Solatorobo - a fond farewell to the DS, and a testament to an era that’s slowly fading
[Some doubted it would ever happen, but Solatorobo releases in the States tomorrow for the DS – Infinity Counter's Francesco Dagostino provides us with this thoughtful guest review of the action RPG.]
Furry. Kemono. Call them what you will; associate them with the worst kinks on the internet. But anthropomorphic animals are also the symbol of a long-decayed video game era, lost to the encroaching desert of the medium’s Westernization.
They dwelt in an era made of happy-go-lucky worlds, now eroded by the obsessive pursuit of pseudo-Hollywood photorealism; creativity sacrificed as hypertrophic muscles contract, in response to the button-mashing of foolproof controls.
Obviously enough, there are still developers refusing to follow this sea change: software houses swimming against the current to preserve values that everyone else gave up on for the sake of easy revenues.
CyberConnect2 is one of these.
And so it only makes sense that CC2 would seize the opportunity to celebrate its 15th anniversary by releasing a title that’s strongly tied to one of its most (under)appreciated projects, Tail Concerto.
Fans have been begging for a sequel since the 1990s, and the platform chosen by CC2 is probably the best suited to a nostalgic operation of this caliber. Perfectly at ease amongst colorful palettes and old-fashioned sprites, textures, and gameplay, the Nintendo DS, though at the twilight of its career, treats players to yet another fantastic adventure — and a dive into the past.
This time the ingredients are Japanese mechs, floating islands, and, of course, cute talking animals.
Solatorobo: Red the Hunter is not really a direct sequel to Waffle’s tales, but it’s set in the same universe as Tail Concerto: Little Tail Bronx. And despite the geographical differences, the game is indeed populated by a number of familiar faces. Fans, rejoice.
Red Savarin, a dog-boy adventurer who travels the Shepherd Republic riding his tiny robot Dahak, is the protagonist of a story strongly influenced by the themes of ‘80s giant robot anime. With both a pleasant sense of deja vu and a lovely cast of characters (born from the pencil of character designer Nobuteru Yuuki), Solatorobo will eventually truly capture the player with a vivid, unexpectedly detailed world.
Quite the rarity, nowadays. Games tend to focus on predictable character drama, while the setting is just a background: an empty stage where the actors play their parts. It’s hard to remain indifferent in front of any of the flying islands of the Shepherd archipelago, or on the ships that soar through its sea of clouds.
And it’s not just because of level design that manages to make every place feel different and new, guiding the player between huge scrapyards towering against blazing sunsets and crumbling, jewel-filled mines.
By carefully mixing 2D and 3D elements, the game’s art directors know how to use the engine to bring out the colors and shapes of a charming world, something they’re to be credited for. CC2’s reputation for visual talent is not at all tarnished by the limitations of the DS hardware. What happens is, in fact, quite the opposite.
The software house is not at all afraid to be daring with photography and direction, especially in the towns, where unusual camera placement is common.
Exploration is often framed by huge characters or pieces of furniture skillfully placed in the foreground (à-la the studio’s Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2); other times these become a pleasant distraction at the edges of the screen while the camera eye gazes at painted cerulean skies, constantly traversed by flocks of seagulls and plumes of smoke.
In dungeons, the setup is more traditional — but still greatly enjoyable, thanks to a fantastic gusto with lighting — and every now and then the bird’s-eye view routine is interrupted by sudden rotations that show off immense waterfalls, mystic temples, or seas of trees suffocated by thick, white mist.
In short, Solatorobo is one of the best looking titles on DS. Production values are high, and inspiration skyrockets. That’s even without taking account of the beautiful 3D cutscenes or the anime openings by Madhouse (Summer Wars, Perfect Blue).
The music offers no less. Composed by CC2 veterans from .hack, Naruto, and Tail Concerto, it perfectly complements the atmosphere and tone of the adventure.
As the screenplay unravels, it’s easy to realize that Solatorobo is a labor of passion — passion that has been lavished on narrative tools capable of sloughing the very skin and essence of the game’s story in a way that’s hard to explain without spoiling crucial details.
Suffice it to say that the game has a lot to offer to anyone patient enough to forgive the game’s initial slow pace and excessive tutorial dialogue.
