Skies of Arcadia: Legends
Nintendo GameCube
Developer: Overworks
Publisher: SEGA
Rated: T for Teen
Released: 2003
Completed: 22 September 2014
For many years Lunar: The Silver Star was my favorite JRPG of all-time. I fell in love with it when I rented it for my Sega CD in my teens, and I fell in love all over again when it was remade and rereleased on the PlayStation as Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete. I even loved the Gameboy Advance version, Lunar Legend, even though it was understandably constrained by the limitations of cartridges. I thought for sure nothing would ever top Lunar, until I played Skies of Arcadia Legends.
The original Skies of Arcadia came out during the midst of rampant Dreamcast game piracy. I remember the groundbreaking work the rippers at Echelon did to get the massive game to work on CD-Rs, writing their own on-the-fly compression system. It was a little choppy at times, but it was a remarkable release and I was excited to play it. Unfortunately, there’s a gaming adage I have found to be true time and time again: when you have everything, you play nothing. I played several hours of Skies of Arcadia, up through my heroes escaping the city of Valua the first time, then never touched it again – no doubt distracted by some other new release I downloaded and played for even less time.
When the GameCube got an enhanced port, I bought it on day one. This is the copy I still own, and had never touched until I finally sat down, determined to experience the full game once and for all. Among the minor graphical enhancements, and a slight aural downgrade (in order to fit the game onto a single GameCube optical disc), some additional content was added. The already vast world has even more discoveries to find, extra optional boss battles in the form of bounties, and two new subplots – one involving a pirate who hunts other pirates, and the other requiring you to find hidden creatures for a mute girl and her strange pet. Some of the Dreamcast-specific VMU features have been integrated into the game, though the mini-games have been jettisoned. Overall, it’s the definitive version of the Dreamcast’s best RPG, but more than that, it’s one of the most engrossing RPGs of all-time.
Skies of Arcadia follows Vyse and his friend Aika, two young air pirates in the Blue Rogues, as they battle the evil Valuan army. Valua is slowly invading and destroying all neighboring nations in an effort to gather the six moon crystals that control the Gigas – gigantic ancient monsters of unspeakable power that would make the Valuan Empire unstoppable. Of course only Vyse and three of his friends can stop them. It’s the same kind of silly tale that you’d expect from an RPG. Entire fleets of ships fall to Valua, but somehow Vyse and his crew manage to stop them – go figure. What separates Skies of Arcadia from other RPGs I’ve played is how fleshed out and likeable its characters are. Like Lunar before it, you quickly learn to care about everyone – even the gruff veteran pirate Drachma, or the pampered Enrique. Each character has a fascinating backstory, and each of them have their uses in battle.
Both the Dreamcast and GameCube releases are known for their high random encounter rate. Though the Cube’s is slightly lower than the original release, expect to spend a lot of time in combat. Fortunately, the combat is so addictive and enjoyable I never minded. Like many RPGs, each character has a set number of action points that will govern what they can do in a round. You can choose to attack, defend, use items, or special moves and magic spells, or focus to set up an even bigger attack in a following round. Battles are completely turn-based, and the player gets full control of which enemies to attack. All in all, it doesn’t sound very different from any other RPG, but the elemental system makes it a bit more interesting.
Each monster is designated with an affinity, and thereby a weakness, to certain elements. During battle, a simple button press will change the color of your weapon to one of six different elements – yellow, blue, purple, red, green, and silver – and knowing which elements to use is the key, especially during tougher boss battles where you need to maximize damage as much as possible. In addition to traditional experience points that level up your characters’ physical traits, you also earn points based on which elements your team used in battle. When you level up your affinities, you unlock new special moves such as the ability to cure poison or cast more devastating spells. It’s a fantastic system that makes playing random battles more rewarding as you try to max out and unlock all the abilities.
Also unique to Skies of Arcadia is ship-to-ship combat. To me, this is where the game really shined. Though they’re still all turn-based, the level of strategizing is staggering. As you progress through the game, you can outfit your ship with new types of cannons, armor, or special gear. Once engaged in battle, you have many of the same options available to you – attack, defend, focus, use items, and even magic (if you have a magic cannon, that is). The real strategy is deciding when to use each maneuver. A grid indicates what the enemy ship has planned, so it’s up to you to act appropriately. You cannot win ship battles with sheer brute force, so you will need to think ahead several moves, like a chess match. I found these the most engaging segments of the game, even though you simply watch the pre-selected actions unfold.
