There’s
currently a dearth of RPGs for the DS system, although there are several that
are slated for release this year, most notably Final Fantasy, LostMagic,
Children of Mana, Pokemon and Zelda. So, any RPG at this point in time is a
welcomed addition to the DS library. Or is it?
Tao’s
Adventure: Curse of the Demon Seal
at first presents itself as a typical RPG, complete with the requisite dungeon
crawls, conversations with villagers, magic spells and turn-based combats. As
a new “touch,” it also almost exclusively utilizes the DS’s touch-screen
capabilities for navigation and interaction. Using the DS’s unique
touch-screen system would seem like a good idea (why else is it there), but in
practice, for this game at least, the actual experience is less than
desirable.
The story is
this: Tao’s island home is being menaced by mysterious flying monsters, one of
which has turned most of the villagers into stone statues. Tao learns that
these monsters have escaped from the Monster Tower in the town of Mondominio,
due to a lightning strike on the tower itself that released some of the
monsters. Tao is just a kid, but he’s evidently the only one capable of taking
on the monsters, so he’s elected to travel to Mondominio to kick some monster
butt. Don’t ask me why the elders who survived the monster attack in the
village by using magic protective spells can’t go with him and help, I don’t
write these stories, I just report ‘em.
Luckily, Tao
has just learned several magic spells from his father, who just happened to be
a teacher on the island. Armed with this newfound knowledge, he sets out for
the Monster Tower.
This story
is unfolded in a long sequence of cutscenes. While long, the movie is
interesting and sets the stage for the game very well. During this
introduction, players learn the spells that will be used against the monsters
in the early leveling-up stages of the game. These spells are based on earth,
wind, fire, lightning, movement and health. They are activated by drawing
their associated symbols on the touch screen.
After Tao
arrives in Mondominio, he must travel around town and talk to the various
people he encounters. At first, he will only be able to access a few of the
buildings, but later, as he talks with the people and befriends them, he’ll be
able to enter more establishments. These town excursions are mostly for the
purpose of upgrading items, buying and selling items, and using these items
for health and other effects. Tao can also gain useful knowledge about the
monsters, which will come in handy as he decides which monsters are best for
using as familiars to help in attacks on other monsters.
The other
main area of exploration is the Monster Tower, where Tao will spend the bulk
of his time fighting monsters and leveling up, capturing eggs to grow monsters
for familiars, and searching around for useful items to use and sell. The
monsters can either be fought, or avoided by running away. The combat is turn
based and Tao can do several different things during his turns, but only one
at a time. He can move, strike, defend, use magic, summon a familiar, and
choose other actions. He can turn in a different direction in order to face
the monster without having to use a turn, but this doesn’t work very well.
Most of the time Tao moves at the same time he’s being turned, so he loses a
turn. This can be a problem, because if he encounters the monster at an angle,
his spells won’t land on the monster’s tile square.
The first
several floors of the Monster Tower are pretty easy to clear, but things get a
bit tougher toward the top. Every so many floors there is a boss level, too.
However, Tao can get lots of help from his familiars, which can be packed into
his monster keeper thingy 16 at a time. Also, he will learn more spells as he
advances in the adventure.
Besides
fighting and exploring, Tao can practice his combat skills in the Coliseum,
ala Pokémon,
by fighting his monsters against other monsters. Players can either fight
against friends, or the game’s AI. Monsters can also be traded with friends.
One of the
better aspects of this game is the really nice colors and drawings; the game
looks wonderful on the DS, comparable to many older computer games. Tao and
the others are very detailed, and look almost of cartoon quality. The town of
Mondominio is also attractive, but the Monster Tower is less so, even with the
different looks of the different floors. It’s too dark and dreary and square
appearing.
The touch
screen is used heavily; in fact, there is no use of the buttons except for the
A button to scroll down the dialog, once it’s begun. All of the movement and
action choices must be accomplished by using the touch screen to pick from a
menu. This may have seemed like a good idea, but it’s not. In fact, it’s
incredibly annoying in execution. Having to keep switching back and forth from
running around, to picking up the stylus to choose from little words in a
small screen, just isn’t very fun. Using the movement directions on the screen
with the style can alleviate swapping back and forth, but for me anyway, I
prefer using the directional pad.
The spells
are also activated on the touch screen, which is a good idea, except for one
thing: There is no way to access the spell book to see which spell does what,
which is a major problem in the beginning of the game when the symbols haven’t
been memorized by repeated use. There should have been a menu option in the
top corner to choose the various spells and see what symbols they needed.
And, to add
more to the fun of getting around from the Tower to town, the game can only be
saved in the Inn! Yes, if Tao dies in the Monster Tower, players will have to
begin again at a point before he entered the Tower. This means that players
will keep having to use their Bound spell to get out of the tower, run back to
the Inn, travel to the upstairs room and lie down, THEN save. Then, back again
to the Tower for more fighting. This is nuts.
I enjoy
playing RPGs, and haven’t really had many opportunities to do so on either the
GBA or the DS. I had fun with Tao at first, and was pleased that the first
battles weren’t too difficult and that the beginning leveling up was easily
accomplished. The battles become harder later, but that adds to the challenge
and doesn’t make the game impossible, as Tao has sufficient powers to present
a decent defense. The problem was that the game’s progress kept being broken
up, as Tao had to keep leaving after so many battles, to save at the Inn.
Also, having to choose Talk and Search from the touch screen was irritating
and clumsy. The monsters are cute and interesting, but in and of themselves
don’t offer enough attraction to keep having to travel around so much in order
to get things, advance, and save. If the save feature wasn’t such a pain, the
other awkward control issues with the touch screen could be forgiven, but the
save option was a definite detraction, for me, anyway.
An average
RPG that fills the current void, but will probably suffer in comparison to the
RPGs that will be released over the next several months.
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Gameplay: 6.0
The game begins
well, but soon becomes tiring due to the annoying save feature. The fighting
monsters theme isn’t enough to keep interest for very long, as it is pretty
much the same thing over and over again.
Graphics: 8.0
Very nice
graphics!
Sound: 7.0
The music is nice
enough, but not wonderful.
Difficulty: Medium
The game is easy
in the beginning, but becomes tougher as play advances. Strategy is definitely
a factor in picking the right monsters to help, and the right spells to cast.
Concept: 6.0
There really
isn’t anything new here, except for the use of the touch screen for drawing
spells and choosing menu options.
Overall: 6.5
This isn’t a
terribly bad game, but neither is it a really good game. The design flaws
detract from the game, and there isn’t enough variety to make the annoying
features worth overlooking. Best for people who aren’t too picky about their
RPGs.
