gameassault.com - Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete Review
Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete
MSRP: $69.95
Number of Players: 1
Developer: GameArts
Publisher: Working Designs
Reviewer: Andrew Broas
In
1992, a new role-playing game called Lunar: Silver Star Story was released on
Sega CD. It was a cult classic and heralded by many as the greatest role-playing
game ever made. Six years later, it returns on the PlayStation with new characters,
a rewritten script, a new soundtrack, updated graphics, and the best-ever packaging
for a game released in America. With two game discs, one soundtrack disc, a
"Making of Lunar" disc, a cloth map, a hardcover manual with interviews
and full-color artwork, and a foil-stamped box, Lunar is probably the best buy in
the videogame market today. But with the great packaging aside, does Lunar
compare to today's RPGs? Absolutely.
In Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, a young boy named Alex ventures off with
his best friend, Ramus, and his girlfriend, Luna, to meet the white dragon, Quark.
Ramus talks Alex into this in order to ask Quark for a rare and valuable "dragon
diamond" which Ramus hopes to sell afterward for a huge amount of money. Once
they have the diamond, they learn that it is much too valuable to be sold in their
hometown, so now they must cross the sea to reach the bustling metropolis known as
Meribia. From there, the adventure escalates and Alex embarks on the biggest
adventure of his life. It is then that the story really takes off.
Most Japanese RPGs that are released in America are plagued with corny dialogue or
generally bad translations. Working Designs shows everyone else how it's done by
giving Lunar the best scripting I've ever seen in an RPG. Most of the dialogue
between characters is laugh-out-loud funny. You just can't help but bust a gut at
some of the things you'll find in there. Every kind of low-brow humor you can
imagine can be found lurking around every corner, waiting to make you die from laughter.
Sexual innuendo, pop-culture references, and bodily function jokes are plentiful.
As juvenile as that may sound, Working Designs makes it all work. You WILL
laugh on more than one occasion while playing Lunar.
Lunar has so much character and soul, it's almost as if it's not even a game, but
more like a story about another world somewhere. All the main characters are alive
with emotion and real heart. Players won't feel as if they're reading some basic
text in order to get an idea of what is going on, they will feel as if they are witnessing
an event that is actually taking place. To further enhance things, animated
sequences are sprinkled throughout the game at key moments. Not only that, but the
voice acting is excellent and blends into the action perfectly. For example, as
Alex, Luna, and Ramus are sailing to Meribia, the game cuts to an animated sequence where
Luna is up in the middle of the night singing and pondering the events ahead of her.
You can just hear her soul crying out for answers to the questions robbing her of
sleep. It is this kind of engrossing storytelling that makes Lunar such an
unforgettable experience.
Now, at first glance, some people may see Lunar and dismiss it because of its
traditional style graphics. While the graphics are certainly a step down from the
advances that current RPGs are making, it's almost as if it doesn't matter. Lunar
is so fun, most players just won't care about its appearance. Besides, it's not like
it's really that bad anyway. Wild Arms, Suikoden, and Vandal
Hearts all used similar styles and still managed to be great games. Lunar
is no different. However, for the real graphic tarts out there, Lunar will
be a big disappointment. The animation is good and everything is alive with
brilliant color, but it is still a very primitive look by today's standards. That
may be enough to turn off some gamers right off the bat.
On the other hand, the soundtrack is excellent. Each town has a fitting theme and
the boss themes are heavy with drama. When Luna sings, it is simply beautiful.
It's the kind of music that can stir your soul. One just needs to listen to
the soundtrack disc included with the game to find that out.
Sound effects don't quite make the same impact as the music, but they're definitely not as
bad as they could be. Most of the sounds in the game are strictly average.
Still, there's something to be said about the speech the characters use in battle and
during cut scenes. The voice acting is part of what gives the game so much character.
Its believable and sometimes hilarious.
