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ONE of the best game to date!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: November 17, 2002
Author: Amazon User

In one word WOW! I played the Demo of it on a Xbox Demo Dice#13 an it RULES!
the Demo is short but full. I would Describe this game as a Easy to learn hard to Master and beat.
Its a shooter no-doubt but it has Epic story elements that give it a Role playing game feel that some RPGs don't even have!
The worlds that will be seen are Super Hugh truly Epic.
I usually don't pre-order any thing but this is a must have.

Totally Breathtaking

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 9
Date: November 20, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I played the demo in the xbox official magazine. This game is truly AMAZING! The graphics are phenomenal and the gameplay is awsome. The coolest thing is that you can lock on to mulitple targets and destroy them with your DRAGON! If you played the first one's for the SEGA SATURN or are just looking for a good reason to buy an XBOX! This is it. If you haven't played the games you'll love it anyway.

from the Demo

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 5
Date: November 26, 2002
Author: Amazon User

A simple yet fun game.
Having only played the OXM demo, I can't comment on the storyline or charactors at all. (sigh) However, from what I've seen and played, this is a very good game.
Based on a "rail" system, this game shines not in it's innovation, but it's mastery of a standing gameplay system. I haven't even heard of this games predecessors, so I'm going to compare the gameplay to Starfox. however, unlike many games of this type, Orta gives you more depth with a 360 degree area of fire. This means that you not only have to worry about enemies coming at you from the front, but from the sides and rear to.
The rail system that this game uses means that while this game can be labled as a Flight Sim, there is very little actual "flying" done. You only have a small area on the screen in which to maneuver your dragon, but the designers have taken this into account, and there is almost no need to worry about where you're exactly steering.
I'm glad to see that the developers of this game choose to perfect an existing system, rather than try to reinvent the game. The controls are simple, effective, and come very naturally. The weapons are balanced, so there is no single weapons spamming. The only possile downfall this game might have would be if SEGA drops the ball of plot and charator development. Assuming they don't, however, Orta stands as a very solid game that should be in any Xbox owner's inventory.

A new dimension in one of the oldest generas

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: November 28, 2002
Author: Amazon User

(Demo version) Remember games like "Gradius" on the old 8-Bit Nintendo? This title extrapolates that idea into 3 dimensions. The formations that enemies fly in, the landscape syles, and the bosses are all very reminiscent of Gradius and friends. The graphics are fantastic and the pace of play is consistent and challenging. On par, a great new implementation of a classic game style.

Orta Rocks!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: December 24, 2002
Author: Amazon User

If you have ever played any of the previous Panzer games, then you are anxiously awaiting the release of Orta just as I am! From what I have seen of the game (I live in Japan, so I have seen the game already at the Toys R Us) it promises to be just as good, no, better than the previous 3 games! The reason I chose an Xbox over PS2 was for this game alone! If you ever come across an old Saturn console, then I seriously suggest you find and play the first three Panzer games before playing Orta. You will be glued to your tube for days!

Panzer finally comes to the masses

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 20 / 22
Date: January 14, 2003
Author: Amazon User

While Sega's Panzer Dragoon franchise is beloved among gamers who have played the earlier games in the series, it's always been confined to the relatively small audience that actually puchased a Sega Saturn. Finally, the rest of the world can see what those who've experienced the series have been raving about, with Panzer Dragoon Orta, the series' first installment on a non-Sega console. While Panzer Dragoon Saga brought the series into the RPG genre, PDO returns to the shooter-on-rails genre where the series began.

While that might initially scare off some gamers, don't be fooled - though PDO's confined to "rails", the degree of freedom the gamer feels, and the sheer sense of scale and majesty that a fixed camera offers the developers makes PDO one of the grandest, most impressive xbox games available to date. Easily more beautiful than any other game on any system available, PDO's graphics live up to the hype. Huge, detailed worlds are filled with huge, detailed enemies, and the sheer size of some of the things in this game, from an airship easily ten thousand times the size of Orta (the girl you control), to a squadron of "Dragonmares", similar to Orta's steed, but pure evil, the environments in PDO have to be experienced to be believed.

In terms of gameplay, it's substantially more complex than either the previous installments of the series, and even more complex than the sum of the individual parts. Orta can shoot her gun, or lock her dragon onto a number of enemies, and her dragon can speed up, slow down, or change between three forms. The base wing, heavy wing, and glide wing. The base wing is the all-around form, the heavy wing has fewer lock ons, but does twice as much damage, and the glide wing can move faster, and rapid-fire in such a way that you can shoot missiles out of the sky with relative ease.

Each form also has a unique berserker attack, and each is useful in different situations. What these controls allow is for a tremendous amount of stratey and depth on top of the standard shooting game format - you'll find yourself changing forms often, and using the strengths of the various forms to your full advantage. You'll need to, because in anything other than easy mode, the game is *hard*.

