Grandia II

Just a short time ago, I had the good fortune to interivew the Game Arts gurus about their upcoming release of Grandia II on PC and PS2. With my appetite thoroughly whetted, I was more than a bit pleased to have the chance to do a hands-on preview of the title. Not having been privy to playing the DC version of Grandia II, playing the Grandia II preview on PC was a whole new experience for me, and a most entertaining one at that. With great anime influence, witty and quite often humorous dialogue, an in-depth and epic storyline, and a truly addictive (and absolutely painless) battle system - I was hooked in minutes!

The setting: You are Ryudo, an enigmatic (and without a doubt a bit jaded) Geohound. For those of you unfamiliar with the Grandia lingo, a Geohound is roughly equal to what we would consider a mercenary. Now, I'm not about to make the judgment that Ryudo should be a little more optimistic about the world around him, after all, he and his eagle-like companion, Skye, aren't exactly greeted in the most jovial of manners. As a matter of fact, even the people who hire him rarely show gratitude and usually carry themselves as if they were hiring an ex-convict to do their jobs. Nonetheless, Ryudo maintains a cavalier attitude with his work, and in the face of it all, just views everything as "just another job."

Well, it turns out, as Grandia II opens, our charismatic anti-hero gets a job offer that is about to cause him to redefine his definition of "job." That's not only just because it involves two things he's not particularly crazy about: women and religion, but because this assignment takes a darker twist than anyone (well almost anyone with the exception of Valmar, the god of Darkess) is expecting. It all started out so simple (isn't that always how it starts?): Ryudo is assigned to escort Elena, a songsstress/priestess, to a ritual outside of the town of Granas. During this sacred Exorcism (which Ryudo is distinctly warned NOT to interrupt), Ryudo hears a horrific sound and screams from the young women conducting the ritual. By the time Ryudo enters, almost all the young ladies lie dead around the ceremony floor, with Tessa hanging on to her last breath, and Elena held fast by the Wings of Darkness. Our Ryudo, proving that chivalry is not dead even in his hardened heart, tears her from the grip of the evil force and returns her to her home town. So the journey begins.... 

Gameplay in Grandia II is partially turn-based and partially real time. There is a very convenient and well designed meter in the lower right of the battle screen which helps you keep track of both enemy and ally initiative. When your initiative hits about the 2/3-3/4 mark (clearly marked on the meter), the action will stop and allow you to pick your move. Depending on the attack you pick, your bar will then finish it's trip to the end, or "ACT." Some actions will require more time to finish to completion, depending on their strength. Basically you have two main attacks, the Combo and the Critical. In Grandia II, a Combo is a multiple hit which does more damage. However, despite a lower hit power, the Critical hit is exceptionally useful because it will cancel any special attack the opposition is preparing. In addition to these two staples you get an special attack which does a spiffy amount of damage, but will cost you what is known as "SP." In the same fashion, any magic you use will be monitored by "MP." Which leads me to to the next topic: Explaining all the initial stuff.

Here's the breakdown on our next set of gauges, located along the top of your battle screen: Wonderfully straightforward, your three gauges measure hit points (HP), magic points (MP), and Special Attack Points (SP). I know you're already asking the question, "Well how do I replenish them?" After each successful battle, you and/or your team will receive various points to refill your gauges. You can also buy items to replenish certain items which require more attention, like life for example. Your enemies will also have life gauges visible as you strike them, or full stat readings as you target them to make the best choice.

There also seems to be a healthy balance between talking/adventure and RPG/action in Grandia II; where neither aspect becomes overwhelming. This helps the hours pass rapidly, and before you know it, you've played longer than you intended. Now don't get me wrong, addictive games are absolutely wonderful, and they've never hurt anything - except maybe cardiovascular health and social lives. Another big plus to helping the game move as quickly as you like is the fact that you can see potential battles before they happen. As you wander the areas outside of town, monsters will be visible on the terrain, and conflict will only be engaged if you get too close to the monsters. Because battle does flow so smoothly in Grandia II, and there's always that necessity of leveling up through experience points, you probably won't want to skip a majority of your potential skirmishes. 

There are quests and some puzzle-like facets to Grandia II, along with all those collecting and weapon/armor upgrading aspects we all know and love about RPG. Armor, remedies, potions, items which are imbued with magical powers, and of course gold, all come into play during the course of the game. This isn't the number crunching RPG that we typically see in a Western-type title (not to say one is better than they other, because I enjoy both), but it has the more action/RPG-lite feel that many Japanese platform RPG titles usually have. The menus are all easy to access and team members are easy to access as well.

I thoroughly enjoyed the graphics of Grandia II, which were, by the way, enhanced from their DC origins. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I greatly enjoy anime, but whether you enjoy Japanese animation or not, the graphics are still crisp, clear, and really well designed. Background are given a fair amount of attention and it really adds to the ambience of the title. Because this was a preview copy, I expect there are plenty more surprises to come, and so I don't want to delve too deep into the nitty-gritty of the game's visuals. The same can really be said for sound - so far so good - and I can't wait to hear even more. For those of you who are curious, the same voice casting (headed by the same individual, Kris Zimmerman,  who headed the casting for Metal Gear Solid) was carried over from the DC version.

Playing the Grandia II preview left me with a very good feeling - the feelings that something wickedly-addicting this way comes. There's no doubt why Grandia II garnered such high ratings when it was released on Dreamcast, and I have no doubts it will do so when it debuts on PC.