First Impressions: Golden Sun

Being an RPG fan, I thought I might like a little GBA game called Golden Sun. Well, I've played it for a fair amount of time, and here's what I think so far:

Golden Sun has a really typical, predictable kind of storyline. And the uninspired dialogue doesn't help its cause. As the player, you control Isaac (or whatever you want to call him), and go on a quest to save your friends and ultimately the world. I can't say it's very engaging, but at least it's there.

Fortunately, Golden Sun redeems itself with a compelling battle system involving the four elements (earth, wind, fire, and water), pretty graphics that are reminiscent of SNES beauties like Chrono Trigger and Secret of Mana, and other well-implemented gameplay elements like puzzles that break up the monotony.

All in all, I'm really enjoying Golden Sun so far.

Now Playing: Week of April 21-27

Welcome back to the place where we talk about what games we'll be playing in the upcoming week! Here's the run-down:

Holly
I'll be playing much of what I have been playing for weeks now: game-beating is slow-going with an overstuffed class schedule to keep one busy. So my "usuals" are returning: Metroid Prime, Xenoblade Chronicles, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Golden Sun, and Metroid: Zero Mission are priorities. I might try to squeeze some Okami in, but somehow playing it feels more like a chore than anything else right now. I'm afraid I can't explain that...

Mary
With all of her activities (especially as the school year approaches its close), Mary has limited herself to one gaming desire for the week: playing Guitar Hero. If the opportunity presents itself, however, we may play some Donkey Kong Country Returns or World of Goo together at some point.   

Now Playing: Week of April 14-20

Welcome to another edition of Now Playing! Let's dive right into the games of the week:

Holly
As a recent First Impressions post would tell you, I finally received and have been playing the Wii game Xenoblade Chronicles. This week, I also hope to break back into Okami for Wii. I'm finding it somewhat difficult to do so, but I must! Metroid Prime rounds out this week's Wii line-up. It's pretty ambitious, I know! In the handheld realm, I will still be playing Kid Icarus: Uprising, but, having beaten it, it'll be more of an afterthought to GBA games Golden Sun and Metroid: Zero Mission. In addition to all of the above games, I may sprinkle in some of the following during the week: Rhythm Heaven Fever, Super Mario Galaxy (1 and 2), Final Fantasy III, Super Mario 64, and Wii Sports Resort. How 'bout you all?