Sakaguchi and Mistwalker deliver a sublime, melancholic JRPG with Kaim, the immortal who mourns lost centuries. Uematsu's score is moving, Kiyoshi Shigematsu's short stories form the game's soul, and the whole composes a quiet but unforgettable classic.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player12+
Description
RPG by Mistwalker and Microsoft, February 2008. Kaim Argonar, a thousand-year immortal condemned to never die, wanders a fantasy world seeking the truth of his past. Turn-based combat with hit-absorption rings, Dreams revealing Kaim's traumatic past and emotional narrative. Xbox 360 exclusive JRPG by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi.
Lost Odyssey review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
MAX
Story
★★★★★
"Masterful"
Takehiko Inoue, an artist from sports manga, gives the faces a maturity rare in the genre: features hollowed by the brush, tired eyes, adult bodies that carry their age. His portraits, shown as full-page illustrations between chapters, contrast with the settings of an empire in the midst of a magical-industrial revolution, metal towers and lanes blackened by machines.
Signed by Nobuo Uematsu, the score unfurls a sumptuous, moving orchestra that carries Kaim's melancholy odyssey, from the poignant "A Thousand Years of Dreams" to the epic flights. Each theme breathes a deep, raw emotion. This symphonic richness, among the master's finest, remains the soul of this great JRPG.
An immortal warrior who has forgotten his past, Kaim gradually recovers memories a thousand years old, heavy with grief and lost loves. Interspersed with shattering short stories, the tale meditates on mortality and the weight of memory. This melancholy of rare depth makes it an overlooked, heartrending RPG.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"Pleasant"
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Balanced"
Lifespan
"Massive"
Carried by the tale of an immortal haunted by his memories, this Mistwalker RPG unfurls a classic multi-disc adventure where every dungeon and town extends the journey. Between turn-based fights to refine, rings to craft and short stories to unlock, progression stretches out with real care. Its narrative density and generous endgame keep its reputation as a great console RPG intact.
The European (PAL) edition of Lost Odyssey, a variant of Mistwalker's great JRPG for that market, still across four discs. On a 360 where the Japanese RPG aimed at a circle of enthusiasts, this European pressing saw a measured spread and stays sought complete. Desirability rests on Lost Odyssey's place among the console's landmark RPGs and on the difficulty of gathering this edition's four discs intact.
