Everyone was right Jeanne d’ArcReleased by Level-5 for the PSP back in 2006, this game has a good reputation as a solid game and I’ve had my eye on it for a while now. Tactical RPG It’s a game with a semi-historical setting, and yes, it’s about the 15th century Saint Joan of Arc. Unfortunately, the game was only released on the PSP, making it hard for modern audiences to get hold of. But that all changed this month with the announcement that the game would be re-released as part of the PSP game slate. PlayStation Plus Classic Catalog I played it on PS4 and PS5. Jeanne d’ArcIt’s opening time, but I’m already hooked.
Jeanne d’Arc It begins with a 2000s-style anime cutscene. On a dark and stormy night, a young boy asks his not-at-all-creepy clown-like servant to tell him a story. The servant tells a tale about the Reaper War, a (fictional) battle between humans and demons. Humanity was victorious, thanks to the forging of five bracelets. Lord of the RingThe Knight of the Wind, with the power to seal away demons. The story ends with the attendant revealing that many years have passed and now England and France are embroiled in a war that has lasted for nearly a century, known as the (historical) War. The Hundred Years’ Warand boy is it King Henry VI of England. To turn the tide of the war, his squire, John of Lancaster for you history buffs, summons the Devil of old. Despite being admittedly ridiculous, I can’t stress enough how difficult this is. Imagine someone who doesn’t know what this game is about beforehand receiving the twist that this is about the actual conflict between England and France. Oh, and the Devil is involved.
After a great opening, we finally meet our heroine, a young woman named Jeanne from the village of Domremy. To kick off the action, the game sends Jeanne and her friend Lianne into the forest to search for a missing man named Roger. During their search, the two women encounter a dead knight and a group of small demons. Jeanne finds the knight’s mysterious bracelet and, upon picking it up, begins to hear voices. And so the battle begins.
In the few battles I’ve had so far, combat in this game seems like a standard tactical RPG: you and your enemy take turns moving and attacking until you meet the battle’s victory conditions, which usually just mean wiping out the enemy. Soon, Jeanne will activate the power of her bracelet and do a nice attack. Sailor Moon Once transformed, she’s donning some cool armor. With her new gear, she can also use special abilities, such as gaining an extra turn of movement after defeating an enemy. In one battle, I was able to take down four enemies in a row by making good use of that particular ability. One can only imagine how this increases the strategic possibilities during play as the game gets more complex and new abilities are learned.
Most of the first hour was spent wondering what was going to happen in the rest of the game. Is the voice Joan heard the voice of the Roman Catholic God? Is England literally conspiring with the Biblical Devil? Are we going to see Joan burned to death before the game’s end credits roll? Obviously. Jeanne d’Arc Since I’m going to take a liberty reading the history books, I think it’s kind of funny to see the demons appear in the Siege of Orléans. If a Joan of Arc game doesn’t include the Siege of Orléans, what are we doing?
so far Jeanne d’Arc proved to be a tactical RPG with plenty of room to grow as I played deeper, and while I don’t think it does a good job of representing the complexities of real-life women in a story that’s so ridiculous, it’s always fun when demons appear next to historical figures in a game. assassin’s creed I love tactical RPGs, and as with those games, I won’t be returning to this one for historical accuracy – I’m here to have a good time, not to be educated.
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