On top of the standard game, there's a whole gallery of things to unlock, from almost as many sidequests as there are main missions, to volumes of information on the Panzer Dragoon world, and the events that took place in the past games. There's even a complete version of Panzer Dragoon, for those that never played the original (shame that Zwei and Saga were not included, but I suppose the Saturn conversion is tricky (the original was ported to the PC some time ago, and thus, was relatively trivial to convert to the xbox).

Overall there's simply no reason not to buy this game. Classic gameplay, tons of extras, combined with the best graphics in any game to date make for an entirely worthwhile purchase. I can only hope that this game reaches a huge audience, and drives Sega to make a Panzer Dragoon Saga II.

The greatest rail shooter ever made...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 17, 2003
Author: Amazon User

For those of you wondering what all the "Panzer Dragoon" hub-ub is about, don't come in expecting a revolution in gameplay the way something like "Metal Gear Solid" revolutionized gameplay. The game is a rail shooter. You go down predetermined paths, and for the most part you aim your cursor at bad guys and shoot. That's the basic gist of it. It may not sound like much...but the whole package, in looks, sound and gameplay, is truly an experience you don't come across too often.

Like I said before, it's a rail shooter. You get to fly your dragon around an avoid enemies, and you can rotate around to look in all directions to kill bad guys, but that's as far as the freedom goes. You get to go down 1 of 2 paths in each stage, but it's no free roaming game. But some cool features add intence stratagy to the game. Your dragon has 3 forms, one for power, one for speed, and one balanced one, and you're gonna use 'em all. Switching between the forms takes only a press of the Y button, so it's easy enough (You cycle through the forms) and wise choices on the form you use is the difference between winning and losing. You may be using the Power form to kill enemies, but when they let off a barrage of shots, you'll want to VERY quickly switch to your Speed form and dodge and shoot down their shots. Each form also has it's own Berzerk attack, and depending on what kind of enemy you're fighting, you'll want to use different attacks. It's a real test of reflexes, especially in the laters levels (Which you'll never get to if you're not switching between forms correctly) The controls are very straightforward. Shoot, aim, special, change forms, glide, stop, and more than enough buttons to go around. One skim through the instructions, and you'll never need to ask what any certain button does.

The soundtrack is wonderful. The music alone will make you feel like you're all powerful and are a real-life Harbringer of Destruction. This is one game that makes you realize how far video games have come from the 8-Bit days. Hell, the soundtrack for this game makes you realize how far we've come from the 32-Bit days of 4 years ago, even. Eventually, orchestrated wil be the only way to go in video games...

The graphics...wow. As good as everything else is, the graphics make this game a must have. Sure, you buy games for the fun of playing them, but the graphics set the entire mood for the game. Even the animation of the words "Now loading" looks impressive. Not really, but you get the picture. Flying through canyons and shooting down evil looking dragons, flying through the clouds and finding a fleet of giant airships fade into your view from the other side...honestly, you can't realy can't fathom just how good this game looks from anyones words. It has to be seen. It's really, REALLY impressive...

This game is a complete package. While it may not have the most unique gameplay, it's highly enjoyable, VERY hard, easy on the ears, and an amazing visual achievement. You should at least rent it once just to see the game in action. Trust me, you'll be glad you did.

Buy This Game for the Graphics Alone!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 8
Date: January 20, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Screen shots alone do not do this game's graphics justice. I've NEVER seen graphics like this on any computer screen. Even Myst pales in comparison. It's simply amazing. That said, the game itself is impressive overall, but it's very difficult. If you think you'll finish this game in a weekend, you won't. This is not a game to rent--if you do, you'll waste your money. The Boss battles require an enormous amount of talent and patience to get through. I've been playing for about 12 hours on "easy" mode and I'm only half way through.

2 minor gripes: 1. The game is voiced over in Japanese and subtitled in English. I apologize for being a bit culturally insensitive here, but I'd like to have seen the game dubbed over in English--It's difficult for me to suspend my belief to the point that I believe I'm a Japanese warrior. I know it would have added cost to Sega, but it would have provided a much more satisfying game experience with English.

2. The second MINOR complaint I have is that, while the cut-scenes are the most beautiful part of the game, you can't cycle through them. Some are quite long and when you get killed, you are forced to sit through them until you get back to where you left off.

I suspect that Panzer Dragoon Orta will keep me entertained until Halo 2 comes out late this year. There are dozens upon dozens of minigames, missions, and extras that will keep me going, even if I do finish the game in the next 3 months.

Even if you buy this game and for some reason don't like it, leave it on your X-Box to play as a "screen saver" so that your friends can be mezmorized by the graphics. But please please please buy this game. Did I say that these graphics are amazing??

