Tears to Tiara II: Heir of the Overlord (PlayStation 3) Story:I want to start by saying that this game and it's story was nothing like I expected it to be. The art style is typical anime, they have adorable battle sprites, the environments are overall bright, and it has a silly sense of humour. So I was surprised to find that the story itself is actually pretty serious and heavy. It deals with a lot of mature themes, such as death, cannibalism, revenge, blood lust, corruption, the darker side of organized religion, forced slavery, kidnapping, betrayal, torture, genocide, and literal brainwashing. The story does have it's more lighthearted scenes, but overall it is a serious story. I should also note that there are some translation issues, but you should still be able to understand conversations based on context.
Tears to Tiara II is a political fantasy based on the Punic wars. As such, it explores a lot of history, a lot of it Roman and Catholic. It is a sequel to a visual novel, although you don't need to have played the first to play this one. The story starts with our hero, Hamil, playing the fool to avoid being used in a rebellion against the evil empire, who is mistreating the people. But one day, a woman claiming to be the Goddess of Ba'al, Astarte, descends and presents herself to Hamil. When she is kidnapped by the empire and threatened with death, Hamil has had enough of the violence and humiliation and takes a stand. He forms a pact with the blood thirsty God of War, Melquart, in exchange for the power to save his people. From there he plans a rebellion against the evil Empire and the Divine Order controlling it.
Gameplay:This game is a combination visual novel and strategy RPG. This means you will be watching many scenes, taking a break only to buy new stuff or to fight in strategy battles. Unlike a lot of visual novels, however, you can't save at any time during scenes, only when the scenes are over, in between or during battles, or at certain prompted times.
Battles take place on a grid and each battle has a certain objective. These range from "annihilate enemy forces" to "survive x amount of turns" to "reach the destination". They'll also have different defeat conditions and bonus conditions, which if fulfilled, will give you bonuses after the battle is won. You choose which of your characters to use in battle, although some battles have mandatory characters, and different battles have different character limits. Meaning in one fight you might only get to use 8 characters while in the next fight you get to use 12. On your turn you move your characters and select actions for them to do, such as attacking the enemy or using magic. There is also an elemental wheel, showing you which magics are effective against which. There's a wide range of playable characters so you can choose which you enjoy using more. Grinding is also possible as you can revisit maps you've previously cleared for extra points and money. You can buy items and equipment and synthesize equipment as well. After battle you'll receive a grade for the battle, which increases your winnings. There are three difficulty settings for different play styles.
World:Being the type of game it is, the world is not fully explorable. Instead, you'll only see it through scenes or in battles. With that being said, the battle maps are often diverse and interesting, providing you with different challenges through the game. The world map, where you pick your destination, bears a striking resemblance to a certain area...
Characters:Ordered from favourite to least favourite
Charis: A little girl and priestess to Tarte and Hamil. She's very cheery and positive. She serves mostly as a healer in battle, although she can charm enemies and ride certain beasts.
Daphnis: Servant to Elissa, he dresses as a woman to be able to follow her better. He's intelligent and loyal, but a bit modest and shy. He's an archer.
Kleito: Kleito's true form is a dragon of the Dragon Tribe, and she serves as the guardian for the main fortress of our heroes. She's very mischievous and playful, but serious when she needs to be. She uses a lot of offensive magics.
Enneads: Sarcastic and casual, but the brains behind a lot of the operations. In battle he uses offensive and healing magics.
Tarte: Claiming to be the Goddess Astarte of Ba'al, she is devoted to Hamil and his cause of overthrowing the evil Empire. She fights with a large sword and can transform in to the Goddess Tanit in battle
Elissa: A noblewoman of a trade city, she's very passionate and cares deeply about others. In battle she uses a giant hammer to deal massive damage.
Hamil: Of the famous Barca family, he is fighting against the evil Empire and it's injustices. He formed a pact with the blood thirsty Melquart and can transform in to him in battle.
Saul: Patrols the border and maintains relations with the tribes people. He's been in many battles and seen many things he wishes he never saw. He uses a heavy sword for heavy damage in battle.
Artio: The daughter of the Chief Tribesman, she's got a fighting spirit and a stand out attitude. She's very mobile and agile in battle.
Aemilia: A technocrat from the empire. Very arrogant and prideful and thinks of herself as a genius. She uses daggers in battle for long range attacks.
Monomachus: A battle hardened warrior and a soldier to his core. He is gruff and always wanting to take action. He uses a spear in battle.
Izabel: Previous adviser to Hamil's father, she betrayed him and was given a lot of power in the empire. Manipulative and psychotic. She uses a spear and magic in battle.
Laelius: Izabel's lapdog and very loyal to the empire. He believes strongly in honour. He fights with a sword.
Dion: A young, cowardly womanizer who wants to one day become a great sage so he can get all the babes. He uses a bow in battle and can use a number of status buffs.
Golyat: A former companion of Saul's, he is always itching for a battle and is a very strong opponent. He uses a large hammer in battle.
Overall:This game is not what I expected it to be, and at first I was rather meh about it because of that. But the story picked up the further in I got and not to long in, I started to love it. The characters have depth, the story has depth, and I even learned some history from it. It also provides some good lessons to think about, and I always like when a game makes me think. I had the game and easy and even that started to get too hard by the end, so the harder difficulties might be quite a challenge. It's fun to play, it's got a good story, and some awesome characters. What's not to like?
LOVED IT