Role-Playing

According to ESRB, this game contains: Animated Violence, Mild Language

As successful as Pokémon was, it has always lacked a compelling story or the sophisticated graphics to hold the interest of older players. Genki took notice and when they produced Jade Cocoon, they intended to come through in a big way. Genki abandons Pokémon's large sprawling story line (with a multitude of side stories) for one that could best be described as quaint.

Game Description: Try to save your village from a swarm of giant insects in Jade Cocoon: The Story of Tamamayu. Your goal is simple: you must travel through the forests surrounding your town and capture over 150 different monsters. When you capture a monster, you can either sell it for cash or train it to fight for you. If you want to combine the elements of particular monsters, breed them and create the ultimate weapon. Only you can save your village in Jade Cocoon: The Story of Tamamayu.

In terms of actual gameplay, JC isn't quite the sprawling trek that most RPGs represent. Instead, traveling is minimized through menus and plot devices that enable quick entry to particular areas. There is some exploration, but the main focus still resides on combating and capturing monsters (as Dale already mentioned, unoriginally dubbed Minions).

I agree with Chi about the Miyamoto-esque experience provided by Pokémon. It turns away all conventions of the industry. There are no naked women, no hulking heroes, and no smart-mouthed mascots. You are encouraged to simply play. Have fun and enjoy yourself at your own pace.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Animated Violence, Mild Language

When it came to role-playing games (RPGs), there was Square, there was Enix, and then there was everyone else. Nowadays, however, Konami, Capcom, and Sony are entering the fray with competent RPGs that seem to improve with each consecutive release. Square apparently had taken notice and decided to blow them all away with Final Fantasy VII. Enix, on the other hand, is still sitting on its hands. I figured Star Ocean was supposed to hold us over until the latest Dragon Quest epic was completed, but after playing Star Ocean, I have to say they'd better come up with a new plan.

Game Description: The gods are out to destroy the universe. When their meteor collides with the planet Expel, the paths of two heroes will cross and the fate of the universe will lie in their hands. You take the role of either Rena or Claude. While both characters are on the same quest, there are times when they will take separate paths. Naturally, both characters develop different skills throughout the game and along the way their actions determine which other characters in the game can be recruited. You can also spend skill points to learn new abilities that will improve your chances of success. Ultimately, both Rena and Claude will be able to create new items with their skills and some raw material. When you encounter enemies, all of the battles take place in real-time in beautifully rendered environments. It’s up to you to try and save the universe from the gods in Star Ocean: The Second Story.

I think Dale was more insulted by this title than I was, though I was particularly appalled at the horrendous art direction. Like some kind of outsourced nightmare, everything from the cut sequence, to the pre-rendered backgrounds, to the character sprites, don't just look as if different teams did them, they look as if different companies did them! There isn't any visual cohesion to ground all the other elements in the game.

Rather than wiping out endless hordes of monsters for fortune, glory, and (of course) experience points, Pokémon encourages captivity over annihilation. So much so, that collecting, trading, and training the stubborn little pocket monsters make up the heart of the game.