Arc the Lad Collection

Whew! I think I have a few finger cramps and an entire memory card filled with saved games, but I've coursed through the Arc the Lad Collection and in the end I find myself satisfied. Well all that and I also have a nifty little memory card holder emblazoned with Arc the Lad artwork to save my handiwork. Working Designs continues to out do themselves with the release of the Arc the Lad Collection - bringing to old school console RPGers all the solid gameplay and a thorough translation of a classic game series. Continuing in their tradition of satisfying the ultimate Otaku (the Japanese equivalent of our word, "fanboy" complete with it's positive and negative connotations), not only do you get three full RPG adventures that span 4 CDs, but you also get the game Arc: Tournament on CD as well as a thorough "Making Of" CD which shows the ins and outs of the entire process - including the humor and insights of the game team. But wait, there's more..... In addition to a full 6 CDs, you also get a spiffy faux leather-bound game manual for the entire series, and the ever fulfilling Omake (extras!) box. Inside the Omake box you'll find three analog stick covers featuring the leads of the 3 games, a special Arc the Lad memory card holder, and 22 character standees with which you may decorate your game room, cubicle, or wherever else you want to show off your absolute gaming obsessive-ness. 

Welcome to the story of Arc the Lad! Let me fill you in without spoilers as best I can. In game I, you'll meet Arc and his companions at the moment when it all started. Arc is a dreamer who takes up the sword during the time when the seal that holds the "Dark One" is breached. This short, prologue-type, game involves the recovery of the elemental spheres and the gathering of their power to hopefully reseal the Dark One in his prison. Arc the Lad II, probably the most addictive and expansive of the three, introduces you to Elc. The story picks up with Elc's flashback to the time when those who sought to bring back the Dark One's rule obliterated his family in order to get the Fire Guardian. One problem: Elc recalls these butchers as the crew of the Silver Noah, which at the time belonged to the followers of the Dark One, but later became associated with Arc and his crew who stole the ship some time later. Elc is driven to right the wrongs done to his family and to destroy the nefarious plan which has caused him to lose precious friends and to see the torture of innocents. Arc the Lad III takes place some years later, after an event called the Great Disaster. The lead here is Alec, a young boy who remembers little of his childhood except being saved by a Hunter during the infernos of the Great Disaster and who wants to follow in his hero's path. Never would he guess the extent of what journey he was undertaking - his Hunter's life becoming entangled in the discovery of a new plot which seeks to enslave the world through technology. 

It's a whole lot of stuff to absorb, but fortunately for this persistent (and now somewhat exhausted) gamer, it was ultimately worthwhile. When they say 100+ hours of RPG gaming, they mean it - even if the first game racks up under 15 hours. Of course, this first game introduces you to the name sake of the game, Arc, as well as introducing you the the core of gameplay that will carry you through the entire series. Don't take this intro for granted, because the cool thing about this series is that you will be able to covert your data from game to game. That is, of course, after you win. The second game, the one which has the most "epic" quality to it, took about 60-70 hours to complete, and it added many elements such as side-quests and more intense monster taming. In other words - all that stuff that really builds up your characters and keeps you from rushing through the game. Believe me, especially in the case of II, if you miss a couple side quests and choose not to build up your characters very well - you'll be in for a rude awakening at the end. By the time you hit III, the graphics go from complete 2D to a 3D hybrid. The graphics on III actually seem rougher that the ones in II and even with the addition of some cut scenes, they seem a bit basic. Even this last game will most likely fail to please eye candy buffs - but really, if you are that addicted to eye candy why are you even reading this review? It's not always about the graphics, and when the market mostly fails to produce solid console RPGs, you end up really appreciating these gems. The Arc the Lad Collection is another fine example of Working Designs' commitment to giving old series' new life for PSX games. It's not about the graphics (which range roughly from older Nintendo RPG to older PSX titles in scope), it's about the gameplay.

Speaking of gameplay, which is the very core of what makes or breaks a console RPG, the Arc the Lad Collection has a quick and easy to learn battle system. Battles are turn based, and characters can move a certain number of spaces according to their agility. At the conclusion of their movement, they can physically or magically attack the enemy if they are within that character's range. As in any good RPG, the harder you work at raising your levels, the wider ranges that you will be able to attain. As you progress through each game and all more characters to your party, however, you will find it increasingly difficult or time-consuming to really keep your characters evenly balanced. Each character will have a different set of abilities to develop, so the key to success is getting the right combination of melee and magical (both offensive and defensive) characters. Luckily, much of this character building can take place with a purpose, so to speak, in the form of jobs at the Hunter's Guild. Mercenaries, with a good heart of course, your characters can offer to take on jobs for the townspeople as well as exterminating the monsters on each area's "most wanted" list. By the time you get done completing these jobs successfully, you'll no doubt have a lot of merits and you won't depend on repetitive battles to build character levels.

