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Hungry for an Action RPG? Me too. At least I was until I filled up on SEGA’s Shining Force EXA, the latest in a series spanning more than 15 years and countless hours of enjoyment. There are still other games in the Shining universe being made, such as 2004’s Shining Tears and the just released *in Japan* Shining Wind. A huge improvement on Tears, and an absolutely gorgeous looking action RPG (cough…US release please…cough).
But we’re not talking about the collection as a whole (for that, checkout Sega-16.com’s History of: The Shining Series). We’re talking about the Force games—highly addictive grid-based juggernauts of SEGA’s better years. While I will go on to explain how much I enjoyed this typical yet satisfying hack ‘n slash adventure, those holding onto that baggage need to throw it in the nearest garbage can. The glory days of Shining Force are far, far behind us. Comparing EXA its predecessors on the Genesis, Sega CD, Saturn, etc., will only result in complete and utter disappointment.
2005’s Shining Force NEO set the stage for a new experience. Moving to real-time hack 'n slash style gameplay and more realistic graphics, the adventure taxed your thumbs more than your brain, though Shining Force was never one to demand heavy strategic thinking. NEO was fun and addictive, but it’s a wonder why the Force name carried over. EXA is built upon the same foundation, offering hordes of enemies, tons of side areas to explore, and 2 playable main characters. It’s also full of missed chances.
It's a fun, mindless romp through thousands of enemies.
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The beauty of EXA is how open it is. Though the story moves in chapters, you're able to explore the land at your pace, often facing enemies meant for much later. For the power-leveler, this is a welcomed treat. Since killing enemies and breaking boxes yield Mythril, EXP, gold, and items, it’s fun to beef up your party for hours on end.
The ugliness is in the presentation. Sound effects and music are uninspiring. If you’ve ever listened to the audio in Shining Force CD, then imagine the complete opposite. While the voice acting…oh the voice acting! I really have no idea why more companies cannot just bring over the Japanese audio, subtitle it, and be done with it. They complain about small localization budgets, we complain about terrible dubs, so save some money and leave it as is. No one who plays RPGs is going to pass up a game because the audio isn't in English. Character portraits have pixelated edges, cut-scenes are of the generic cell-shaded type, and while some may like this, I for one do not feel cell-shaded is the new 2D. There’s also slowdown and choppy framerate issues once the screen fills with enemies. Though this is one 40+ hour adventure worth taking, it’s disappointing there isn't more polish in the final product, especially considering this is a Shining Force game.
The story is generic, but most RPG stories are. Young adventurer Toma becomes proprietor of a rather large and powerful fortress. His goal is to restore peace to the land (how noble). There’s also Cyrille, a magician who misunderstands Toma and has trouble expressing herself (awww). Both are playable: Toma uses 1- and 2-handed weapons and Cyrille uses books with magic attacks and crossbows. As one would expect of a Shining Force game, you can also take support characters of varying races into combat. Most of the time you’ll be jamming on one or two buttons as you mow through enemies. There are simple combos that end in devastating charge attacks, which can be leveled up, and essential for clearing out the optional arena’s you’ll find along the way.
The Mythril I mentioned earlier can be used to enhance Toma and Cyrille. This is another aspect that makes level grinding so satisfying, especially since there are some hard side creatures to beat. It can also be given to the blacksmith to enhance his skills so that he can make your items more powerful. As the story progresses, the fortress will need to be defended. You can assign robots to handle some of the work, but it falls on the person you aren’t currently using in the field. One way to aid your defense is to imbue items with special skills earned during the game, often from defeating optional bosses. You can also use the fortress cannon to take out big enemies and to clear obstacles on your quest.
I tend to fawn over games that don’t deserve such praise. I admit that Shining Tears is one such instance where I loved the experience enough to overlook its many flaws. I consider EXA much the same, though I prefer the super-deformed look of Tears and Wind. It's a fun, mindless romp through thousands of enemies. Being able to switch between Cyrille and Toma even adds much needed variety to the game. With all the character customizations and items; arenas, training dungeon, and other explorable areas; as well as all the things you can do in the fortress, there's plenty to be excited about. Don’t expect an engrossing adventure, and you won't be as disappointed.
It appears as if the Shining universe will continue to expand, and I'm thankful for that. If NEO et al. are any indication, there's still hope that SEGA will again stumble upon enough inspiration to raise the legacy from average to outstanding. Let's hope that Shining Wind gets a domestic release and that the next installment in the Force series earns the full treatment it deserves, saving a little hope that it will return to its roots.
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