Opoona - Impression
By Ilchymis • Mar 24th, 2008 • Category: Lead Story
Well, look what we have here! MyWiiNews was lucky enough to get our hands on a review copy of Opoona, the quirky interstellar RPG that will be hitting store shelves this Tuesday, March 25. While I’ve only had the game for a couple of days so far, Opoona looks like it just might be the breath of fresh air that we all hoped it would be. Read on for our hands-on impressions of the game, and check back later on this week for our full review!
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It’s been somewhere around five or six hours since I first popped in Opoona, and it’s certainly unlike anything else available for the Wii. From its unique controls, to the overall structure and story of the game, Opoona is certainly in a league of its own. Opoona begins his eponymous adventure aboard his parent’s spaceship en route to a relaxing family vacation. Within seconds of meeting his family, everything suddenly flashes red and sirens erupt from all corners of the room. Opoona’s family flees to the escape pods to save their lives, desperately hoping for help from the planet below.
After three days of unconscious slumber, Opoona’s journey finally begins. As he awakes, he meets Serge, one of the many concierges of Tokione, the largest residential dome on Planet Landroll. Serge explains that there are a handful of different domes on Landroll, each specifically designed to keep out the recurring onslaught of enemy Rogues that currently plague over half of beautiful planet. After a bit of initial testing and preparation, Opoona finally embarks on his first journey.
A Rogue Approaches!
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Five hours into Opoona, and it’s obvious that I’ve barely cracked the surface of what this game has to offer. Opoona is a self-proclaimed “lifestyle RPG” that revolves around exploring Planet Landroll and obtaining licenses for the colonies, searching for employment, procuring friendships, and much more. Opoona begins his quest as a Ranger, a sort of “warrior class” that explores the land outside the domes and rescues people overwhelmed by enemy Rogues, but can eventually branch out and try a myriad of different vocations that offer new side quests, minigames, and more. He attacks through his “energy bonbon;” the bouncy orange ball atop his head that can be lethally chucked at foes by flicking the Nunchuk’s joystick. It’s a simple system that has a lot of potental and surprising depth, and will be interesting to see how it works with multiple characters later on.
Speaking of adventure, Opoona’s art style creates does a wonderful job enveloping you into its colorful surroundings. From the absolutely massive dome of Tokione, to outlying grassland areas and hotels, Planet Landroll manages to feel both cohesive and expansive. As with most cel-shaded games, Opoona looks much better in action than in screenshots, and doubters should at least see it moving before passing judgment. Equally impressive is its music, hand crafted by Final Fantasy XI veteran Hitoshi Sakimoto, which has to be some of the best futuristic tunes I’ve ever heard in an RPG. Even though its graphics may be a little rough around the edges, the Opoona’s overall aesthetic is charming beyond words.
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As most people who have picked up the Wiimote have noticed, controls are of the utmost importance to Wii games. I was initially skeptical of Opoona’s unique, one-handed control scheme that allows for the entire game to be controlled solely through the Wii’s Nunchuk. After spending over five hours trying to figure out which setup works best (you can use the standard Wiimote setup as well), I’m still finding myself switching between the two different setups. On the one hand (pun not intended), the Nunchuk setup is beautiful in its simplicity, and actually works rather well. But after cutting my teeth on Super Mario Galaxy, I can’t shake the comfort that comes from using both hands to control Opoona, especially with the ease of camera control that the Wiimote offers. So far, I’ve found that two-hands is good for getting down to business in big battles and when exploring places quickly, while the single-handed Nunchuk route is great for casually getting from place to place. We’ll see how this changes as the game progresses.
While Opoona succeeds through its expansive landscapes and endearing art style, it also has a few annoyances that occasionally grind my gears. Firstly, the fact that the camera is completely uncontrollable when exploring in the field seems like a huge hurdle for a game that focuses so much on exploration. I’ve also found it’s particularly easy to get lost in the domes, as the map on your PDA-esque device is a bit lacking, but that’s just a matter of time. Also deserving of mention is the occasionally shabby localization, with confusing lines such as “Opoona won the battle handily!”, and mysteriously delicious morsels known as “CALORY CUBES” that seem to make little sense on their own. It’s by no means unplayable, but chances are anyone who enjoys critiquing language will have a few giggles here and there.
