TGS 2014: Hands-on with Chaos Rings III
You gacha be kidding me
At TGS this year, hidden round the side of Square-Enix's giant stage, was a small booth with playable versions of the latest incarnation of their once smartphone-exclusive series, Chaos Rings III.
The iPad version was joined by a PS Vita counterpart, titled Chaos Rings III: Prequel Trilogy as it includes Chaos Rings, Chaos Rings II, and Chaos Rings Omega.
While the first game did appear on PS Vita as a PlayStation Mobile game, this is the first time that the entire series will be playable on the platform.
The version of Chaos Rings III on the show floor appeared to be the final release rather than any sort of locked demo. The two main modes are the Scenario Mode entitled "The Marble Blue Story" and a Battle Mode called "The Modern Colosseum."
Battle Mode drops you in an arena to take on monsters and bosses, earning items and Gene cards by taking on daily missions and seasonal events.
The Scenario Mode is the meaty adventure itself, loaded with walls of text (that can fortunately be skipped), dialogue options, treasure chests, random encounters and, in my demo, a giant blue lobster boss disguised as a house. Oh, Japan.
As you can see, Chaos Rings III adds explorable 3D maps rather than the pre-rendered backdrops that fans of the series are used to. This look might be appealing to some, but I much preferred the grittier 2D style myself.
Character designs have changed a lot too, with your team looking like they've stepped right out of Kingdom Hearts and many bosses appearing cartoonish enough to fit right in to Dragon Quest VIII.
The main addition to the battle system is a third playable character, which changes the dynamic a little, but the battling remains as smooth and satisfying as ever. Auto Battle and Auto Attack options are available if you're the sort of person who prefers games that play themselves.
Despite being a premium game (going for ¥2,800 / £16 / $26), Chaos Rings III's main menu screen rather worryingly includes a shop. In the shop there are three options - Lucky Box, Special Item and VIP Membership sections.
I ventured into the Lucky Box and spent 40 coins to unlock 10 Gene cards (the magic system in Chaos Rings) via a Gacha system. Nothing was mentioned as to how to gain more coins, but I really hope In-App Purchases aren't involved.
There's no word at the moment on whether either version will be localised for the West, but the Vita version available in Hong Kong will include the English versions of the original three games. The Japanese release will arrive on iOS and PS Vita on October 16.
