The Last Remnant Review: A Surprise In Disguise ?
Simon Says after previous failures in Squares Enix's side projects, when I approached The Last Remnant I did not have high hopes. Through initial reviews I was even more sceptical due to the hindering technical issues like texture pop ins and an erratic frame rate reoccurring in reviews. However I believed due to the innovative battle system and the weight of the development team, I would block out these damning reviews and check it out. I am very glad that I did this as I think this JRPG has a lot of merit. Yes there is an abysmal frame rate when in combat and the texture pop ins are evident, however these are just as bad as the pop ins in the original gears of war. If you can over look these minor errors and other little annoyance like animations of the main characters outside of combat, then The Last Remnant is a diamond in the rough. The battle system is an evolution of the classic combat system that was present in Final Fantasy 7. The simplification has made the fights easier and the micro management of each union easier to access. The only thing that could of helped is a tutorial that explained the Union system that is standard in most Square Enix games. The main draw of this game in my opinion is the story, after playing Lost Odyssey I was let down by the story, due to a poor implementation by MistWalker of the character Kaim at the outset. This story even though appears quite simply at the beginning has more drive and direction than other JRPG's on the 360 system. The initial drive to find your sister and the subtle mystery behind the Remnants(powerful artefacts that hold immense power scattered all over the world) is widened into a much more wider conflict. Even though this is common in JRPG's I still find this plot intriguing and addictive. The unique art direction that has made Square Enix famous, is still present and looks amazing when the textures finally pop in. The only draw back of the is the voice acting, most games that transfer from have poor voice acting present and this is no exception. I have not completed this game yet and am only about 20 hours into game, but have read that it is about 50 hours long. providing a in-depth game and bang for your buck.
The game is amazing and addictive, even though there is a learning curve and technical issues, it is worth the compromise. Even though I have not committed enough time to finish the game I believe that if you can look past the minor issues the pay off is immense, from the immersive world to experimental battle system, the game is well worth at least a rent before you get hooked and purchase this game. However if you are not a JRPG fan then this will not turn you and I would stay clear of it because it does not stray far enough to draw in any other crowd except the die hard fans.
I would give it a *** stars
Will give it more if they update it soon!!
