Genre: Role-Playing (RPG)
Perspective: Bird's-eye view
Art: Anime / manga
Pacing: Turn-based
Published by: Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
Developed by: Prokion
Released: 1999
Platform: PlayStation (PSX, PS1)
Long ago, God sent Seru to help people. Seru itself is a stone, albeit endowed with an independent mind. But a man, uniting with Seru, acquired paranormal abilities, extraordinary strength and could lift large weights ... And so people and Seru lived in union without knowing worries. Until the ominous MIST appeared. Appeared out of nowhere and invaded the continent of Legaia. And Seru rebelled against people, they captured their minds and turned them into insane monsters ...
Initially, you play as Vahn, who lives in Rim Elm. The city is surrounded by a wall that protects it from fog. One fine day, hunters return to the city and, moreover, bring the main thing on a stretcher. An autopsy shows that he was killed by monsters :)))
Suddenly, all of a sudden, demons begin to burst into the gates of the city. In the midst of the crowd, a strange-looking monster materializes and predicts an imminent end to all residents. Following this, some creepy devastator sprays a part of the wall and fog floats into the city….
It's not hard to guess what happens next. While the ‘Seru’ monsters are eating the inhabitants of Vahn notices that they are, the monsters bypass the city center, where the mystical Genesis Tree is located. He hurries there and suddenly the tree comes to life, appealing to Wahn's subconscious. Wahn touches the tree and it gives him Ra-Seru (like Ali's Armlet of Beyond Oasiss) - Meta, which gives Wahn great power ...! Having transferred Ra-Seru, the tree blooms while emitting such energy that not a trace remains of the fog within a radius of ten kilometers.
At the end of this sad backstory, Wahn embarks on a journey, the main goal of which is to revive other Trees, while investigating the causes of the fog along the way.
Game
The figures of the damage done, the concept of the characters' encounters, even their manner of movement can be traced. The rest of the game is original and certainly interesting!
The plot develops in a very, very funny way. In addition, which is very valuable, he is not straightforward and, often, you return from the end to its beginning.
Characters have radical differences in parameters. What separates them. The battles are three-dimensional and resemble Tekken. the attack is built either from a combo series or from a magic attack.
The combo system is very interesting. This is not a rotten MK with its miserable set of punches! There are so many combinations of attacks (unique for each character!) That even a dozen compliments of this difficult game won't be enough for you to find them honestly! Therefore, after the first pass, I advise you to check out Walkthrough ..
There is a so-called AR bar with a number from 1 to 100. This is your ‘combat power’. When using different combos, it decreases. And it grows with any attacks except combo series. It can also be quickly recruited by using the Spirit function. At the same time, the attack strip also increases by one turn. This is generally the main thing. Its length depends on the character and grows with the level. It literally ‘nests’ combinations of individual hits or well-known combo series. And how many blows will fit in this line of blows and will be inflicted on the face of the foe ... It's hard to imagine, and it is not necessary. It is easier to try it yourself and feel the full breadth of the possibilities that open before you.
Direct attacks with hands and feet are of two types: simple_intelligent_strikes or Arts. In turn, arts are subdivided into several more subclasses ...
You can learn different combos either yourself or from special books, or from the monks of Biron (local fans of karate and bodybuilding) or in other interesting ways. In general, combining these combos into a combo from a combo is very addicting. Sometimes the number of hits goes off scale for indecent values and takes a semblance of brutality.
Magic, in my opinion, is no less interesting. The magic itself can and should be obtained exclusively from ‘Seru’ monsters. They can be identified by the icon next to their name. To gain magic, you need to defeat a monster, and not with magic or Hyper Arts! The character who inflicted the decisive blow with a certain amount of luck will be able to use the power of the creature. Thus ALL magic is visualized as summons! Have you seen this anywhere? And, moreover, their number cannot but rejoice! You think 5-10, well 15 is the maximum? Yeah, it was not so ... - 31! And moreover, there are some which are very difficult to dig.
Separately, it is worth noting that with the frequency of use, the summon is pumped from level 1 to level 9, increasing power and acquiring a mass of bonuses. And if we add to this the fact that each summon is ‘unique’? ... No comment. Worthy of praise.
Advantages and disadvantages
I would especially like to note the complexity of the game. It is high in the most literal sense. Sometimes opponents knock you out in full. It is especially difficult at first when you are traveling alone.
For example: I almost got hysterical when, with the usual bravado (although not without caution), I got Game Over TWICE in the FIRST dungeon! And it doesn't get any easier. I especially want to mention the bosses. This is a real challenge where you hang by a thread clinging to the last bottle of vodka or a can of canned food! (to restore life, what did you think about?)
If you are not powerful enough, they will beat you in a couple of rounds. There are no jokes a la Final Fantasy like ‘took every one’s life off? .. well, nothing… I still have mega-elixirs. Here they shoot everything at once. However, this complexity does not make the game boring or impassable.
On the contrary, such a healthy challenge is very enjoyable and rarely seen in modern games.
The disadvantages include the fact that they give very little money, while it may seem trite, they are almost the only real means for equipping your wards. Moreover, there is always not enough money. And so you have to use tricks or stupidly walk to endure monsters. Again, the challenge! One of the glaring drawbacks in my opinion is the practical uselessness of magic due to the insane high cost of using it. Despite the fact that the means of replenishing the MP cost an inordinate amount of money. For example, summon a fireball (even if it is powerful) for 15 of all mana ??? This is an impermissible pleasure, because the game does not have a tool for restoring HP / MP on the save point at all! .. like that .. so take care of vodka and canned food!
