Many owners know that RPGs come far and between on the PSP. And if you are an RPG gamer like me, you would most probably grab anything that comes your way. The game developers know this, and they also know the easiest way to generate revenue is to port an existing game, perhaps give it a graphical and sound face life or two, and then put it on the shelves for all the RPG freaks out there who would play anything out of sheer desperation as they await the next Brave Story: New Traveler or Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.

To be fair, sometimes the ports work out really well and deliver the results, most of the time however, these ports possess game engines that are grossly outdated, unnecessarily slow for a modern console, and generally give you an outdated feel. Riviera: The Promised Land, a game released in 2002, falls into the second category; though it does possess a certain charm that differentiates it from other RPGs. But is it enough to make it actually fun in the modern times? Read on to find out…

This Should Be Interesting On The PC

Being a mythology enthusiast myself, I found the background story of Riviera pretty promising… though it still has that “been there, done that” feel. The story speaks of a war between angels and demons 1000 years ago, where entities called the “Grim Angels” were summoned by the gods to help them gain the upper hand in battle. Predictably with the help of the grim angels, the war eventually ended with the demons being sealed away. However, after 1000 years of peace, the demons are now making a comeback and grim angels are once again entrusted to stop them before it is too late. In Riviera: The Promised Land, Ein (the protagonist of the story) is a novice grim angel still learning the ropes from his more experienced companion, but he would suffer a blow on the head, which causes him to suffer from amnesia… and hence begins his adventure to find his purpose and identity.

So, you might say the plot isn’t anything to shout about, but it sure beats the tiring “heroic knight defeats badass overlord and helps rebuild kingdom” type story we’ve seen in so many of the older ports. To complement the storyline of Riviera, the developer also surrounds the protagonist with a party of hot-looking female characters to keep the male gamers happy. In fact, you won’t be getting any beefy warrior dude or stealthy ninja-man in your party, all you get is a variety of beautiful female warriors who are each designed to catch your fancy in one way or another. The developer clearly understands the notion “sex sells” and this is evident by some of the kinky conversations between the protagonist and his female companions throughout the game. In fact, if this were on the PC, one would almost definitely expect to see explicit scenes like those from “Knight of Xentar” back in the nineties. But don’t be alarmed though, this is the PSP we’re talking about. So don’t expect things to be taken that far…

By now you may be thinking Riviera is some sort of perverse RPG and generally an excuse to portray pretty anime girls on the screen of your PSP. Hold on! For these female leads are not all eye-candies; they have genuinely-developed characters, background stories and witty scenes that make them likeable. Most importantly, they are an integral portion of the game because throughout Riviera, you are given the chance to develop a relationship with the one girl you fancy the most, which eventually affects the ending you get. This adds the element of romance into the game… so if you are into that kinda thing, you’re going to love this.

Really, Really Different Interface

Before you get all worked out telling yourself “I’m going to get me some of that”, we now come to the part which makes Riviera different… and not in a particularly good way.

If you are a seasoned RPG gamer, you would be plenty fluent with the standard movement interface of this genre (ie. you physically control your character from one place to another along a huge expansive map). In Riviera, however, you only get to move screen-by-screen, which you control by choosing the arrow keys that appear on each screen telling you which direction you can move to next. It sounds restrictive and trust me, it is definitely so.

To make things even more frustrating, due to the way you move in Riviera, examining a treasure chest is no longer as easy as going towards your target and pressing X. Basically, when you arrive at a new screen, you must choose the items you wish to examine, let’s say a signpost, by highlighting it much like the point-and-click system used in adventure games. As if things aren’t difficult enough, some items you examine will cost you TP, or trigger points, which you must earn in battles; and there’s only a certain number of TPs to come by too. I believe the developer was trying to give Riviera an “innovative” interface but sadly, it just makes playing the game a slow and tedious affair.

Battling Fun… Or Not

If you thought the movement interface of Riviera is restricting, you haven’t seen the battles yet. In Riviera, a battle begins by letting you choose the party members you want to fight with. After doing that, you are given a choice to pick a grand total of FOUR items to use during battles. Since weapons are counted as items, and you’ll definitely need some sort of healing potions as backup, that leaves you with almost zero choice of mixing and matching the kind of items you want to take along. It’s pretty depressing, I know.

In terms of the actual battle, Riviera does resemble a standard turn-based RPG without the usual “Attack”, “Defend”, “Item” commands. In a nutshell, when it is your turn to act, you can choose to attack (by choosing the weapon you brought along into battle) or heal (by choosing the healing potions you brought along). This continues until you or your enemy is destroyed, and if you’ve won, you’ll be graded and given the corresponding rewards to your grades.

Like most modern RPGs, the battle also consists of an Overdrive Bar and a Rage Meter which fill up during your battles. As the name “Overdrive” suggests, the Overdrive Bar gives you a chance to execute a super-powerful move when it fills up (think FFVII) while the Rage Meter is the exact opposite, giving your enemy a chance to execute a super move when it’s full. This does add a certain dimension to the battle but generally, we’re not talking about something that has not been done before.

To be fair, the battle system is simplistic but it works. There could have been more item slots which would in turn make the battles more complex and fun, but you’ll still be able to breeze through the battles with a little bit of practice; that is, if you do not unwittingly bring a space-wasting item into a fight (yes, there’s a chance you may do that). My main issue with the battle remains that it is too slow for my taste. Despite having a simple battle system, the fights in Riviera seems to last forever. You would have thought when they port this over that something could have been done to speed things up… but apparently, it’s not.

Cartoon Anyone?

If I played this game during 2002 I would have been mega-impressed. But I still have no complaints now. If anything else, the graphics are colorful and have a nice cartoonish feel to them. The characters look well-drawn and the world view is detailed and appropriate to the theme. During battle, some of the attacks are pleasing to the eyes too… though they get tiring after a while.

As for sound, Riviera really surprised me because the quality of the voice-acting is really well-done, as are the music. Sound effects consist of your standard hack-and-slash and is okay for any PSP RPG. Most importantly, Riviera also comes in both English and its glorious Japanese original. Like I said, I’m pleasantly surprised in this department and it’s one of the few things I’ve enjoyed while playing Riviera.

Get This Or Not?

So it’s time to give the verdict and I find myself sitting on the fence for this one. On the one hand, I like the background story, the music and sounds, and most importantly (surprise surprise) the hot females I get to interact with in the game. On the other, the battles are dreadfully tedious, and they are not helped by the equally boring exploration and quirky movement interface, which made the game longer that it should be.

Believing RPG gamers to be people generally propelled by a good story and excellent characterization, PSPHyper chooses to give Riviera: The Promised Land a swallow-able 2 and a 1/2 out of 5 Stars (despite the tedious gameplay that may have otherwise warranted an unprecedented 1 star).

Posted in PSP, Reviews on Wednesday, September 12th, 2007 at 11:42 pm |
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