![]() That doesn't keep Ephemeral Fantasia from being an almost universally unenjoyable game. I can even appreciate it the concept of melding a free-roaming world with traditional RPG elements is intriguing, and should definitely be explored more in the future. I can see where Konami was going with Ephemeral Fantasia. I'd comment on the voice acting, but there isn't any considering the translation, though, that may be a good thing. ![]() The sound effects are strictly standard RPG fare, with clangs and booms and swirly-whirls that will do absolutely nothing for you. Of course, the audio quality depends quite a bit on your skill as a lutist, so be forewarned. A notable exception to the mediocre music is the guitar solos that you get to play yourself, which range from good to fantastic. The pumped-up battle theme is nice enough, but it doesn't have quite the same amount of pull as many other themes from the genre. The tunes you'll hear while you wander around are passable, but they're not particularly memorable. Add to all of this a bad case of both jaggies and polygonal seams and you've got a game that, while you can see the potential, never really gets off the ground in the visuals department. And even Mouse and crew look a little strange, as their facial textures never seem to be quite right. The character models fare slightly better, but the enemies are oftentimes cartoonish in their simplicity. The world is blocky and nondescript, with muddy textures and a camera that takes way too long to pan around the screen. Let's hope the adventures of Mouse will bring interest into this game, as without a little pizzazz, Reiselied will probably end up as an embarrassment compared to any other current titles on the PS2.I'm not entirely sure just where Ephemeral Fantasia's graphical design got started, but it's fairly evident that it wasn't on the PS2. Reiselied starts off with a lot of disappointing factors, but may have the storyline and charm to overcome its initial downfalls. Hopefully, as the game progresses further, there will be better battles. The basic strategy of using weapons, magic spells, items, and skills is present, but nothing exciting or new has happened yet. Aside from the issues with the camera angles, the enemy monsters are not scary or even cool looking they just look like something from a children's book. So far the battles have been a big disappointment. ![]() This is a fairly ridiculous addition, and it ends up being nothing more than a way for Konami to tie the game into its successful (in Japan) Bemani series. Reiselied has a minigame that lets you play tunes in a fashion similar to Guitar Freaks. An odd addition to the game, and perhaps a silly marketing tie-in, is the game's compatibility with Konami's Guitar Freaks controller. The music and sound effects are nothing big, and the absence of voice-overs makes the game feel quite silent. Although the game tries to present the battles in a cinematic way (à la Final Fantasy), for the most part, the camera just revolves around the character, which makes you dizzy after a while. On the same topic, the camera angles for the battle scenes are not pleasing to the eye. There are several camera angles you can choose from when walking in the field map, but you have to rely on the top view for walking around town (perhaps to keep you from getting lost in the unmemorable streets) and change it back to the quarter view to talk with villagers and such. When you come to the ocean, you'll find that it's just a plain blue mat, without any motion or distinctive waves at all. The backgrounds are particularly drab and plain - you'll find that the towns are laid out in simple rows of houses, as if they were drawn on graph paper. The character polygons are well made, but nothing else lives up to PS2 standards. A talking guitar named Pachimo accompanies him. You take the role of a bard named Mouse who has been invited to the island of Pandureu to play for a royal wedding. Reiselied: Ephemeral Fantasia is the first role-playing title developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo.
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