This game sucked ass. I was so disappointed. 7/10 is a pretty good overall score. I would give it a 4/10 at best. I hated it.
Infinite Undiscovery Review
Game Review | May 31, 2013 11:04 am
Subgenre: Real-time/JRPG
Players: 1
Developer: tri-Ace
Publisher: Square Enix
Released: September 2, 2008
ESRB Rating: T for Teen (Mild Language, Use of Alcohol, Mild Blood, Suggestive Themes, Violence )
Infinite Undiscovery is another Square-Enix stab at greatness in the JRPG genre. While at first glance you might write it off as "Star Ocean" without Sci-fi , you would only be half right. This game is a solid attempt to combine all of the companies strengths and introduce interesting new idea's. Unfortunately most of these innovations fall flat. But we will get to that further in.
First let's examine the hero of our story. Capell the "Soother". Of whom I feel is one of the games overall strengths. He's not the silent badass or the punk kid itching to prove himself that your accustomed to. He's very much a regular guy who get's swept up in the stories events. He's not overly brave, heroic or even leading man material. He just looks like the man who embodies those characteristics and that's a big part of the plot. In fact most of the characters are surprisingly well written and break out of their stereotypical molds during the journey. I say most because for every good character the game tosses 2-3 bad ones into your group for no apparent reason. 18 in all to be exact and in case you were wondering they do NOT manage their own inventory. The enemies are fairly threatening (For the most part) and serve their purpose well. The plot as a whole while not terribly original is equally well done and provides some interesting twists and turns if you can stick with it long enough. It has a good blend of drama and comedy without overloading you with either. The campaign is also extremely linear and what little else their is to do will no doubt take a back seat to your curiosity.
The gameplay mechanics are nothing out of the ordinary. If you have played Star Oceans "Real time" style you will gave a good handle on it. It's fun and challenging but like most of the game it tries to innovate an already proven recipe and thus it comes with it's own laundry list of problems. Your allies do not have the best supporting AI and seem to be fighting underwater. You also can't switch from Capell to someone else. They help you but at their own pace. Which is to say a snails pace. Which leads me to one of my other points. As it's real time one would think you can access your menu's in a suspended state. WRONG. Need a potion? Better run like hell or hide behind something then fumble through the menu's quick because enemies don't follow the Power Ranger or Dragon Ball Z code of waiting patiently for you to buff.
In conclusion this is a game that simply never figures out what it wants to be. It's long, difficult and rewarding but not without it's problems. Whether the journey is worth it or not is up to you!
Graphics: 7/10 - Competent but inconsistent. In need of polish.
Sound: 7.5/10 - The score is the one thing they polished to a shine. Extremely poor voice acting tarnishes this somewhat.
Gameplay: 8/10 - The right combination of difficulty and fun. Some poor mechanical decisions again tarnish an otherwise bright spot.
Replayability: 6/10 - Little to no reason to replay beyond a higher difficulty. Linear campaign with uninspired side quests...well you already know.
Overall: 7/10
Rating: 7.0 of 10
Reviewed: Infinite Undiscovery™
Keywords: None
