I’ve never really been a fan of turn-based RPGs.  I’m not sure why but I’ve always simply held them low on my “fun factor” list.  That has changed recently after playing Lost Odyssey.  The game is so beautiful that it makes you forget that you’re playing a turn-based RPG.  The battle sequences are just so beautiful that I was looking forward to each one.  Contrary to what some would have you believe, the load times are no where near 12-30 seconds.  In fact, they’re nothing that hinders the gameplay at all.  I think at most I had a 6 second load going from scene to scene.

The opening sequence of the game when you see Kaim (main character) and he’s going up against thousands of enemies was a moment of inspiration.  When it got to the battle sequence, I was inspired and ready to deliver the punishment.  I can’t believe I’m saying it but I enjoyed the hell out of the battles.  Another thing that stood out to me was how easy it was to get into the action of the game.  It only took a few tutorials and before I knew it, I was fully into the Lost Odyssey world.  Formations, skills, ring assembly, skill sets, spells….I knew how to do it all. 

I do want to point out a couple of things that troubled me.  There is no real map of the areas you visit and that includes having no icons or legend to identify key points of each area.  It gets confusing at times when you’re in an area looking for the weapons guy or the rest area.  You have to open each door and file it in your memory instead of simply having a legend.  I also found it odd that during battle, the enemy’s health isn’t displayed.  Is this the way these RPGs work?  Do they not give you any idea of how much HP remains on an enemy so you know how close you are to defeating them?

Despite these two things, my first impressions of Lost Odyssey are incredibly good.  I love this game and I can’t believe I’m saying that about a turn-based game.  It’s beautiful, the voice acting is surprisingly good, the characters are interesting and the battles are engaging.  There are four (4) discs to this game so I expect many hours of fun.  Stay tuned for more and hopefully a full review.