Dragons, Valkyries, Fairies and More: The Enchanting Return of Odin Sphere (Review)

By: MithrandielNOTE: We received a review copy of Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir from Atlus.In 2007, Atlus released an intriguing and captivating title known as Odin Sphere. This gorgeously animated 2D Action RPG told an epic tale of love, loss, war and revenge told from the perspectives of five very different characters. While the story and art-style was praised far and wide, this title was released on the PS2, which suffered from some serious slowdowns when too many sprites were active on screen (i.e. right when things were getting good). The taxation on the PS2 system, despite it being at the end of its life-cycle, when developers had practically gotten every last ounce out of the system that they could, was an indication of the game being ahead of its time.When I heard that they were re-releasing Odin Sphere for the PS4 (re-titled as Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, but I will simply be referring to it as Odin Sphere), I was delighted. I vividly recall playing through the story in college and was eager to see how it looked on the PS4. After spending quite a bit of time with it, I can tell you that it was absolutely worth the wait, and I think that it will be a tremendous experience for a new generation of gamers.

Story

Odin Sphere takes place in a world known as "Erion", and centers around a conflict between two major kingdoms as they battle for control over a powerful artifact known as the crystallization cauldron. Ragnanival, led by the Demon Lord Odin, and Ringford, home of the fairy queen Elfaria and her subjects, wage a fierce war over this prize; whichever country controls it would have the ability to create powerful weapons, granting their country immense power. In addition to these battling nations, there are also the neutral countries of Titania, where most humans reside, and the fire-nation of Volkenon, home to King Onyx and his fire-spirits. Valentine is the final nation revealed in Odin Sphere: a powerful nation of magic, it met a destructive and sudden end while meddling with the cauldron. Most of their citizens were killed or cursed, transformed into rabbit-like creatures known as "Pookas". Beyond all of these earthly realms is the netherworld of Endelphia, where Queen Odette watches over her undead legions and fights off intruders who are attempting to mine the crystals found there for use in powerful weapons known as "Psyphers".In exploring this world and its story, there are five distinct characters that you play as throughout the game:Gwendolyn, daughter of Demon Lord Odin and Princess of RagnanivalCornelius, Prince of TitaniaMercedes, Princess of RingfordOswald,  the Shadow KnightVelvet, Uncursed survivor of the destroyed kingdom of ValentineWhile each of these characters follow a larger, main arc, their respective sub-plots explore the history of the various kingdoms, and give the player insight on how certain events came to be. While playing through Gwendolyn's story, for example, you eventually get word that your father was grievously wounded in combat when the fairy kingdom of Ringford launched a sudden and vicious attack. In the later storyline where you control Mercedes, you get to play through that scene. The skill with which Odin Sphere interlaces these stories is impressive, and certainly does a lot to get you invested in their universe.What I really appreciated about this style of storytelling is that the 5 arcs don't all occur in exactly the same timeframe. Some characters begin their stories before the major battles between the Valkyries and the Fairies, for example. In other cases you see another angle of a major event, or find out how a specific character ended up in a particular circumstance. The result of this style of storytelling is to layer revelation after revelation, and give the player a deeper and more meaningful understanding of the story.Another benefit of having 5 distinct stories is that it certainly builds on the playtime. Granted, my experience might be a bit different because I'm kind of neurotic about completing things, but you can reasonably expect 6-8 hours of playtime per character, or 30-40 hours of solid story. If you are interested in pursuing all of the extras - collecting alchemy and cooking recipes, maxing out skills etc, you'll easily be pushing the 60 hour mark.I would be lying if I said that all five storylines are equally good, as there are some moments where a characters behavior and/or motivation is not entirely explained. That being said, Odin Sphere masterfully builds a fantastical world with plenty of lore and history to flesh out, and the characters respective journeys are memorable, entertaining and dramatic.