Stuff like random battles are a welcome omission from the Arc the Lad Collection. Also refreshingly missing is the sometimes sketchy translation jobs that can happen when such games are brought over. This is perhaps most evident in part III in which innuendo and mature humor are frequent occurrences. It really livens up the experience, and such hard translation work manages to lift a game from "just another RPG" to a more personal experience. You start actually seeing people you know in the roles (especially Lutz in III, for me) and it gives the game a whole new dimension. It's this kind of careful attention and devotion to detail that always seems to set the work of Working Designs apart. If you don't believe it, just watch the "Making Of" CD and you'll have reason to believe that - Yes, there are game companies out there who really love games and pour their souls into it. 

Arc the Lad III also continues to add to complexity of the RPG system. One of the characters, Theo, takes on a similar role that Lieza the beast-talker did in II - except he uses a magic called Cardish to capture the monsters and their power. Not surprisingly, you'll need to trade cards with NPC's at times to complete quests. III also adds more puzzles, many of them taking place as Hunter jobs. There's games that involved pressing buttons at the right time, keeping your eyes sharp, sliding tiles, and more. While there were puzzles in the previous games, there weren't nearly as many, and it changes the focus a little to break up what otherwise could be monotonous. Another talent you must master in III is "combining." While there was a little of this in II, in III you must learn to experiment and synthesize new items and weapons to better your team's performance. Information comes at a cost in this realm, and believe me, it's worth it to make the best items and waste as few as possible.

The other extra game, Arc the Lad: Tournament, bears mention as an exciting opportunity for fans of monster taming (you know who you are). Falling into the category of "ways to really add hours to your Arc the Lad II time," is the character, Lieza. Lieza is a beast-talker, a human gifted with the ability to communicate and sometimes befriend the various enemy monsters you may come across. These captured monsters, just like your human team, will gain experience the more battles they participate in. During the course of the game (no spoilers here), you will also have the chance to alter some of their attributes and improve their performance. All this will not only help you during II, but when you win, your saved data can also be imported into Tournament as well as III. Tournament is pretty much what you'd expect from the title, a lovely side jaunt into the world of monster battling. You'll participate as an all new character, but don't worry, your friends from II will be there to help, advise, and even through the occasional jibe at you.

Playing the Arc the Lad Collection is like a bit of a journey through video game history, given an interesting twist of continuity by your ability to convert characters. Important to note though, don't expect your characters to convert verbatim. What will actually happen is that, for example in converting from II to III, my lead characters (who were level 95+ at the end of II) appeared in III at level 50. Granted, they still were several levels ahead of my new characters, but they weren't exactly obliterating everything instantly as the would have if they converted exactly. It is kind of a nice balance though, because you don't immediately abandon your new characters for the old ones. 

Overall, this game is an old school console RPGer's game. If lots of characters building, painstaking translation, and a solid battle system sound like a good way to spend 100+ hours of your time - the Arc the Lad Collection is a good investment. If you like lots of goodies, toys, and fancy collected game manuals on top of that gameplay, it's a great investment. In a time when many of the next-gen console game makers are still trying to figure out how to make a good RPG, Working Designs has brought up a timeless classic which is fun to play and manages to make even 100+ hours seem too short. 

Graphics: 8 
In a PS2/Xbox/GameCube world, the last thing you're going to want to do is show this to someone who can't get past eye candy. However, this is not to say that the game looks bad, because according to the standards of when they were released, they were on par. While II has strictly 2D graphics, it's colorful SD (super-deformed) characters look good and there's no slowdown at all. Arc the Lad III does have a few pretty picture moments, but the 2D/3D blend isn't quite as successful. However, the anime artwork inside the manuals is worth mentioning since, well...  they just look cool.

Sound: 8
Nothing to move you to tears - but this is both a good and bad thing. While there's nothing that really stands out about most of the music in the series, it also doesn't have any tracks that really grate on you or get repeated so many times that you can't stand to listen anymore.

Concept: 8.5
Working Designs has never lost their enthusiasm for gaming. I mean, just open that collection box: Look at that beautiful black hardcover manual with red ribbon bookmarks. Look at all those little goodies you can collect and display around your console and even ON the controllers. Laugh at the amusing humor, puns, and other treats they DID NOT lose in the translation. The Arc the Lad Collection is a work of love, and gamers will enjoy it for a long long time.

Overall: 8.5
Think of the Arc the Lad Collection as a well loved trilogy of your choice - but instead you have the good fortune to play it all at once instead of waiting years for the series to complete. Then add a couple spin-offs and the ever important behind the scenes looks. Arc the Lad I is a quick prologue - Arc the Lad II is an epic masterpiece - Arc the Lad III is a somewhat more daring romp with high energy characters and a bit more bite to it's dialogue. Arc the Lad: Tournament is a fun way to convince your monster-raising friends to get into the game if they haven't already, and it convinces those who might not otherwise play them to stick with it just to see the characters. Throw in the behind the scenes CD look at the Working Designs team and you'll get an added respect for the people behind the Arc the Lad Collection accomplishment. This game is definitely for old school console gamers, and for that set of gamers, the collection is a sure crowd pleaser!