Review

Star Ocean:The Second Story is yet another great RPG. It's the kind that really has the spunk needed in RPGs but occasionally gets overlooked by some who think that only 3D games are worth playing. You choose between two characters in the beginning, Claude and Rena. The character's you meet as well as the events that take place will depend on who you chose. Star Ocean 2 has the neatest battle system I've ever seen. You can actually move around and attack, launch Killer Moves, or cast magic. Battles are very fast paced and actually worth participating in (I've never been bored in a battle). The enemies are very challenging and quite smart. And in this game you can raise your levels past 100! Infact, the final level that can be achieved is 255. This game not only has a cool battle system but very loveable characters too. You can have up to 8 (out of 12) characters in your party. But certain things must be met before you can recruit them, like you can't recruit Ashton if you want to recruit Opera or you can only recruit Dias if you're playing as Rena. And there are over 80 endings which gives this game great replay value. Star Ocean:The Second Story has an Emotion System, which means that your characters have a certian emotional value towards one another. You can increase their emotional value towards one another by engaging in Private Actions (press the square button before entering a town and your main character will split from the rest of the party) or by aiding each other in battle(heal them, fight side by side, etc.). Their feelings about each other determines what ending each character get and how they react in battle. My only (slight) complaints are the translation and story. The story is somethat simple and could've used more work while the dialoge between characters may confuse you at time with it's odd phrasings.