![]() Why did I give it three stars? The layout. The in-game maps are very useful, item locations are good, boss strategies, weapon and armor locations, bestiary, so it's got it all. Good solid guide with some flaws and drawbacks. This guide is the best way to get the most out of your game, whether playing once or multiple times. But "too much information" is a nitpick at best! Star Ocean: First Departure is short for an RPG, but very replayable due to the different choices you can make and characters you can recruit. There are a few small issues the amount of detail can make it hard to see the "big picture" sometimes. The optional dungeon gets full coverage, too. Here the authors went the extra mile and covered not just the branching plots, but a lot of "behind the scenes" formulas used to calculate various skills and talents and the hidden "affection ratings" characters have for each other. I've certainly seen it with some of the "Tales" series guides, which completely ignore most optional material. The authors could have chosen a single path, filled pages with charts of weapons, and called it a day. The game has many plot branches based on which characters you recruit, and the inclusion of "flowcharts" mapping plot choices, recruitable characters, and the game's "Private Actions" makes it much easier to see the long-term consequences of your decisions. It's really not that big a deal, however as Star Ocean, despite t There is a new section of the world map whenever you get to a new region but if you need it you'll have to flip back to it. If there were any real problem with the walkthrough it would be that it has no overall world map. The guide does a very good job of pointing when and where you can get all of them, while also letting the gamer know that you can't get all the characters. Star Ocean has a branching story with optional characters scattered throughout. Of special note also, is the flowchart that also comes before each and every area. There should be no reason you're unprepared for any situation with this guide by your side. The guide never hesitates to let you know when it's a good idea to do some customization, level grinding or to give you forewarning of upcoming events. ![]() ![]() There are also a lot of different kinds of tips and tricks outlined as you go through. There are also boss strategies, but they're not quite as good as the rest of the walkthrough itself. There are also a good deal of crystal clear screenshots with some interesting captions below them, many of which give you more interesting tips. It gives a mini-profile of each new character as they're introduced. The text outlined in the walkthrough is incredibly helpful for getting you through things. There's also enemy data listed at the start of each area. On each map are the location of items scattered throughout each town or dungeon. There's also a lot of good battle tactics displayed through the basics as well as a breakdown of scenario branching. The base affections chart is very useful as is the hidden talents table. On the other hand, there are a couple of other things here that it explains which are useful to Star Ocean players. If you've been playing JRPGs for years, however, none of these tactics are really going to be new to you. Star Ocean is a surprisingly complex game, it's very nice to have all this information at your fingertips. After this the guide gets into the gameplay aspects of the game. It might have been better if the authors had given us a few tactics on how to use each character effectively, but since Star Ocean isn't very hard to grasp, it's something that we can let slide. The section itself is actually somewhat dry, but it gives you the information you need such as their techs and spells. The guide begins by introducing you to all the characters. If you need to master Star Ocean: First Departure, this guide will actually help you do it. It's a well done guide filled with a ton of information. Star Ocean: First Departure is no exception. ![]() On the other hand, their handheld guides have been pretty useful. Their guides for console games seem to be less detailed and missing a ton of information. Bradygames has had a shaky history with their strategy guides lately.
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