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 enlarge | From: Square Enix
Category: Video Games
Buy Used: $11.64
New (8) Used (14) Collectible (2) from $11.64
Avg. Customer Rating:  42 reviews
Sales Rank: 16044
Platform: Playstation2
ESRB: Teen
Media: Video Game
Age: 12 - 20 years
Operating System: Playstation 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
UPC: 695981100148
EAN: 0695981100148
ASIN: B00007KQE8
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 good game but... August 9, 2005
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
this overall was a great game but with the constantly the same keys and holding times this game got old fast.and the finial boss i think they could have made his a little harder with all that health and so much power. if you are thinking of buying this game i recomemd that you buy the book because there is alot stuff the do and you will not find it by yourself.
Largely Disappointing May 15, 2005
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
Probably one of the biggest surprises I've ever enjoyed during my years in front of a video game console came when I first tried my hand at an unsuspecting little package dubbed Star Ocean: The Second Story. This old, overlooked two-disc pack for the PSone had been literally gathering dust on my shelf for years before I bothered to even test it out, and I suppose that complete lack of any kind of previous expectation was a big part of why I was so totally impressed and engulfed by what I found within the game itself. Unfortunately, by overwhelming me so effectively in its first American offering, my expectations for the future of the Star Ocean franchise went through the roof. In a way, it's funny; I loved the precursor because I expected nothing of it and received everything I ever could've wanted, and then subconsciously built up the sequel to the point that nothing it could muster would ever be enough to appease me.
To start with, the story is beyond terrible and the characters are even worse. When I first met Fayt and Sophia, the two leads, I couldn't help but grimace. They're so paper-thin, so incredibly dull and intelligence-insultingly bland, I initially mistook them for a heavy-handed satire of the role playing genre in general. This is, honest to god, the most uninspiring cast I've seen since console RPGs were just gaining their footing in Final Fantasy I back on the NES. They'll say and do things that'll just make you stare blankly for a few seconds and then explode into unrelenting laughter. Fayt, in particular, is the very epitome of a stereotype. He has no flaws, and as a result he makes an incredibly boring leader. The characters seem so out of touch with reality that nothing ever seems to carry the kind of magnitude you'd hope for, even when entire worlds are exploding and individual races are being completely wiped from existence. By the time the third act comes around, bringing with it the one really interesting revelation in the storyline, you're forty hours in and have cemented your opinion of the game as a whole. Before that, it's cliche after cliche, with absolutely no originality thrown in to keep things halfway interesting.
Like its predicessor, TtEoT's gameplay is its greatest triumph. The battles have remained every bit as enjoyable and strategically brilliant as I remembered, and the controls are incredibly easy to comprehend. You'll have, at most, three characters in your party at any one time (which is a major gripe I've had with the RPG genre in general for years now... why would six people stand by and watch their three buddies struggle in a fight with monsters, rather than joining in and cleaning house?) and they're all performing individual actions at the same time, to say nothing of the monsters on the other side of the battlefield. At a glance it would appear to be mildly organized chaos, but in action it's really pretty simple. Before, after and during the battle, you can set a specific attack style for the characters you won't be directly controlling, so they aren't wasting all of their strength on a meaningless enemy while a tough boss fight is just around the corner. If you want your weakest character to avoid physical confrontations and concentrate on healing, it's as easy as changing a setting. Usually, two members of your party will be following these instructions at any time, while you'll be directly in control of the third. Yet, despite the seemingly-obvious directions, the computer AI will occasionally find a way to screw up. Whether they're running headfirst into an explosion with low HP or repeatedly casting heal on a teammate who doesn't need it, your comrades will generally leave a lot to be desired. I even ran into a few instances where I'd found myself single-handedly taking on half a dozen enemies while my two teammates stood off in a corner somewhere and cheered me on.
