October 5, 2000
Skies of Arcadia - Preview
Release Date Publisher Developer Rating Players RRP
25/5/2001SegaOverworks1$99.95
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Click To Enlarge ImageFrom the development team responsible for Sega's legendary Phantasy Star series comes a brand new RPG called Eternal Arcadia, or Skies Of Arcadia as it will be known in America, Europe and Australia. Previously known as Project Ares, the game has been in development for well over 2 years and promises to be the one of the biggest RPG's on the Dreamcast alongside Phantasy Star Online in early 2001.

As you can see from the surrounding screenshots Skies Of Arcadia certainly looks very impressive. The game world is very detailed with some superb backgrounds. However, as with all RPG's, it's not the graphics but the storyline that will help the game receive critical acclaim. As you would expect from such a talented team of developers, this game is so much more then the typical "good vs evil" storyline.

Skies Of Arcadia is set in a fantasy land where a young man goes exploring in strange new lands to discover the secret of the Gigas. These are century old monsters with the power to destroy the planet. Of course, no RPG is complete without a love interest and sure enough the man's childhood (female) friend comes along for the adventure. During the journey you will meet both friends and foes to deal with to help you complete your quest.

Click To Enlarge ImageThe main form of transportation in Skies of Arcadia is flight. As you may have noticed the game uses flying sailing ships as the transportation instead of motorised planes, an odd choice indeed. But the sky's are ruled by two different types of pirates. Blue pirates steal from the rich to give to the poor, whereas the black pirates are pure evil and will steal and cause harm to anyone who dares to get in their way. No doubt you will be joining forces with the blue pirates to complete your mission.

Skies of Arcadia is shaping up very nicely. There were rumours of the game making an appearance in early 2000 however this game is now expected in early 2001 in Japan and mid-late 2001 in Australia. With such a complex storyline the developers obviously require a lot of time to test the game fully. Skies of Arcadia will be welcomed with open arms from RPG starved Dreamcast owners.