Gyromancer Review

First off let me say that I have always been a big fan of Square Enix, ever since they were called Squaresoft.
Secret of Mana is still one of the most beloved games in my book and like most Square fans, I have great expectation for Final Fantasy 13.

With that being said, I am very disapointed with Gyromancer that was released for Xbox Live Arcade.
I am used with Square being revolutionairy in their titles and simplicity is not in their vocabulary.

Let me start by introducing the game.

Gyromancer is a bastard child between Popcap (responsible for titles such as Peggle) and Square Enix (responsible for RPG greatness).
If you enjoyed Bejewled, then you might enjoy this. This is basically bejewled with story.

What you do is line up crystals by rotating them (with square, it is always crystals) to boost your monsters ability.
You have 3 monsters to choose from, each of them powered by various crystals. By lining them up you deal damage to your enemy.
If you”ve ever played puzzle pocket fighter, it is the same basis. What annoys me about games such as this, is that you leave your victory to chance.
Everything depends on what random board you get and hope for the best. What I like in games, RPG’s especially, is that you are usually in full control of the battle.
Placing out your characters ability, or boosting it, either way, you have the illusion of control.

Story:

Qraist Kingsley. rebel leader and knight for a resistance group Temperance, initiates a surprise attack against a member of the royal family (Count Laertes) which ends in his demise.
His son Everette is somewhere out of harms way and mysteriously vanishes the day after the attack. (oogabooga!)
The resistance group take refuge in a near by woods that is guarded by something <—— Here is where I kinda lost interest, pretty sad huh?.
A great mage is selected to hunt down the wacky webels and is to bring them to experience the Kings Justice.
For some reason the Kings Justice is never the same as the peoples justice.
The Mage/Summoner is supposed to meet up with a ranger outside the woods, but after a schizophrenic conversation with himself, decides to enter the woods on his own. He also made sure to let us know that if he gets his ass handed to him, he will fall back and wait for the ranger.

You meet a few people..sad people

That is the intro story, not very captivating and so unlike Square in my opinion. Where is the drama? Where is the Zazz?
Either way, are now going through the woods in a shape of a map. In this particular world, all woods look like a map. Monsters have icons in the form of a scull. On the map you will also see chests, crystal caves (for restoring some of your monsters HP, not all, but some) and a big Skeleton for the eventual boss battle.

Battlemode:

It’s simple enough, you select between 3 Monsters you have lined up. You can edit what monsters you have and change them up in a “Summoners cave”.
Your first battle is against a monster called Cait Sith, and no, this is not the lovable character from FF7 that you and me know.
It doesn’t even look remotely like him! Which is one thing I cannot understand, why on earth are they trying to place in former great characters name in a game that obviously isn’t anything like the game where the character originated from? I can understand that you place them in a game or environment with “similar” circumstances, but there was nothing familiar with this situation!

Elder Kitteyh knows no fear!

Either way, I killed of Cait Sith and I got a nice Victory screen.
As I pushed on this mappy woodland I reached that boards boss where I encountered a guy that unleashed a Monster on me! The ranger ofcourse was there as well trying to stop the man releasing the monster. But me, being a big bad summoner, step in and battles in the rangers place.
As I select a Monster to battle his Monster, I caught myself shouting: WYRM! I choose you!
It feels like a Pokemon battle.
The Pokemon battle it out, I win and off to an even larger Map of the woods after spending time to upgrade my monsters in the Summoners cave.

Visit the woods!

After that I just gave up on it. What was the point?
This is like a game I could have downloaded on my Cellphone. Reminding me terribly of Aurora feith. I just couldn’t keep on playing this disapointment from square. I am just not a puzzle person! That might be my problem with this.
I really tried to find good things in it, I really did. I have never been a big fan of Bejeweled, Maybe if you are a fan of games such as that, you might enjoy it. Me on the other hand, I have all my hopes set on Final Fantasy 13.

Hey! At least the artwork was pretty!

Info:

Developer: Square Enix / PopCap Games
Publisher: Square Enix
Genre: Puzzle RPG
Platform: XBLA, PC
Price: 1200 Points (XBLA) / $14.99 (Steam)
Rating: T (teen)

Summon mystical and almighty monsters to defeat your enemies by way of puzzle in the immersive Xbox LIVE Arcade and PC title, Gyromancer. This addictive and deeply strategic puzzle RPG offers huge replay value with its deep and engrossing storyline, multifaceted leveling system and 50 plus monsters to call upon during battle. In its first joint project with Square Enix, PopCap Games—widely known for the popular puzzle game Bejeweled—perfected the game’s intricate puzzle aspects. This fusion of puzzle and RPG is sure to satisfy all players.

Players assume the role of Rivel, a summoner who ventures through the enchanted Aldemona Wood. Each stage contains its own objectives, from defeating beasts that block the player’s way, to solving puzzles before time runs out. Rivel can learn to summon dozens of the unique beasts he encounters, bending their power to his will and commanding them in battle. Hidden within each stage are a number of rewards earned for completing feats great and small. Finding them all won’t be easy. Are you up to the challenge?

FEATURES
· Assume the role of Rivel, a deadly mage, as he rids Aldemona Wood of a brooding darkness through over 10 compelling game stages

· Experience an all-new battle system based on the popular puzzle game Bejeweled Twist

· Command over 50 unique beasts! Powerful new beasts can be acquired as players gain levels in battle

· Search the map for items, coins and new beasts to join Rivel’s fight

· Participate in the online ranking system to register high scores