Dark Cloud
don't agree with the score?
Publisher:Sony
Developer:Level 5
Rated:
"Wasn't dark enough."
[submitted by dancingmind] Dark Cloud was the first PS2 game I bought for my system. It was pretty good for a first generation PS2 game, but now that I own five better games, Dark Cloud has moved to the Dark Closet.
First of all I admire the concept behind it. Like many PS2 games, Dark Cloud has great potential but doesn't quite meet it. The Georama (building your own towns) is creative even though it is nothing new for games (Soul Blazer, Actraiser, other Enix titles).
The graphics really shined for me. Being my first PS2 game, I really enjoyed how I could get lost in its mythological world. But it ended rather quickly when I realized that something was missing:
Depth.
If you are a traditional fan of RPG and Adventure games, you probably expect a great involved story. Dark Cloud is very weak in this department. There is little to no character development. The 6 playable characters have nice diversity and again could serve as good potential, but are unfortunately left in an empty state.
The dungeons are never the same twice (which makes me wonder what the Player's Guides would write about it.) It's a neat idea, but it also detracts from having a solid form of play. Everything is random, and thus, everything is very shallow. I would like to see some improvements in these factors in the sequel.
The comparisons of Toan to Zelda's Link are acceptable. Toan is a blatant rip off, but that would have been okay if the character offered Sony players something. At least Crash Bandicoot offered some fun and original gaming from its ripped off Mario roots.
My biggest dissapointment is the title Dark Cloud. It is a good title that
again fails to reach its potential. The story line is quite fluffy until the
very end, and even then it isn't really dark. I think that the main character
should have been a lot less cartoony and more dark (take notes from FF8
or Legend of Dragoon).
It is worth a rent though, so if you feel like wandering in a world where you
can sort of make your own towns (georama is not as liberate as it sounds) give
Dark Cloud a try. Beware though, I don't foresee any improvements in the upcoming
sequel.
A Second Opinion:
