Dragoneer's Aria
Encyclopedia
Dragoneer's Aria is an RPG
for the PlayStation Portable
, developed by Hit Maker and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released in North America on August 21, 2007, and was released as in Japan on August 23, 2007.
Magic is performed through attaching jewels called "lusces" to accessories such as rings and necklaces. The strength and effectiveness of lusces and other skills are improved through repetitive use; the more often skills and lusces are used, the more powerful they become.
Characters possessing elemental "dragon orbs" are also able to use "dragon skills", which are powerful elemental attacks. Certain dragon skills, when executed in succession, produce additional damaging elemental effects called "elemental combos". For example, executing the dragon skills "Water Swing" and "Thunder Slash" in succession produce the elemental combo "Landslide".
All playable characters also have their own "field skills", which can be executed in the field when a character is set as party leader. field skills have various effects, such as Euphe's "Mana Sea" skill, which enables her to heal the party while on the field, and Valen's "Dash" skill, which enables him to move around the field at a swifter pace.
Executing skills and lusces require certain amounts of "mana", which is accumulated through successfully attacking opponents or guarding against opponent's attacks.
Monsters are found roaming the field in the form of flying eyeballs, which trigger battle sequences when the character comes into contact with them. These eyeballs chase after the on-screen character if he/she comes into the eyeballs' view.
function. In this mode, players raid dragon's nests in order to gather loot and treasure. Players do not control a full party by themselves, rather they control one character each.
Mary Murphy
Ruslan L'avelith
Lucien Blaine
Nikita Heil
Sonia Panova
-style games Nippon Ichi Software is known for. The producer of the game for NIS, Sohei Niikawa, has described the game as a "noble sort of fantasy", which builds up on the basic elements of a fantasy game. Yukihiko Hojo, CEO
of Hit Maker, has commented that creating Dragoneer's Aria served as a challenge for the company to create a new kind of RPG and include the various possibilities for a PSP game that they failed to include in their previous work, Blade Dancer.
Lineage II
, did the character designs for Dragoneer's Aria. Niikawa stated that he believes that this would be a big selling point for the game. Jeong commented that he had always wanted to be involved in the production of a console game, and he had not worked as an illustrator for three years before working on this project. He also expressed some regret in not having been able to work with the design team personally because he felt that it is "the designer's responsibility to watch over the 3D character as it grows into its final form".
's "Air on the G String
" is also used as the background music
for the game's title screen, and was also used for the game's trailers and official Japanese website. According to Hojo, the reason for selecting "Air on the G String" was because they believed that it brought out the emotions involved in the characters' relationships.
The game has received numerous negative reviews from critics, who mostly complained about the "slow" gameplay and "clichéd" characters and plot. Jeff Haynes of IGN
states that the game "takes a lot of clichéd characters and tries to spice up the standard RPG fare with some adjustments to the skill and battle formula", while Sam Bishop of TotalPlaystation.com remarks that "no one part of the game manages to do anything more than set par for the course", and Andrew Fitch of 1UP.com
describes the game as "mediocre".
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
for the PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
, developed by Hit Maker and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released in North America on August 21, 2007, and was released as in Japan on August 23, 2007.
Battle system
The game features a turn-based battle system, and enables the player to select the order in which the characters are to act. The actions that a character can make during battle are "Attack" (enables the character to physically attack an opponent), "Mana" (enables the character to perform skills and magic), "Guard" (allows the character to defend against an opponent's attack), "Item" (allows the character to use an item in the inventory), and "Escape" (allows the characters to run away from battle).Magic is performed through attaching jewels called "lusces" to accessories such as rings and necklaces. The strength and effectiveness of lusces and other skills are improved through repetitive use; the more often skills and lusces are used, the more powerful they become.
Characters possessing elemental "dragon orbs" are also able to use "dragon skills", which are powerful elemental attacks. Certain dragon skills, when executed in succession, produce additional damaging elemental effects called "elemental combos". For example, executing the dragon skills "Water Swing" and "Thunder Slash" in succession produce the elemental combo "Landslide".
All playable characters also have their own "field skills", which can be executed in the field when a character is set as party leader. field skills have various effects, such as Euphe's "Mana Sea" skill, which enables her to heal the party while on the field, and Valen's "Dash" skill, which enables him to move around the field at a swifter pace.
Executing skills and lusces require certain amounts of "mana", which is accumulated through successfully attacking opponents or guarding against opponent's attacks.
Monsters are found roaming the field in the form of flying eyeballs, which trigger battle sequences when the character comes into contact with them. These eyeballs chase after the on-screen character if he/she comes into the eyeballs' view.
Recipes and crafting
Items called "recipes" enable the player to combine ingredients in order to craft accessories, weapons, or more ingredients. Recipes can be acquired from certain NPCs and from shops.Dragoneer Mode
The game also features "Dragoneer Mode", which enables 2-4 players to play in a cooperative fashion via the PSP's wireless LANWireless LAN
A wireless local area network links two or more devices using some wireless distribution method , and usually providing a connection through an access point to the wider internet. This gives users the mobility to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network...
function. In this mode, players raid dragon's nests in order to gather loot and treasure. Players do not control a full party by themselves, rather they control one character each.
Plot
The story centers on the adventures of Valen Kesslar, a young man who is about to graduate from Dragoon Academy. The graduation ceremony involves the appearance of the six elemental dragons, all of whom were originally part of the Holy Dragon Grinlek before he was destroyed by the Black Dragon, Nidhogg. The six elemental dragons keep the balance in the world of Iris. During the ceremony, Nidhogg appears and destroys the royal palace of Granadis, injuring the Water Dragon in the process. The Dragoons are then tasked to investigate Nidhogg and defend the other elemental dragons from him.Playable characters
Valen Kesslar- A young Dragoon and the lead character of the story. "He" is idealistic and calm, and often takes things too seriously. "He" is known as in the Japanese version of the game.
