Genre: RPG
Developer: Overworks
Publisher: Sega

In the realm of 3d games, making something that's colorful and interesting yet not cheap or generic looking is a difficult feat. Yet the Skies of Arcadia art team has done just that; imagine Super Mario 64 with eight times the texture resolution and you get the idea. Aesthetically, the area designs rival and exceed anything other premier developers, such as Valve, have ever created. Charming and memorable, with a touch of whimsy and and grit both, Skies of Arcadia is one of the prettiest video games ever made.

JRPG soundtracks not composed by Nobuo Uematsu invariably fall into the same tired tropes-- not so with Skies of Arcadia. Sure, there is the occasional melancholy piano assortment, but as a whole the soundtrack hits all of the right themes; jolly swashbuckling, unshakable comraderie, intense battle sequences, and even dynamic boss music, eerily reminiscent of Phantasy Star III's battle melodies. It may not quite be Uematsu territory, but it's very good in its own right. Outside of the music, the title's voice acting is minimal-- limited to only brief character outbursts of emotion-- but what is there couldn't fit the character cast any better.

Contemporary game designers should take note: you needn't create the next Tetris or Super Mario Bros. to lure disaffected gamers back in-- all you need do is make a game like Skies of Arcadia. The individual components are standard JRPG fare: from field to town to dungeon to boss to field we go. But it's the way those components are stuck together that count. The designers managed to create the illusion of an open world game without the poor pacing and lack of interesting gameplay that would otherwise accompany such a title. And the ship battle concept is marvelous!

Skies of Arcadia is one of the most beautiful, best sounding, and best playing JRPGs of all time. But there's more: the story is one of the few in the genre that is human in its execution-- it's a simple story about three friends going on a magnificent journey of discovery and, of course, world saving. It's a story that even one's mother would enjoy, and one that keeps the player coming back for more. Many of those responsible for Phantasy Star I, II, and IV were involved in this project, and the pedigree shines through to such an extent that it's difficult to find much wrong with this title. Superb!