Aside from the cutscenes, this is generally a visually uninspiring game. The characters look about as stale and unexciting as they act, and the environments and spells are nothing that hasn't already been done better by a previous title. To be frank, the Sega Dreamcast could have more than likely produced graphics equal to the ones seen here, and that's a tremendous knock at this stage in the PS2's life cycle. With the PS3 peeking over the horizon, this should be the point in time when game developers are really starting to stretch Sony's aging console to the limits with amazing graphical effects, not leaning back and kicking out weak, flat displays such as this. Occasionally you'll run into an enemy or dungeon that's up to par visually with its contemporaries, but on the large I wasn't impressed. The graphical direction and wardrobe designs are solid enough, but it looks like a lot of the charm was lost in the translation from pen and paper to fully interactive three-dimensionality. As I alluded to earlier, the cutscenes are outstanding, but you'd expect that from a Square-Enix RPG.
This current-gen revisiting of developer tri-Ace's shining star feels like a hollow, emotionless shell more than it does a sequel five and a half years in the making. Rarely have I been more disappointed in a big follow-up title than I was with this one. It's strictly average, with passable graphics, weak voice acting, horrible characters and a mind-numbingly slow story killing any forward progress made by the battle system, which is still quite a blast. I feel dirty for considering this as a contemporary to The Second Story, although I'm beginning to question if even the PSone rendition was actually as good as I remember it. I don't think the ultimate goal of a sequel should be to force its fans to re-evaluate their feelings about the original.
 Nooooooooooooooooooo! January 2, 2005
4 out of 11 found this review helpful
The title of my review is a direct quote from our hero, Fayt Leingod, having one of many Star Trek moments. It's also what you should shout at anyone who suggests that you play this game.
For starters, the plot is a mishmash of video game and movie cliches (there is liberal borrowing from Star Trek and Final Fantasy), strung together without regard for rhythm or structure. There was one twist I didn't see coming, but it was ripped off from a major Hollywood blockbuster so it wasn't a huge surprise. Plus, this twist actually undercut the drama to the point where I could not care about anything that had happened or was going to happen anymore. That's when the plot stopped being vanilla and started being offensively bad.
However, a poor plot to me is annoying, but not a dealbreaker. Too bad the characters are also dull (when they aren't idiots) and the dialogue is positively maddening. It's like the writers were trying to see how many words they could use without advancing the plot, characterizing a character, or being entertaining in any way. I stopped listening to the voice acting a couple hours in, because although it is quite good for a video game, nobody had anything interesting to say.
So it's unforgiveable that the dialogue also leaves out important information. For example, at the end of disc 1, you are set loose in a city and told to go to a particular spot when you want to advance the plot. No problem. But if you just go, nothing happens. You don't even get a hint as to what you need to do to proceed. Here's a hint from me: it's totally inane.
I also disliked the battle system, although I acknowledge that some people might enjoy it. I found combat to be unresponsive and frustrating until I switched over to a strategy that was merely boring (playing as the party healer). Also, the difficulty ramps way up with every dungeon, so you'll have to spend hours leveling. This is 2004, Tri-Ace. Leveling is not challenge. It's just tedious.
There was one thing I really liked, and that was the aesthetics. The graphics are spectacular (and no slowdown or excessive load times!) and the music is very good, especially the final boss theme. It's just not enough to save the game, though.
My final verdict is that this game isn't unplayable, it just isn't fun. It's a grind. Why spend 50 bucks when you could be bored and frustrated for free?
well i expected just a little more December 25, 2004
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
well, the game is decent but thats all it will ever be. the positives are the amazing graphics. Square Enix has always been the best RPG makers. The worlds are very detailed and the characters are pretty cool.the battle system is also very cool but will take some time to get used to. But the story lacks interest, i mean i couldnt even finish the game because it was kinda boring. I mean this game is no match for the final fantasy series. It is extremly easy to get lost which is extremely annoying. It took 5 hours to find my way around this one cave thing. well like i said its decent but thats all. if you decide to buy this game you should buy a strategy guide.
