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The Last Remnant Review

Game Review | May 27, 2013 3:20 pm
Genre: RPG
Subgenre: Turn-based/JRPG
Players: 1
Developer: Square Enix Product Development Division 2
Publisher: Square Enix
Released: November 20th, 2008
ESRB Rating: M for Mature (blood, language, suggestive themes, violence)
This is not your typical JRPG experience. While the characters, story and presentation certainly fit the mold, the outlandish battle system will leave you scratching your head. In short, The Last Remnant is a roller coaster of mixed emotions and is not easily graded unless you dive in head first. At times the visuals are quite good but they are constantly thwarted by choppy framerates and inexcusable texture issues.

After your eyes adjust to the inconsistencies of the graphics you are free to explore the game's characters and plot. Unfortunately the protagonist "Rush Sykes" is quite plain and nauseatingly annoying. Even with extremely talented voice acting from Johnny Yong Bosch (of Bleach fame), bad writing hinders him at every turn. When he's not being a stereotypical punk kid he is simply out-shined by the surprisingly good supporting characters. From the diverse cast of generals who make up the core of your army to the menacing villains, all have a great look and competent voice acting. That being said, the voice acting is definitely under-utilized the majority of the game.

The plot of the game is both extremely cliche and unoriginal. It does however have its moments once certain events unfold mostly due to the colorful characters you get to meet. Characters maintain their own inventory, crafting is a absolute necessity rather than a glorified hobby and the battle system is one of the kind. Whether that is a good or bad thing is purely based on your love of gambling and surprise. Yes the battle system is extremely randomized. The normal options of "Attack/Defend/Skills" are replaced by randomly generated options based on the position and skills of your army. This can make the same battle impossible or extremely easy depending upon your luck.

Another anomaly is this JRPG discourages grinding out levels. Enemies not only level to your strength they have more tactical freedom as they can select what skills to use. Bosses also benefit from this as you can never out-level them without risking they in turn become too powerful, and some individual bosses can become "game breakers," effectively making your over-preparation your downfall. This cruel system is somewhat improved upon on the PC version where you can fill out the spots in your army with powerful generals; however, on console you're forced to mainly use generic soldiers.

There is also plenty to do beyond the main story for those who are so inclined to explore everything the game has to offer. Side quests, monster hunting and ingredient gathering are all here in full force. I especially enjoyed the character specific side quests that unlock under special conditions. In conclusion, this is not a game for everyone but might be a hidden gem for the hardcore RPG gamer looking for a huge challenge.
The breaks...

Graphics:7/10 - Poor framerates and texture issues will plague otherwise good character models and environments.

Sound: 8.5/10 - Good voice acting and sound effects. The score can be repetitive though.

Gameplay: 7/10 - Once you understand some of the flaws and pitfalls of the battle system it can be quite rewarding. Not for the faint of heart.

Replayability: 6/10 - Not many reasons to replay but countless characters and strategies can make it interesting each time.

Overall: 7.5/10
Rating: 7.5 of 10
Reviewed: The Last Remnant™
Keywords: None

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Re: The Last Remnant Review
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This seems just about right... This game is the first rpg I've ever rage quit over... :/
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never played it, this review suggest i probably won't ever touch it.
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Quote by Kat:


This seems just about right... This game is the first rpg I've ever rage quit over... :/



It's actually quite good on the PC. But then again they actually fix things on PC. Most of the graphical issues get tweaked and they let you actually use the story characters. I would not recommend this game without a stern warning attached.
Re: Re: The Last Remnant Review
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Quote by The Snapple Cap:


never played it, this review suggest i probably won't ever touch it.


Same here. This was on my backlist for a long time but it sounds like my time would be better spent on other games. Like Yaris.
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I loved this game, It def. does take some getting used to but its a great story and a bit of a challenge
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One thing that sets this game apart is the extreme mixed reactions. You either find it endearing in some masochistic fashion or you outright loath it.
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I have this sitting in my drawer, probably won't get around to playing it again though, I don't remember caring for it too much.
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Quote by Circus:


I have this sitting in my drawer, probably won't get around to playing it again though, I don't remember caring for it too much.



I love to grind in JRPGs. This game lures you into farming enemies for materials, drops and selling their corpses for quick loot. Unfortunately fighting raises your battle rating and if it gets high enough you completely ****ed. Especially at the "Hells Gate" boss. I absolutely loved the game world, it's so sad they f'd up the battle system with this one worthless gimmick.

So my lasting impression is a potential franchise for Square-Enix self destructed itself due to lack of polish and foresight.
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I tried it and didn't like it at all.

I am certainly glad that I tried it on another profile, otherwise I would have had an achievement or 2 unlocked on my main profile forcing me to go back and actually try to bring my completion average up.

Good review and good warning.
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