Enthralled immediately by the fantastic artwork and story telling the game kept me hooked if not simply for the story. My initial playthrough was done on the normal difficulty. Let me just say that the scaling difficulty can ramp up rather quickly, depening on the players choices and actions of course. That being said, nearly every choice you make has a lasting impact on your party good or bad. The music is wonderfuly done and blends well into the story line. Character development and story in addition to multipul paths through the story are worth it alone. Combat itself is simple yet rewarding if played right. Nothing genre defining in terms of style or execution for the combat aspect. Similar to your standard HP and MP pools + usable items (cards in this case). Animations are very fluid and well done. The only major downside to this game I would have to say is the Stryx system. These items are consumed as you travel and usage depends on how many party members and your distance to travel. Some minor items can influence comsumption but nothing too hefty. The issue I had here was not rationing off what supplies I had to party members but the fact it auto-consumes them x per character each time you move. This wouldn't be so bad if it had given the option to not give the items to certain individuals when you want to. It only lets you choose as your supply nears empty. This can be avoided of course by playing on lower difficulties. Lastly my only real irritation would be the lack of equipment for the characters. They get to use two items each yes, but no you wont be upgrading weapons and armor here. These few minor things do not make this game BAD in any way. Far from it in fact. Wonderful music, fantastic artwork and a compelling story kept me playing till the very end. Then again to try different routes. Definately worth the buy and makes me want to try other games from their company. A good buy for any tactical RPG fan.
