Luminous Arc

 DS
  • Publisher: Atlus
  • Release Date: Aug 14, 2007
User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 29 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 29
  3. Negative: 5 out of 29
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  1. mckenzo
    Feb 17, 2013
    2
    So where should I begin...
    Well, I will start off with the good so that people reading this review won't think that I am criticizing this game because JRPG doesn't suit my taste when, on contrary, opposite is true. I appreciate Japanese TRPG like Tactics Ogre, FFT, and even more recent series like Disgaea; Luminous Arc is no where near sufficient to meet the standards for JRPG like the    So where should I begin...
    Well, I will start off with the good so that people reading this review won't think that I am criticizing this game because JRPG doesn't suit my taste when, on contrary, opposite is true. I appreciate Japanese TRPG like Tactics Ogre, FFT, and even more recent series like Disgaea; Luminous Arc is no where near sufficient to meet the standards for JRPG like the ones I mentioned.

    For those who liked this game, I'll give you that this game has above decent music score (composer being the same man who worked on Crono Cross), the character design is effectively aimed for the specific audience without having it to be too flamboyant about it (well, except for that witch with the ginormous pair of melons), the voice acting is annoying but I can appreciate how they were trying to please that said audience, and some dialogues were kinda funny whether it was intentional or not

    The plot for this game is nothing we haven't seen before: a naive protagonist being manipulated by their own organization to believe their lies. (see FFVII, FFX or any other JRPG involving religious power, or "evil" corporation) It is so mainstreamed that I often wonder if the writers were even expecting players to be surprised by its utterly obvious plot-twists.

    And even if the story isn't "that bad," the whole game only like 10-15hrs long at the most.

    The advancement of the story is linear as it can get: the point-A-to-B style. Despite of being provided with an open world view, allowing you to travel back to previous town, there simply isn't a reason why you should do that other than to needlessly level-grind your characters for a very very easy game (I'll get back on that later) The previous town doesn't offer better equipment nor does it offer any special events, QED: pointless feature.

    Each of the characters have "titles" like Warrior or Cleric but it all means nothing because there is no Job system in the game. Because being able to change the job and having the ability to customize your own squad would mean more variety depth and we can't have THAT now, can we?

    The battle tactic is heavily relied on "who strikes first" mentality; just wait for the enemy to come within your attacking range, let your archers/magicians whale on one enemy and let your melees finish it off.

    And if that doesn't make the game any easier, how about that broken, unbalanced warrior and the protagonist who can unleash a stupid amount of firepower while being able to soak up so much damage. Or how about that cleric who can buff up the defense/attack of 4 characters in one turn. Or maybe having all characters to be able to use items so there won't be a need for healers, ever. Or maybe having that unnecessarily overpowered Flash Drive attacks which you'll not likely to even use unless you got items for it or something...

    And if healing up to full HP/MP every time you level up doesn't make this game easier enough for you, while taking into account of everything I said just now above... I suggest you stay away from tactic game entirely.

    And what is a anime-influenced game without very flat, uninteresting, and cheap character development? I am of course talking about "intermission" system which is basically a badly written dating sim between protagonist and a character of your choice which occurs after every battle. And I wouldn't even call it a dating sim because there is no substantial dialogue between the two; it is just one character says a single line of text and protagonist needs to choose a fairly obvious "right answer" from the given three choices. Do you mean to tell me that writers were too half-assed to even write a simple conversation?

    And I can't even turn the camera view during the battle... WHY WHY WHY!?

    Those who are reading this might be thinking, "Stop nitpicking, it's their first game that they developed so cut them some slack..." and I would've agreed with you if they hadn't been making the character-oriented game that aims for the shallowest group of gamers who approved of this garbage (I'm looking at you Nintendo Power and Gamespot. Balanced gameplay my ass...) and they are quite shameless about it seeing from how they have made, not one but, two sequels to this.

    While those who are fan of anime, but just don't care for quality in game enough that you wouldn't shell out more than 10 bucks, then this is for you. Still, in my opinion, there isn't enough moe in world to save it from this level of atrocity.    … Expand
  2. Bustergundam4
    Jan 11, 2012
    10
    This game of ATLUS is awesome because it takes on a RELIGIOUS view and how the church conduct their plans under everyone's noses and by the end,you will feel on the top of the world (metaphorically of course!) 10/10

    *Voice acting made me laugh because the voices were so funny with the vulgar language I grew up with ^^ *
  3. HazJ.
    Jul 29, 2007
    9
    The voice acting really brings what would be a standard strategy RPG to life, it is nearly shocking the amount they managed to fit in this DS game. I think the attachment to the characters and story will really carry many through this game like it has my-self (if the English version contains as much voice work).
  4. FaustL.
    Sep 5, 2007
    8
    Luminous Arc has an interesting story and tons of hours of gameplay, the versus mode gives it added value and is an overall good game.
  5. fsdu
    Oct 9, 2013
    7
    This is a lovely little SRPG.

    It's not that deep or challenging but it's really pleasant to play. The characters are fun and the combat is toned down so anyone could enjoy this game, especially those new to SRPG's.

    Don't expect anything new or innovative and you will have fun with this game.
  6. midipon
    May 9, 2014
    7
    Luminous Arc is a very fun SRPG that's easy to jump into and get rolling. The presentation is very strong as everything in the game is hand drawn and the music and sound effects are nice to listen to. The voice acting is mediocre, but it makes sitting through the game MUCH easier. Luminous Arc is heavy on the text, and the characters/story aren't even THAT good.

    Do not expect too much    Luminous Arc is a very fun SRPG that's easy to jump into and get rolling. The presentation is very strong as everything in the game is hand drawn and the music and sound effects are nice to listen to. The voice acting is mediocre, but it makes sitting through the game MUCH easier. Luminous Arc is heavy on the text, and the characters/story aren't even THAT good.

    Do not expect too much from this game. It IS IMAGEEPOCH's first game ever, and while the battle system is strong, it has it's share of faults. The interface is a dull brown and rather clunky, the game lags occasionally, and the world map is a pain to go through. I'm not sure what on earth triggers a battle when you pass over it. Sometimes it gives you the option to play it, sometimes it doesn't. I think the biggest flaw though, is the intermissions. Unless you save scum you'll never get the characters' hearts up, but it doesn't really matter anyway because all the scenes related to the intermissions are just fluff.

    Luminous Arc is an enjoyable game, but the second is MUCH better.    … Expand
  7. Yojimbo2015
    Jun 4, 2023
    7
    Turn-based fantasy strategy game that plays almost exactly like Final Fantasy Tactics. The cut scenes are a little cheesy - and can't be skipped - but otherwise it's a good, well presented example of the genre all round.

Awards & Rankings

60
#60 Best DS Game of 2007
54
#54 Most Discussed DS Game of 2007
11
#11 Most Shared DS Game of 2007

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
70

Mixed or average reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 25
  3. Negative: 1 out of 25
  1. GameBrink
    84
    Beautifully presented with a fairly interesting story and fun cast of characters to interact with but it lacks a bit in terms of gameplay content. [JPN Import]
    Read full review
  2. GamePro
    60
    It's a decent enough game but it isn't the grand strategy RPG experience that we've all been waiting for. [Sep 2007, p.84]
    Read full review
  3. Nintendo Power
    80
    The game may be a little rough around the edges, but it's got heart. [Sep 2007, p.86]
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