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Eternal Sonata is a PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
exclusive video game that comes from Namco. The game is a role playing
game set in an alternate reality. It transpires in Paris, and the
protagonist is named Frederic Francois Chopin. He succumbs to a disease
and dies; however, something occurs before his untimely death. Before
dying, he dreamed of a mystical world full of enchantment and mystery.
Herein lies the dilemma. Was the dream more real than he could ever
imagine? Is it possible that the dream was nothing but a figment of his
imagination? That is what gamers will ponder in Eternal Sonata.
If
this storyline sounds monotonous, then it is because it is monotonous.
I would like to take the been there done that approach with the plot in
this game. There have been a few similarities to the parallel world in
this game to The Matrix Trilogy. Now that I think about it, I was
waiting Frederic to wake from his dream and say "I know kung fu."
Unfortunately, that never came to fruition. The game might have had a
cohesive plot from the start, but that swiftly dissipates as gamers
progress. It turns into this bizarre and ineffable story that is all
over the place. This game is definitely not the best storytelling from
a next generation console like the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Luckily,
the gameplay is a significant improvement over the convoluted plot. Up
to four players can be in a party. All of the adversaries can be seen
in real time (ala Chrono Cross and Final Fantast XII); furthermore,
they can easily be ignored. The combat is fast and furious throughout
the duration of the game. Members of your party have a certain amount
of time in which they are given to perform a specific task. Within the
time given, the player can attack, heal, move, and various other
actions. The trick is to find an action that increases the time gauge
higher and higher. Linking combination attacks together will enable
gamers to execute more powerful maneuvers. This provides a real
strategic contemplation to the gameplay. When a foe attacks your
character, you can chose to block or counter attack if you time it
correctly. Moving around during combat can have different ramifications
on the battle. For instance, being in the shade can have either
positive or negative results (depending on the character). Conversely,
the same rule applies for the opponents. There could be an appearance
alteration when they are in the sunlight, or their attributes might be
bolstered. The controls are fairly responsive in the game, and I had no
gripes about how to do an attack. There is also a cooperative
multiplayer that was a nice touch. The graphics in the game are
egregious. It looks like this game was on a Nintendo Wii console. This
is not what I have come to expect from the hardware on the Xbox 360 and
the PlayStation 3. If any gamer were to do a side by side comparison of
the visuals in Eternal Sonata and Oblivion, then it would be obvious
that Oblivion is superior. I do not know what the game developers were
thinking with the visuals in this game. The one aspect of the
game that really intrigued me was the audio. I have to admit the
musical score is amazing. There is a wide variety of instruments from
pianos to violins that perfectly fit the theme of the game. The
countless number of crescendos and decrescendos is absolutely
brilliant. Disappointingly, the voice acting itself is average at best.
Occasionally, I felt like the dialogue was unintentionally humorous.
Overall, Eternal Sonata will not keep anyone up all night playing. The
game is easily something that can had potential to be fascinating, but
the flaws are too enormous to dismiss. final verdict 6.5 out of 10 |
Game Review 
