adventure

I started off discovering Shining Force II back on the old Genesis system, so of course when I fell in love with that game I turned quickly to the old Shining Force I. I really didn't like it as much, it just was more bland and annoying (particularly the promotion aspect). So I was a bit hesistant with this game (which is, if you haven't picked up on it by now, a remake of the Genesis Shining Force I). However, when I did finally get it and played it I was amazed with the improvements added to the remake.

First of all, this game has added in clear bonuses. Before each battle the game will lay out the victory conditions and also give you a clear bonus (usually to win the battle in a certain number of turns). Accomplishing that clear bonus nets you either cash or a weapon that cannot be bought for another town or two. These clear bonuses really spice up battles, as it's no longer a matter of whether you can win or not (you almost always can) but whether you can win FAST enough (which is not nearly as easy).

The second major improvement is cards. There are 55 player and boss cards strewn about the world for you to find. The player cards are obtained by searching through towns and talking to people while the boss cards are obtained by killing bosses with certain people landing the final blow. Hunting these cards obviously adds a lot, but it doesn't stop there. A new character, Mawlock, has been added to the game. Mawlock's big draw is that he EQUIPS these cards and they give him various attributes etc. So not only can you now hunt for cards, you can use them in a variety of different ways to customize a character's abilties.

And the final big improvement is the revamping of the promotion system. In the old Genesis version promoting your main charcter made him so weak he could only stand on the back lines and watch. This has thankfully been taken care of and promotions, while they do weaken your characters a bit at first, are made much, much more managable.

If you played either of the original Shining Force games for the Genesis this is a must-have game. For those new to the strategy RPG realm, this is a quality game to start in on as well. With the new remakes and improvements this is not only one of the best RPGs for the GBA, but one of the best RPGs out there right now period. This is a game every RPG fan should have.

Shining Force was released in 1993 on the Sega Genesis system. It was basically the strategy RPG game that started the genre that includes Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, and others.

Shining Force was an excellent game with great characters, battles, plot, and everything else you'd expect and desire. I, personally, spent countless hours engaged with the game, never wanting to put it down or stop.

The ensuing sequels and prequels to the game never really captured what the original did, however. But, a new jumpstart to the game has arrived. Now on the Gameboy Advance, Shining Force: Resurrection of the Dark Dragon is a direct port from the Genesis version, but contains very nice updated graphics, sounds, AI, story elements, gameplay elements, and more. The new features don't destory the game and make it some 2004 version, rather it takes what the game was and improves upon it.

This game and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance are both extremely entertaining and excellent Gameboy Advance strategy RPGs. Make sure you pick up Shining Force: Resurrection of the Dark Dragon, because you'll be glad you did, and because it's one of the best strat-RPGs ever created. This is a five-star game all the way!

A great game gets remade and boy does it look good!

Sound- 4.5 out of 5
the music and sound effects are great but the reason i gave it a 4.5 is because it seems like they tried to do such a nice job on the music in the game but really not many people would notice it because really not many people play gameboy with sound in the first place, it just waste the batteries

Story 5 out of 5
The story in this game is still the original Shining Force but is given a small twist with 3 new characters being a ninja, a guru, and even get this a guy who does special tricks with these cards i gave it a five because it all flowed in with the original story perfectly!

Graphics 5 out of 5
the graphics in this game are wonderful for a gameboy advanced game, they are mainly like the graphics from shing force CD only with all new battle sprites witch give the game a new and even better look

Replay Value 5 out of 5
I thought that this desserved a special section all for itself. a Very nice new feature is (SPIOLERS!!!) every time you beat the game there will be a new option opened up called new game+ where the difficulty of the game get harder and every time you beat it it gets harder making you want to test your abilities.

Mainly if you are a fan of games like Advanced Wars, Fire Emblem or Golden Sun you will love this game and play it for hours and hours nonstop!