Episode 11: Soul Nomad and the World Eaters – Hotpod Hoedown

Episode 11:  Soul Nomad and the World Eaters – Hotpod Hoedown

Platform: Playstation 2

Release Date: 

  Japan: Feb 15, 2007

  USA:  Sept 25, 2007

  Europe: Jun 20, 2008

Difficulty: Moderate

Pricing:  $57.41 on Amazon

Podcast: Download, iTunes, PodOmatic

Terra's Review

His power or...something else?

The Good

• Soul Nomad has a unique game play experience. It emphasizes pre-battle planning and gives players the ability to view the battlefield and the forces the characters will face before the actual battle, something that is pretty rare in RPGs. How you prepare for a battle is as important as the strength of your characters. In fact, sometimes how you prepare is even more important than pure strength and high stats.
• Though melodramatic and sometimes confusing, the storyline events kept me engaged and wanting to know what happened next.  
• Odie will kill everything and is pathetically entertaining.

 

The Bad

• Although Soul Nomad is marketed as a game where the player’s choices will shape events and you can be good or evil, there aren’t actually many options or choices to make. This is especially true on the first play through, when you don’t have access to the Demon path and a darker storyline.
• There’s a high learning curve in terms of figuring out the gameplay mechanics and changing rooms and re-arranging squads can get tedious.
• Revya dies=Game Over, which means having to avoid using one of the best characters during the most challenging battles.

The Ugly

• Odie’s cheap Halloween dinosaur mask.
• Endorph.
• Tricia’s adoptive father loves her a little too much.

It’s too dangerous because that hairpin is so damned ugly.

The Lowdown:  Soul Nomad is definitely a game for the hardcore Nippon Ichi and tactical gaming fans. The gameplay had its faults, but it was a nice change of pace from action RPGs or tactical games with a setup more like Disgaea’s. 

Music Credits:

RPG Roundup Theme Song: "Video Game Theme," J. Arthur Keenes Band. Creative Commons Attribution License.

Soul Nomad OST