Rating:

Carlsev Saga is a good JRPG, but lacks the essential hooks to make it spectacular. It has a great story and deep gameplay that is unfortunately hidden beneath a slow opening and confusing presentation of events, making it just fall short of JRPG greatness.

Additional Info

Full Review

Carlsev Saga: Episode I is part of a series of political thriller RPGs created by Deckiller using RPGMaker 2000. It follows the tale of a kingdom called Carlsev, who is deeply entrenched in a civil war that has torn the country into two warring sides. This political situation provides the backdrop for events that occur throughout the game.

The intriguing storyline presented by this title deserves extraordinary praise. The entertaining story twists and turns unexpectedly with deep characters you can grow attached to, even if they are on the wrong side. However, the story only begins to pick up after a while into the game, by which many of the less hardcore JPRG players would have lost interest. The game lacks a sort of hook near the beginning that draws the player into the story early and make them play on to discover the bigger picture.

Gameplay wise, this game offers several interesting innovations that, again, only presents itself to the player in the late-game. Character advancement in this game only partially relies on character levels - tonics obtained from alchemists can be used to increase character stats and allow you to build up your party according to your strategy. This feature isn't apparent in the early game, which I feel is a waste because it's one of my favorite bits of the game, and should be shown off earlier to grab a new player's attention.

The visuals presented in this game feel 16-bit, due to the dated engine used. I do not, however, see this as a flaw, mainly because I love the nostalgic feel it gives me - almost like revisiting JRPGs of my childhood on the SNES. That said, I feel the game could use a lot more color, because the palette seems pretty dull for most parts.

Overall, I feel this game has a lot of potential but it seems to be holding back too much at the start. If you are a fan of JPRGs, do give this game a try, but play it for about 3-4 hours before judging it for a fair assessment of the game. You can download it from RMN at this address.