I just love grinding my levels until enemies are worth one experience point so I can progress through the game. Strategy games like Shining Force have this addicting factor (for me) that is hard to describe. Something strange: the “demon breath” spell sound like it is coming outside a machine. You can even hear the “woosh” sound from arrows and lances being thrown. Inside the game sound effects are better than SF II, especially the fire spell – it actually sound like fireballs raining from the sky rather than rocks falling on a hard surface. At the end of the third book you can hear “Simone’s” voice too, although I found it annoying. In the introduction and conclusion you hear a male narrator with a very deep, solemn voice who reads the text on-screen. Also, boss battle themes and fields vary depending on the book, which was a nice touch. They are also very appropriate one underground battle theme sound very mysterious and has some harp, the battle in the tavern (book 3) has an interesting jazzy beat and a few foes in book 3 have an interesting “Eastern” track when they fight you. However they involve genuine-sounding instruments some of them (the battle themes, especially) even sound like the SF II tracks played with real instruments. True, the tracks are not numerous (and limited by the fewer actions you can do). Wow! Who would have thought that Sega could produce such high-quality music? Unless you use a guide, you will find the hidden characters only by pure luck… Instead you have the (almost) impossible task to get them during your battles. I found it very disappointing as SF was an interesting game because of everything you have to explore to find new characters and special objects. You are either in a dialogue (where you can not control your characters), in a “camp” limited to the priest helping you (Lowe, Mayfair or Sarah) and the shop or in a battlefield. Why am I rating the graphics so low then? Because outside the battlefield you have no power to explore anywhere, whatsoever. This also means that the battle backgrounds are more varied, which is always pleasing to the eye. But you also have the outside of a mansion, a tavern, a dojo and a nice garden (and a museum in the fourth book). Of course, you have the classical outside field, the cave with stalactites and villages. The battlefields are also more varied, especially in the third book. Mages are also well-drawn and their promoted version on the battlefield looks very elaborate the ladies have a nice haircut! Speaking of the field all characters, despite their short size, are drawn better and more clearly than preceding games. The sword wielder’s clothing are very beautiful, especially when they get promoted (they are in an armor that is finely detailed). They are adults (or at least late teens) so they are taller and they are more detailed than both SF on the Genesis. Sword wielders have a more natural swing (Deanna has it better, though), centaurs wield their weapons as jousting knights did (and they move more than in SF II), axe wielders have a more “direct” swing (they go right at their opponent rather than slowly jump up in the air) and they all move in some way, be it the centaurs moving a leg or the sword wielders and the mages having their capes float.Ĭharacters are also drawn more clearly. Even inside the battles characters seem to move better. I consider SF CD as “Shining Force I with Shining Force II capabilities.” Indeed, the graphics are a very big improvement from the first opus.įirst, characters on the battlefield move more naturally, and so do the enemies – sometimes quicker than what the screen can follow. NOTE THAT THE REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS. While the games are supposed to be linked together in some way, Shining Force CD actually makes an explicit link to Shining Force I, taking place 20 years after it. The Shining series is the flagship tactical RPG of the 16-bit era (and even beyond, for Sega). Shining Force CD Review by: janus - 9.2/10 Shining Force CD: a Good, Challenging game
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