After all, this is just one of CC2’s quirks: the sluggish introduction of gameplay elements is a weak point — one shared by most old-school Japanese productions. But at the same time, once every piece of the puzzle is in the right place, be it Tail Concerto or .hack, the picture that CC2 has put together is nothing less than a magnum opus.
Solatorobo is no exception.
Once the console has been turned on, what appears on the screens is an action adventure whose focus is not on combat, but rather plain and simple exploration. Most of the game is spent on the Dahak completing quests and obtaining power ups to raise the main character’s stats, RPG-style.
Many are the vicious enemies that will be faced by Red, but CC2 approaches the game with versatility, deposing battles from lead gameplay role and making Solatorobo the sum of many different parts working in concert to fulfill the same objective: slowly immersing the player in a world which will literally trap him with its charm, through environmental interaction.
The Dahak is well suited for this job: the robot’s only ability is using its arms, to grab, lift, and throw.
In combat, this translates to a limited number of situations that usually revolve around slamming enemies against each other. The bad guys’ patterns are, in fact, not that varied, and one would easily grow bored of playing if it wasn’t for diversions like solving puzzles, drilling tunnels to navigate mines, or even repelling giant assault ships by grabbing missiles sent against Red and throwing them right back.
In the first half of the game, CC2 keeps piling up new ideas without focusing on any in particular. As a result, the gameplay could be perceived as superficial.
It’s a waste that some concepts don’t get to come back until the very end: exploring certain perilous locations, for instance, will require the Dahak to activate flight mode, giving a completely new perspective on exploration.
On other occasions, the robot will combine with other pieces of machinery to transform into a racing aircraft (the game even includes a mode that allows up to 4 players to compete against each other à-la Mario Kart). In some of the most visually impressive sections of the game, it changes into a fishing mech, equipped with a harpoon capable of skewering gargantuan hermit crabs that make their homes in space hulks or abandoned islands.
Red will, at times, leave his robot to play his own small role in the gameplay: he can enter otherwise inaccessible areas, swim, and even stun enemies with his rifle. It’s usually a good idea to avoid overusing Red on foot: his critical lack of offensive and defensive capabilities makes him an easy target.
That said, the game balance is the opposite of punishing — to the advantage of younger players, who will certainly get sucked in by the cute characters and the anime tones of the story. This aspect of Solatorobo is but a minor fault.
Once the first half of the game is completed (perhaps too late for the average player?) the gameplay suddenly U-turns. By going back on its steps, it resolves all its conflicts and uncertainties, providing keys to completely reinterpret the gameplay.
The Dahak and Red gain brand new abilities capable of turning the fighting system upside down; immediately, it takes a more central role, consequently changing the pace and mechanics of exploration.
This unexpected revolution, accompanied by a surprising amount of new content, goes well beyond the usual new attacks — adding transformations, new mechs to pilot, locations to visit, and ultimately transforming Solatorobo into its own sequel.
Solatorobo is the testament of an era that’s slowly fading.
Its afterimage leaves the player longing for faraway afternoons sitting in front of consoles that didn’t claim to oust all other forms of entertainment, losing their identity in the process. It’s also the fruit of the sweat of the brow of a group of people who create games out of passion, without suffocating their creative flair with the need to fill their pockets with money.
CC2’s farewell to the Nintendo DS is a wide-open window into the past through which the origins of Link, Sparkster’s incursions, Mega Man X’s drama, and the epic duels between Musashi and Kojiro once again live.
Sure, there are some rough edges here and there, but it’s thanks to these that Solatorobo speaks to the player’s heart.
At first, it does so in a small way. Then, with an explosion of quality, it shouts, demanding we never forget.
Through Red, it tells stories of forgotten protagonists, goofy companions, and bitter enemies who just needed pointy ears or a tail to become partners in unforgettable adventures.
Listen to it.
[You can read more fine articles from Francesco Dagostino at his very awesome Infinity Counter blog, and on his Twitter account @franpaccio.]
Preorder: Solatorobo: Red the Hunter
Find: Nintendo DS/3DS release dates, discounts, & more
See also: More Solatorobo posts
