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Not Worth the Pain

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 19 / 23
Date: April 06, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Oh my GOD this game is annoying. In my fifteen years as a gamer, I have NEVER been more irritated or frustrated or disappointed by an RPG. I liked Lufia. I LOVED Lufia II. I really wanted to enjoy this game, and in a lot of ways, I did. The animation is fun and cute, the story is formula, but no more so than most fantasy RPGs. The game play, however, goes from not so good, to bad, to the WORST I've ever encountered. Mandatory puzzles change the rules on you, mandatory mazes have switches, vines, and holes which are much too difficult to see unless you know what you're looking for, and it's often MUCH too difficult to find the next plot point. I was interested enough in the characters and the story that I kept playing for 70+ hours despite the boring and slow battle system and the myriad of other design flaws, but just as I was about to get to the last dungeon, lo and behold, I missed a necessary element about one third through the game and had to do one of the old dungeons through from the beginning in order to get to the game's ending.

I've never been forced to use a walkthrough more than twice on any other game I've played. On this game I ended up needing to refer to one at least eight or nine times just to get to the next plot point after I'd been stuck for six or seven hours on one puzzle and it usually ended up being something totally stupid which had stumped me; something I could NEVER have guessed how to do on my own. I like a challenge and I don't give up easily, but this game is not worth the pain OR the money.

Lufia lovers, don't worry about missing anything. The story is almost completely unrelated to the one we know and love.

The Legend of Lufia Continues

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 15 / 19
Date: May 15, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Some time ago, a small company known as Taito released a game in North America named Lufia: The Fortress of Doom. While the world of Squaresoft was overtaking this continent with the first submissions of the Final Fantasy series this little gem won it's way into the hearts of gamers not for it's graphics as much as it's storyline and the "Grandfathered" climatic final battle at the beginning of the game. Fast forward to later in the life of the SNES when Natsume took up the reins and released the sequel to their diamond. The release of this well planned and fun game was shadowed by a giant known as Final Fantasy 3 which was released around the same time. Thus, the legend of Lufia slowly began to fade from the memories of gamers. Rumors spread about the web of a new Lufia, but for what system would it be released? The decision to release Lufia: The Legend Returns to Gameboy Color gave the handheld world its first taste of this classic. Now Atlus continues the legend in Lufia: Ruins of Lore. The latest submission is something that the GBA has needed and for those of you who have played Lufia 2 this will be much like spending time with an old friend. The graphics are comparable to the SNES game as well as the sound track which seems to flow with the events perfectly. To add to the excitement is the old cave, which has been a staple to the Lufia series since the beginning and is always a surprise especially now with the multiplayer capability through the link. There comes a time in every system's life when games make the system. This may be one of those times.

Sub-par Lufia effort.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 7 / 7
Date: July 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Like another reviewer, i am a HUGE fan of the first two Lufia games which were released for the Super Nintendo. But this last game for the Gameboy Advance really puts a bad name on the Lufia series.

While it is a decent rpg game it is too standard. There are no unique surprises, the battles are tame, and the story stinks. The game is way too run of the mill with no outstanding areas or unique things. Pretty much everything in the game has been seen before and has been done better by many games like Final Fantasy and Golden Sun.

So while it is still a pretty fun adventure, the slow battles and boring story bring the game down a notch. So unless you are a diehard Lufia fan you would be better off picking up the Golden Sun games or just about any other rpg game out for the GBA.

Good Game!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 15
Date: May 14, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Since everyone before me has pretty well covered the main aspects of this game I will not.I am a long-time gamer with a love for pure RPG's. I have never played a Lufia game before. This was the first and it was VERY enjoyable and addictive.Most RPG's made today require you to use a guide.This was no exception but there were many parts you could play without one. I got more then one quarter of the way through without a guide and enjoyed that. So much so I am looking for the other Lufia's.Sometimes you just cannot beat the older games!! I keep going back looking for the older ones since most of the newer just do not have that magic.I had a hard time putting this game away. It is a fun one and will keep you wondering if you like to use your brain when playing a game :) Try playing Bomberman Tournament..the quest. Very much the format of the original Legend of Zelda and addictive.

As a sequel failed, as a Good game Succeded

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 15
Date: June 21, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Ok I've played the first Lufia all those years back and I love these games, and my life revolves around RPGs, and for you Nimrods who think Diablo is a RPG go away. Anyhow I really liked this game its long and its a TRUE RPG, the Graphix are good for a Handheld game system, and the controls are good, But I was a little dissapointed that the game had NO Lufia or the sinistels, so I dont concider it a good sequel like the other three where.
But that by no means makes this a bad game its very entertaining, the story lacks in a few spots and kind of drags but its so minor you probley wont notice it that much. So to sum things up if you liked the other Lufia's and REAL RPGS then this will be a Joyful trip back in time to a better place. But if you again think that those games that are Non linear EI: Marrowind are RPGs then go away and leave this Jewel to the people who will enjoy it!!

A good game...but...its missing something

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: October 05, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I myself became addicted to the Lufia series a year ago, when I purchased Lufia II for SNES. Lufia II was a truly succesful game, especially because of the love story, the stupidity of the character named Dekar, and of course, the sinistrals.

I became so excited of Lufia IV, and when I got it...well let's just say it was fun, but missing something. Lufia IV features a VERY generic storyline, if any storyline at all. I was seriously dissapointed, because the storyline is the heart of the RPG. This game has a very, very un-Lufialike storyline.

