Concept:
An Xbox 360 sequel to the PlayStation 2 RPG MagnaCarta: Tears of Blood.
Keep:
The designs. Korean artist Hyung-Tae Kim created some colorful character and enemy designs. They compliment the lively and bright world of MagnaCarta II and give the game a distinct look.
No load times. Outside of some story sequences, there is no loading in MagnaCarta II. The world has some pop-in, but it's a trade off for not having to sit through "now loading" scenes between areas or transition stages between enemy fights.
Switching characters on the fly. Being able to switch and control your characters at the drop of the hat makes the battle system braggable in a world of A.I. controlled compatriots.
Correct:
The pop-in. The version we played had enough pop-in to be distracting. If that's ironed out in the final version, then the game is looking very good. It's a trade-off in the way the game loads while playing, but it's still a bit jarring at times.
Cut:
The amnesia. This story device is beyond cliché at this point. Here's hoping that MagnaCarta II can bring something new to the table.
Conclusion:
MagnaCarta II looks like it will raise the profile of the fledgling series. The game has an interesting design and some bells and whistles like no load times and some solid active real-time battles to draw people in. The game was developed by Softmax a Korean company known more for their MMOs. The game takes several MMO mechanics and blends them into the console RPG, particularly the engagement of enemies and a constant, load-less open world.
Set in a kingdom torn apart by civil war, a princess must reclaim her rightful throne after it was stolen by a malevolent prime minister who murdered her parents. Sounds pretty routine territory for a RPG, but there seems to be enough here to make MagnaCarta II stand out from the handful of RPGs available on the HD gaming systems.
Battles are handled in real-time, and given a party of three, allow you to switch on the fly. Characters have the potential to become exhausted through moves and actions, but if timed correctly, a player can chain attacks and actions together for larger-scale attacks.
The game's mana system is broken down into elements, and beyond just enemies being stronger or susceptible to mana types, the game's environment also affects player action. A lava area for instance makes players with water mana weaker and diminishes their attacks against enemies.
Namco Bandai Associate Public Relations Manager Timothy Ng said the game will take over 40 hours, with additional side quests that flesh out the characters' back stories and motivations for fighting in the civil war. We'll know more about MagnaCarta II when it hits stores next week.
