Treasure of the Rudras

Treasure of the Rudras - Squaresoft's last project for the SNES, appropriately played like a 'greatest hits' of their past experiments, assembling concepts not only from Final Fantasy (row-based sideview combat, personal subplots) but also from Live A Live (multiple routes tackled in almost any order, although this time reduced to four) and Trials of Mana (intersecting storylines). What makes this portfolio stand out is the Enscribe function; Ars Magica-like spellmaking achieved by entering names into the magic menu, their power, element and range determined by a combination of keywords learned from around the world. Combat - however, fails to exploit its potential, often resorting to type-matching during boss fights instead (i.e. cast the element opposite of whatever they're using while wearing the appropriate armor). In the meantime, a severe lack of unit/party-building options and lightweight versions of Square's usual merits (story beats, dialogue and humor) tend to expose their usual flaws (simplistic dungeons & progression). Gameplay marks a step forward in terms of animations & pacing, and their town designs remain top-notch, but overall this is unusually conventional by their standards, trying in vain to impose a meaningful identity despite 30 hours of play.