Grandia

Grandia is one amazing RPG. It takes what's considered traditional & just puts it's own twist on things. Such as the Magic/Moves System. Similar to the 'Secret of Mana' for the SNES, you must use a spell to build it's level. Once your spells reach certain levels they can combine or create new moves. The same applies for your weapons letting you perform all sorts of crazy attacks. If anything it gives you a reason to use the spells & keeps the combat interesting. Each town is filled with little trinkets & items that your character can mess around with. Such as knocking over pots to teasing giant turtles. The cities are huge & are inhabited by many citizens. Each one who has several different things to say & who help flesh out this imaginary world. Now that's what I call interaction & immersion. The story is quite an epic that brings the adventureres to many places across the globe. And that's not mentioning some of hidden areas such as the Haunted Mansion that you can romp through (if you want to). You're introduced to many characters & you even get to see a cherrished relationship develop between Justin (the main hero, you) & Feena (a famous adventurer). Not only that, but Feena's sister Leen is on the bad guy's side. What will become of this great cast must be seen. And the ending alone is definitely worth the price of admission. My only complaint is that the game tends to slowdown alot, but you get used to it & it doesn't effect battling. And the main theme sounds like it's straight out of Buck Rogers. At least the rest of the soundtrack is pretty good. As in it's name everything in Grandia is quite grand. This game is loads of fun & any person who likes the RPG genre will definitely want to check this title out for themselves. Final Fantasy VIII can't even touch this one. So Enjoy!

Overall 9.0