Growlanser, I picked up Growlanser IV: Wayfarer of the Time as well for the PS2. The game was actually fairly recent (released late 2003/early 2004) and actually got a thread on old GAF way back when.
To start, Growlanser IV takes place in separate continuity from Growlanser I-III. All the characters are new, new continent, new countries, and etc. All the series' staples are there in though like the homunculi fairies, ring weapons, power gems, the choose your ending/dating sim elements, and of course the battle system. The game is basically everything from the first three Growlanser games put into a really polished package.
The game remains graphically similar to Growlanser III although there are some effect upgrades and some of the CG spells are just a little over the top. So the game really isn't a graphical powerhouse at all. It's pleasant to look at though and it certainly doesn't detract from the experience.
As for audio, the music really doesn't stand out but it's pretty good in context of the game and the sound effects are well enough. The Voice Acting is top notch as always with some really nice performances overall although that damned catgirl Leona is kind of annoying.
The core gameplay remains the same for Growlanser IV. As I mentioned, all the previous features found in Growlanser I-III make a return so there really isn't much that's new for the game. There is one exception and that's how skills are learned. Rather than the point system of the previous games (you gain a level and you're given a specific amount of points to distribute to skills for that character ) the game implores the whole "equip this item and earn enough XP to permanently gain this skill" spiel you find in games like FF9. This is quite a unique change in some regards because it allows you to control the character's growth in a much more controlled fashion and you can actually max a character's skills out instead of having to repeatedly level to obscene levels to get all the skills you want.
Along with the change in the skill system, the Ring weapons are much more balanced in the game. Neither overpowered (GL2) nor underpowered (GL3), they finally fit perfectly into the game. The magic system got a good revamping and now is extremely useful unlike both GL2 and GL3 where it was essentially useless due to either lack of power, speed in casting, or both. It also didn't help that higher end magic in GL3 was made by combining spells which suffered from the power and speed issues. You still have to cast combine two spells to make a stronger one in GL4 but it's much faster and much more powerful now making it a viable option.
The game also adds quite a few new gems to fiddle around with alongside a bunch of new skills to complement the new learning style. Combined with the more balanced ring weapons, and the customization for the game is very good.
Unlike GL3, there is no overworld in the game. It uses the "running dungeon" model to travel between towns (Growlanser, Star Ocean, and Star Ocean: Till the End of Time have this).
The game opens with main character (named Crevaniel) and Regina walking through the forest to go shopping. You do some chatting before continuing on through the forest where you find a boy collapsed on the road. Regina basically says to take him to her father and the screen fades to black. Some text appears stating the boy's name and that you joined the troupe of soldiers lead by Regina's father who now are fighting a rivaling group/nation (I can't recall the exact details, I'd have to go back and play the game again to get it down correctly). After a bit of chatting and strategizing the troupe lands on an island and are engaged in combat. After a series of battles (which basically is the training), you head back to town where you happen to see an attack by an six-winged angel. Nothing this, Regina's father orders a retreat and everyone piles back onto a ship. Afterwards, he decides to split from the troupe of soldiers in search of a way to defeat these angels and thus really begins the game.
While it's probably better than Growlanser II and III in this department, it still fails to reach the level of the original Growlanser. It's not to say that GL4's story is bad (far from it actually), it's just that the game feels a lot less complete when you break it down. The first half of the game is really interesting with the escalating war between the nations and the search for a way to defeat the Angels. Then the second half kind of flatly winds down with the war unfolding too quickly and the setup for the last boss lacking terribly. All the concepts are there but just isn't properly setup enough. You have some possibly great villains who are relegated to the background and yo ugot some potentially great plot threads that could weave into the story very easily but are never capitalized on. That aside, there's some stellar moments in the game.
On the flipside, the characters are fantastic as always. You're given quite a few of characters in the game that are interesting from both genders. While the characters in the game are a bit more cliche (at least in premise) than in previous games, they're still very well-molded out of it. Each of the characters has their own sub-plot to the game that's revealed through the game's "vacations" (which make a return from the original Growlanser). Most of the subplots for these characters are actually quite elaborate compared to previous games which was quite surprising. Thankfully, with being elaborate, there's a bit more exposition.