- Euphe is a lively female Empath (a type of being that can heal others' wounds by absorbing the injuries into her own body) who encounters Valen right after Nidhogg's assault on Granadis. She falls in love with him at first sight. Euphe is voiced by Stephanie ShehStephanie ShehStephanie Ru-Phan Sheh is a Chinese-American voice actress, a writer, and a story editor who has worked for Geneon Entertainment, Bang Zoom! Entertainment, Bandai Entertainment, Media Blasters, NYAV Post, FUNimation Entertainment, and Viz Media...
in English.
Mary Murphy
- Mary is the young captain of a pirate ship called Mary, which was named after her. Her father died when she was eleven years old, leaving her in the care of the pirate crew. After her ship sinks, she seeks the Water Dragon as she believes that it will be able to save her ship. Her name in the Japanese version of the game is . Mary is voiced by Kaori MizuhashiKaori Mizuhashiis a Japanese voice actress who is employed by Arts Vision. Her debut was in 1998 with the game First Kiss Story.-TV anime:*Ai Yori Aoshi *Ai Yori Aoshi ~Enishi~ *Angelic Layer...
in Japanese and Michelle RuffMichelle RuffMichelle Suzanne Ruff is an American voice actress known for her work in anime and video games.-Anime roles:* Angel Tales - Akane the fox* Ai Yori Aoshi - Aoi Sakuraba* Arc the Lad - Meril...
in English, using typical pirate lingo.
Ruslan L'avelith
- A guardian of the Earth Dragon who joins Valen in order to protect the holy spirits and Mother Nature from destruction. Ruslan is proud of his elven heritage, and looks down on humans and dragoons. In the Japanese version of the game, Ruslan's last name is . Ruslan is voiced by Yuri LowenthalYuri LowenthalYuri Lowenthal is a voice actor that has voiced several anime and video game characters. He also voiced Kamal for the alternate reality game I Love Bees....
in English.
Other characters
- A Dragoon and Valen's childhood friend. Langley is the first born of the Baldwin family, a revered family with a long line of Dragoons in its lineage.
Lucien Blaine
- A Dragoon consumed by madness and who betrays his duties by killing two dragons and attempting to do the same to the others. Lucien is part of a family that considers financial and political influence to be more important that military influence. In the Japanese version of the game, Lucien's first name is .
Nikita Heil
- A Dragoon who despises dragons and wishes to destroy their dragon orbs. Nikita is in love with a commoner, which is forbidden by the Dragoons' law. In the Japanese version of the game, Nikita's first name is .
Sonia Panova
- The current leader of the Dragoons, Sonia was born into a family of Dragoons and is one of the first females to be initiated into the corps. Her leadership abilities are unparalleled and she shares deep bonds with her troops. In the Japanese version of the game, Sonia's last name is . She is voiced by Mary Elizabeth McGlynnMary Elizabeth McGlynnMary Elizabeth McGlynn is an American voice actress, ADR director, writer, and singer best known for her extensive English-language dubbing of various anime, and her singing in multiple games from the Silent Hill series, as well as the movie adaptation and Dance Dance Revolution EXTREME. She has...
in the English version, with a Russian accent
Development
The game's 3D look and designs deviate from the usual 2D animeAnime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
-style games Nippon Ichi Software is known for. The producer of the game for NIS, Sohei Niikawa, has described the game as a "noble sort of fantasy", which builds up on the basic elements of a fantasy game. Yukihiko Hojo, CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Hit Maker, has commented that creating Dragoneer's Aria served as a challenge for the company to create a new kind of RPG and include the various possibilities for a PSP game that they failed to include in their previous work, Blade Dancer.
Character Design
Juno Jeong, the art director for the popular Korean MMORPGMMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
Lineage II
Lineage II
Lineage II is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game for Microsoft Windows. It is a prequel to Lineage, and is set 150 years before the earlier game. It has become very popular since its October 1, 2003 launch in South Korea, reporting 1,000,918 unique users during the month of March 2007...
, did the character designs for Dragoneer's Aria. Niikawa stated that he believes that this would be a big selling point for the game. Jeong commented that he had always wanted to be involved in the production of a console game, and he had not worked as an illustrator for three years before working on this project. He also expressed some regret in not having been able to work with the design team personally because he felt that it is "the designer's responsibility to watch over the 3D character as it grows into its final form".
Music
Japanese singer Mimika sang the game's theme song entitled . A piano version of Johann Sebastian BachJohann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's "Air on the G String
Air on the G String
The "Air on the G String" is an adaptation by August Wilhelmj of the Air, the second movement from Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No...
" is also used as the background music
Background music
Although background music was by the end of the 20th century generally identified with Muzak or elevator music, there are several stages in the development of this concept.-Antecedents:...
for the game's title screen, and was also used for the game's trailers and official Japanese website. According to Hojo, the reason for selecting "Air on the G String" was because they believed that it brought out the emotions involved in the characters' relationships.
Reception
Dragoneer's Aria entered the Japanese weekly sales charts at number six for selling 23,617 units from its release date to the week of August 20 to August 26, 2007.The game has received numerous negative reviews from critics, who mostly complained about the "slow" gameplay and "clichéd" characters and plot. Jeff Haynes of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
states that the game "takes a lot of clichéd characters and tries to spice up the standard RPG fare with some adjustments to the skill and battle formula", while Sam Bishop of TotalPlaystation.com remarks that "no one part of the game manages to do anything more than set par for the course", and Andrew Fitch of 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
describes the game as "mediocre".