Summoner by THQ
for PS2
Review
by : Craig
Youngblood
When I
got the call that my PS2 waiting list prayers had finally
been answered, I was really psyched. Finally I would get to
play on the most badass system currently in existence. Sony
had already done a really excellent job with the original
Playstation, and I knew the same should hold true with the
PS2. When I picked up my PS2, I grabbed two games--Ready to
Rumble 2 Boxing and Summoner.
I had
thought that Summoner was going to be an intense roleplaying
game, complete with everything you'd expect--lots of monsters
to fight, places to explore, people to talk to, and an engaging
storyline. I'd have to say that Summoner has that adequately
covered. The basic story goes that your character, Joseph,
has the ability to summon up various beasties such as demons,
to do his bidding. It is a talent derived from birth and from
a magical ring that only a few can use. However, when the
village is attacked, and you summon forth a demon, the demon
kills the attackers... and then destroys the whole town. Whoops.
So, when the village is again attacked years later, Joseph
decides to make amends without the power of a Summoner. After
a weak string of talking to characters, then fighting a couple
marauders who were a joke, and then talking to characters
again, you're off and running.
That brings
me to my main point: gameplay. Summoner does a great job allowing
a free camera view--you can circle around your character and
zoom in and out. However, you can never really get a good
view of the world around you. The top-down view doesn't really
work very well. Battles are from a stationary overhead view
that makes them as exciting as watching a football game from
the nosebleed section. The views even make it difficult to
tell what, if anything is available to loot from the dead
(an RPG staple). Walking around outside of town is done in
an exact rip-off from all Final Fantasy games: the world is
very small and only zooms up if there is an encounter or if
you enter another town.
Additionally,
the fighting is kept from being that interesting by something
called a chain attack. Essentially, it allows you to string
together attacks to better defeat your foes, or bore you to
tears--your choice. I mastered the ability of chaining within
20 minutes of fighting and thereafter never again felt threatened,
even when I was fighting four-on-one early in the game.
The graphics
on this game were the biggest disappointment. I really expected
more, especially after the success of the Final Fantasy franchise
on the original Playstation. Between the poor camera views
and the absolutely bland graphics, I was ready to trash this
game in 30 minutes. The colors are very muted, and it's difficult
to tell what is what. While I was playing, my girlfriend came
in and sat down. She said it gave her a headache to try and
determine what she was looking at on the screen. I'd have
to agree. Your sword looks like a toothpick due to distance,
and the characters you interact with are hidden behind dialog
panels. That's right folks; the game doesn't talk. Its all
text-based. Talk about a disappointment.
And that's
really what I'd have to call this game--a disappointment.
Easily the best thing on the CD is the short called "Summoner
Geeks" that can be found in the credits. Save your money though.
You can download the movie from ifilm.com
for free.
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