On top of the 8 standard playable characters (2 of which you don't get automatically. You need to do some specific things to get them), there's 2 types of homunculus fairies (or Familiars, I only use the former name because it describes what they are) available to choose from after you get to a certain point in the game (Type D-LN and Type D-TP). If you have a Growlanser III data on your card, you're given access to the third type. D-LN is the unique Familiar to Growlanser IV. She's very soft spoken and acts very "mature" or "adult" like. She talks very formally and is very level-headed. D-TP is a Familiar that's very similar to Tipi of the original Growlanser. A short greyt-haired and very energetic Familiar, she at time acts like a bit of a tomboy. The last type that you get from importing a Growlanser III is the Familiar that is very similar to Raimy of GL3. A girl that looks a bit like a witch. I don't know much about her personality since I didn't have a Japanese GL3 data but I'd assume it's pretty similar to Raimy personality-wise. These three have their own full subplots just like any of the playable characters which surprised me quite a bit since Tipi and Raimy from the previous games were kind of a sidenote in terms of development. I only managed to see the D-LN's subplot because I've only played through the game once. She's my favorite of the three Familiars which is why I went with her first.
If there's anything that's lacking from the game on the character side of things, it's a lot of subtext. It's something I appreciated quite a bit about the WD translations for GL2 and GL3. The writing is very straightforward for each of the characters in Japanese which sort of shortchanges them quite a bit. They don't feel quite as rich as they could be. I mean, all the items are there that could be great for subtext setup but the writing just doesn't hit it. That's one of the biggest problems with writing in RPGs now and it is still a large problem in translation today. Japanese writing is so immensely straightforward that it's dry when translated directly from Japanese into English. There's a lot of that apparent in GL4.
Character and story material aside, the gameplay is top-notch and probably the best of the series. The sheer number of event battles combined with how well-designed most of them are is astounding. Almost all the battles are challenging without being terribly cheap. The mantra of rethinking your strategy is even more prevalent in this game. Battles are designed for strategy and not powerleveling. Overleveling is not the key to winning battles in the game at all. In fact, quite a few of the battles are setup so that even if you're a higher level than your opponents, you'll still need to rethink your strategy because they'll take you down if you try to brute force your way through. If you sit back and reapproach a battle, you can always find a way to win. It's what makes the Growlanser series so fantastic. The game is very punishing though and can be very tough to more casual players. I had some trouble with quite a few battles throughout the game and I'm not exactly the average RPG player.
Overall, the game is fantastic. While it does have some issues here and there, it's a solid experience overall. I'm just hoping CareerSoft goes on continuing with the series whether it be Growlanser V (which has character designs) or Growlanser I Renewal.
If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask as usual.
http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread.php?t=17974
http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread.php?t=16749
So, last summer while I was in Japan I picked up Growlanser and finished Growlanser for the Playstation in anticipation of Growlanser Generations (US release of Growlanser II and Growlanser III). As you can see by my ramblings above, I loved all 3 games. Well, on top of picking up the original Growlanser, I picked up Growlanser IV: Wayfarer of the Time as well for the PS2. The game was actually fairly recent (released late 2003/early 2004) and actually got a thread on old GAF way back when.
To start, Growlanser IV takes place in separate continuity from Growlanser I-III. All the characters are new, new continent, new countries, and etc. All the series' staples are there in though like the homunculi fairies, ring weapons, power gems, the choose your ending/dating sim elements, and of course the battle system. The game is basically everything from the first three Growlanser games put into a really polished package.
The game remains graphically similar to Growlanser III although there are some effect upgrades and some of the CG spells are just a little over the top. So the game really isn't a graphical powerhouse at all. It's pleasant to look at though and it certainly doesn't detract from the experience.
As for audio, the music really doesn't stand out but it's pretty good in context of the game and the sound effects are well enough. The Voice Acting is top notch as always with some really nice performances overall although that damned catgirl Leona is kind of annoying.
The core gameplay remains the same for Growlanser IV. As I mentioned, all the previous features found in Growlanser I-III make a return so there really isn't much that's new for the game. There is one exception and that's how skills are learned. Rather than the point system of the previous games (you gain a level and you're given a specific amount of points to distribute to skills for that character ) the game implores the whole "equip this item and earn enough XP to permanently gain this skill" spiel you find in games like FF9. This is quite a unique change in some regards because it allows you to control the character's growth in a much more controlled fashion and you can actually max a character's skills out instead of having to repeatedly level to obscene levels to get all the skills you want.
Along with the change in the skill system, the Ring weapons are much more balanced in the game. Neither overpowered (GL2) nor underpowered (GL3), they finally fit perfectly into the game. The magic system got a good revamping and now is extremely useful unlike both GL2 and GL3 where it was essentially useless due to either lack of power, speed in casting, or both. It also didn't help that higher end magic in GL3 was made by combining spells which suffered from the power and speed issues. You still have to cast combine two spells to make a stronger one in GL4 but it's much faster and much more powerful now making it a viable option.
The game also adds quite a few new gems to fiddle around with alongside a bunch of new skills to complement the new learning style. Combined with the more balanced ring weapons, and the customization for the game is very good.