The world of Arcadia is as interesting as its characters and combat systems. Each city has its own distinct theme, from the jungles of Ixa’taka, the Asian-themed city of Yafutoma, or the desert land Nasr. Eventually you’ll be able to build a base camp on a small island in the sky and recruit crew members who can be assigned to perform specific duties on your ship. Each crewman also brings a unique skill that can affect your ship’s effectiveness in combat, making it worth seeking them all out to get the best of the best. With each new location I visited, my appreciation for the game grew. I enjoyed meeting the new characters, undertaking side quests, and just exploring the cities themselves for hidden treasure chests. The world felt so alive because of the excellent characterizations and writing, even though the NPCs are more or less always in the same spot.
The world is broken up into sections by giant reefs which you’ll eventually gain the ability to sail through and open up new areas (as well as shortcuts). As you sail the skies, you can also uncover hidden discoveries. Sailor’s Guilds in towns often offer hints about new discoveries, and reporting any findings to them can equal large chunks of coin. Searching for discoveries will mean even more random battles, but I found it worth it not just for the XP boost, but because each discovery has its own little story that I found worth reading. So much attention to detail was put into the world that every facet of it was worth exploring.
By the time I reached the final boss my characters were such high level, I didn’t take any damage and I finished the adventure with little resistance. It should have been anticlimactic – a final battle with no challenge – but instead I felt a sense of satisfaction because the entire experience was so sublime. I had finally seen the story through to completion, and the ending was as emotional as the rest of the game. Skies of Arcadia is maturely written, with moments of comedy, tragedy, joy, and of course a hefty dose of adventure.
As I mentioned before, the GameCube port has some slight graphical enhancements over the Dreamcast original. Characters have slightly higher polygon counts, and the lighting effects are mildly improved, but honestly it’s very difficult to tell the difference. The GameCube wasn’t used to its full capabilities, so it still looks very much like a Dreamcast game, but that’s not a bad thing. The somewhat exaggerated, vaguely anime look of the characters is still appealing, even if they have abnormally humongous hands. The world itself still looks pretty good too, and I especially appreciated little touches when sailing like flowing waterfalls or the way the sky around Valua is dark and foreboding, contrasting the lovely blue sky around your home on Sailor’s Isle.
Also previously mentioned is the audio, which is slightly compressed. Like the graphics, it’s difficult to tell without listening to them side by side through good speakers. The music is absolutely fantastic, and each tune fits the unique regions of the game. For example, the Nasr theme has a distinctly Middle Eastern feel, while the Ixa’taka music has a decidedly tribal sound. The Valua theme is downtrodden and melancholy, matching the spirits of the poor citizens in Lower Value, and the title screen is a short but stunningly gorgeous string arrangement that you’ll often sit and listen to before pressing start.
Sadly, there isn’t much in the way of voice acting besides the occasional “ha ha ha ha!”, “huh?”, or other monosyllabic grunts. Characters will repeat simple phrases in battle, and frankly it’s the only part of the game I found a little tiresome given the frequency of combat. Other sound effects are pleasant, however. Weapon slashes sound cool, ship cannons make an appropriate boom, and footsteps change based on the terrain.
It’s certainly hard to fault the control in a game that’s mostly a series of menus, but controlling Vyse in towns or various ships throughout the game is also simple and effective.
Skies of Arcadia is so damn good it’s not only the standout RPG on the Dreamcast, but Legends is arguably the best RPG on the GameCube. Such well-written characters are rare in a genre that is usually full of brooding heroes or silent protagonists. Combat is a blast, whether you’re fighting enemies in a dungeon, the deck of your ship, and especially when battling another ship or giant enemy. There’s so much to see and do, and you’ll want to experience it all. The only real shame is that Vyse and his crew have been grounded ever since, but at least this adventure was one for the ages.
Skies of Arcadia Legends was completed on a Nintendo GameCube with no cheats.