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> Results: Eternal Sonata
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The ESRB says:
Fantasy Violence: GamerDad made characters hack and slash monsters and bad guys with weapons and magic spells, but there is no blood and defeated enemies only disappear in a puff of sparkly smoke. Mild Language: Someone might've said 'damn' once. Use of Alcohol: Players can visit pubs and taverns but can't drink anything, and there is one guy in a town who talks like he's drunk. But it's hard to tell. Frederic Chopin was a famous 19th century piano player, and he died at age 39 from tuberculosis. This seems like an odd premise for a video game, but in Eternal Sonata, a role playing game for the Xbox 360, Chopin has a feverish dream on his deathbed. In his dream, people who are mortally ill with incurable diseases can use magic in a fantasy world. Chopin meets up with a young girl named Polka, a magic user who wants to make a difference in her short life, so together they set out on a journey and meet new friends and fight dreadful monsters as they try to stop a corrupt government from taking over the land.  Like other RPGs of this ilk, players gather clues and items in towns and fight monsters in dungeons, forests, and other areas as characters level up from experience points in battle as the story progresses. Battles, however, are pretty unique in Eternal Sonata as they are a mix of turn-based and real time action. Run into a bad guy on the field and a battle will start. Players and monsters take turns moving around and taking actions, but when it's your turn, you can dash around the battlefield and attack in real time. Depending on if you're in the light of the sun or the glow of a candle, or in the shade of a tree or even a monster's shadow, you can use different light and dark special attacks. Same goes for enemies, too. Some monsters will even change forms depending on if they're in the light or the dark. Use strategy to lure monsters out into the open so you can unleash the best attacks. Because of this, every battle feels different and is always fun. If there are any problems with Eternal Sonata, it's that the game is a bit linear and there's not a whole lot in the way of side quests and mini-games. Plus, considering this is a game about a famous musician, most of the songs in the game are rather bland and uninspired. But these problems are easily overlooked by all the good aspects of Eternal Sonata. The cel-shaded, cartoon graphics (you can even see the stitching in clothes if you have an HDTV), likeable characters and compelling story make Eternal Sonata feel like a Studio Ghibli movie like Howl's Moving Castle. Plus the battles are pretty darn fun, too. Xbox 360 owners who enjoy RPGs will definitely want to get Eternal Sonata.  
While players beat up monsters and other bad guys with weapons and magic spells, violence is only minimal as defeated foes disappear in a puff of sparkly smoke and there is no blood. There's not much cursing or other objectionable things in Eternal Sonata. Although since the game's story has a lot to do with mortality and dying, more sensitive younger players may not like that as much. Even though the game features a lot of voice acting, reading skill is still needed as most of the menus and dialogue boxes are still text only.
There are two things about Eternal Sonata that make it a great game to play with your kids, though. First, when you are in battle with more than one character in your team, you can assign another player (up to three) to play as a character in battle, provided you have an extra Xbox 360 controller or two. Second, there are a lot of musical terms and even a music reading themed mini-game. Plus, every so often, the game will pause to give a brief biography of the real piano player Chopin, along with some of his work being played on a real piano and pictures of where he lived. So Eternal Sonata could almost be considered educational as well as really fun. Format For Printing | Tell A Friend | Digg | Slashdot | del.icio.us | Buy This Game Home > Review Archive > Video Games > Results: Eternal Sonata |
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