As I often proclaim to the world, I love a good role-playing game. There’s nothing like it. It’s comforting, intriguing and downright fun. There’s a fair amount of strategy involved as one needs to balance the overall party and the everyday battles. Atlus is hard at work for a game that might be an excellent game to play on the go, and they were kind enough to give us a taste of what is to come. That game is Hexyz Force for the PSP.
Hexyz Force follows two different characters: Cecelia and Levant. Both characters inhabit the same world but approach things from two different perspectives. They are separate and complete stories. Cecelia is a priestess attempting to keep the god of destruction at bay. Levant is trying to liberate a race of beast-like humans from a corrupt empire. They even sometimes meet and interact. Thus, completing both stories provides the big picture. But you’re not chained into completing them both. If you have finished Levant’s story and you’re done, then the game is complete for you.
What makes this game unique is the gameplay. Developed by Sting, a company well-known for their experimental approaches to RPGs, Hexyz Force has a somewhat traditional combat system. Characters take their turns in a specific order. What makes it unique is twofold. First, your characters and enemies build combos by attacking with the proper elements. As the combo count gets higher, the greater the damage inflicted when it is broken. This is done by using an attack weaker than the last. You can see what type of attack your opponent is going to use next. But it doesn’t always work, as they may surprise you with a different attack.
Second, characters depend on their weapons. Each protagonist has a magical creature that takes odd and seemingly randomly items then transforms them into new weapons. You can then customize them with skills. How, I am not completely certain just yet.
Furthermore, you have a multipurpose source that doubles not only as money, but as a method of healing. This is gained from fighting well during battle. Battles are initiated by running into them on the map. They will not respawn until you leave the screen.
Graphically, the game seems to be coming along well. The world seems bright and vibrant. It looks a bit pixilated, but in a good way. It has a lot of charm. It is one of those worlds that seems like it could be easy to get lost in. From what I saw, loading times were rather fast. It took no more than 10 seconds. Add in the fact that there is an install function, load times could be reduced to those of a cartridge — if not darn close to it.
Overall, Hexyz Force seems to be shaping up very nicely. This could be one of the best values in RPGs. This could be a game to watch. Of course, this might be my excitement getting the better of me. For more information, visit http://www.atlus.com/hexyzforce/.
