Game: Live Alive
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Rating: T for Teen
Cost: $49.99
As gamers we are used to following a singular narrative to an eventual conclusion and standing to be a hero as they come up against trials and tribulations. However, with a new Nintendo Switch release players can not only fellow a series of stories from vast different perspectives, they will also take place from different points in time.
Originally released in 1994, Live Alive is a role-playing video directed by Takashi Tokita (who also worked on Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy IV) that has been remade for the Nintendo Switch. Fans can rejoice as this will be the first time this revitalized HD-2D game will be released outside of Japan!
Live Alive debuted this week on July 22nd by developer and publisher Square for the Super Famicom. While this classic game has been revamped, it still contains rearranged versions of the original music by composer Yoko Shimomura (who also wrote the music for Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy XV).
Seven stories to play, but which do you choose?
In this completely redesigned iteration, you can play through seven stories, but the hardest part is choosing which one you will play first and then learn the hidden secrets behind these tales shared history. There is the Sundown Kid, a vagabond with a bounty on his head, Oboromaru, a humble prodigy who keeps to the shadows, Masaru Takahara, a fighter striving to be the best, Akira, a rebel with an incredible gift, Cube a robot brought to life while aboard a spaceship, The Hearth Heart Shifu, a Kung Fu master in search of a worthy successor, and Pogo, a young man eager to prove his worth.
Gameplay
Like traditional RPGs, you are able to traverse through an overhead 2D platform world interacting with other characterizing utilizing special abilities during battle. Each person you play as has not just a different story but varied abilities. For example, Pogo can craft armor, Oboromaru has excellent sneaking abilities, and Akira can read minds with his psychokinetic powers.
Conclusion
Live A Live is beautiful to look upon, thought-provoking to follow, and can even be laugh-out-loud funny. Still, despite all of its magnificence, the genre reliance on the old-school RPG formula will turn some players away. Still, for fans of the traditional, gameplay style, there is no experience greater.
