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Took awile to get into it just to get let down.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: August 03, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I had to restart this game twice. the first time it just had trouble holding my interest. While I really liked the characters, I could read what was going to happen and nothing was very enjoyable. I also HATE games where a Main character dies that had you invested into the story to begin with. I felt that after all the game play spent the ending was a real let down. Did not match the story you watched unfold in my opinion. While the background story was great, they lost it 3/4 through.
The fighting style was new and I did enjoy getting into the groove of it. Problem was I didn't even know what Counter Mode was until the end of the game and by then it was difficult to get the flow when I needed it NOW. This could have been a great game but too many different flaws were found that brought it dowm.

disappointed

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: June 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

First the good points about this game it is visually stunning for the most part. I think the female caracters could use a down size is the breast department other then that the scenery was stunning.
I started playing this game and got frustrated about 4 hours into it the battle system pretty much sucks along with a few flaws with the camera system and not being able to see the enemys at all times. However I decided to try the game again and was actually kind of getting the hang of it until about 20 hours into it I hit a fatal bug, in order to advance the game you have to fight the invisible boss on the water isle and thats where the flaw comes into place the only thing I could do was walk right thru him and continue on to the other islands which needless to say your not suppose to be able to do. Which put an end to the game rather quickly. If you are thinking of getting the game keep this bug in mind because if it happens the only thing the game will leave you with is extremley frustated and out 50 bucks.

Visually arresting and unique

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: June 06, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I am almost finished with this game, and am finding it a bit difficult as I near its end. What I love about this game would be its visually arresting style, as well as the character designs and the storyline. I like the technical aspect of the game interesting as well, especially the different elements that come into play, and how each character corresponds to the different elements. There is something unique and different about this game that sets it apart from everything else out there.

Most. Annoying. Combat. System. Ever.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 21, 2007
Author: Amazon User

My mother taught me that if I didn't have anything nice to say, then I shouldn't say anything. Consequently, I don't generally trouble myself to write negative reviews.

However, to have a product make such an inspiring promise, and then not keep it is annoying beyond measure. I had high hopes for this title, and I generally don't plunk money down on rubbish games. This time, I was fooled.

The booklet that comes with the game is a neat touch, and obviates the need to go and buy one of the "How To" guides from Brady Games or whoever, and also contains a nice selection of gorgeous artwork.

The story of the game itself (the central reason to buy an RPG) is pretty standard. I was really hoping for more originality there.

But what did my interest in this game in was the exceedingly clunky combat system, which requires you to position characters and attack using a complicated timing/button mashing graphic that appears on screen. One mistake, and you not only fluff your attack, causing you to sit there in harm's way in a slightly foolish manner, but you burn up your initiative, eventually compelling you to sit through an enemy beating the snot out of you while you wait to make a move again. If not for this feature, then it may possibly have been a more engaging product. As it was, I gave up in disgust after a while.

Gorgeous graphics, but gorgeous graphics alone do not make a good game.

big disappointment

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: November 08, 2006
Author: Amazon User

While the big-breasted women didn't offend me, it didn't excite me either. I still found the game to be a rather big disappointment.

Having only one character fight at a time was a big disaster. It makes the game feel old and unappealing.

Many times the enemies appear to be hidden when you're inside a dungeon. I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. The run button practically doesn't exist because the second you run, an enemy will find and kill you.

You might want to look for another RPG because this one didn't work for me.

Help, my thumb is caught in the controller.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 12 / 15
Date: June 25, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Last year, I bought tears of blood and played about one third of the way through it before running into a bug when the game allowed me to do several things out of sequence. I wasn't all that thrilled with the game and put it aside for some day when I would feel more motivated. It only took a year for me to come back, invest some 80 hours in game play to realize that not only was I not thrilled, but I disliked it intensely.

Let's start out with the good things. The general level of animation and graphics is very good. Although there is not nearly as much CGI as the trailer promised. The story, which is about a long conflict between humans and elf-like race galled the Yason is a good one, with complex characters who have many sides. So - a pretty face, an interesting plot, and, unfortunately, a director (Yeon-Kyo Choi) from hell. This is the first game that I can honestly say feels like the development staff was dedicated to irritating the player. The game suffers from interface woes, in particular, a live mapping system which often shows the player moving in the opposite direction from the camera shot. Something to which I never quite got accustomed. And the story is full of those strange moments when characters do something that makes no sense.

The story is interesting, but the flow through the game is forced. There is a level of parallelism, since there are usually two teams in the field and you can switch between them, but the progress is really inexorable - there aren't any alternative branches. For example, you can kill a boss who is supposed to beat you - the game just ignores the whole event and continues on. On fault of the two party approach is that you are often forced you through exactly the same paths twice, complete with the same tired monsters.

Many of the characters are unlikeable. Antagonistic streetfighters, bossy, paranoid priestesses who dress up as eight-year-olds, and starry-eyed, overdeveloped waifs complete for your attention. The star of the show is Callintz, a cross-dressing mercenary, and Captain of the Tears of Blood, consumed with hatred for the Yason. Don't get me wrong, the Yason are just as bad as the humans - everyone gets demonized equally. To top this off, the voice acting is positively wooden. The battles are full of little phrases that, after a while, will drive you crazy. That and several not quite hidden Bronx accents.

Most of the blame for the game's failure is due to the battle system, which depends on the mix of eight powers (or chi) in the area of the battle and uses a fight wheel which requires that you enter a combination of X and O buttons at specific moments. This is a little like Shadow Hearts, but Tears of Blood carefully varies the timing to throw the player off stride continually. In addition to this standard mode there are two alternative modes that have you combining moves (12 keystrokes and up), or guessing what your opponent is doing to counter it. Both of the latter require a lot of finger coordination and hours invested into getting them right. Unfortunately one of them is required to progress through the game and it was only the discovery of a line of instruction in a downloaded walkthrough that kept me from giving up on the game for the second time.