Legend of Legaia also has built-in mini-games. Moreover, they are very funny and original. Forget collecting cards! Instead, become the ultimate fighting champion, disco queen or Baka Fighter record holder !!! There is such a thing. Moreover, you receive your winnings in tokens that can be exchanged for prizes. There is also hypertrophied fishing (the developers are probably very fond of Breath of Fire!).
Summary
The games can be recommended to everyone. The pleasure is guaranteed. High difficulty and fascinating plot, lots of humor and sub-quests, original game system and mini-games.. What else do you need for a good game ?! And it should be noted that all this pleasure takes one CD.
Tips
- When fighting a couple of Viguros in the East Voz Forest, concentrate your attacks on one of the opponents. Finish him - do the second.
- Zeto is a very dangerous opponent. It is necessary that your characters have "full" indicators of health and magic, otherwise there is no chance.
- When fighting Seru at Drake Castle or Byron's Monastery, keep in mind that there are many rooms where you can restore your Magicka and HP whenever you want.
- After merging with Gala at Byron Monastery, before heading to East Voz Forest, stop by Kin to learn another Gala mastery - Battering Ram Art.
- In the courtyard of Drake's Castle, answer Noah's questions in the following order: Healing Berry, Escape from the dungeon, Eats. And get 10 Healing Mushrooms as a reward!
- Prompt. To get the Ra-Seru spell for a character, go to the Genetic Tree from which the character first received his Ra-Seru. But this can only be done after defeating Songi in Seru-kai. Get spells Meta, Ozma, Terra and Juggernaut.
- Nea: Mt. Pikumoa. Gala: East Voz Forest. To get the Juggernout Spell, go to Ratayu after defeating Songi in Seru-Kai. Then go to Van Saryu, take the Evil Sery Key and use it to get to the basement of Ratayu (where you fought Van Saryu). At the end of the corridor you will see a chest containing an Evil Talisman. Activate it and get the Juggernaut spell. The talisman also grants Encounter Rate Decrease.
- Get honey. Here somewhere in a tree (in the southwest) in Rim Elm an enemy is hiding. This is the Queen of Bees and three more bees. You need to get at least 15th level before fighting them. After defeating them, you will receive honey, which will increase your performance by 4 points.
- Easy Money. Go to the Muscle Dome in Sol City, buy more tokens there and play the slot machine. Take your winnings and buy more Soru Bread. They sell for three thousand apiece, in general, you can equip.
- Secret spells. When you've got all the Art Moves for your characters, including Nurer and Miracle, head to the Genetic Tree where the character got his first Ra-Seru. Get spells Meta (for Vana), Terra (for Noa) and Ozma (for Gala). And when you get the Ra-Seru egg (for the Saga), give it to Zalan in Jeremi. He will give you an assistant, which will allow you to use the Horn spell, and then restore your HP, even if you are dead.
- The Point Card. Towards the end of the game, when you have Noa and Gala at your disposal. return to Rim Elm and go to the second floor to the gun shop. Here you will also find a box with a "point card" inside. When you buy yourself items in any store, you get extra points, These points allow you to inflict more powerful damage to monsters.
Secrets and secret phenomena
- Final spells Ra-Seru. In the game, you can find special magic Ra-Seru spells for each character if you fulfill the following requirements.
- With Meta at level 8 and all Arts (Normal and Hyper), head to the Genetic Tree in Sol. Vahn can now summon Wind Ra-Seru-Meta.
- Playing as Ozma at level 6 and having all the Hyper and Normal Arts moves, head to the Genetic Tree in East Voz Forest. Gala will now be able to summon Thunder Ra-Seru Ozma.
- Playing as Terra at 7th level, having obtained all Hyper and Normal Arts, head to the Genetic Tree in the Rikuroa Mountains. Noa can now summon Wind Ra-Sery
- Dark Ra-Sury Jedo. After defeating Songi in the Noaru Valley, return to the Genetic Tree in the West Voz Forest, there you will find a chest with a Dark Stone (increases protection from the Dark Forces). Give the Dark Stone Zalan in Jeremy's city, he will make you a Dark Talisman talisman, a very powerful assistant that can protect you from the Dark Forces. YOU CAN also summon Ra-Sery Jedo.
- Light Ra-Seru Horn. Give the Light Egg that you received from Sarah to the wonderful Zalan Master in Jeremy's city, and he will craft a Light Talisman for you. It is an excellent assistant in the fight against the forces of Light and makes it possible to summon the Ra-Seru Horn to resurrect fallen comrades and heal those still alive.
- Earth Ra-Seru Raima. After obtaining the Earth Egg in the city of Sol, take it to Zalan, he will prepare the Talisman of the Earth, he will be able to defend himself from the earth power, and he will allow you to summon the Ra-Seru Palma.
- Water Ra-Seru Mule. In Chapter 3, win the Water Egg in the fishing game in the pond east of Vit. Take it to Zalan, on will make you a Water Power Talisman and will summon the Ra-Seru Mule. Comment. To play the fishing game, you must exchange your sonnets for a Rod in the Muscle Paradise of Sol.