PLAYSTATION
Published by Square EA
Reviewed by Chi of GameCritics on 9/6/00

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First Impressions:

Graphics:

If there were any bright spots in Threads of Fate to speak of, it would be the graphics and the portrayal of the characters. Resembling something like a cross between Mario 64 and Legend of Zelda, the look and style of graphics in Threads of Fate is very effective and technically sound. Textures are simple and colors are bright. The overall clean, cutesy, and light-style clearly accomplishes what the art directors were shooting for. Outside of their competent physical portrayal, each character also manages to brim with personality that will make even the most jaded gamers smile a bit. I was also surprised to see the level of commitment the game takes to resolve each character's relationship at the end of the game. This is a rarity amongst today's grossly inadequate endings.

Sound/Music:

When it comes to sound, Squaresoft can seemingly do no wrong and Threads of Fate is just another example. Expect orchestra-quality music scores for the background music and robust sound effects to round out the presentation.

Gameplay:

Threads of Fate revolves around the exploits of its two protagonists: Rue, a hero-type warrior with a mysterious past, and Princess Mint, a spoiled and sheltered royal who plots revenge. Residing in an ancient and mystical setting, both characters are on a quest to recover a powerful relic for individual reasons. The most unique concept that the game offers is that Rue and Mint are on different interceding paths throughout their journey for the same goal and players are given a choice to play as either character from the start. Depending on that selection, the game plays differently due to the varying skill set of each character (Rue can morph into different monsters while Mint utilizes magic spells) and the story unfolds according to the perspective of the chosen representative. The play-life of the game is effectively doubled since players can complete the game with one character and play through the game again with the other.

Despite how great that may sound on paper, I'm sad to say that the final results are only a slightly better than mediocre. At its heart, Threads of Fate wants to achieve the kind of friendly and approachable, yet epic and majestic feel that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time so wonderfully conveyed. The problem is that Threads of Fate is overly wrought with age-old conventions in its joyless gameplay and their most-unique two-tiered feature is a wash.

Threads of Fate may be presented entirely in real-time 3-D graphics, but the game plays like an old 2-D platform game to a fault where stages are predictably linear and there's always a boss enemy waiting at the end. Environments aren't really explored as much are they are walked through. That wouldn't be such a problem if the basic hack 'n' slash, button mashing-style of combat had more depth. Outside of figuring out which form to take or which spell to use (usually a common sense, trial and error process), there wasn't much technique or strategy. Without enemies and puzzles posing more of a challenge, the game gets pretty dull and mindless after a short awhile. What made matters worse, however, was the flaky 'jump' button. Unresponsive at key moments, this flaw led to plenty of mishaps on more obstacle-laden stages and annoyed the heck out of me.

As to why the dual character approach fails; despite the choice of two different characters, the gameplay remains largely unchanged and unchallenging. There aren't any clever alternating timeline effects like there are in Resident Evil 2. The story simply shifts its focus to the selected character with script changes and minor deviations rather than offering an entirely unique experience. To its credit, the developers did include several stages unique to each character, but it's hardly enough to justify the repetitiveness of playing through the game twice. Also, the gravity of the story seems to favor Rue and makes Mint's storyline seem more like an after-thought tacked on later in production.

Enjoyment:

I did not enjoy playing through Threads of Fate. The flaky jump button drove me to the brink of insanity a couple of times and if that wasn't the case, I was struggling to stay awake through most of the dull gameplay. I think most hardcore Squaresoft and RPG fans will be disappointed that Threads of Fate is neither rich in gameplay nor much of a challenge (intrepid gamers will finish both sides of the game in record time). This game is best suited for gamers looking for a simplistic gameplay experience with some lighthearted and interesting characters or parents who are looking for a kid-friendly action game. Threads of Fate is profanity- and gore-free; making it an ideal choice for the young ones.

Multiplayer:

N/A

Overall Impression:

Those two positives that I mentioned, the graphics and likable characters, is still a long way from moving me to recommend this game. There simply aren't any defining moments in the gameplay to make the game stand out. Threads of Fate represents the kind of effort made by a company (even if it's on a rare occasion for Squaresoft) that is more concerned with its bottom line than an artistically sound game.

Marketing Efforts Towards Women:

If there ever were videogame symbol for gender equality, it would be Threads of Fate. The two characters, Rue and Mint, get equal billing on all the promotional material and art. Rue gets the better storyline, but Mint is the more boisterous personality. The two characters are treated equally through out the game and gamers are encouraged to play through both perspectives as well. Its too bad that no matter which perspective gamers choose, the gameplay is still pretty much mediocre.

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