Unlike GL3, there is no overworld in the game. It uses the "running dungeon" model to travel between towns (Growlanser, Star Ocean, and Star Ocean: Till the End of Time have this).
The game opens with main character (named Crevaniel) and Regina walking through the forest to go shopping. You do some chatting before continuing on through the forest where you find a boy collapsed on the road. Regina basically says to take him to her father and the screen fades to black. Some text appears stating the boy's name and that you joined the troupe of soldiers lead by Regina's father who now are fighting a rivaling group/nation (I can't recall the exact details, I'd have to go back and play the game again to get it down correctly). After a bit of chatting and strategizing the troupe lands on an island and are engaged in combat. After a series of battles (which basically is the training), you head back to town where you happen to see an attack by an six-winged angel. Nothing this, Regina's father orders a retreat and everyone piles back onto a ship. Afterwards, he decides to split from the troupe of soldiers in search of a way to defeat these angels and thus really begins the game.
While it's probably better than Growlanser II and III in this department, it still fails to reach the level of the original Growlanser. It's not to say that GL4's story is bad (far from it actually), it's just that the game feels a lot less complete when you break it down. The first half of the game is really interesting with the escalating war between the nations and the search for a way to defeat the Angels. Then the second half kind of flatly winds down with the war unfolding too quickly and the setup for the last boss lacking terribly. All the concepts are there but just isn't properly setup enough. You have some possibly great villains who are relegated to the background and yo ugot some potentially great plot threads that could weave into the story very easily but are never capitalized on. That aside, there's some stellar moments in the game.
On the flipside, the characters are fantastic as always. You're given quite a few of characters in the game that are interesting from both genders. While the characters in the game are a bit more cliche (at least in premise) than in previous games, they're still very well-molded out of it. Each of the characters has their own sub-plot to the game that's revealed through the game's "vacations" (which make a return from the original Growlanser). Most of the subplots for these characters are actually quite elaborate compared to previous games which was quite surprising. Thankfully, with being elaborate, there's a bit more exposition.
On top of the 8 standard playable characters (2 of which you don't get automatically. You need to do some specific things to get them), there's 2 types of homunculus fairies (or Familiars, I only use the former name because it describes what they are) available to choose from after you get to a certain point in the game (Type D-LN and Type D-TP). If you have a Growlanser III data on your card, you're given access to the third type. D-LN is the unique Familiar to Growlanser IV. She's very soft spoken and acts very "mature" or "adult" like. She talks very formally and is very level-headed. D-TP is a Familiar that's very similar to Tipi of the original Growlanser. A short greyt-haired and very energetic Familiar, she at time acts like a bit of a tomboy. The last type that you get from importing a Growlanser III is the Familiar that is very similar to Raimy of GL3. A girl that looks a bit like a witch. I don't know much about her personality since I didn't have a Japanese GL3 data but I'd assume it's pretty similar to Raimy personality-wise. These three have their own full subplots just like any of the playable characters which surprised me quite a bit since Tipi and Raimy from the previous games were kind of a sidenote in terms of development. I only managed to see the D-LN's subplot because I've only played through the game once. She's my favorite of the three Familiars which is why I went with her first.
If there's anything that's lacking from the game on the character side of things, it's a lot of subtext. It's something I appreciated quite a bit about the WD translations for GL2 and GL3. The writing is very straightforward for each of the characters in Japanese which sort of shortchanges them quite a bit. They don't feel quite as rich as they could be. I mean, all the items are there that could be great for subtext setup but the writing just doesn't hit it. That's one of the biggest problems with writing in RPGs now and it is still a large problem in translation today. Japanese writing is so immensely straightforward that it's dry when translated directly from Japanese into English. There's a lot of that apparent in GL4.
Character and story material aside, the gameplay is top-notch and probably the best of the series. The sheer number of event battles combined with how well-designed most of them are is astounding. Almost all the battles are challenging without being terribly cheap. The mantra of rethinking your strategy is even more prevalent in this game. Battles are designed for strategy and not powerleveling. Overleveling is not the key to winning battles in the game at all. In fact, quite a few of the battles are setup so that even if you're a higher level than your opponents, you'll still need to rethink your strategy because they'll take you down if you try to brute force your way through. If you sit back and reapproach a battle, you can always find a way to win. It's what makes the Growlanser series so fantastic. The game is very punishing though and can be very tough to more casual players. I had some trouble with quite a few battles throughout the game and I'm not exactly the average RPG player.
Overall, the game is fantastic. While it does have some issues here and there, it's a solid experience overall. I'm just hoping CareerSoft goes on continuing with the series whether it be Growlanser V (which has character designs) or Growlanser I Renewal.
If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask as usual.