White Knight Chronicles: Tale of a Knight
by gamereaper218, HSM guest contributor
With the new White Knight Chronicles 2 coming out on September 13, 2011, I thought I would revisit the original one and take a walk down memory lane.
White Knight Chronicles is an epic tale about two kingdoms who have been in a long lasting war. The King of Balandor, wishing to make peace and put an end to the conflict, invites the Duke of Faria to his castle. His daughter, the Princess Cisna, is having a coming of age celebration.
But the festivities do not last long as it is sabotaged by a group known as the Magi who are seeking to steal the White Knight Ark, an ancient weapon of war created by a long dead civilization. It was discovered, then sealed beneath Balandor castle, and the Magi want to use its power in order to take over the world. During the ensuing chaos, a young man named Leonard accidentally unlocks the power of the White Knight, and thus our story begins.
White Knight Chronicles was developed by Level Five, they are responsible for games like Dragon Quest IX and Rogue Galaxy, both of which I have played and beaten. This time around, you’re a powerful knight out to save the princess. Although the storyline is a bit cliché, you will find yourself engaged in it as you progress through the game. You will meet many different types of characters, even a few very cute bunny people.
In this game you don’t play as one of the regular characters. Before you set out on your adventures, you have to create an avatar, who becomes a companion for the main cast of the game. White Knight features one of the best character customization features I have seen in any game so far, with up to ten pages of settings for both males and females, it certainly gives you plenty to choose from.
If you like game play similar to Final Fantasy XII, you will like the style of White Knight Chronicles. The fighting has many options to choose from to set up combos that can be devastating to any opponents. The Knights in the game do battle with their own system of fighting, separate from the regular characters. Your abilities are yours to choose from, like most RPGs, you gather experience points and use them as you will to grow your characters.
While running around in-world or questing online, you will encounter many different types of monsters. The enemies in the game range from the very small to building size creatures, like the Pyredaemos which is a very large foe, and the Gigas, which is a human turned into a giant beast.
You also need to fight several different storyline human characters. Encounters with some of these monsters are voluntary, as you can literally walk past some of them and not engage them at all. But when you’re playing story mode there are some you have to fight in order to continue on. It is best to fight them anyway to gain the experience points you need.
I found the AI to be very good; your team can help when you’re low on health, and the combo system is awesome. You can name and create your own attack combos, and you can choose to be a heavy magic user or a swordsman, it depends what skills you upgrade with your experience points.
Overall, the lavish battle system is fun when you get the hang of it. The developers did a great job, though at times it may look like Final Fantasy XII because you wait on the action ring or {AR} to fill so you can take your next action. The ring’s speed depends on the equipment you’re using; heavy armor will make you move slower, while light armor allows you to move faster.
The online play in this game is what sets it apart from many of the others out there. The online lobby is called the Geonet, there you can create your own home town. This town can hold up to twenty players, your friends list can provide them. During the storyline play, you meet people in the various towns, whom you recruit to become the denizens of your town. They can serve as shopkeepers, farmers, mages and lumbermen, to name a few roles. Your town levels up as you add people and areas that you buy with money earned while on quests.
You go on quests to gain experience and cash; each quest can use up to four of your friends. You use these quests to level up your Guild Rank; you must quest to do this, so it is a game within the game that is very detailed all by itself. The first quest available to you is boot camp. This gives you a fair amount of experience points and can be replayed to gain more. Many more quests will be at your disposal as you level up and progress in the main single player story.
In this way the game plays more on the lines of an MMO than an RPG. You can buy the different armor and weapons you see with game money, unlike other games with the MMO element. Another cool thing about this game is when you equip them with the armor and swords you buy, you can see them wearing it during cut-scenes. This is something that makes you feel more involved. White Knight has a few home reward unlocks as well, from a statue of the White Knight to a costume for your Home avatar.
While online you can use text chat or voice just like you do in PlayStation Home. There are many items you find in online play that you can’t find in single player, so you must play both to fully experience the scope of the game.
The graphics are crystal clear and crisp; you can notice the amount of detail when you see a cut-scene. The computer graphics put into this game are very high quality, and the in-game map is large and easy to follow. The music in the game gives you the correct sense of feeling for each map. Some of White Knight’s sound effects are very detailed – from the slash of your sword to the clanking of the armor that you use in combat.
I have been a regular player of White Knight Chronicles since the game came out, and I can say it’s been a fun gaming experience for me as well as my friends from PlayStation Home, and also my family.
The game play and fun factor is great; the storyline is basic, but holds well. Even when you think you’re done playing there is always something going on in the Geonet, which I believe is one of the games strong points. So if you like games that are like Final Fantasy XII, you’ll feel right at home with this one.
My score is ten out of ten souls; strong online and gaming components along with great replay value.
August 21st, 2011 by gamereaper218 | 11 comments
I loved this game. I spent two months playing it daily. I am still in touch with two of my WKC team members and we are planning on being at the WKC 2 launch. Be forewarned, trophy hunters, this is a very long game. This is not a quickie you can platinum in a day or two. But to many gamers, bragging rights (the WKC avatar costume) are worth 5 platinums from shorter easier games. Thanks for a great review!
Great job Reaper! I am so happy that you are continuing to contribute to the magazine. I too loved this game and I just pre-ordered the new one as well! The fact that this game is not just a wonderful RPG but that it also has an incredible online community and game unto itself sets it apart from an other RPG out there. Some of the other developers need to take a look at this idea, as it seems to build real loyalty to the game. This game and Red Dead Redemption are the only two that I have ever played online, and it is that element that keeps many people coming back to enjoy long after they have finished the storyline. Kudos on the review!
Looks great! Good job! Keep at it =]
Great review Reaper! I’m not much of a gamer but I might actually try this 1 out. Thank you for a another detailed review, it makes it easier to invest your time , money etc into something you have knowledge of compared to…..”it’s great you should try it”. I am truly appreciative and grateful for you sharing your personal gaming experiences with us. Keep up the good work! 8))
Every time I read about this game it makes me want to play it and every time I do I get bored! Ok… time to give it another go! Thanks for the great review!
Gamereaper, once again you leave a well detailed information about another game. To be honest, I never looked at the game as you have explained it. Kknow seeing it through your eyes, has made me very interesetd with plaing thi game to the fulless. Thank you very much.
I loved your article, it was filled with details of the story and didn’t feel like you saw it as a perfect game. ^___^. Thanks actually considering trying White knight
thanks guys ^ ^ im glad you all like i will keep at it i still have alot to learn but again thank you all
Now that I read the article, I want to play this game too!
Wow I don’t play any games, but your review is so detailed. I now feel like I was playing it the more I read.
Hi, guys
Does the WKC version that comes along with WKC2 still support Home rewards; ie: the statue and armor costume?
Thanks