Gamelist Review List Song List Watched Journals Forum IRC Gamelist Song List Review List Forum Articles IRC Log Out Add Game Edit Games Add Reviews Edit Reviews Add Songs Edit Songs Log Out Edit Games Edit Reviews Edit Songs Sign Up Log In My Journal My Game Journals Watched Journals All Journals Journal Settings All Journals About Us Staff FAQ
Castle Paradox
Title Bar
Log In Box
 
______  
[more]
cc vs. Aethereal
cc It looks more like a storage room for wrecking balls, if you ask me.
Eggie
Download: 136B
V.S.
Aethereal
Play Time: 0 hours and 10 minutes
Review # 9 for Aethereal It looks more like a storage room for wrecking balls, if you ask me.
Them's Fightin' Words
    Okay, I downloaded this game with intent to review it, found that the RPG file is fairly large (4 megs), but when I played it, I played for about ten minutes, and then couldn't find anything to do. Did I miss something? Anyway, from what I gathered, this game isn't worth the hype Eggie gave it (and few games that are hyped are good). The poor flow of the game and the ridiculous story (or lack thereof) don't make it worth anything. Did I mention it's boring?
Graphics
    Uh, the ripped stuff isn't too bad. However, ripped is a huge no-no in this community, and therefore, I must chastise Eggie for doing this. Ripped might look better than original graphics, but then you put no effort into it, and I'd rather play a bad-looking game that has original graphics anyway. There were some original graphics, but they weren't that great, mostly because they lacked any shading and the heroes all look very similar to each other, something that should always be avoided. The maptiles were a bit better, but they lacked a consistent style (some use gradient shades with awful color choices, others don't have any shading, some use random airbrushed-style shading, etc.) and the variety wasn't there - the number of maptiles in the game total could fit on an entire page. Enemy graphics were a bit better, except the ridiculous-looking boss, and the ripped graphics are something I'm not even going into. The battle backgrounds were also ripped straight from FF6 and Seiken Densetsu 3. That's a huge mistake, Eggie. Overall, the graphics aren't that great, and I hate to say it, but they are one of the higher points of this game.
 
Storyline
    There's an okay-sounding outline of this game's story in its Game List entry. It's a shame that none of that is in the game. You start in a building and are given absolutely no information on where to go or what to do. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing, as it works in several games (Metroid comes to mind), but it doesn't work here. The randomness of the story and the lack of flow really hurts - for example, I spent a while wandering outside the building until I found a cave which contained a boss. After defeating the boss (who apparently I was supposed to go after and kill, but ended up doing it randomly), I smashed this "Aura Pillar" because "we're supposed to destroy those!". What in the hell is an Aura Pillar? Is it some kind of magical thing that can destroy the world? Is it just a fancy sun lamp? Is it a plot device that has nothing to do with the story and isn't explained in any way, shape, or form? I'm not sure, but I'd bet my money on the third choice. Also, Linkin Park makes an appearance in the game. I have mixed feelings about this - on one hand, it's a tribute to them and Eggie is a fan, but on the other hand, their appearance is pointless. Oh, and how does Lycane suddenly turn into a "Light Pillar"? He looked like a werewolf thing to me on the map. Speaking of Lycane, who is he? He is never explained and I never saw his name or knew who he was until I fought him. On a separate note, the NPCs in this game suffer from the usual problem: They're banal and stupid. There are a lot of soldiers inside the building you start in, yet all of them say "Hi" or "Wassup?". Er, explain to me why they're all saying the same thing. Are they clones of each other or something? They shouldn't be so lifeless and useless. NPCs are important! Oh well. C'mon, Eggie, give this thing a story.
 
