User Reviews (1 - 11 of 14)

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Those bastards

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 8
Date: January 22, 2006
Author: Amazon User

How could they ruin such an awesome game? They made the AI better, which despite what you might think, is not a positive thing. Enemies will hardly stand in a good position to use magic. So mages/wizards have pretty much become obosolete (which were some of the most useful characters in the original). Also, the first playthrough was w?y too easy. I didn't even die once. My main character killed Darksol in 3 hits. Not to mention that card using character. If you clone your strongest character, there's no way you can lose. Can you say, overpowered?
Oh, and it's supposed to get harder with every playthrough, but seeing as this remake is so challengeless that you'll never play it more than once, that seems pretty pointless.

But the original was fun. And this one would probably be to if I hadn't played the original. So I'll give it a decent score.

One of my Favorites

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 17, 2005
Author: Amazon User

While not very complex, and certainly not having cutting edge graphics, this game is a lot of fun and very addictive. Along the lines of Final Fantasy Tactics, Tactics Ogre or Fire Emblem, this is a turn based fantasy. An interesting story leads you from battle to battle until the end. I would certainly recommend this game.

A good game but not the best

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 4
Date: October 26, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Shining Force is a solid turn-based strategy RPG. There is a plot but it is just OK, there to drive you into battles. The ensemble cast of characters is huge and you don't really feel attached to them, its more like working toward a full set of chess pieces and then using them to their best effect against each set of opponents.

The battles are sometimes challenging, sometimes not, but they are why you play this game. Not for the graphics, which aren't that good, or the traditional RPG aspects (you aren't given much control over your stats).

For a better game that is similar, try either Fire Emblem for GameBoy Advance or Final Fantasy Tactics for Sony Playstation.

007

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 16
Date: August 16, 2005
Author: Amazon User

there isint a samurai in the game i play it 2 times and it didint have the note on the wall

Old-School game still delivers fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: July 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I used to play Sega's Shining RPG games on the Genesis and, later, Saturn, and I loved the Shining Force games. Of course, RPGs have gotten a lot more complex and sophisticated since then, but every once in a while it's fun to go back to the old school. The first Shining Force game has made a great transition to the GBA, with the original music and game play intact, plus some new features. It's not a particularly challenging game compared to some of what's out there now, but i was surprised how much I still enjoyed playing this game again. How about it, Sega? Can we have Shining Force 2 and 3 too?

SHINING FORCE IS AWESOME

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 5
Date: June 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Shining Force is such a good game! Great music, okay graphics.

Easily portable version of a fantastic classic game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 22 / 22
Date: October 30, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game is exactly the same as the first Shining Force title for the Sega Genesis. The game itself is a little on the aged side, but part of the reason this one was chosen for the GBA is that it has great gameplay, great control, and is all around really fun. After Shining in the Darkness, Shining Force is the game that really took the Shining Series in a new great direction (other than Shining the Holy Ark and Shining Wisdom) of epic battles across a vast world with armies of monsters. The cast of characters you control is more imaginative than even Final Fantasy ever has been, as is the variety of maps, items, and magic. Warriors, Priests, Wizards, Knights, Clerics, Monks, Dragons, Archers, Wolfmen, Robots, Mages, Sorcerors, Paladins, Samurai, Ninjas, Chipmunks and more are all under your control as you chose where, when and how to fight your enemy, using the terrain to your advantage (hopefully...) The control scheme is very simple, with menus to select all the actions similar to Final Fantasy or Phantasy Star, which is as effective today for strategy games as it was twenty years ago. While not as long as the epic Shining Force II, Shining Force is actually quite a long game concidering how long the average Genesis game was. Not only that, but Shining Force has a deep storyline that (while it is only part of the Shining Series story--go to shiningforcecentral.com for more) is surprisingly engaging for adults and children alike. Shining Force was a must have for any Sega fan or any RPG fan, and this title is just as much a must have for anyone with a GBA. One thing that is really great is that you don't really expect too much from a GBA because its just not as powerful as a console videogame system, so this game doesn't come across as dated as it is. Now all we have to do is sit back and hope that Sega will release Shining in the Darkness, Shining Force II, and Shining Force Gaiden on the GBA too.

....how aobut not

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 52
Date: October 30, 2004
Author: Amazon User

well, i love turn based strategy games. iv played almost all of the ones availible on GBA. id have to say that if you're contemplating buying this one, u should scroll to the top of the page and buy Fire Emblem instead. shining force is just.....pathetic would have to be the word for it.

so i started the game out. first thing that happened was the little plot backgroud scene. then i learned that the main character had washed up on shore unconcious....

okay now thats just a no-no. if hte cahracter washes up on shore unconcious, show it! then the heroine finds him and all that fun stuff. well none of that happneed. instead you wondered aroudn and talked to people. after 5 minutes of wondering i left down and fought my first battle.

how about not. the battles were boring, the graphics were pathetic, and the system was exactly the same as any other game.

my main problems with this game r:
-promotion weakens your characters. ill type that again cause its pretty hard to believe. promotion weakens your characters. its just....ridiculous. in ANY OTHER GAME that you will ever play with a promotion system, your characters get stronger. well not in thsi one.
-the battle system is boring and tedious
-the battles require very little strategy, see above point
-the graphics are....nauseating would b a very kind way to describe them. i never knew that graphics could be THIS bad
-the plot is very illogical. i am all for evil dragons taking over the world, they make excellent final bosses. but robots in a fantasy game are jsut a no (although marshall in sword of mana is okay, he actaully has a personality )
-the characters are lifeless

theres notm uch else to say. i discourage you all from buying this game.

