PlayStation

Despite my bravest attempts at immersion, however, I never reached the point where Origins was consistently enjoyable. The games definitely belong to another era; an era that I haven't played enough Dragon Warrior or Phantasy Star lately to be truly at home with anymore.

"Suikoden Means War," cried the U.S. print ads for Suikoden II, though the translation was far from accurate. "Suikoden" is actually an English-Japanese transliteration for "Shui Hu Zhuan," the title of a fourteenth-century Chinese novel familiar to some as Outlaws Of The Marsh. But the mistake should be forgiven. Suikoden II is good enough to stake a new claim on an old word. It conveys the turmoil of war with the ring of truth.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Mild Animated Violence, Suggestive Themes

Game Description: An epic tale of friendship and treachery that can only be described as breathtaking, Suikoden II will leave you crying for a follow-up by the time you're done with it. With the power of the runes and the help of your allies, it is your task to derail the evil plans of Prince Luca Blight. Stocked with a dynamic battle system and tons of mini-games, this is truly an RPG to be reckoned with. Suikoden II will lead you through a roller coaster of emotions and just may change the way you play games.

Quarter munchers are fun. Lucky for me, I'm playing this on a home console.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Violence

The Final Fantasy series has developed as one of the most popular and stylized franchises in videogames. Beloved by millions, the Final Fantasy games have managed to develop an almost baroque formalism in terms of both mechanics and narrative. There have been many milestones in the history of the series, but none that have been so momentous and yet nearly forgotten as the first two entries.

Game Description: Final Fantasy Origins, a special package of the original Final Fantasy (released in North America 1n 1990) and Final Fantasy II (never before released in North America) have been remade for the PlayStation game console and feature new cinematic movies, opening theme songs, event scenes including updates of the original event sequences, enhanced graphics, improved sound quality and new gameplay modes. Together, these two titles laid the foundation for the series and spawned many hit sequels that have now sold over 42 million units worldwide.

I'm not necessarily against action games that are on the easy side, but the sheer monotony and repetitiveness of Dragon Valor makes it a wholly undesirable experience.

I've always thought I could enjoy any game so long as it was a feast of sight and sound, not frustratingly difficult, and filled with enough diverting gameplay to keep my mind off the responsibilties of day-to-day existence. I'm also a fan of the production values and atmosphere of console role-playing games (RPGs) in general and the Final Fantasy series especially. So when Final Fantasy IX was released, I was sure I was going to love it.