Vandal Hearts

The year 1997 was known for having some of the biggest gaming releases ever, namely role-playing games. With a mass of widely known, big-hit titles in its way, Konami experienced trouble showing off their turn-based RPG, Vandal Hearts. Although Vandal Hearts continues to be overlooked, it still shines greatly by immersing you in a plot-twisted story line, and exciting barbaric, yet strategic warfare.

The protagonist in this story goes by the name of Ash Lambert, a vigorous platoon leader of the Ishtarian Security Forces. Known as the son of a man who betrayed the under appreciated hero Arris the Sage, he finds himself caught between a political war. While Ash leads his party to attempt an overthrow on the corrupt government, they find themselves meeting new characters along the way to eventually uncover an interesting, surprise-filled plot. The story is both enjoyable and original, but in a lot of ways standard fare for the genre.

The battle system can be loosely compared to chess, as each character in the battle can move a set number of squares. First, you'll move your forces, then select to either attack, cast magic or use an item. After you've spent all the moves on your side, it will be the enemy's turn to do the same. Fortunately, it's slightly more complex from there, as this is where the battle system transitions from chess, to the hand game, rock, paper, and scissors. Each character has a class that does beneficial damage against another class, but is weaker to other classes. Taking this hierarchy that is involved with seven classes results in a lot of safety precautions to be considered before maneuvering. Also, when a character is hurt, no matter what side they are on, that character will counter-attack. Simply put, the battle system has easy to learn mechanics, but a hard to master mentality; it provides a fun time out of what it attempts to do.

One of the other things you can do is train your characters at the dojo. At levels ten and twenty, your characters may be upgraded from their current class to a more adept, convenient class. It's cool to see this used, as it refreshes your approach on battles. If there's anything to bog the game down, though, is that the sense of exploration is limited. Moving about towns consists of nothing more than shifting through menus, giving the battles responsibility of entertaining story progression. The character models themselves are also visually admirable. It's entertaining to see your characters attack animations, as well as to adore the surroundings.

Each level has a vast difference from one another, as you'll explore various kinds of environments. Whether you're fighting on a high-speed train, or through a poisonous swamp, a majority of the levels are generally innovative and tend to keep things fresh. Special effects used with items and magic look crisp and are used very well, as a fire dragon swarming around the map burning enemies is always appealing. During battles, you can always expect to hear lively music appropriate for the situation. An orchestra of large instruments seems to be at hand, as it plays a beat of war to liven the situation. The sound effects of weapons smashing against foes armor, and the fountain-like spray as blood cannons into the air really does the trick.

Vandal Hearts was unfortunately overlooked by many. While the game may take elements that are familiar in other series' to put a new spin on it, it stands out from the rest by having an impacting presentation and style. Vandal Hearts takes very well driven, unforgettable story, and welds it with an enjoyable, bloodthirsty battle system, and ties it together with a collection of memorable characters. A combination of these things, and more, make Vandal Hearts at least worth spending the 20-some hours with.