After redefining the goal of dungeon-crawlers with Dark Cloud/Chronicle, Level-5 proved that they could also be ambitious storytellers with Rogue Galaxy, a space opera adventure that brings their narrative side to the forefront. In the process - however, their old structure virtually transformed into a regular JRPG. On the gameplay level, DC2's dual-wielding hack 'n' slash is squeezed into brief conventional encounters here, while new additions like stamina (that function more like magazines in a shooter game), Secret of Mana's control-swap and A.I.-piloted allies were (somewhat questionable) attempts at diversifying combat's pace and movesets. On the systems level, they still display a knack for elaborate minigames (crafting & monster raising this time), but their takes on weapon synthesis (in place of spectrumize) and character skill trees (that employ the item requirements of Build-Ups) are relatively restrained. Compared to the versatile, eclectic dungeoneering of before, Level-5's updated brand of ARPG is a tad more compromised with the PS2 canon, perfecting their production skills at the cost of complexity, even though their signature loot-farming is still alive and well.
And sure enough, the project excels above all in the visuals. Its artstyle not only continues the lessons learned with DQVIII but also acquired a stronger identity from this change of scenery: Armed with vibrant graphics and lengthy cinematics, they depict a classic sci-fi universe in which Dark Cloud's enthusiastic, contagious (and certainly more sincere-feeling than the average) spirit could fully shine.
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Revisited this again, it's not offensive it's just bland as hell. Very impressive in a lot of ways, high production values, impressive for the hardware. Just didn't age terribly well and definitely doesn't stand out in an already crowded, excellent field of PS2 JRPG classics
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