Team Andromeda Lives!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 22, 2003
Author: Amazon User

When a new console is launched, the manufacturer usually releases a handful of games to show off the system and appeal to consumers. Over time, as developers learn the console, bigger and flashier games appear, leaving the launch games in the dust of the clearance bin. Once in a while, though, there's a diamond in the rough ... in the case of the underrated Sega Saturn, it was a stylish shooting game named "Panzer Dragoon," developed by an in-house team known as Team Andromeda.

Its popularity (among the Saturn's limited audience), led to a prequel game--"Panzer Dragoon Zwei"-- and even a lauded RPG-style adventure in the same universe--"Panzer Dragoon Saga." However, both games were released in the waning days of the system, so few people really got to see how the series progressed. Eventually, the Saturn was discontinued and Team Andromeda went their separate ways. Fortunately, it would appear that some of those programmers wound up in Smilebit, one of Sega's new development houses, as they have turned out a worthy successor of the "Panzer Dragoon" title, exclusively for Microsoft's powerful XBox console.

For the fourth title in the series, Smilebit returned to the format of the first two games, that of a linear shoot-em-up. The player, in the guise of a mysterious young girl named Orta, rides a mighty dragon through a series of elaborate levels on a generally pre-set course (or, to use a common gaming term, "on rails"). Armed with a rapid-fire pistol and the dragon's own attacks, Orta must eliminate the evil forces bent on capturing her, as well as the denizens of this strange world that simply will attack anything that moves.

Enemies will attack from all sides, so it's fortunate that Orta can turn a full 360 degrees to face incoming hazards. Orta can shoot down the targets with her own gun, or she can command the dragon to lock onto the target and attack with its "arrows of light." When desperate times call for desperate measures, the dragon can unleash a "berserk" attack, which renders itself invulnerable for a few seconds and its enemies dead meat.

The enemies come in a wide array of shapes and sizes. Some are simply too big (or too well-armored) to shoot directly. Others prefer to attack Orta head-on by ramming the dragon. In these cases, you can use the "Glide Attack," a new feature for the series. This multi-use attack can slow the dragon down (allowing an incoming assault to miss it), give it a burst of speed (with shockwaves that can damage enemies) or allow it to move around a large enemy to evade fire or find a weak spot in its defenses.

Expanding on concepts introduced in "Zwei" and "Saga," Orta can control the dragon's appearance and abilities. The standard form, Base Wing, is a good all-around offensive and defensive choice. The Heavy Wing trades maneuverability (and no Glide Attack) for awesome firepower, and the Glide Wing is small and fast, but not much of an attacker. Orta can cycle through these forms at will, and she'll be doing it frequently. If it seems like there's a lot to do and keep track of, there is ... fortunately, the game has a series of tutorials that teach players the fundamentals.

The game's ultra-detailed world never looked so good. Cut-scenes tell the story in the game-world's unique language (it's not Japanese), with English subtitles. The PD universe is a hodgepodge of natural beauty and man-made horror, and truly comes into its own here. Some story points draw on the original games, but knowledge of those is not required. Graphically fast and expansive, with outstanding effects, like the dragon's sometimes iridescent wings. No slowdown, even with giant enemies on screen, and loading times are generally speedy (or hidden by cut-scenes or dialog).

Replay fanatics will love Pandora's Box, a treasure trove of hidden features and information, all available for the unlocking. I won't reveal what they are, except for one item ... hidden in the game is a complete rendition of the title that started it all, "Panzer Dragoon." As an introduction to the series, or as a chance to relive a classic game, it's a welcome addition.

One very minor gripe ... the game only allows for one save file, so while anyone can start a new game, only one save point can be set. Also, the game's difficulty can be at times frustrating, even for PD veterans ... it's also quite addicting, almost forcing you to "one more time" a level until you vanquish it.

With a detailed story, unbelievable graphics, easy-to-grasp gameplay and tons of replay opportunities, "Panzer Dragoon Orta" heralds the return of a respected gaming series, and hopefully points the way to future adventures in this unique realm.

Overrated

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 8
Date: January 23, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I had high hopes for "Panzer Dragoon: Orta." I mean, Gamespot had nothing but favorable things to say on the title's behalf, and I generally agree with their assessments. Yes, "Orta" offers a horde of extras. Yes, "Orta" has some inspiring visuals and a fairly interesting sci-fantasy setting. However, it's still just a "rail shooter," which is to say that you have little direct control over your dragon. You fly in predetermined directions, sometimes dodging certain hazards, all the while shooting at enemies that attack you in droves. This style of gameplay is antiquated, no matter how you look at it - though if you enjoyed previous enties in the series, I can understand how you might support the decisions made by the developers. Still, I myself was expecting more, especially given some of the early praise this game has snagged, and I feel that much of it is undue. Fly and shoot, fly and shoot, fly and shoot... it gets old, fast. However, if you enjoy this kind of thing, it's probably as good as it gets, and you'll be on cloud nine. Series vets will surely appreciate it. But even with all those extras (which include full versions of some of the earlier "Dragoon" games), it all feels overpriced just now.

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