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Yggdra Union

Posted February 10th 2007 by Terry Harjanto.

With systems like the Wii and the DS, it's easy to say that Nintendo is focusing on innovative ideas in gaming. However, those two systems are not the only place where innovation is bred and new games created out of old concepts. Yggdra Union is a game that takes a radically different approach to the tactical RPG genre. And what might surprise some people is that this game is not for the Wii nor for the DS, but for Nintendo's venerable GameBoy Advance. The GBA has been a host of many tactical RPGs; some might even say too many as they point to the Fire Emblems and Advance Wars. But despite the presence of these games, Yggdra Union is so unique you won't have any trouble picking this lance-size needle out of the haystack.

Other then trying to figure out how to pronounce "Yggdra", most of Yggdra Union involves taking turns to move and attack with units on a grid based map. Whereas Fire Emblem had individual characters and Advance Wars had squadrons, Yggdra Union mixes the two together. Each unit in the game is led by a character such as Princess Yggdra or Milanor the Thief. These characters are the head of the unit and also denote the type of unit that they lead. Yggdra, for example, is armed with a ridiculously large sword and thus leads a group of rapier-wielding valkyries. There is a bit of a rock-paper-scissors aspect that determines which weapon types are stronger against others, but it goes way beyond sword-axe-spear that it takes a comprehensive graph to shows how each of the eight weapon types perform against each other. So far the game may sound like others within the genre, but the similarities ends here.

Truly unique to this game is that all combat is initiated by launching a single attack. The unit that leads the attack forms a union and brings into combat up to four other units that are standing within formation. Female characters form a "+" formation and male characters form an "x" formation that expand outwards a distance of two squares with the leading unit in the center. The formations can be expanded by mini-formations with a distance of one square created by units within the union leader's formation. Obviously, to make things fair the enemies form unions of their own so that each battle isn't always a five-on-one massacre. This complex combat system creates the impression of a massive epic conflict that involves strategic maneuvering of armies and long grueling battles.

Cards also play a role in this game, but you gain cards as the plot advances instead of searching for them. Every turn you choose one card from a pool you selected before the battle. Each card has a movement point, a weapon ace type, a card skill, and numerical morale strength. Movement points are collectively shared by all of your units: if you pick a card with a movement point of six, you can move a unit six spaces or move multiple units a total of six spaces. This restriction helps to add depth to the game since it forces you to think far ahead to plan out your unit movements.

The weapon ace type and card skills come into play when your units attack the enemy. A gauge bar is displayed during battle. Pressing left on the D-pad puts your unit into passive mode and lowers its attack strength but this fills the gauge bar. Aggressive mode is activated by holding right on the D-pad; this increases the unit's attack strength but depletes the gauge bar. When the gauge bar is full, you can unleash the card skill, but the union leader has to be armed with the weapon ace. The variety of card skills is quite expansive: some deal elemental damage, others steal items from the enemy, and the battles are made a lot more interesting.

The numerical morale strength of the card is the main factor in dealing damage. Whereas a unit's HP determine whether it wins or loses a battle, morale determines whether it is eliminated from the battlefield. The damage inflicted is a percentage of the morale strength calculated according to several factors such as the HP of the winning unit and bonuses from using card skills. Morale carries over from each battle and is only replenished if the unit is given an item dropped by an enemy. Alternatively, the items can give stat boosts instead. The game mechanics feel convoluted at first and it will take a while to understand how the variables affect the numbers. But after some time you'll be able to ballpark the important numbers. The items' effect on morale or stats especially add a layer to the game that requires a lot of careful planning.

Playing Yggdra Union is a fresh, original, and mostly satisfying. The visuals in the game are absolutely amazing. Combat is extremely well animated with two opposing armies charging into one another and wielding their weapons about. The still art portrays the nature and demeanor of the characters with a high level of detail and skill. The effects for the card skills look so impressive that you'll either grin with sadistic pleasure or cringe in anxiety depending on whether or not it is you or the enemy being struck. The battlefield maps are somewhat pixelated and there is a large amount of character palette swapping, but these minor issues are easily swept away by the overall visual quality. The sound in the game is just as impressive. Battles are filled with the cries of combat and the clashing of weapons. Not only does each character have their own battle theme, but the tempo of the music changes depending on whether you put your unit into passive or aggressive mode. The background music that plays outside of battle is even more memorable.

Generally speaking, controls aren't that big of a deal in turn-based games but there is a bit of real-time pressure from the gauge bar and the execution of card skills. There's nothing to worry about, however, as the controls don't hamper the gaming experience. The overall polish is impressive as it includes excellent screen transitions and wonderful menu art. To help players get used to the unique gameplay, nearly every screen in the game also describes the function of each button. In comparison, the game's story is a little disappointing since it's mostly a typical geopolitical conflict that is unraveled with the use of character portraits and text bubbles. Even worse, the plot doesn't get interesting till the very end. There are multiple endings but most people would rather load an endgame save file instead of playing through forty-plus hours again. The innovative gameplay and the challenges in each battle will keep you playing till the very end, but the story and predictable characters won't entice you to repeat it.

Steady Beat - What was old is new again.

Yggdra Union is a very challenging game in terms of learning curve and difficulty. There are tutorial cutscenes to introduce the mechanics of the game, but this is still a game that requires practice instead of mere instruction before one gets the hang of things. This game demands patience and dedication and the reward is mostly in overcoming the challenge since the story is weak for a good chunk of the game. Fans of tactical RPGs will experience a sort of masochistic pleasure in the forty-plus hours they'll pour into this game but others might feel tempted to hide the GBA cart so that they can forget about it. Those who are interested and think they can take on the challenge should give Yggdra Union a try because this original and well-made game is worth it. But be warned, not everybody can handle it.

Posted in: Reviews