As time passes we tend to lose things down the road. In terms of video games, we’ve seen several genres die off or continue on in a new direction. Sometimes the change is necessary and other times it’s confusing to fans. Regardless of how you feel, some genres like dungeon crawlers are just a distant memory, but that’s where Unchained Blades comes into play. By bringing the dungeon crawler genre to the PSP, can it find an audience?
Let’s check out what’s HOT and what’s NOT in our review of Unchained Blades.
HOT
Plays like Wizardry
Unless you’re an older gamer, then you’ve most likely never experienced a dungeon crawler. It’s a fairly basic genre where you walk around enemy infested buildings and fight off monsters. This might not sound different from other RPGs, but dungeon crawlers put you in a first person view looking around the dungeons. Besides this it is very similar to other RPG games, but it also has some unique flare too.
Followers
The one thing that makes Unchained Blades interesting is the follower system. You see there are two groups of characters. One is “masters”, who are main characters and the other are “followers”, which are basically recruited enemies. You can assign up to 4 followers to each master and those followers will join you in battle. This is where they get interesting, as they tend to assist you in battle.
These range from joining you in attacks to protecting their master from damage. However their assistance is based off how they feel towards you, so you need to maintain a good relationship. Your standing is based off questions they ask you, so you need to make sure they’re answered correctly. Sadly though, several questions have trick answers, so you really need to watch what you say.
Intriguing Story
In Unchained Blades you play as an arrogant dragon, who visited a goddess to see who the strongest person is. Due to his lack of respect and aforementioned arrogance, the goddess returns him to his younger form to learn a lesson. While it’s not the most original premise, the main character’s dialog is pretty amusing, which keeps the story entertaining. Additionally the story has a few twists that RPG fans will really enjoy.