I wanted to like this game but the difficulty turned me off December 22, 2004
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
The cunning new addtion which would be numeral "3", as the name suggest is finally here. The Star Ocean series has been around for quite some time, originally plotted by the Enix bit of the SquareEnix combination. The roots of this series are largely stemmed from anime and manga, Enix even had an anime series released by the name of Star Ocean EX. But just because this game is number three in the series, and even though it takes center stage in the same world; having to play the first two games isn't mandatory in order to enjoy or understand the storyline.
The intro video may just be a pre-rendered intro clip to some, but to me it set the tone for the game extremely well. This beautifully directed video gives us a flashy tour of Earth in the distant future, even some popular landmarks like the Statue of Liberty and Toyko Tower are shown in all their glory, residing in a fictitous setting. The intro so arousing pumped my blood up, giving me the impression this was going to be as exhilartaing of a game as once can be. Then...the actual game begins, with Fayt Leigod moping in a hotel with his friend Sophia, whom he constantly bickers and flirts with during the first hour or so of the game. Thankfully, the game begins to pick up some momentum and avoid falling into a total snore-chore. The hotel ship they are boarded on becomes prey to a vicious attack from a dominating empire, soon Fayt must escape, and so he seperates from Sophia riding on an escape pod. After the seperation occurs, Fayt awakes on a backwards planet with pre-medieval technology. At this point, the game really shines giving the player a chance to get aquainted with the controls and overall mechanics. Now visually
Square themselves have never been a stranger at making well-presented products and at the end of the day, Star Ocean remains one of the top tier of flashy rpgs. The games many towns, dungeouns and fields were developed in a completely 3D engine, one in which detail is taken to extreme measures, with incredible touches like desk full of books, candles and manuscripts to running waters sneaking in the rocks at the bottom of a lake. The characters too, look all good, with some really good and pleasently eye-catching designs to accompany the games' overall tone. And I must say, it's been a rarity to witness an rpg in the post-Final Fantasy X era that actually has a compelling soundtrack. Folks, the day is here when a music composer finally took note of this and composed a fine composition lifts the game during key segments. Soothing etheral tunes play joyously in the background during a walk in a forest and heart-thumping war themes will blast out your speakers during the key battles. There is a huge variety here, from grunge to well-suited Cectic...sure it isn't the most consistent soundtrack in terms of theme but who cares, the music is diverse and well-equipped.
Star Ocean's battle system follows the same guidelines set forth by earlier incarnations of the series --battles are completely real-time, you can switch your chosen character on the fly. Attacks are seperated into two sets, strong and weak attacks and there are even some special moves included as well which can be accessed by holding down the X and O buttons. Like Namco's very own Tales of Symphonia, you are given a set of tactical modes to place your uncontrolled characters in. You can have the computer make your characters attack conservatively, using up their Fury or MP only when really needed or you can make them defend only and heal. Unlike Namco's wonder gem, the A.I. isn't where it should be at, I found many times the computer blindly made my character run right into danger or the computer refused to make my character heal even when I was at a low amount of HP. The thing is, this game will spawn to sets of gamers, those who will love the real-time battle system and those who hate it, I fall into the second category since I died on many occassions as a result of poor judgement by the computer. But on the games' defence needless to say, it is a step above from the dismal failure of Star Ocean 2.
Star Ocean Till the End of Time is a great rpg at the end of the day, the story does drip into saggy territory as a result of wishy-washy translations work that took place. Jokes that may have worked in the Japanese version fail here, and the wording becomes in sight a little shoddy in certain parts. The story doesn't dive into new territory and I would've better appreciated had the game took place in more futuristic destinations than the low-tech locations full of swords and socery. Okay, so it works fine for the most part in some places but with that introduction enthralling in a fashion that it does, I was mislead. Though I wouldn't exclaim that nuisance too much, in the then this game works effectively. It looks pretty, has a very good soundtrack, characters that are likeable and it spans well over 60 hours on two dual-layer DVDs. Any rpger should give it a shot.
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