There’s so much packed in Opoona that it’s difficult to try and efficiently sum it all up without turning this into a full-blown review. Even if it’s a little rough around the edges, Opoona has a certain air and charm about it that I haven’t seen in an RPG since Earthbound. Even if it’s not for everyone, it’s certainly shaping up to be an enjoyable and unique experience that you can only find on the Wii. Stay tuned for MyWiiNews’ full-length review, discussing Opoona’s battle system in length, and giving the adventure a final verdict that will help you decide whether to buy or rent this quirky, quirky game.
Read the full in-depth Opoona Review!
Ilchymis is a student by day, gamer by life. When he's not busy playing his newly acquired Wii, he's probably playing some archaic RPG or avoiding class. Go figure.
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One handed playing probably wouldn’t suit me. It would take a lot of getting used to.
Ilchymis, nice job on the preview. I think it’s amazing that you were able to get a hands-on preview of the game. Speaks very well of My Wii News and its contributors.
Keep up the good work, mate.
Thanks, you two! I’m trying to do my best over here, Tim. You’re doing a great job too.
Bucky - The one-handed control is actually very nice. Since you’re used to using your left hand to move around objects anyway (like with SMG), the only real difference is that it utilizes the C and Z buttons as what would normally be the A and B buttons on the Wiimote. I like the comfort of being able to use two hands in order to really “get into” the action, but find myself doing it less and less as the game grows on.
The camera, on the other hand, is a bit tricky with just the Nunchuck. You can only move the camera around with the C button when you’re stationary, while you can use the D-pad on the Wiimote to move the camera while you’re moving. This is a big help when you want to explore things quickly, but is the only real advantage to using the Wiimote (aside from hopping on your vehicle quicker). Of course you can just press C+Z on the Nunchuk simultaneously to make the camera move to direclty behind Opoona, so it’s not like the Nunchuk is hopeless.
I’m still trying to figure out my favorite way, but both are functional and fun, so that’s what matters. Also! You can totally eat candy while playing Opoona if you use the Nunchuk, so think of that as another added bonus!
Or cheetos! No more orange controller stains.
Wait…. I’m not the only one am I?!
This game looks really awesome!
Cool preview, and i’m really looking forward to the review!
What do you do with the Wiimote when you use just the nunchuk? Just let it hang there?
@420r
Pretty much. I sit it by my side and relax, or put it on something else, whatever works. If you want to stand up and play, I’m sure it will hang just fine.
Awesome preview! I love that you took a pic of the manual and the disc too, bonus points for that!
Isn’t the camera controllable inside the dome, as it looked like it is in vids of the dome where you actually see the camera going around Opoona!
I was speaking to the person who wrote the preview of the game at PRGamer, and he asked a Koei contect of his, who says that the game supports 480p, 4:3, and Stereo sound, is this 100% true?
Again, great work on the preview!
Sorry, I meant RPGamer! XD
Also, I didn’t know that you could us both the Wiimote and Nunchuck at once, I thought the game was Nunchuck ONLY! That’s neat!
Hey Hero!
Yes, the camera is much more controllable in the dome, which is rather odd, but is nice for exploring places and finding hidden goodies. You would think making the camera controllable in the field would be easy to do, but for some reason it’s just not implemented. It still occasionally annoys me, but it’s pretty manageable.
As for the control schemes work out pretty well however you want to play it. I haven’t tried the Classic Controller, but I’m assuming it would work out pretty well too. It’s nice that Koei didn’t just opt for the Nunchuk, as it certainly takes some getting used to. I’m loving it by now, but it takes a few hours to really kick in.
All those facts from the RPGamer previewer are true, according to my press sheet. Except it also does Pro Logic II, if I’m not mistaken. I’ll double check in time for the review.
Thanks for everyone’s interest in the game! I know there’s not too much out there for it right now, so I hope this preview (along with the review coming to MyWiiNews early next week) will help a lot of your decisions on the game. The game is certainly unique and not for everyone, but if you can dig the art style and don’t mind a little funny translations, it probably will make for a fun adventure.
Thanks!
The only mention of DPLII was in the copyright notices at the bottom of the original press release, does the logo appear in the back of the box?
Also, what’s the framerate?
Hero - I’ll double check when I get home. I’ve been working on the review for so long, I forgot to check the box for you!