Gameplay

Combat

When it comes to combat, I've always been a fan of 2D side scrollers, I think growing up in the 90s it's just in my blood at this point. Of course, when you have a game like this powered on a console like the PS4, you're going to experience some next-level mayhem and responsiveness. Odin Sphere features some of the most thrilling and fast-paced 2D combat I've experienced in a while. There are two primary attack buttons: square and circle. Square is your standard attack, which can be combined with directional inputs for some basic variations - down+square being a low/sliding attack, up+square attempting to launch the enemy upwards for an aerial combo, etc. WCircle is used for special attacks/magic. This also has directional input, with up, down, left and right +circle each being a different "hotkey" to unleash an array of special attacks. These attacks use one of two resources: Phozon Points (PP), or Power (POW). PP is akin to mana, where using magic drains a certain amount, and you regain it by absorbing phozons from foes (I'll go into this more shortly). POW is similar to stamina in the Dark Souls series, where certain moves drain a % of the POW bar, and then it regains slowly over time.By alternating between these two distinct skill-sets, you can keep combat flowing with special attacks and rain destruction and pain upon your enemies pretty consistently. Not enough PP? Go for a POW attack. Just killed some enemies? Unleash your magic! Of course, no action/brawler would be complete without a hit-chain counter, which is always fun to keep an eye on while you're flying across the screen dispatching baddies.Besides the varying skills, what helps keep Odin Sphere gameplay fresh is the change in weapons throughout the game. Each character wields a unique weapon with its own feel and movement. Gwendolyn, for example, is able to fly about the screen with her double jump, and as a result she has a wide array of aerial attacks with her spear to complement this. Cornelius is more ground-based, unleashing powerful sword attacks and drawing enemies in to punish them. Velvet's chains allow her to swing across the map and unleash rapid-fire attacks on her enemies and so on. While the core mechanics of combat remain the same (guarding, dodging, etc) the way in which you engage enemies has to change slightly as you get used to their respective styles. Coming out of Gwendolyn's story, I was very comfortable with juggling and air-combos, but I noticed that while Cornelius has some of those tools in his arsenal, it was more about dodging, blocking and owning the ground-game that mattered. These lessons continued for me throughout the game, and are sure to keep gamers on their toes.It's important to note at this point that Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir is actually two games in one. It also features a "Classic Mode", which presents the game as it was created on the PS2, but with vastly improved graphics. The main difference with the classic mode is found in the combat system. Your character has a stamina bar, also known as "Power", which is drained with each regular attack (square). When your character's power is depleted, they are stunned/unable to act for a short period, requiring you to manage that resource very carefully. Your special attacks are extremely limited in classic mode as well; while you can unleash some magic by absorbing phozons, it lacks the robust skill-system found in Leifthrasir. This simplified combat greatly increases the difficulty of the game as well. I would suggest playing through the newer version first, but if you're up for a challenge, the classic mode combat definitely provides an outlet for gamers thirsty for punishment.Odin Sphere has a lot more to offer than just lightning-fast combat, however. It offers a number of unique mechanics when it comes to how you level up your character, skills, as well as creating potions for offensive and defensive purposes.

Leveling

Your character can gain experience to level by slaying enemies (as is tradition), but a major part of leveling up is actually found in growing and eating your own food. Throughout the game you will find seeds for various fruits and crops, and by releasing resources known as "phozons" from your weapon, they will grow and bear a consumable item for you. Eating this item does three things: first, it grants you experience... a lot of experience. Seriously, this is likely going to be your primary method for leveling up. Second, every time you eat something you gain a small boost to your max HP. Finally, it is a healing item as well, and will restore HP if any is missing. Let's look at an example with the "Muggle Seed":First, you grow the plant - it's important to make sure you have enough phozons (the purple number in the upper right of the screen) to fully grow the plant. Once it's planted, you can't reclaim it.Once the plant has bore fruit, you attack it and pick up the items, adding them to your inventory. You don't have to consume them right away, as you may use them in a recipe later on, or wish to save them as an effective healing item for an upcoming boss fight. Once you're ready, however, you select the item to eat. You'll notice that the muggle (don't get too excited Harry Potter fans) has a 2/2 after the name, that's to indicate that each of these fruit gets two "bites", essentially. At the bottom of the screen you'll also see how much exp is gained from each bite, as well as your max HP gain and the amount that it heals you.From there, you simply chow down! You can choose to eat items individually by selecting them with X, but if you're in the mood for a buffet, you can select multiple food items with square and then eat them in succession.Now, I did want to highlight a unique case with the Muggle seed is that once the fruit is eaten, you can pick the seed up and plant a fresh one. This doesn't always happen, but is useful in this case as you can continue to plant, grow and eat the muggle fruit as long as you have enough phozons for it.

