Hidden Gem: Resonance of Fate

Rarely do I accidentally stumble upon games that turn out to be such a great random find, as I usually am one who keeps tabs on games for a year before release.

I saw the name Resonance of Fate in the ‘similar games’ area when looking up a Star Ocean title, and I guess you could say the title resonated with me. A quick read of a preview and I filed it in the back of my head, only to find it so cheap mere days later at that I had no choice but to get it.

Set in a semi-apocalyptic world with a steampunk influence, humanity lives among the clouds in a giant tower called Basel after they ruined the environment to the point Earth was uninhabitable at ground level.

The ruling class lives in the upper levels of clean, bright Chandelier, while everyone else lives on the dirtier lower levels, and with that comes tinges of elite vs. poor class division in much of the random dialogue.

You immediately set off on quests with your team of Vashyron, Zephyr, and Leanne, but the great thing is that the game is in no rush to tell you what’s going on plot wise; it will actually be over 30 hours until you’ve seen enough cutscenes to even begin to sort of kind of maybe grasp why everything is happening and who’s got what motivations.

While much of the story is dark and somber, and your own characters seem to have secrets, there is plenty of comic relief to keep the game from being too much of a downer. I won’t spoil it but will say it’s squarely in the “bad things have been done in the name of the greater good” pantheon of RPG plots, and Leanne seems to have been one of the victims.

Being a “Private Military Firm” you are offered all manner of quests. Though many are quite banal and non-dangerous, like delivering a package, you take work from the guild when they’ve got it to offer. While you’re soon introduced to more worthy challenges like retrieving items from dungeons or slaying powerful monsters, there’s usually at least one gimme of a task per chapter.

The map is an interesting creation, being covered with hexagons that start locked, but you open up by laying down Tetris-style pieces on the board that you get from monsters and people offering missions. It creates the illusion of giving you power over where you go, but in practice, various chokepoints allow the game to simply not offer up the pieces you need to advance beyond certain points if it’s not ready for you to go there yet.

You also can open up terminals that will spread powers over the hexes if you combine chains of special colored pieces, such as increasing the item drop rate from vanquished monsters or doubling damage of a certain type when you battle in an affected hex. And for the more intrepid, you can link multiple terminals to spread multiple powers over the hexes.

The gun-based combat will really test you because it has a very convoluted feel. It centers on a Hero Gauge that drains when making a special “Hero Action” attack or when a character’s HP hits zero, using itself to heal that character. Luckily, it can also be restored by defeating an enemy or crippling one of their body parts. Managing it is crucial to success, as if it’s drained you go critical, which both weakens your attacks and allows enemies the chance to heal. As you advance in the game, your Hero Gauge gets longer, affording more flexibility in your tactics.

But the real power comes from the game’s title in the form of Resonance Points, acquired by performing Hero Actions where one team member passes between the other two. With even one point, you can perform a tri-attack, where all three of you run in a triangular pattern and combine their firepower. Gathering many points makes the attack that much more powerful and long-lasting and is especially useful if you’ve worked it so your target is within the triangle.

Tack on the fact that machine guns deal temporary ‘scratch damage’ that needs to get converted to real ‘direct damage’ by pistols or grenades and your attack order becomes important as well. It all reads to be rather complicated—and it is to a point—but I picked it up far more quickly than I feared I would. There are actually not that many options, and it becomes apparent through just a little practice which is the ‘right’ way to play.

Another way to beef up your power is through weapon customization. All guns have slots for sights, barrels, extended magazines, and grips, each of which enhances an attribute like charging your attacks faster or deepening bullet penetration. As you progress, even those attachments have slots to add more, and before you know it you’ve got a pistol with three barrels, five sights, two grips, and a heck of a punch.

It’s admittedly over-the-top, but finding out you’ve gathered the parts for tinkerers in the various towns to make that next sweet scope is still a great feeling.

The one area that truly ‘puts the J’ in JRPG is the clothing department. You acquire from the map—and can buy from a boutique—all manner of clothing. It can be as simple as pants in a new color, whimsical as a SEGA-branded shirt with pictures of the characters, or outlandish as a headpiece with a giant bee atop it. They serve no function in gameplay other than to let you express your style and really are just there for people still suffering from that Pokémon “gotta catch ‘em all” fever.

Perhaps the best feature of all is that this game can be had for cheap. I purchased it for $17.99 pre-owned, and a new copy should be selling for $20; that said, I’d still feel I’ve gotten my money’s worth even at the original $60 price point.

I’m still not through with this game, but I’m immensely satisfied with all it’s offered. It’s unquestionably a niche game, but I heartily recommend it, especially to someone willing to try a game that does a lot of things differently from typical RPGs.

Resonance of Fate has been available from Sega since March 2010 for XBox 360 and PS3. Rated T for Teen (Blood, Mild Language, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence).

Jeff is currently playing (and loving) this game; follow him on Twitter at JKLugar.