Reviewed On: Nintendo Wii
Available For: Nintendo Wii
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Mistwalker
Genre: Role-Playing Game
Age: 16 (PEGI)
Just because something is a gift from the gods, does that instantly make it godly? Just because The Last Story is a gift bestowed upon us by the god-like hands of Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Final Fantasy and founder of Mistwalker, does that make it godly?
Gone is the Final Fantasy, Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey style turnbased gameplay, and in its place is an incredibly impressive actionbased combat system which not only includes melee, but the use of spells and long-range attacks. Players don’t actually control the attacks, but they make use of the cover system, one that even top-action titles such as Gears of War should be envious of. It works well – really well.
Battle strategies run deeper than just brutish action, as players can view the battlefield from a bird’s-eye perspective. With this it’s time to become a fantasy-based armchair general, commanding your units into war.
The storyline is typically Japanese; engrossing and light-hearted, but often quite cheesy and nonsensical.
Although gameplay only lasts around 25 hours, a relatively short time for a role-playing game, that time though is extremely well wound and never feels like a trudge. There are two type of online multiplayer; a co-op which sees players take up arms with friends to thwart boss attacks, and a deathmatch mode for players to battle one another. Both work well and really help to increase the overall longevity.
With the release of Nintendo’s new console, the Wii-U approaching, The Last Story could ironically be one of the last epic stories for the Nintendo Wii.
But it seems like an odd platform to have chosen. With moments of intense action slowing down as the machine creaks under the strain – a game this ambitious would surely run better on a beefier console.
I love the combat, the multiplayer, and the fact it really pushes the Nintendo Wii as far as it goes – it’s great to have another classic yet fresh title delivered in the Wii’s twilight hours.
The slowdowns are however rather ungodly.
SCORE: 8 / 10
PROS: Unique combat stle and awesome multiplayer.
CONS: Rubbish slow-downs and a little too short.
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