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By Lonnie Bruton on June 4th, 2002
Introduction Arc the Lad was introduced in Japan shortly after the launch of the Playstation. After the success of Final Fantasy III gamers were looking for the next great RPG. Arc the lad was an almost immediate hit. in the past 6 or more years the game has gathered quite a cult following both in Japan and here in the states. However, those of us who have been waiting all this time in hopes of seeing an American release. After quite a few years of negotiations Working Designs secured the right to not only publish one game, but all 3 and an expansion. Without a doubt no one can compete in the world of novelty releases with working designs. The game comes in a special box set with Character Standees , a memory card holder, Dual Shock Joystick covers, hardbound full color instruction book and of course the games. Presentation Without a doubt the money paid for this set is beyond its worth. When you open the box you know you got your moneys worth. The first thing i will mention is the Instruction book [booklet is an understatement]. The book is a 152 page instruction manual like never before seen. It features full color pages with hand drawn artwork and tips and hints about each game as well as the expansion. Along with the book is the Omake box, better known as the special features. Inside you will find caps to cover your dull dual shock sticks, a memory card holder as well as a full set character Mini-standees. Then of course there is the games. They come in a typical twin disk case with anime inspired artwork, there is five disks in the collection. The first thing anyone will want to do is pop in the "making of" cd. The cd has about an hour or so worth of documentary video giving you a complete background on the game, as well as whats new for the American release. I suggest that you begin playing the game with Arc the Lad and progress through the game in order. Your saves will carry over to the next game. The menu isn’t anything super special but they do improve through the series. The first game takes a little getting used to. There are no typical options screens or setup screens like most RPG gamers are used too. Everything is accessed during the players turn in battle or in the game. While different it all wraps up into what is a unique and usable system. Graphics & Sound Considering the time when Arc the Lad was first completed you would expect the most awful 2D graphics by todays standards. However, this is not the case even Arc the Lad 1 has some impressive backgrounds and sprite animations. Perhaps some of the best seen on the Playstation. The second game in the trilogy looks pretty much the same as the first except with new characters and settings. The third game in the trilogy is simply breathtaking. While not quite Final Fantasy VIII graphics, They are pretty good. Everything looks good and does not stray from the Arc feeling. Arc the Lad has some of the best music of any RPG. Perhaps because it was the first game to actually put music from the London symphony in game play. The melodies are perhaps the best in the industry and very close to those done by Squaresoft if not better.
Gameplay I guess its about time to get to the meat n’ potatoes of any game. How does it play? Well, to give you an honest answer. Its very simular to Shining force, or even Final Fantasy Tactics. ATL is a SRPG or Strategy RPG meaning that the game requires a lot more than patience to complete them. You must learn moves by leveling up as well as figure out the best plan of attack for each battle. If your a hard core RPG fan looking for another final fantasy, don’t look here. The first game is really short about 15 hours at the most. However, it plays a very important roll in the game. Without it you would be lost on the entire ACL universe. The reason the first game is so short is because Sony rushed the developers to get Arc out to the public. Essentially Arc the lad 1 and 2 were planned as the same game. [way to go Sony] Arc the lad 3 is a little more light hearted than the first two as well as the first to feature 3d graphics. Lasting Appeal Fans of Final Fantasy Tactics, or Sega’s Shining Force series’ will fall in love with arc almost instantly. The game’s include parts of almost every successful RPG to date such as the hunter guild from Phantasy Star, and Monster gathering and breeding much like Pokemon only a tad bit before pikachu’s time. Great set and worth the 70 bucks.
Conclusion We’ve been hooked to this collection since it first arrived in our mailbox. Something about it gives us that Retro feeling. You know the feeling, like you had when you were a kid playing the Genesis or Snes. This game is worth the 70 bucks to anyone who appreciates a well balanced story, and strategy mixed with role playing. go ahead give it a shot.
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