Unlike many RPGs, enemies can be seen on screen in order to allow players to avoid battles
in dungeons. Once a player does engage in a battle though, they will see Lunar
has a battle system all its own. Positioning your party members on the battlefield adds a
small amount of strategy to each battle and often determines the effectiveness of an
enemy's attack. As party members advance in experience, their range and turns per
round also advance. For example, in the beginning of the game, Alex can walk only so
far and has only one attack per round. If an enemy is too far away, Alex will spend
his turn walking to the enemy's position. However, once you get halfway through the
game, Alex can almost walk all the way across the battlefield and still have one or two
turns left to attack the enemy after he closes in on them. This makes for some
pretty interesting battles. Sometimes, you may have to retreat to a defensive
position, and other times you may have to have all your characters charge the enemy.
There's a good way to defeat every enemy and it's up to the player to learn them
all.
A normal player will probably get through Lunar in about 25-30 hours. While
that may not seem like much compared to the 70 hour marathons recently released, Lunar
packs a lot of adventure into that short amount of time. It's a hell of a ride and
if you enjoy a good story at all, you should buy this game. Lunar is a
great videogame, a timeless story, and a shining example of what the videogame industry
has to offer.
Graphics
7.0
Very old school, but still
detailed enough to pass itself off as a 32-bit game. Once people get into the game,
I honestly don't think they are going to care about the graphics. Some people may
think a 7 is generous, but the animated scenes are just awesome enough to save it from a
lower score.
Sound & Music
9.5
Great music and voice acting,
but average sound effects. The soundtrack disc that is included is very nice though
and has some of the best songs from the game on it.
Control
10
It's not a game that requires
quick reflexes at all, so control isn't really an issue. Everything is responsive
and the system works well.
Replay Value
7.0
Some people
may only play this once, but most people will play it twice in a row because its so damn
fun. This is a game that people won't want to part with once they've played all the
way through it.
Fun Factor
9.5
Lunar is a timeless
classic that will forever shine as one of videogaming's finest moments. Its great
ride from start to finish.
Overall
9.5
The scores don't even out to a
9.5, but that's because I couldn't include the packaging. The package as a whole
easily warrants a high score. This is definitely a worthwhile purchase for anyone
who owns a PlayStation.
Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete
In
1992, a new role-playing game called Lunar: Silver Star Story was released on
Sega CD. It was a cult classic and heralded by many as the greatest role-playing
game ever made. Six years later, it returns on the PlayStation with new characters,
a rewritten script, a new soundtrack, updated graphics, and the best-ever packaging
for a game released in America. With two game discs, one soundtrack disc, a
"Making of Lunar" disc, a cloth map, a hardcover manual with interviews
and full-color artwork, and a foil-stamped box, Lunar is probably the best buy in
the videogame market today. But with the great packaging aside, does Lunar
compare to today's RPGs? Absolutely. 
Lunar has so much character and soul, it's almost as if it's not even a game, but
more like a story about another world somewhere. All the main characters are alive
with emotion and real heart. Players won't feel as if they're reading some basic
text in order to get an idea of what is going on, they will feel as if they are witnessing
an event that is actually taking place. To further enhance things, animated
sequences are sprinkled throughout the game at key moments. Not only that, but the
voice acting is excellent and blends into the action perfectly. For example, as
Alex, Luna, and Ramus are sailing to Meribia, the game cuts to an animated sequence where
Luna is up in the middle of the night singing and pondering the events ahead of her.
You can just hear her soul crying out for answers to the questions robbing her of
sleep. It is this kind of engrossing storytelling that makes Lunar such an
unforgettable experience.
Unlike many RPGs, enemies can be seen on screen in order to allow players to avoid battles
in dungeons. Once a player does engage in a battle though, they will see Lunar
has a battle system all its own. Positioning your party members on the battlefield adds a
small amount of strategy to each battle and often determines the effectiveness of an
enemy's attack. As party members advance in experience, their range and turns per
round also advance. For example, in the beginning of the game, Alex can walk only so
far and has only one attack per round. If an enemy is too far away, Alex will spend
his turn walking to the enemy's position. However, once you get halfway through the
game, Alex can almost walk all the way across the battlefield and still have one or two
turns left to attack the enemy after he closes in on them. This makes for some
pretty interesting battles. Sometimes, you may have to retreat to a defensive
position, and other times you may have to have all your characters charge the enemy.
There's a good way to defeat every enemy and it's up to the player to learn them
all.