The game simply lacks the magnetism to make you want to overcome all the difficulties that the Choi throws in your path. Which is one of the reasons it has never sold very well. There have been a lot of good RPG releases in the past two years. Unless you have lightening reflexes and the patience of a saint, save your money for one of those - you'll be happier for it.

Square is not the only great RPG maker!!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 8
Date: June 13, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game is just remarkable from the story to the graphics. The story is almost as good as a Final Fantasy game. The graphics are great if not better than a Final Fantasy game. The gameplay is different but is not hard like everyone complains it is. It took me only five minutes at the most to learn how to play it and I find it much easier than a Final Fantasy game. Some people are just to lazy to adjust to different things. Different doesn't mean something is bad. This is at the top of my list of my favorite RPGS. This a must buy game. This is the best RPG since FFX.

BUY IT NOW!!!! IT WON'T DISSAPPOINT!!!

ugh

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 9
Date: May 24, 2006
Author: Amazon User

ive heard the battle system was innovative. ok lets get one thing straight. for something to be innovative in an rpg it both has to be new and adds to the gameplay. Magna Carta's needlessly complicated battle system doesnt add to the game it makes it tedious. If you can stomach through it i give you all props. Dull soundtrack, bad voice overs, and the half assed FFX wannabe visuals. The one shining moment is probablly the team interaction is interesting curve....even though its nothing new (that dates back to Vanguard Bandits)

just a review

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: April 18, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Magna Carta: Tears of Blood is a good RPG. The soundtrack is good, minus the opening song. Voice acting good although sometimes it isn't as good as it could be. The battle system is intersting. It depends on the Chi, how much your allies like you, and leadership (and some other things as well) which will effect the timing bar. However, you are only able to use one character at a time, causing you to think strategicly. It also requires you to push the buttons on time. Too late or too early makes it so you cannot attack and you have to wait for the bar to refill. It's a good RPG and I reccomend it.

You May Weep Tears of Frustration

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 11 / 14
Date: March 22, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Magna Carta is game I've been eagerly anticipating for some time now. It comes from ATLUS, who have a great track record when it comes to localizing niche RPGs for the dedicated player. It features fairly high production values with its detailed environments and 3D character models. The CGI is gorgeous. Unfortunately, this is one of the most sluggish, frustrating games I have ever played. I hear Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu declared Magna Carta: Tears of Blood to be one of the worst RPGs on the PS2. I wouldn't go quite that far, as for all the teeth nashing I did, I still was able to play it until the very end.

The story of Magna Carta focuses on Calintz, leader of the Tears of Blood, a mercenary group with the corniest name ever. The Tears are helping to fight a long running war with the Yason, a magically elf-like race. Things go wrong during a mission, and Calintz meets Reith, a mysterious girl who can't remember anything. They strike up a rather awkward romance- awkward in the sense that Reith is the goody-goody peace-loving type, and Calintz, while dedicated to peace in his own way, peace to him meaning destroying the Yason. Reith tries to discover her mysterious origins and Calintz searches for the Magna Carta, a legendary super-weapon that can flatten the Yason. Despite the fact that this description features a ton of story cliches, the story is actually pretty good, even though it unfurls at a snails pace. This story is not shy about presenting the unpleasant consequences of war and is refreshingly lacking the black and white morality of most fantasy stories.

While the world of Magna Carta is quite the visual treat, the same can't be said of the aural experience. The background music is adequate but unmemorable. The game opens with a terrible song called Tears of Blood. The lyrics on this thing are really embarassing and cheesey. Voice Acting is usually a nice touch, unless its done wrong. Here its done really really wrong. This stuff could curdle milk.

While story is a very important factor in these types of games, Magna Carta drives home the point that you also need a good battle system to carry you through 50+ hours of gameplay. This is were Magna Carta gets really sluggish. It uses a quasi-real time system were you can move freely about the battle screen. A meter fills up and when it reaches a certain point you can attack. There is no such thing as simply bashing a monster with your sword. You must correctly time a series of three button presses, then the character will glow, say some line like "I have been trained to kill!", and then launch into a complicated looking attack. Sure it looks cool, but after the first few hours you'll wish things would move faster. Did I mention you can only control one person at a time and the others stand there like fools?

This system is also effected by a myriad of other things like how much the characters like you at the moment, which is effected by things like what sort of gifts you give them and what the local fortune-teller said, the number of enemies and allies currently on the field, what kinds of chi is currently available, and how many times a friend or foe can block attacks. All attacks are based on one of eight types of chi. If your attack is based on a chi type that isn't available you can't do anything unless you happen to have a chi restoring talisman. The system is not difficult, but sluggish and cheap. A normal enemy encounter can last well over 30 minutes. That should not be!

Adding to the sluggish battle system is a sluggish system of exploration. You can explore in detect mode, where you roam at a snails pace but can surprise or avoid enemy in encounters, or run mode, where you move faster but will miss treasure chests and will be surprised by the enemy, effectively letting them pound you into Game Over. In Magna Carta, if you have to go somewhere it will be by foot. It takes a long time to get anywhere, because the world is expansive and you will be traveling the roads at the speed of a turtle. Couple this with the slow battle system, and it takes forever and a day to get anything done. More than once I wanted to rip my hair out.

Magna Carta is a game only for people with extreme patience. I imagine the vast majority of people who pick it up, will throw it down after a few hours. When I saw the end credits role, I for one was filled with great relief that it was over. Games should fun. Magna Carta just isn't.

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