Pretty much the same, but portable
Strategy RPGs seem to thrive on handheld systems. While many are released on console, it often takes a port to a portable build for gamers to take notice. With a sequel already in the works, EastAsiaSoft has seen fit to port last year’s Rainbow Moon from PS3 to Vita, and the experience remains mostly intact from the console version.
This is both to its credit and its detriment.
Rainbow Moon (PS3, Vita)
Developer: SideQuest Studios
Publisher: EastAsiaSoft
Released: July 10, 2012 (PS3) / December 3, 2013 (Vita)
MSRP: $14.99
When Rainbow Moon released last year, it was to little fanfare, and less-than-favorable reviews. Some strategy fans seemed to enjoy it, at least, as proven by this Vita port almost two years later. And let me be straight with you: this is a port in the strictest sense of the word. Very little has changed between the original download on PS3 and this PSN title for Vita.
If you missed the title previously, it’s your typical open world SRPG, full of random battles as well as foes you can see on screen to fight with. What sets Rainbow Moon apart is the ability to choose whether or not to engage in the random encounters with unseen foes with a simple button press, as well as choosing to walk around or up to the foes you can see.
Battles themselves are set up on a grid-like system, moving square by square, turn by turn, tactically moving around your enemies for your best advantage. It’s the most basic form of a strategy RPG, but it works well, which is good considering you’ll be doing it a lot. As before, Rainbow Moon hinges most of it’s gameplay on grinding to level up, only to grind further for items to improve your battle stats so that you can grind again on higher level beasties.
So, what has changed? Well, for starters, there’s cross-save, allowing you to continue your quest on the go from your console version, and vice versa, which is quite nice if you prefer your grinding while on the go. Also, much of the game has been streamlined, at least as far as menus go. Scrolling through through menus, matching collected items to upgrade weapons, and organizing your inventory seems faster. In fact, Rainbow Moon actually seems best suited for the handheld, as it’s short quests, simplistic battle structure, and save anywhere features work best in short bursts.
However, the port doesn’t really take advantage of the new hardware at all. Touch screen functionality is non-existent, and while most won’t gripe too much with that, it does seem odd that it’s been completely neglected. Graphically, you’re looking at the same game from PS3, and the short, colorful characters are beautiful, with plenty of background animation and expressive characteristics to give the world a fully-alive feel. Sadly, I wish the characteristics of you and your party members last throughout the game — as before, whenever you add someone to your party, all manner of personality interaction with them disappears. It’s as if once you gain a party member, they’re merely another body with which to fight your foes, and their storyline ends with them joining you.
And therein lies the biggest problem here, just like the PS3 version. While there is plenty to do in this over 50+ hour epic quest (and even more in side quests), the story itself is largely unremarkable. You arrive, monsters are there, you fight them…and that’s pretty much it. While there is plenty to do as far as number of quests and missions, the reason behind why you’re doing it is left mostly ambiguous.
What you’re left with is a game that has you grinding for the sake of defeating enemies, so that you can grind again to defeat higher-powered enemies — and so on, and so forth. If that sort of thing appeals to you, now you can have it on the go. Aside from that, there’s not much reason to chose one version over the other.
