Although Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon contains light RPG game play elements, its game play is based primarily in single player exploration and action. Assume the role of Seto, who is almost entirely alone in a fog-shrouded post-apocalyptic world, but who is determined to find any and all other people who may also still live, especially the girl Ren. To do this you use the Wii Remote/Nunchuk controller configuration. The Nunchuk controls Seto, while the Wii Remote acts as a flashlight, illuminating the dark corners of the game world. As the game proceeds this light will also reveal other items, which Seto will need to move through the game and survive the ghosts and other creatures he encounters. These include items such as weapons to protect him and a microphone and metal detector to search the game world and better understand it.
Along with these utilitarian items you will also come across a variety of other objects, such as letters, which will reveal bits of the lives of the people who used to inhabit the game world, and possibly add clues to what caused the state the world is now in. The RPG light elements you can expect are an inventory system that must be managed, a leveling system allowing for better weapons, simple and more elaborate attacks using the Wii Remote's "A" button, purchasable upgrades and a few optional side quests.
Features:
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Players enjoy a mix of exploration-adventure gameplay, with light RPG elements such as inventory management, character leveling and varied attacks, added into the mix.
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The game?s focus is on human drama as a boy wanders a lonely post-apocalyptic world in search of answers and companionship.
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High production values bring the desolate but eerily beautiful world to life as lighting reflects realistically off environments to show all the minor details of a previously inhabited land.
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A haunting and inspired soundtrack help convey the full range of emotions of utter despair to finding small victories even when it appears all is lost.
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The Wii Remote is used as a flashlight and also as a proximity sensor to track invisible ghosts, while Seto's movements are controlled using the attached nunchuk's analog stick.
Average Customer Review:
( 40 customer reviews )
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74 of 75 found the following review helpful:
Beautiful, but flawed.Mar 22, 2010
By DC_Fan_52
"-Weasel!"
No Spoilers.
From a purely objective perspective, Fragile is an average game. But there's nothing wrong with average, we're all mostly average. I can't give it 5 Stars, no matter how much I grew to love the game's heavy atmosphere and touching story. Oh, I could gush about the beauty, but you really want to know about it's flaws that keep it from being a perfect game.
The almost unanimous consensus is that Fragile's combat system is flawed. Seto, the main character, can be equipped with random things he finds on his journey: sticks, pipes, hammers, which he uses to swing away at ghosts and other enemies. But, the weapons randomly break, some lasting a few minutes, others lasting several hours. When a weapons breaks, you have to switch to another one, but if you don't have a spare on hand, you have to go back to a save point to switch your items around. Thankfully, there are many save points, you'll never be too far from one.
Seto has two item screens On Hand and a Briefcase. It's fairly obvious, you can only use items you have On Hand, and everything else is store in your Briefcase, which you can only access in save points. This type of item management is supposed to inspire the "survival-horror" vibe, but despite being very haunting, Fragile isn't very scary. In fact, there aren't that many enemies around, and those that are, you usually can out run them or get around them. But, if you choose to fight, enemies give you experience and you level up.
It was my experience that the combat system was adequate most of the time, only birds and enemies that attacked in small areas like hallways gave me trouble. You can usually outrun the birds.
The game is short, as you might be able to predict. Going at my own pace, slow at the beginning but a bit fast near the end, I beat the game in 16 hours. Looking back, it was an overall rewarding experience. Exploring areas, clearing rooms of ghosts, and finding key items made for nice rewards early on, later, I kept pushing myself further - "One more hallway. One more save point." - as I sensed the elusive Silver Haired Girl might be just around the corner.
So I give Fragile Dreams a 4 out of 5. Yes, its gameplay is average. It doesn't innovate, heck you might even call it behind the times. But the haunting atmosphere and endearing story, I like to think make up for that. Its combat and item system can be annoying, but they managed to curb that problem by, honestly, making a relatively easy game. If you've never played a survival horror game, this is an okay start, and if you're a new gamer (not all of us have been gaming since 1990) this is an entertaining excursion. For us "golden age" gamers, chances are you're only looking at Fragile because you want something that's off the beaten path. I'm so happy I got out of my comfort zone and gave Fragile a shot.
