GamesRadar+ Verdict
Pros
- +
Deep cast of colorful characters
- +
Roland's engagement power
- +
The witches' costumes (if you like girls)
Cons
- -
Can be brutally tough
- -
Broken experience points distribution
- -
Lots of cheap twists during battle
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The first Luminous Arc game ticked all the usual boxes for a strategy RPG. It had checkerboard grid battlefields, more than two dozen characters, tons of stats to digest, and a plotline filled with epic clashes, twists, and changing allegiances. But what it really got by on was charisma. It was infectiously vibrant and goofy. The characters ranged from endearingly shy wallflowers to noble knights and hot-blooded, impossibly buxom witches in barely-there clothes, but they were almost all really likeable. Thanks to their personalities and interactions, the cut scenes were long, but fun and often surprising. And the good news is that none of that has changed with Luminous Arc 2.
The plot is different, so you can jump right in with no need for backstory. While there are a good 20 characters overall, you’ll begin in control of Roland, a young knight’s apprentice who just got a magical device called a Runic Engine fused to his hand.
The repercussions of this are best left to the game itself to explain, but it’s enough to say Roland now has a newfound power to gain the spells and other abilities of witches he meets in combat. This makes him a key component in his country’s war against a race of monsters called the Beast Fiends, and also a central figure in the rising tensions among the super-babealicious witches. Which in strategy RPG land means lots and lots of grid-based combat.
Battle was a strength in the first game, and it remains so here (though we’d still like a faster way to call up each unit’s movement and attack range while on the battlefield). Roland’s ability to adopt the powers of nearby witches – via a process called “Engagement”, which comes complete with images of the witch in a wedding dress – mixes things up a bit and gives his character huge depth.
More info
| Genre | Role Playing |
| Description | An above-average strategy RPG that gets all the battlefield stuff right (though with lots of surprise enemy reinforcements) and tops it off with a lovable cast. |
| Platform | "DS" |
| US censor rating | "Teen" |
| UK censor rating | "Rating Pending" |
| Release date | 1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK) |
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Eric Bratcher
I was the founding Executive Editor/Editor in Chief here at GR, charged with making sure we published great stories every day without burning down the building or getting sued. Which isn't nearly as easy as you might imagine. I don't work for GR any longer, but I still come here - why wouldn't I? It's awesome. I'm a fairly average person who has nursed an above average love of video games since I first played Pong just over 30 years ago. I entered the games journalism world as a freelancer and have since been on staff at the magazines Next Generation and PSM before coming over to GamesRadar. Outside of gaming, I also love music (especially classic metal and hard rock), my lovely wife, my pet pig Bacon, Japanese monster movies, and my dented, now dearly departed '89 Ranger pickup truck. I pray sincerely. I cheer for the Bears, Bulls, and White Sox. And behind Tyler Nagata, I am probably the GR staffer least likely to get arrested... again.
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