In Lufia II, the Love between Maxim, childhood girlfriend Tia and Selan was VERY well played out, and the moment when Tia left Maxim was unforgetable. In Lufia IV, there is no love story. The girl, Rami, who follows the main characters Eldin and Torma are in no situation of love; its like the exact opposite because the guys are annoyed at her. The other girl, Rubius, also eventually is dragged into the pointless adventure. She's sorta pretty but in no way tied in a love story between the others.

Finally, in Lufia II there was Dekar. Dekar, for those who don't know him, was the absolute funniest of the bunch because he was flat out stupid yet the strongest of them all, and always tried to get the ladies attention. He was the favorite for many. Natsume knew this, and magically brought him into IV, but he isn't the same as he used to be. He only stays for a while, too. You'll see the difference when you meet him.

The music was remixed versions of Lufia I & II, but there is nothing too great. I liked the Lufia II track a lot better. The Anceint Cave has been reduced immensly, and its even easier when people link up with the GBA link to travel there together.

In all reality, I was hoping for more after seeing and playing Lufia II. If you own a SNES, forget buying this and get Lufia II : Rise of the Sinistrals instead. You'll thank me for it :-)

This is a good rpg...er...no

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: November 24, 2003
Author: Amazon User

After having played such greats as Chrono cross/trigger and final fantasy, this game just doesn't compare. The story line is really slow, with battles taking too much time. The gameplay is fun with big towns to explore and many buildings to enter and so forth, but it doesn't make up for the fact that this is a very slow game. I bought this game 2 weeks ago and started playing it for awhile, and then set it down and forgot about it. I am very dissapointed in it as an rpg

Disappointed

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: July 30, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Having played other Lufia games and numerous RPGs I must say that I'm disappointed. The game is of little challenge and has few surprises. You basically walk down a path, find a problem, fight a monster, go to a new city. Normally, I'm a person who sits and plays a game until I defeat it, but less than 1/3 of the way through the game I totally lost interest.

The only interesting part is that you can capture and train monsters, but training them can be quite annoying when some love running away in battle and have late evolutions.

I gave the game two stars because the whole capturing monsters gave a bit of variety, but the plot is weak, and the game is boring.

God this just sucked out loud!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 2 / 11
Date: August 11, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I payed a 3 weeks allowence for a set back.There was no "blood line" no thrills or spills no Dual Blade no Sinistrals just one lowsy little villian called "The Beast" ha! All u do is go around looking for 4 stones and things called shards pah. The Story line is weak.The characters look like girls. And above all else the ancient cave has no blue chests and u lose ur items u bring in with u and u can only have 1 charater to go into the cave. The only thing that surprised me was that They played a little of The rise of The Sinistrals music.The monsters were kind of good but it was just weak.Some monsters only evoled 3 times and if u could evolve them into mutants u would have to train them lots and lots. U don't even meet the monster Raugule right away u have to wait. I have played some of the Lufia games before but the 4th one is the worst game i have ever played. Take my advise get number 2 or 3 or 1 of the Lufia Seires because this was very bad. O i wish Atlus didn't get there little grimy paws on lufia if they just left it alone and gave it to Natsume to work on it might be much better.

In Japan this excellent game was released as a side-story to the main series.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 05, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Lufia: The Ruins of Lore is a truly wonderful game. It's almost identical to Lufia II for the SNES in terms of gameplay (much more so than Lufia: The Legend Returns) however it centers around a completely different story than the rest of the Lufia series and I think this is what frustrates a lot of players. However, what they don't understand is that in Japan this game was released as a "gaiden" or side story to the main series (it's Japanese title was Lufia Gaiden: Chinmoku no Iseki, which loosely means "Ruins of Silence, a side story to Lufia").

The game is completely faithful to the spirit of the other games and in fact you could look it at the same way as some of the recent Legend of Zelda games. Games like Oracle of Ages or Minish Cap aren't part of the central Zelda story. Compared to other titles they focus very little on Princess Zelda, Ganon or the Triforce, who fill essential roles in many other games. However they're still considered Zelda games and their gameplay is pretty similar to the rest of the series. The same can be said for Ruins of Lore compared to the rest of the Lufia series. You won't find any mention of the Sinistrals or DualBlade but you will find a completely addictive RPG experience.

The game has incredibly crisp, detailed graphics for a GBA title, and the music is top-notch containing several familar tracks from the first two games. The battle system is nearly identical to that of Lufia II's, steering away from the awkward column system introduced in "The Legend Returns". In addition many other key features from the Super NES games return including IP (Which fills a role similar to Limit Breaks in the Final Fantasy games), Capsule Monsters, and a modified version of the Ancient Cave.

I have been a fan of the Lufia games ever since the first game was released on the Super NES in 1993, and I honestly think this is one of the best of the series. It faithfuly retains the spirit of the earlier games while introducing lovable new characters (and a few returning ones)and just the right amount of innovation. If you liked Lufia II then I strongly suggest you buy this game (some of the same characters even return in supporting roles). Ruins of Lore truly is in the top-tier of RPG's for the Game Boy Advance right up there with Tales of Phantasia, The Golden Sun games, and possibly even some of the ports of SNES classics like Breath of Fire. I hope you enjoy this game as much as I did.

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