17 of 18 found the following review helpful:
An intriguing gameMar 20, 2010
By Derek Vazquez
"DaFynestRican"
What do you do when you seem to be the last person on earth? This game is a young boys quest to find out what happened to everyone else in his post-apocalyptic world. All seems empty, but there's beauty in the desolation. Im glad XSeed decided to publish this title in North America. It's not uncommon for talented developers to craft a game that focuses on brilliant art direction rather than polygon power, since this isn't the Wii's strong point. I'm glad because the game looks fantastic, like a watercolor painting come to life. As you might have guessed it's also heavily anime-influenced, so if this isn't your thing don't dismiss Fragile because it's otherwise still an engaging experience. Also, you do fight enemies from time to time but the focus is mostly on exploration, with a great Flashlight mechanic a la Silent Hill, and the use of everyday items to round out your inventory. The music is another high point: mellow, yet epic and immersive and it sets the dark, dreary mood of the game very well. Players even have the choice of the English-dubbed track for the voicework or the original Japanese with subtitles for the purists. Overall, Fragile is another Wii winner and another great release in what seems to truly be the best year for Wii owners so far.
29 of 36 found the following review helpful:
Great RPG gameMar 17, 2010
By Michael DEredita
"Mike"
Most of us RPG game fans have been left out in the cold with the Wii. I have to say, this was the first Wii game I got excited for. I don't want to spoil the game, so I won't talk about the story or anything like that, but this is a rare gem of a game on the Wii, and I highly recommend it. There are tons of features, like spoken japanese language with english subs, or English dubbing - your choice. Also, I didn't realize at first, but the box art cover of the disc box is reversible with second box art on the other side. You can tell the folks at XSeed took a tremendous amount of time and effort in making sure this was done right, and it shows. If you haven't picked up a copy yet, get it. Highly recommended -> 5 stars all the way.
12 of 14 found the following review helpful:
Beautiful JRPGMar 21, 2010
By Library Lady Katie This is the prettiest game I have ever played. The visuals seem to push the limits of the Wii graphics. The audio adds another dimension to the game. The plot is intriguing. The makers set out to make a game that re-sensitizes gamers, and as the story unfurled I definitely felt various emotions. This is the first Japanese Role Playing Game that I played through completely and I am so glad I bought it. Some of the mechanics of the game were similar to Silent Hill: Homecomings, but it wasn't overwhelmingly frightening. It only took me about 14 hours to play from beginning to end, but I can't speak highly enough of the experience.
Play it.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Fragile DreamsJun 03, 2010
By Ruise This is my first video game review, so please bear with me. It is true that the gameplay of Fragile Dreams is nothing special. The graphics, though stunningly beautiful, have been beat as early as 2007. However, it is still a VERY worthwile gaming experience! This game gets poor reviews for difficult controls, but I myself, just a casual gamer who has rarely turned on the Wii, got used to them within a couple of hours. From then on, pointing the flashlight the way I was going, and walking or striking ghosts became simple (especially since the enemies are fairly easy to kill, even bosses). While you cannot "lock on" to enemies and have to instead search for and follow them with your flashlight, that is the way it would be in real life, so it's hard to complain. The background music is exceptional, perfectly fitting the beautiful-but-lonely atmosphere of the world of Fragile Dreams. The music that played when a ghost was nearby immediately fills the player with a sense of dread and a desire to either destroy the threat, or just get the hell out of there. This game's strength definitely lies in its well-told story and the "human drama" felt by the main character, Seto, as he searches for an companionship in a world where humans have become nearly extinct. Personal items you find along the way tell heartfelt stories about people's lives before disaster struck. The events are so well-played that every emotion felt by the characters, you, the player, will empathize with--fitting, since empathy is one of the themes of the game. This is not a happy game--if you don't start tearing up at least once, you will want to; and not, like some games, because it is hard or frustrating. But this just lets you appreciate the small bits of happiness and the satisfying ending even more. Maybe Fragile Dreams would have gotten more praise from critics if it were an animated film, but I believe that the video game media has the ability to provide the truest emotional experience, which the game successfully creates.
based on 40 reviews
( 40 customer reviews )
