Super Nintendo
Arcana
| Graphics: Sound: Gameplay: Overall: |
7.52 8.00 7.70 7.81 |
| Votes: | 27 |
| Reviews: | 3 |
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| Reviewer: Lee | Date: Jan 27, 2009 |
| Once upon a time there existed dungeon-crawler RPGs. Similar to modern adventure games in many respects, the key defining aspect that set them apart is that nearly all the action takes places in a single large dungeon. Wizardry, the original computer RPG, is a dungeon crawler RPG.
Arcana is, at heart, a dungeon crawler. It follows the journey of a "card master," herein a kind of warrior magician who use special tarot cards, named Rooks as he searches to uncover the source of recent turbulence wracking his homeland. This "card master" theme is evident in all aspects of the game, as characters, monsters, and items often appear on the face of a card, as though the entire story is a very elaborate fortune-telling. The story is the real reason to play Arcana. While it performs competently in all technical respects, the story far outshines the turn based combat and unconventional party system (if any human character on your team is reduced to 0 HP and dies, it's game over.) Navigation is handled practically, providing a compass, allowing you to move in the four cardinal directions, and with a built-in cartography feature. This eliminates two of the most irritating turn offs associated with dungeon crawlers, that being that you need to have a sheet of graph paper and good sense of direction to progress. Teleporters and hidden doors are also artfully left out, making navigation more straightforward (if a little bland). The game features five separate dungeons, each one with a special theme and appropriate monsters, and five main characters, each one with a slightly unique set of spells and equipment. Arcana's major downfall, however, is that it requires a sizable time investment and a degree of patience to work through to the story's conclusion. Graphics: 7 The dungeons and monsters all feature well done graphics with smooth color, making good use of perspective to give the appearance of 3D walls and floors. Sound: 8 The musical score and sound effects accentuate the mood and feel of the story's progression well, and the quality is up to the SNES' high standard. Gameplay: 6 While the turn based combat fits well with the pace of the game, it still feels somehow halting and a little bland. The spell selection is based entirely around elemental resistances and damage, so it can be a little disorienting at first. While the story would naturally be ruined should an important character die, it gives the monsters the advantage in that they can (and will) focus-fire the least protected party member and leave you scrambling to heal him/her. Overall: 7 If you're willing to sink some time into an interesting classic adventure with colorful, endearing characters (in spite of a couple shortcomings) then Arcana is certainly worth your attention. |
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| Reviewer: Icemoon | Date: Jun 29, 2001 |
| Honestly I loved this game. I've been playing it off and on for years and I still find myself going back to it to get a dose of something different. The music was wonderful, the character art was good. It can get a bit confusing at times because some of the areas(caves, temblpes, etc.) were hard to navigate, but hey thats the challenge of the game. Being a long time player and fan of this game I give it 2 thumbs up, but its one of those games that after finishing you walk away from for a bit because if you play it to often you'll lose the enjoyment that it can give you. I say grab it, its a keeper. |
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| Reviewer: Sebastian | Date: Jun 22, 2001 |
| This is NOT a card RPG. if you've played Final Fantasy 8 or 9, you know their card games. This game is NOTHING like that. Don't be fooled. The reason everything is on a card is the theme of the game. Or didn't you notice the title which refers to Tarot cards. And I believe it adds a nice change to the usual RPGs of the times. And don't think that the cars are static. When in non-combat mode, they show the portrait of the character. Then when in combat they change to show the entire character in a battle-ready position. The cards also show action - when someone attacks, the character swings their weapon. It's the only RPG from HAL America (shame...) but it's very unique. Unfortunately, no one took notice. The artwork is in my opinion VERY good. C'mon... what do you want? This is SNES! The only reason I haven't given it a ""10"" is because of the bland dungeon areas. Although the athmosphere combined with the music is excellent, you sometimes feel as if you've lost any sense of direction or place. The music is addicting and the gameplay is pretty straight forward. You have basic attacks, magic attacks, card-magic attacks, and items. There are also numerous other options such as CALL which allows you to switch the element spirit you're currently using. Each element spirit acts as an additional party member and can cast numerous spells. |
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