eternal sonata update.

here is a summary of my thoughts on eternal sonata.

battles: not random thankfully, but still dull and repetitive. every battle can be won with the same moves with very little variation. new abilities are awarded through random levelling up. stats are boosted with the usual weapon/armour/accessory upgrades from chests found in the field. items become completely useless when you unlock viola's heal arrow ability. dungeons are choose-a-corridor-fight-the-enemies-beat-the-boss.

characters: there's hardly a likeable fellow in the whole bunch. every character/town/locale has a music theory related name, so no marks for originality there. every jrpg/anime stereotype is present - weepy girl, boyish girl, effeminate guy, moody guy, tough guy etc. plot is straightforward, predictable and so generic it hurts, even when you take into account the chopin's dream angle. the only customizable parts of a character is there equipment and abilities.

voice acting: completely terrible.

gameplay: strangely compelling. i genuinely want to finish the game even thoguh the flaws are starting to grate. the atmosphere of the game and the rich graphics are just about enough to keep me interested, and i'm naively expecting it to get at least a little bit challenging soon - i haven't even seen a game over screen yet.