If the farming life isn't for you, an alternative method is taking advantage of the traveling Pooka restaurant. At rest areas throughout the game there will be a way to summon this talented chef to cook up meals with various ingredients as you discover recipes throughout the world of Erion.Overall, the leveling system in Odin Sphere is interesting to say the least. I will say that it seemed like I was getting overpowered a bit too easily while playing on Normal, but again it  could be due to the fact that I was pretty exhaustive in going through every room and completing every challenge as I went along.

Upgrading Skills/The Phozon System

Note: This is only found in the "Leifthrasir"  game mode, not Classic.As I've mentioned a few times already, within the world of Erion is a unique power source known as Phozons. These are released from enemies slain by Psyphers, and can then be harnessed and used to further strengthen these legendary weapons. Each character has the ability to collect phozons and release them at will, with their own unique animations.Besides nourishing seeds, phozons can be used to upgrade player skills and magic, granting them more potency and strengthening the player. This presents players with an interesting choice: they can either invest their phozons largely in their skills/magic to make them more powerful, or use them to grow food to increase their base level/stats but not necessarily improve the strength of their abilities. If you want to do both, it will require you to repeat some stages to gather more phozons, lending to more playtime.

Potions/Alchemy

Finally, there is a robust (but not necessarily complex) alchemy system within the world of Odin Sphere that allows players to craft a variety of different potions. By combining "material" with any manner of other items such as seeds, other potions, or even equipment, the player can create healing tonics, potions that reduce damage taken/increase damage dealt, create a powerful cyclone of ice and wind...the list goes on. Some players may find that they enjoy utilizing the more "scientific method" of magic is more satisfying than using a characters native skills. These potions have their own leveling system as well: as you combine multiple vials, it can increase in potency from "1" to "9". A level 1 healing potion, for example, heals you for 100 HP, while a level 7 healing potion heals you for 4500! Needless to say, as the game progresses and/or you adventure through higher difficulty levels, you may find yourself reliant on this system to complement your arsenal. Overall, the wealth and depth of these various mechanics create a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Whether you're slashing your way across a field of enemies, or contemplating your next alchemy formula, Odin Sphere engages you on multiple levels.

Graphics

In the tradition of saving the best for last, let's talk about Odin Sphere's aesthetics for a minute. In 2007, when the original Odin Sphere came out, we were graced with this stunning magazine  cover (a copy of which I still have)Reviewers everywhere agreed: the art was fantastic. The sprites move with a certain level of precision and smoothness that you aren't used to. The backgrounds move and sway with the wind, enemies recoil, dodge and roll, and now, the one glaring nuisance that kept it from achieving even higher ratings has been removed. The PS4 breathes new life into the backgrounds and character models, and you may find yourself distracted by the detail when you're not busy fighting enemies.Odin Sphere was already a beautiful game in 2007. It's gorgeous now.A final thought on my experience: as I mentioned when discussing the leveling system, it did seem like I out-leveled the enemies without too much extra work. Sure, I was a bit of a perfectionist and made sure to explore every room on every map, and I chose to invest my phozons more in leveling my character than in skills, but that being said, I was easily 5-7 levels above my opponents for the majority of my play-through. As I mentioned earlier, however, this challenge could be easily met by playing through on "Classic", or exploring the harder difficulties of Leifthrasir.Regardless, Odin Sphere is a fantastic title. With a well-crafted narrative, gorgeously detailed backgrounds and sprites, interesting and engaging characters, and a robust gameplay system, it's sure to be a title you'll come back to. Odin Sphere will be released on June 7th. You can pre-order the title on Amazon.