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Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
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Graphics & Sound:
Continuing the Japanese trend of too-long-for-their-own-good titles, Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon is the latest title from tri-Crescendo, the studio behind Eternal Sonata. If you're a fan of Japanese games (be they adventure or role-playing), this title will probably stand out prominently amidst the shelves of Wii shovelware. You'll buy it, bring it home, and get wrapped up in the intriguing story and impressive production values. Unfortunately, you'll be disappointed in just about everything else. In short, this game is a must-rent.
Fragile Dreams is an aesthetically pleasing game. Next-gen isn't quite the right term for it, but it still squeezes some quality visuals out of the hardware and boasts a confident sense of style. For starters, the animated clips are gorgeous, and I found myself anticipating each one with excitement. My jaw went slack when the main character stepped out into the dawn to find a morning sky that looked more like an aurora than a normal sunrise. My reaction wasn't provoked by technical brilliance; rather, it was brought on by how well the imagery served the subject matter. The outside world is lonely and beautiful, but once you go inside, the feelings of wonder and mystery are replaced by feelings of claustrophobia and danger. The repetitive environments and overabundance of darkness make the indoor segments less appealing.
I'm torn on the sound design of Fragile Dreams. On one hand, the music is fitting and lovely. The opening song is exactly what you'd expect to hear accompanying the beginning of Seto's journey. The Wii-mote's low-quality speaker is used with relative success. The Personal Frame (a fancy term for "robot backpack") that accompanies Seto in the opening hours of the game should sound tinny and mildly distorted. Chattering insects, meowing cats, and people should not. The voice acting is a bit off. Most lines are delivered slowly and quietly. This is a convention of several story-driven Japanese video games, and while it's great that the developers have included the original Japanese dub, you'll still wonder if it would kill the characters to act like real people. |
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Gameplay:
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon has one of the most interesting premises I've seen in a while. Specifically, it's the setting that's so intriguing. We've all played games that revolve around saving the world from some sort of unspeakable cataclysm. Most of us have even played games that take place during the aftermath of such an event. In the haunted world of Fragile Dreams, humanity has all but vanished into thin air. In fact, the only evidence that mankind has ever existed lies in the decaying ruins of its civilization. Here and there, you'll find an old shoe, a dog collar, the withered husk of a balloon.
You are Seto, a fifteen year-old boy who has just buried an old man (the only person he ever knew) outside of a dilapidated old observatory (the only home he's ever had). The old man has left a letter for Seto, one that encourages him to strike out in search of survivors. Shortly after he leaves the observatory, he finds a barely-clothed young girl with silver hair, who runs away almost immediately. Seto does what any of us would do in his situation: he sets out in pursuit. Fragile Dreams's story builds up slowly over time, though at times, it feels a bit too surreal to make sense. All of this is appropriate, given the length and pacing of the game. As you explore the empty world, you'll find mementos of those who are gone, and a short little vignette will explain the significance of the artifact. These little sketches are kind of like Lost Odyssey's "A Thousand Years of Dreams," but not as emotionally affecting. When the credits roll, you'll still have questions in your head, but you'll know these questions probably won't be answered. Perhaps that's for the best. My only real problem with the story has to do with the writing. I'm sure it works in Japanese, but too often, it seems as if the writers forgot to tell a story and instead focused on waxing poetic. Then again, I had the same feelings about Eternal Sonata; while I enjoyed the story for what it was, I also thought that the script was a preachy, bathetic mess.
The actual gameplay of Fragile Dreams consists of a light mix of role-playing and old-school adventure elements. As Seto, you'll explore your surroundings, investigate areas surrounded by incandescent fireflies, fight monsters, and stop to make bonfires (save points) along the way. Of course, the monsters of Fragile Dreams aren't monsters in the traditional sense. Many of them are spectral echoes of the departed, while others are of more sinister origins. Regardless, they're not happy about their predicaments and they're not happy to see Seto, so they attack on sight. You'll have to wheedle them into submission with whatever weapon (makeshift or otherwise) you can find. The combat is not fast-paced, and it's usually easy enough, but some particularly difficult and frustrating sections will fly out of nowhere.
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Difficulty:
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon has an inconsistent difficulty level, but most times, it's moderately easy. Some sequences are veritable cakewalks, but as I mentioned earlier, others come out of nowhere and beat you senseless. It's not because the combat is particularly challenging. Rather, it's because of a layer of complexity that really doesn't belong in a game like this. You'll find a full explanation in the Game Mechanics section.
In Fragile Dreams, weapons fall into disrepair at random (unlike the weapons of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Fallout 3). About six hours into the game, I purchased a bamboo sword from the merchant with the one-eyed chicken head (pictured in the first screenshot). I walked down a corridor and beat three ghostly jellyfish out of the air... and then my weapon broke. In our world, the one-eyed chicken head merchant would probably be taken to court. I'm convinced that every successful hit triggers a roll of a six-sided die; if a certain number is rolled, the weapon breaks. Losing your weapon at an inopportune time ramps up the difficulty level several notches.
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Game Mechanics:
This is where Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon suffers the most. The addition of one key mechanic would have made this game score in the 80s, but it's conspicuously missing. Another huge problem has to do with the terrible inventory management system. These issues are so pervasive that they actually manage to cripple the entire experience.
The missing mechanic of which I speak is a targeting system. There's no getting around it; while this game may classify itself as an adventure game, the combat is something right out of an action-RPG. Here's another unfortunate but undeniable fact: sans the MotionPlus, the Wii-mote is loaded with fundamental inadequacies. The camera controls are paired with the flashlight mechanic, and Seto generally attacks the area in front of him. If a spectre sneaks up behind him, you must aim to the side of the screen in order for him to perform a slow about-face. I'm not sure where they dropped the ball on this, but it hurts the fun factor of this game quite a bit.
You'll spend a good deal of time managing Seto's inventory. This is not a good thing, because the rules surrounding the inventory management system are inexcusably ridiculous. Seto keeps most of his items in a briefcase, but a slot system governs what he can carry on hand. This is similar to the inventory system of the early Resident Evil, which is not good to begin with. What's worse is that Seto can only open his briefcase next to a bonfire. Why? I have no idea whatsoever. When you pick up new items, you must take them to a bonfire to find out what they are. Why? The game is often dark, but it's rarely pitch dark. Fragile Dreams moves at a slow pace, and this kind of stuff turns the experience into a grind. This is due to the large amount of backtracking you must do to properly manage your inventory. There are also several equipment menus that you must go through in order to equip, unequip, and arrange your items. This is a poor way to squeeze longevity out of what should have been a clean, streamlined game.
I was really looking forward to playing this game, but it didn't enrapture me like I thought it might. It borrows too heavily from the deservedly forgotten conventions of traditional adventure games and occasionally forgets to be fun. Sometimes, atmosphere and emotion simply aren't enough. Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon has a lot going for it, but it's got too much going against it to be wholeheartedly recommended. |
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-FenixDown, GameVortex Communications AKA Jon Carlos |
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