Fantasy of Eden

When it comes to games, there's a time and a place for everything. My favorite JRPGs have systems that are so complex you could get lost in them, and I like them better for it. But man, sometimes I'm in the mood for something real simple, something bare-bones that doesn't require intense focus or a huge time commitment. "Something like Final Fantasy 1," you say? No, think simpler. Think Fantasy of Eden. Fantasy of Eden, a game so obscure that I can't find any videos of it that aren't on the dev's YT channel, probably won't take you more than a couple hours to play through. The plot boils down to "there is an evil guy somewhere, go beat him up." None of your party members have any personality or backstory beyond "he's a fighter, she's a healer, he's a mage." And yet I found myself enjoying FoE more than I thought I would [i]because[/i] it's an easy-breezy RPG. You've got your standard RPG tropes -- traversing dungeons with a boss at the end, getting a ship that lets you explore the whole world, finding a secret village hidden in the forest -- but it's all shrunk down and condensed to something that you can fully experience in a single afternoon. Of course, with easy-to-use programs like RPG Maker, games like these are a dime a dozen. And if FoE was just a short retro-style RPG, I wouldn't be recommending it. But there's two things that set it apart. The first is its embracement of the unnecessary. FoE didn't [i]need[/i] to have multiple endings, or have a casino, or let you buy a house and get married and have children, or allow you to watch a play in the Magic Kingdom theater complete with the musical stylings of [spoiler]Hatsune Miku[/spoiler]. But it does, and that's what showed me that FoE isn't just an RPG thrown onto Steam to make a quick buck. It's got heart. The second, depending on who you are, might be a major turn-on or turn-off. There's no getting around it: Fantasy of Eden's English translation is bad, and very obviously done by someone who isn't an English native speaker. But it hits that so-bad-it's-good sweet spot where you can understand the gist of what everyone's saying, even if they never say it like an actual human being. For example, this is the first line of dialogue in the game: [quote=Mom]Good morning,(your name) It is the time to determine your own life soon. It is also a good journey as an adventurers like your deceased father, and it is also free to live leisurely in this small island.[/quote] I personally love this kind of thing. It's cute and charming, and I might have never bothered to play it through if it had a boring, regular translation. And to be honest, if you can't crack a smile at how the game proudly describes a package of magic seeds as "the seed that vegetables and fruit grow up into," or how a knight helpfully tells you that "it so no rude if meet king," or how your ultimate goal is to "go to the Satan suppression," this game might not be for you. And that's fine. FoE won't be for everyone; it might not even be for [i]most[/i] people. But if you're in the mood for a brief, nearly plot-less retro RPG with a charmingly awkward English translation, consider giving Fantasy of Eden a chance. It's a labor of love, and sometimes that's all you need.

This game could be good -- as noted by most other reviewers, it's a fairly simple but surprisingly deep RPG that, at its core, is strongly reminiscent of the early Dragon Quest games. I'd enjoy it just for the nostalgia if that were the end of it. Unfortunately, the game's author or authors are apparently non-native English speakers who've never heard of proofreading. The text in this game -- and there's a lot of it, central to doing pretty much anything -- reads like a Japanese webpage that's been run through Google Translate. If you can tolerate that? Good for you. Unfortunately, I mentally keep trying to proofread the dialogue, and that's hardly enjoyable.

Pretty good linear basic RPG. No need to grind, could probably skip a lot of fights if you want as enemies are on the map. Choice of party composition. English translation is "not good" but it's extremely good actually and adds to the entertainment value. Beat it in 4 hours... but there seems to be more to do on an alternate path!

This is a fun and unique RPGMaker RPG game. Unique Stuff Costumes you can wear A play you can watch Fishing Cooking Marrying Buying a House It's colorful and easy to see. The plot is simple and nice. It's a good game. Press Z when you get to the first screen of the game otherwise it won't progress. I couldn't figure that out for a while LOL.

This game...is...AMAZING!! O_O We need MORE!! :D So good!! Thank you HUNTERS!! :)