A Near Perfect Remake

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 10
Date: August 28, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Shining Force: Resurrection of the Dark Dragon is a nearly perfect remake of one of the original console Strategy RPG games. The original featured a colorful cast of characters, an enjoyable enough story -- bare bones, but functional -- and the essentials of SRPG gameplay: take your force of heroes (including Elven archers, magicians, Dwarven warriors, and Centaur knights) and maneuver them around on a grid, defeating enemies to collect experience points and level up.

The original never strived for a huge amount of depth in its gameplay; there was never much min-maxing to be found, never a need to worry about weather or birthdays, and only the most important character statistics (such as strength, defense, and so on). ROTDD maintains that simplistic charm. Its strength is not in pushing one's tactical brainpower to the very limits, or forcing one to micromanage a dozen different factors for every character. Rather, the game just wants you to enjoy the now tried-and-true gameplay it perfected over ten years ago.

Everything that made the original great is still here, only made better. ROTDD features graphics and music which are highly reminiscent of the original, yet push the limits of the GBA system to the maximum. The story has been enhanced with a significant amount of new dialogue and new characters. The game's returning characters come equipped with a good deal more depth -- talk to them in Headquarters, and you can slowly learn about their backstories.

If you've never tried a Strategy RPG before, this is the one to get. The magic, weapon, item, and level-up systems are nearly identical to those found in traditional roleplaying games. Shining Force doesn't have the aggressive difficulty level of a Fire Emblem, nor the heavy micromanaging element of Final Fantasy Tactics, making it ideal for someone new to the genre.

The original was a classic, and ROTDD proves that a classic can be redone successfully.

theres better stuff out there

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 12
Date: August 16, 2004
Author: Amazon User

this is an okay game. but i wouldnt recommend getting it if you dont already have final fantasy tactics advance, tactics ogre, and fire emblem. there is nothing in this game that you can't find in any of those 3, and all 3 of those are much better.

the 2 things that annoy me most about this game are the battles and sound. there is no way to suspend the battles. this is something that every other turn based game has, but this one doesn't. which gets relaly annoying and makes it inconvenient to play during vacations. the only thing you can really do is put it in your pocket for later. reeeaally annoying. fortunatly, u dont have to worry about running ur battery down by listening to sound.

fire emblem is one of those games w/ great sound. it has about 100 differnt tracks and the sound always fits the mood exactly. i wish i could say the same for this game....

u know that point in nearly EVERY fantasy rpg where someone dies (or is kidnapped, in the case of breath of fire)? its usually near the beginning, and its what shows you who the baddies are and why you start your quest. the sound is important there. it can affect your opinion of the whole game. okay, so shining force has this annoying happy-lets-go-spend-a-bunch-of-money-on-armor-and-weapons music. most games have it though, so that COULD be forgiven. but, this music plays all hte time. thats right, even when the person dies..........that is one of the biggest gaming tunr offs that i have ever experienced. trust me...if u buy this game, play it w/ the sound off.

the plot is a little weird. i mean, i'm all for games with mixed up memories and stuff (like fire emblem...but u never find out what happened w/ the memory...which was weird). but its just a little weird when they dont take advantage and show that!!! its a great way to start a game. i mean, there is nothing cooler than watching the hero get washed up on a beach and the heroine rescuing him (i love that scene in tactics ogre!!!) they dont do that. it annoys me. plus, they dont really explain what the heck is going on. that also annoys me. it annoys me greatly.

gameplay is fun, but nothing new. this is a good game for a long trip. its pretty easy though. i'm about 3 quarters through, and i have not encountered one battle that stumped me. if you want a chalenging tactical game, buy fire emblem or tactics ogre (or final fantasy tactics advance, but thats not as challenging as the other 2).

the graphics bring to mind fond memories of breath of fire on gba and townspeople in game boy color games. they really aren't anything special, and when you promote units...the sprites get uglier....on the plus side, there are lots of differnt classes (thoguh not as many as tactics ogre and tactics advance), and even though you can't choose your class, it makes for some graphic variety.

overal, this is an okay game, even though i might make it sound bad. the truth is, there is nothing new. but if you like that kind of game, then you will enjoy this. but if you don't have fire emblem, tactics ogre, and final fantasy tactics advance, buy one of those instead. u will enjoy it much more. thers also onimusha tactics (i think thats how its spelled). i haven't palyed that but you might wanna check it out before you buy this cuase it's probably not any more mediocre.

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