Gameplay
    The gameplay is of the type "boring", in the sense that you're going to be yawning the whole time, while watching iffy graphics and listening to terrible music (unless you mute the volume or don't have VDMS). There is nothing to really do aside from finding/killing that boss and perusing a shop that has generic items (restoratives). The dungeon is short and repetitive, and screams of bad design. The field area is a little better, but what are those grey things blocking my way? Rocks? They look more like gigantic stainless-steel spheres with that ugly gradient splashed on. The hero speed is on 10, which is a good thing, because it let me move through this game more quickly to get it over with. The encounter rate was far too high (a battle every three or four steps), and the game was just plain not fun.
 
  Battle
    Every character is practically the same. They all have "crystal" abilities (which are just magic spells) and each character has a unique thing about them, which is actually a good thing. However, their unique abilities are not so unique in design. For example (according to the readme), the "Katana" ability is nothing more than Cyan's Sword Tech ability from FF6. The "drawing and junctioning" is even here, ripped straight from FF8 (although it did not seem to be implemented, although I just held down space for the battles - yes, they are those kinds of battles). The enemies are awful - what in the hell is a "Werebear Slut" (For the record, it did look like a bear thing with boobs and shorts)? C'mon, Eggie, you can do better than this.
 
  Map Design
    The maps need quite a bit of work. There is no detail to the map design, except maybe just a bit in the field map, and the dungeon is so repetitive it's laughable - all it is is a blue wall and blue floor, repeating over and over to the end. No rocks, no twigs, no torches, no water, no nothing. Also, the maps don't have a consistent style, which is now leading me to believe that there might be some unoriginal maptiles in there...
 
  Balance
    The battles are of the "hold-down-the-spacebar" type, and there aren't any puzzles or anything to keep you busy as you plod around. This game is pretty easy, and the enemies have no variety. The only balance this game has is that it is balanced to be bad. No, that doesn't make a lot of sense, but does it have to? I think you've already figured out that this game isn't very good, so just go along with it.
 
Music
    Ripped from various sources, some is placed okay, but the other stuff is repetitive and ear-piercing. The battle themes are ripped from various Final Fantasy games. I'm okay with ripped music, but only if you rip from decent sources! Final Fantasy is way too overused. I've heard it before, you've heard it before, and you're not missing a thing with the mute button on.
 
Enjoyment
    Doesn't the rest of the review kind of hint at what this paragraph might say? If you haven't gotten the gist of it yet, I'll say it right here: I didn't enjoy it. This game is in no way fun, and it is in no way satisfying. It is not worthy of playing, much less downloading. The battles are boring, the story is nonexistant, the flow is missing, and the game lacks clarity. Does that sound fun? I didn't think so.
 
Final Blows
    Before I conclude, something that didn't fit anywhere else: Why does the game say "Copyright Eggie and Square Enix"? What did Square Enix have to do with this game? I know they didn't do anything for this game. If you think putting that in the title makes up for ripping things from them, then you are SADLY mistaken.

Overall, this game is a mix of bad design and boring gameplay, and there is no reason to hit the download button and check it out. It is not the worst game I have ever played, but it's pretty bad. Don't bother.
Of course it's the beginning, this is the beginning of the game, you dope. It's also the end. How fitting.

Of course it's the beginning, this is the beginning of the game, you dope. It's also the end. How fitting.
Final Scores
Graphics: 3/10.0
They need work, and Eggie, you seriously need to lose the ripped graphics. Your original graphics might not be very good, but it's better than ripped shit.
Storyline: 1/10.0
It's non-existant. A storyline should not exist in the game's description, it should exist within the game.
Gameplay: 2/10.0
The battles need work and they are too easy. Additionally, there is nothing to keep the player entertained while they work through the areas.
Music: 3/10.0
Ripped, and some of it is okay, but the rest of it isn't that great. Lose the Final Fantasy stuff, and get some better ripped music, or get some original music.
Enjoyment: 1.5/10.0
Enjoyment? Hah! No way, man.
Overall Grade: F+
Final Thoughts
    Hype doesn't equal a good game, and this is a perfect example of that statement.  


All games, songs, and images © their respective owners.
Terms of Service
©2008 Castle Paradox