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For fans of strategy role-playing games, the PlayStation era was a damned good one. In 2001, Altus released Hoshigami, a title that desperately wanted to join the ranks of Front Mission 3, Vandal Hearts, and Final Fantasy Tactics, but just couldn’t live up to the hype. A clunky menu system combined with balance issues, a harder-than-usual difficulty, and sluggish pacing, quickly overshadowed the unique elements of the game. Fast forward to 2007 and Hoshigami is back in a pint-sized, remixed version, and is once again trying to show the world that it is a worthy addition to the pantheon of SRPGs.
Hoshigami excels in one area: the RAP System, an innovative feature that controls all aspects of combat. Characters get a certain amount of points each turn for movement, attacking, using items, and casting magic. The more actions per turn, the longer it will take for your next turn. It’s a simple concept but one that will help you control not only the flow of combat, but the longevity of your allies. In normal and hard difficulties, dead characters stay dead unless you resurrect them before completing the battle in which they died. RAP mastery is also essential for pulling off an attack session, where you pinball an enemy from ally to ally, increasing damage and earning additional items upon completion. While it’s a cool idea, setup is time-consuming, execution is not guaranteed, and Coinfeigms can do a lot more damage with much less work.
The magic system of Hoshigami, Coinfeigms are both useful and game-breaking. They out-range archers, anyone can equip them, and they cannot be dodged. Sounds pretty good. How do I sign up? Choose a coin, buy or find a bunch of seals, and engrave the coin with them until it’s maxed out. Enemies use this tactic as well, and early on they can destroy your party. The only way to keep ahead of the curve, especially on hard mode, is to grind, grind, and grind some more in towers of trial scattered around the map. Another essential component of the game is aligning with deities, such as Amu (fire-based) or Ema (earth-based). Alignment affects proficiency with weapons and magic, and the skills learned.
After revisiting the floating island of Mardias and again joining Fazz on his quest, it's clear that Hoshigami Remix fails to engage on the simplest level, something a complete remake would have a better chance of remedying. Much care was taken in providing a top-notch conversion to the DS. Sprites are clean, music is solid, and the selectable difficulty and streamlined menus are a step in the right direction. The story is anything but exemplary, but that’s ok. Most RPGs follow this example. The problem is that neither the enhancements nor the ambitious RAP System make combat very fun. With no way to tweak battle speed or to turn off battle animations, combat is slower and more repetitive than it needs to be. There’s also no mid-battle save option. There should never be a point in an SRPG where leveling up becomes a chore, and such is the case with Hoshigami. This is one average 50+ hour adventure, worthy of a nod for its unique mechanics and easily dismissed for everything else.
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