Review of Alphadia Genesis

[1oldtymer]

[center]Play It For the Story[/center]

[Note: after a complete repeat playthrough, this review is a revision of one I posted some time ago.]

You know how reviews of consumer electronics (cameras, phones, etc.) compare items by having a side by side list of features? Well, Alphadia Genesis has plenty of features, and I will list them, but do these features translate into engaging play and entertainment? I'll try to answer that question after we go through the lists.

So here are some of the good features in the game:
superior graphics
good history notes so you can recall what you should do
world map that shows next location
superior story that continues into the post-game
a couple of interesting characters (one is a villain!)
an important continuing character (Enah) in the Alphadia saga
easy grinding
2 arenas
long post game


There are a few deficiencies:
no dungeon mini-maps
no "battle shortcut" option (as in Revenant Dogma)
some difficulty seeing the hidden passages (but zoom can help)
very difficult to see the hidden AGP points
no warning about critical items needed to unlock some post game, so will probably need to backtrack (tips in the forum)
long but simple post game

Let's dig into some detail about these points, and then attempt to describe what you will experience as you play.

The most important aspect of the graphics is the speed in which your party moves around the screen. The other animations, particularly the death throes of some of the monsters, are also above average. But stunning graphics in a turn by turn RPG aren't very important, and in fact are a detriment during repetitive grinding. Unfortunately, Alphadia Genesis lacks the option to turn off battle animations.

The story, which begins as a battle between clones and humans, quickly develops into a better idea about free will. The theme of the plot is that only free will makes us human, and that a clone, if it can freely choose, is as human as we are. Will any clone discover free will? Will any human realize that genetics and circumstance don't determine destiny? This idea even shows up in various situations, including the "romantic" interactions among the characters. Of course this small game can't do justice to this theme the way the movie classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" aka the "Pod People" (the 1956 version, not the remade clones) can, but it does offer more thought than most Kemco games. Many post-game scenarios pay lip service to continuing the story, but here you will want to pursue the tale as it continues and unfolds in the post-game.

One character is used for humor, and is the target of a couple of long running but unfunny jokes. Although this might seem innocuous, in fact it can have an impact on how you play the game. You have more characters than slots in your party, so some have to "sit on the bench." Bench players do earn experience and level up, but they do not share in having their non-native skills gain anything from battles. Consequently, a character on the bench is likely to fall so far behind the others that you will just ignore him for the rest of the game. You have to make your decision about who will sit out rather early, before you have any good idea about the ultimate abilities of everybody. I think it likely you will decide to bench the character who appears to be a fool. Fortunately, grinding isn't as onerous in this game as in others, so you can, with some effort, raise up anybody who got left behind.

Grinding goes quickly once you get the airship that can land on water, as then you can reach an island populated with metal monsters. With the right tactics/items/weapons, it took me 15 minutes to raise my "skill" rings from level 50 to 75 (and not much longer to go from 75 to max 99). It isn't imperative to push your characters to max, but it does help and allows you to become the hot knife slicing through butter in all the dungeons.

There is a downside to grinding your party to max: the arenas become so easy they don't offer any excitement. There is one monster in the "secret" arena (the Arctic Cosplayer, aka "Penguin") that offers a momentary problem until you figure out the proper tactic, but that's the only difficulty. In fact, I first played Alphadia Genesis 3 years ago, and had a great time fighting the "Giga Energi Monster", but when I recently replayed the game with maxed characters, the monster was a pushover.

If you do battle any of the 4 optional very tough monsters, you may decide you want to change weapons, armors, and tactics to fit different abilities of each monster. Although that sounds very attractive, these are very rare monsters (less than 1 in 200 chances), so you may never see them. In fact, try as I might, I've never found any of them. Even worse, the game gives no clues or hints that such monsters even exist, so unless you browse the internet, you would have no idea that maybe you can engage them in battle.

The rarity of these special monsters undermines the value of the long post game. Most of the post game is a multi-step process that ends with your party obtaining the "ultimate" weapons. Well, most of these weapons have tradeoffs you may not find attractive, so you won't use them. Do you need them in the final battle against the last boss in the game? No, no, no. I have to say the final battle is extremely disappointing. There is a story element that does justify the actions of this last battle, but I think most players will see that as a rationalization that doesn't get rid of the sour taste at the end.

If you grind your characters to max, you will easily complete the regular and post-game. However, if you like the story and want to know how it ends, you will need to complete the post game to get the "true ending."

As for all the features, like the large array of skills you can learn, they aren't necessary to complete the game. In fact, if you do the easy grinding on metal monster island, you will amass so much "gold" and be so powerful, you can purchase a mountain of consumables and fight dull but victorious battles of attrition against almost any monster. The library of skills can make these battles go much, much faster, and certainly provide more elegant strategies if you choose to employ them. As the game says, "The choice is yours."