Faery: Legends of Avalon is an RPG game that focuses around Faeries (fairies in real English) who have been long lost forgotten in the world and it’s your job to restore magic back into the world. The story resembles that of the Dwayne Johnson movie “The Tooth Fairy”.
The fact that the game has a similar story to “The Tooth Fairy” does that automatically mean it’s a bad game? How good can a downloadable RPG game really be? Let’s find out as we take at the HOTs and NOTs of Faery: Legend of Avalon.
HOT
Cel-Shaded Graphics
Visually, this is one of the prettiest games I’ve ever seen. Although some of the trolls, goblins and other several fantasy characters look butt-ugly, the environments will engage the eyeballs of any gamer once they start playing the game. The lighting effects are extraordinary with beams of sunlight glistening though the leaves of a tree or the light of the moon illuminating down on the night sky. The best looking character models in the entire games are the animals. They are very life-like such as the raccoon sniffing around the forest floor and the seagull chirping with its beak open – you might even be thinking you’ll be watching a show on the Discovery Channel in lieu of playing a game. The cel-shaded graphical style is underrated in the gaming industry in my opinion and I hope more developers will use it in the future as the artwork and graphics in Faery: Legends of Avalon is just simply breathtaking.
Gameplay
The turn-based style of RPG gameplay may deter some gamers that want pure action but the way that it’s done in this game will please long-terms fans of the RPG genre. There are no random battles in this game nor are there huge dungeons for you to explore to level-up for hours on end. Almost every battle you encounter is there for a purpose. If a character tells you there’s some trolls hassling him you’ll go there to intervene. Every fight in this game has a meaning, which is rare in the gaming industry as most games have you shooting or beating up everything in sight. Better still, you can even make choices sometimes whether you can solve your problems in a non-violent way. This varied the gameplay and I applaud Spiders (the game’s developer) for making a game where you can solve your problems without the use of violence.
Unlike in Final Fantasy XIII, talking is the main part of this game and is the only way you can initiate missions. Some gamers might get a little restless talking to NPCs all the time but it’s a refreshing change from other games where the main type of gameplay on offer is shooting or beating up every enemy in sight. There are also several side-quests that you can undertake too if you have already completed all the main missions.
No Frustrating Moments
There may be a few times where I did not know what to do next but overall the game is the least frustrating RPG game I’ve ever played. The game may be a bit shorter than most RPG games but its gameplay improves on most RPG games. Such improvements include the fact that your health replenishes after each battle, there are no random battles, and you don’t have to level-up for hours on end to power-up your characters. Not to mention you can save the game at any time so there’s no need to find a save point like in most other RPG titles.
Music Soundtrack
The music score is pleasant to the ears and reminds me a bit of Lord of the Rings. The orchestral score isn’t too repetitious as it perfectly sets the tone of the game perfectly.
NOT
No voice acting
The game can be a little silent reading numerous text boxes instead of having any voices to any of the characters. There are numerous characters that you will talk to and they would have been more lively had there been a voice behind the characters. Also, reading all the text boxes can get a bit tedious and the text is hard to see if you’re not playing on a HDTV.
Short
For a RPG title, this is a little on the short side. There are only four worlds for you to explore. Although you can undertake several side-quests I wanted more out of the adventure as the game has gorgeous visuals and non-linear gameplay. Having said that, this game is the same, if not longer than the average game out there. It’s just short for by RPG standards.
VERDICT
Faery: Legends of Avalon has got to be one of the best downloadable titles I have played in a while. The non-linear approach to its gameplay plus the beauty of its graphics are enough to entice any gamer. The game never gets too boring and is one of the few games out there that doesn’t rely on violence as its main bulk of gameplay. A true gem of a title and highly recommended for those wanting to play something a little less mainstream.
[Editor’s Note: Faery: Legends of Avalon was reviewed on the Xbox 360 platform. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]