It has been a long time since I have played a strategy role-playing game. I remember back in the early 1990s, one of the games I played was the original Shining Force. I loved it. I could level my party, picking which allies I could take into battle and retreat as many times as necessary so I could win. The next big game was the ill-fated Warsong. It was a difficult game that required a top-notch strategy to win, while the former game just required persistence. Then I played the ultra-long Dark Wizard, which I loved for its strategy, length and graphics (at the time). And then there’s one of my favorite PlayStation games: Final Fantasy Tactics. That game was awesome because I could change my units to whatever was needed for the next battle. Imagine my surprise when a game known as Rondo of Swords for the DS called out to me the last time I went game shopping.
The game follows a young prince named Serdic of Bretwalde, whose kingdom was destroyed by the neighboring Grand Meir Empire. Also, the sacred sword has become corrupted, so Serdic cannot become coroneted until the sword is purified. Along the way, Serdic will encounter an intriguing cast of characters from a gentleman bandit to wizards of various temperaments to noble knights. Each character feels unique and, depending on the battle, will talk to each other on the battlefield.
Graphically, the game feels like something out of the early Super Nintendo/Sega Genesis era, yet it is highly refined. Everything is bright and colorful, and there are silky smooth backgrounds. Sprites are animated well, except none of them walk across the screen. You tell them where to go, and POP, there they are. The story is told first through the top screen, letting you know what is going on, and then there is dialogue between the characters and then you get to the battle. Characters’ faces change depending on the dialogue. (Also, note, all of this is completely skipable at a press of a button. Most of the time.) In essence, it is vanilla in its presentation.
But do not let the vanilla presentation fool you; this is an exceedingly competent game. Combat flow is simple: Your party (up to six) moves first, then guests/allies and then finally the enemy. Characters initiate combat by running THROUGH them. Depending on a character’s movement (and a little bit of luck), one can attack multiple foes. Be warned, the same can be done to you. Also, some of your allies have passive skills that boost your characters stats by running through them. However, a character must not have moved for it to take effect. Magic and other useful skills sacrifice movement — that is, characters are not to be moved if a skill is to be used. Archers, on the other hand, can move AND attack. This makes them even more favored than any other unit for that simple purpose.
Also, each character has a momentum counter. This is increased through activating a skill and participating in combat actions, such as healing spells and attacking enemy units. The higher the counter, the more experience a unit gains. However, said unit also is more likely to be attacked with a high number. Also, each character has an over-break attack. This is activated by participating in a certain number of battle actions and can be powered up to three levels. For example, Serdic can unleash the power of his sword to create a devastating holy beam, and Kay, one of Serdic’s knights, can sacrifice his hit points to damage his opponents. If it is not used by the end of the battle, the attack is lost.
Magic and other skills are not exactly learned through simple leveling up. Every time a character gains 100 experience points to advance to the next level, that unit is granted some skill points. You then have to decide where to spend those skill points. Do you spend them on the true and old skills of yore that got you where you are, or do you spend them elsewhere? Or do you go for a mixture of both? As your characters become more knowledgeable, more skills become available.
Commands are executed through the digital control pad and buttons. Or you could use the stylus. Both are stable and well-executed, though movement is a tad easier with the stylus because of its “point and click” capabilities. It ultimately comes down to what feels the most comfortable to you. I prefer the D-pad. Also, the top screen shows your units’ health and magic points. It is great to have such a handy feature just a glance away.
Sound wise, the game consists of the usual SRPG music. But this is not to say it is bad; it is rather good. Trumpets and horns and strings merge to create an imperial sound. The upbeat march of drums can easily turn malevolent. There is voice acting whenever the game has a combat moment. The phrases belted out are on the cheesy side. Sure, Princess Marie’s catchphrase “O Light, grant me your power!” is cheesy, but the voice actress pulls it off.
As awesome as this sounds, and as well as it pulls everything together, this is not an easy game. Oh, no. It is constantly looking for ways to draw blood. It likes to go straight for the jugular. Enemies are brutally intelligent and go for the weakest units first. Your guests are downright stupid as they will attack the closest foe(s), usually messing up your strategy. While you can retreat from battles as many times as necessary to succeed, if you lose, that is it. Do not pass go. I consistently found myself not touching the game for days. And that is a shame considering how good it is.
All in all, this game is hard, and people might miss this little rough gem because of it. This game is a thank you letter to all of you who can beat the Fire Emblem games in your sleep. As hardcore as this game is, there is a lot to like about it. I really wish I could take more units into battle and that there was a way to tone down the difficulty. I also wish I could just move my mages around and then cast spells. Yet, I realize that might unbalance the way the game is structured.
Anyway, I discovered Rondo of Swords for about $20, which is a great admission price for the game’s unique take on the strategy genre. And yet, that difficulty still haunts me. I think I’ll go back to playing Shining Force games now to gain more experience with this genre. Only the brave and strategic masters need apply in order to master this game, which is a horrible fate for such an intriguing and well-made game.
