Genre: Strategy RPG
Developer: SideQuest Studios
Publisher: EastAsiaSoft

Back in 1992 when Sega released Shining Force, two guys sat down with a 486 and a DOS pixel art program, whipped up some sprites, and wound up with a masterclass recipe; dark, moody, and loaded with guile and depth. Fast forward to 2012, and all of the fancy technology in the world-- high-tech 3d engine and sophisticated 3d modelling programs-- get us something that looks a bit like... Teletubbies. It's not that the game is ugly exactly, but it seems cheap and generic, like those off-brand Sim City clones you see in the bargain bin at a Kmart. Rainbow Moon indeed.

The game opens with the obligatory fantasy drivel FMV sequence, which even includes-- no kidding-- an old English chap doing the narration. Unfortunately the game's cliched voice acting-- which is at least limited to shop keeper introductions, thank goodness-- continues to underwhelm; it's like the overtly stylistic work from LittleBigPlanet. Obnoxious. Rafael Dyll's soundtrack is somewhat of a saving grace; it's a bit too light-hearted to be truly memorable, but he can be mostly pardoned since he was, of course, tasked with scoring what is some pretty weak source material.

To my knowledge, Rainbow Moon is only the second strategy RPG-- the 3DO's amazing Guardian War was the first-- to use tactical combat only during combat, with the rest of the game being filled with dungeon and overworld navigation. It works well, except that the game is, in fact, too vast-- the experience feels far too padded. The combat engine is strong, but only allows for three members in the party at a time. Moddern trappings, such as the ability to save anywhere outside of battle, and optional random encounters, round things out nicely. If only the core design was just a bit more water-tight...

If this formula had been tried in the early 90s-- a pseudo-open world, isometric dungeon crawler with strategy RPG combat-- it would have undoubtedly been genius. But of course, being made in 2012 means that they have to slant every gameplay mechanic towards World of Warcraft's treadmill-of-endless-boredom, and every aesthetic consideration is a superficial resurfacing of what made games of earlier eras so irresistable, just without the soul that made those games so great. What's left is a more accessible-- but not any more interesting-- Disgaea; a game for only the most obsessive-compulsive among us.