by: Dameon White

March 16, 2009

No one would argue that the 360 is in no short supply of RPG’s, especially as of late. Games such as Mass Effect, Lost Odyssey, and Elder Scrolls – all from Western developers and with upcoming sequels – have been met with open arms from gamers everywhere. On the other side of the pond, though, JRPG’s have been silently missing from the scene. Infinite Undiscovery (whose name still evades me), Phantasy Star Universe and The Last Remnant failed to deliver on their promises; while games such as Eternal Sonata and Tales of Vesperia lacked the spotlight treatment from Microsoft despite being superior to its competition. It seemed as though the day of the JRPG had quietly ended. Or so we thought.

Tri-Ace, shameful makers of Infinite Undiscovery, lend their talents yet again in what is easily their best effort this generation with Star Ocean: The Last Hope exclusively for Xbox 360. It may not be the savior of JRPG’s everywhere, but don’t let that fool you, as SO:TLH is one JRPG worth spending the next 40 or so hours of your life with.

The Star Ocean series has never been incredibly popular here in the states, particularly because Square always made sure that their renowned Final Fantasy series remained the solo entry on the red carpet. Still, the series – which has 3 previous games spanning across several different platforms – has been a worthy entry from the unknown Square-Enix owned company. Don’t worry about this game being the fourth in the series, though, as it’s been given the prequel treatment so that you can do as Microsoft would love to plug, ‘Jump In’. And boy, does it do that incredibly well.

As aforementioned, The Last Hope is a prequel to the Star Ocean saga, which means you needn’t have played the prior games in order to understand what’s going on in this one. But, for those out there who have, you will find subtle hints at future events in the series that you’ve come across while playing the other games. It’s a nice touch to what easily could have been left out altogether, but an addition that adds to the story significantly and a tip of the hat to the fans.

The Last Hope follows the story of Edge Maverick and his best bud and fellow special group member, Reimi, on their voyage across the galaxy to find a new home for the now uninhabitable Earth after it’s been virtually destroyed in World War III. The two of you are the earth’s “last hope” (hence the name) and as any traditional JRPG would have it, your voyage doesn’t quite pan out exactly as expected. You will face foes, gain friends, find treasure chests, complete side quests that often make little sense and level up as your make your way through the adventure. This game is very much a classic JRPG in almost every way imaginable, which some will find as a positive while others a negative if you’re in search of a unique RPG. Lack of uniqueness aside, the game is still quite entertaining and in several ways is a breath of fresh air for JRPG-loving gamers.