Mistwalker and Microsoft Game Studios are nary a month away from releasingLost Odysseyin North America and the admittedly mixedimpressionsare starting to pour in.Someare better thanothers, but the general consensus seems to be that Hironobu Sakaguchi knows how to makeFinal Fantasy, and that’s what you’ll get, albeit on the Xbox 360. It’s a good thing I loveFinal Fantasy.
In his defense,ASHlooks promising, and his earlier career features a handful of games that wildly diverge from theFinal Fantasyformula (you guys rememberVagrant Story, right?). Either way, as a diehard fan, I’m prepared to look past some of the Gooch’s creative shortcomings. He’s allowed to use RPG clichés — he created them.
I’m a total sucker for jRPGs and concept art, and this latest batch has done little to stifle my anticipation forLost Odyssey. The character models and the environments are all incredibly detailed, even though the massive gallery after the jump doesn’t do it much justice.It’s a lot prettier in motion, trust me. The gallery shows a wide variety of landscapes and architecture, ranging from desolate, barren environments to lush, elaborate technological cities. I presume that this architectural diversity represents the industrial revolution upon which the storyline is centered and the changes that Kaim experiences during his 1,000-year life.
I adore concept art, and while Kaim’s character isn’t my favorite, some of the other characters look really interesting. Mack (the little girl in green), Cooke (the girl in pink), and Gongora (the tank in the sweet-as-balls plate armor) look particularly realized, and I can only hope that their actual character development receives the same amount of attention to detail as theircostumes. If some of their outfits look familiar, it’s becauseLost Odyssey‘s costume designeralso worked onFinal Fantasy XII.
Lost Odysseywill be released in a month, and I know that I and some of my fellow Destructoid compatriots are bubbly with anticipation — are you? Furthermore, does this new art seal the deal for any of you on-the-fencers?
