Riviera: The Promised Land
The war to prevent the next Ragnarok has begun!
Tags: Riviera: The Promised Land Categories: GBA Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Jul 25th, 2005
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Riviera: The Promised Land (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Role-Playing (Turn Based) | No | ||
 |
Atlus has been a top publisher of tactical RPGs for the past several years, but most of their top titles have usually gone to the PlayStation 2 platform, while their handheld offerings have consisted largely of ports of games developed and made famous by others, including their recent Shining Force title, Tactics Ogre for GBA, and a number of others. Now, Atlus has decided to deliver something original for the GBA platform, an RPG that is nearly PS2-worthy, in the form of Riviera: The Promised Land. The game focuses on the efforts of Ein, an angel who sacrifices his wings in order to gain earthly powers. He is joined by Rose, a feline familiar, and Ledah, another Grim Angel. Though no longer a complete grim angel himself, Ein finds himself tasked with a mission straight from his former hierarchy: to capture the kingdom of Riviera, in order to prevent a repeat of Ragnarok, a war between the gods and the demons.
 |
Yet complexity and intrigue appears in the plot as Ein soon finds himself within the kingdom of Riviera, living among the foes he was fighting against, such as sprites, and finding their cause remarkably sympathetic. Of course, his case of amnesia doesn’t immediately allow him to make direct comparisons and reach a judgment on whose side is ultimately the one with whom he ought to be fighting. That is part of the drama that plays out over the course of the game.
 |
A sharp-looking title for a GBA game, Riviera ranks as one of the better-looking titles for the platform since the SquareEnix masterpiece, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, a high-water mark for the platform. The controls are easy to master and well-explained in the earliest levels. It leaves one with room to wonder how the game might have been improved by being aimed at the DS, rather than GBA. Adding in touch-screen elements to the strategic game play could have been a real innovation for the genre, but at least so far, Atlus and other RPG-makers have chosen to hang back from such experimentation and keep their RPGs aimed squarely at Nintendo’s best-selling handheld platform instead of its most technologically-advanced.
 |
For what it is, Riviera is quite a complete RPG experience. Although significantly shorter than the standard-setting FFTA, Riviera should give most gamers at least 30 hours of distraction, if not more. The storyline is PS2-level deep and full of a sizable cast of characters, plot twists and a wide variety of items and equipment. The strategy elements are solid, though nowhere near as complex as the algebraic combinations of other top tactical RPGs, such as Phantom Brave or Disgaea. That’s fine, though, since it makes Riviera a bit more accessible to the mainstream gamer.
 |
The script is solid enough for a game on as dialog-minimalist a platform as the GBA, and nicely never bogs down the action in the manner of a XenoSaga. It strikes a nice balance of story, exploration and battles for an on-the-go platform like the GBA. Although Atlus’ porting efforts will always be appreciated, Riviera is a real breakthrough for the company, one of only a handful of original titles for the handheld platform and certainly the deepest, most addictive and fascinating of those few they’ve delivered thus far. Let’s hope this is the start of a trend for one of the “best little RPG companies around.” Riviera The Promised Land is one of the best RPGs available on GBA and belongs in the library of any RPG fan.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Quick-to-action storyline that doesn’t bog you down in exposition up-front. + Great-looking game for a GBA title; probably the best since Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. + Solid battle system with deep list of items and equipment to discover. + Tons of strategic decisions to make, both in and out of battle. |
8.2 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
— Nowhere near as long as FFTA, only about 30 hours or so of game play. — Aiming the game for GBA instead of DS is a missed opportunity. |
|
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| Riviera The Promised Land is a rare treat; an Atlus game that’s not a port of an ancient game some other company made classic long ago, but a title aimed for and customized to take advantage of the GBA platform. While Riviera is good enough that it could have been released to PS2, the original title makes a welcome debut on a handheld platform, rather than a console. | |
[ Post the first comment | View related posts ]
Tags: Riviera: The Promised Land
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Jul 25th, 2005 and is filed under GBA Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
