Tags: Anachronox; Ion Storm; Tom Hall
Remember Anachronox, the best non-Japanese JRPG? We sure do. That's why we offer you this retrospective feature on Tom Hall's RPG masterpiece, written by esteemed community members Deuce Traveler and VioletShadow. (A word of warning: contains spoilers!) Have a snippet:
Read the full article: RPG Codex Retrospective Review: Anachronox
Remember Anachronox, the best non-Japanese JRPG? We sure do. That's why we offer you this retrospective feature on Tom Hall's RPG masterpiece, written by esteemed community members Deuce Traveler and VioletShadow. (A word of warning: contains spoilers!) Have a snippet:
VioletShadow: Interesting and well written dialogue is something Anachronox is definitely not short on. Talking to random people or robots might lead you to a side quest, or it might not. My main motivation for striking conversation was never “Let’s see if this nets me a side quest” but rather “I wonder what hilarity awaits me here”. I liked how sometimes an unexpected NPC would offer you important information about the game world, like when a random man in the slums gives you an incredibly sophisticated explanation of the nature of Mystech. Another way of completing side quests and obtaining skills, upgrades and rewards is to use your companions’ "World Skills" (described further on). Depending on what an NPC wants or what his problem is, it will often be very obvious which companion World Skill is required. [...] Anachronox's levelling system works well, with party members becoming satisfyingly powerful towards the end but not absurdly overpowered. Each character has a total of four unique combat skills and weapons which can be upgraded from barely working all the way to excellent. I like how the use of each character’s World Skill is integrated into their weapon and combat skill progression, such as Boots finding a combat skill by lockpicking a chest, or Grumpos yammering nonstop until some monk gives him a better weapon. It's possible to buy upgrades from a store later in the game, but exploration and side quests are the main way of obtaining them. Most of the companions can just use the item that unlocks their combat skill right away, but not all. A couple of them require extra steps that make sense in the context of the character, such as Grumpos needing to meditate using the skill item at the Pay2Pray, or Democratus’ upgrade plans having to be taken to the engineer. It works so much better than ‘character leveled up, skills unlocked’. [...]
Deuce Traveler: Let me answer the most important question: Is the game worth playing? I have to say that it is, and I have to thank VioletShadow for suggesting the game to me. I really did not have high expectations going in, and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy playing it, since I usually care more about the gameplay and combat than about the story and graphics. While there were some tactical options in the game's combat system that helped make the experience more enjoyable, ultimately the story and setting are its biggest selling points, and they are done incredibly well. This is a science fiction game with a certain degree of technobabble, but lots of it is actually based on scientific theory, and the game definitely expects a bit of intellectual maturity from its audience. I also liked the characters, and the way in which the story was told. It is a shame that we will never see a sequel, as it is quite obvious that the tale was meant to continue. I finished the game with about half of the side quests done, around the 35 hour mark.
VioletShadow: Anachronox is a wonderful game; weird, charming, unique, and original in its presentation. I’m glad that I chose this game for Deuce and I to play. Despite a bit of a slow start and often repetitive combat, it manages to provide an engaging experience with superb writing, storytelling, setting, humor, music and voice acting. I had a blast playing it and highly recommend it, especially for those with a soft spot for the bizarre and unconventional. Even though there’s hilarity at every turn, the game also explores serious topics such as corruption, bureaucratic ineffectiveness, the infinite nature of the universe and more, and not half-heartedly.
Deuce Traveler: Let me answer the most important question: Is the game worth playing? I have to say that it is, and I have to thank VioletShadow for suggesting the game to me. I really did not have high expectations going in, and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy playing it, since I usually care more about the gameplay and combat than about the story and graphics. While there were some tactical options in the game's combat system that helped make the experience more enjoyable, ultimately the story and setting are its biggest selling points, and they are done incredibly well. This is a science fiction game with a certain degree of technobabble, but lots of it is actually based on scientific theory, and the game definitely expects a bit of intellectual maturity from its audience. I also liked the characters, and the way in which the story was told. It is a shame that we will never see a sequel, as it is quite obvious that the tale was meant to continue. I finished the game with about half of the side quests done, around the 35 hour mark.
VioletShadow: Anachronox is a wonderful game; weird, charming, unique, and original in its presentation. I’m glad that I chose this game for Deuce and I to play. Despite a bit of a slow start and often repetitive combat, it manages to provide an engaging experience with superb writing, storytelling, setting, humor, music and voice acting. I had a blast playing it and highly recommend it, especially for those with a soft spot for the bizarre and unconventional. Even though there’s hilarity at every turn, the game also explores serious topics such as corruption, bureaucratic ineffectiveness, the infinite nature of the universe and more, and not half-heartedly.
Read the full article: RPG Codex Retrospective Review: Anachronox
