Grandia Steam
| Grandia | |
|---|---|
| Genre(s) | Role-playing |
| Developer(s) | Game Arts |
| Publisher(s) | ESP Software(1997–1999) Sony Computer Entertainment(1999) Ubisoft(1999–2002) Hudson Soft(2000) Enix(2002) Square Enix(2005–2006) GungHo Online Entertainment(2009–) |
| Platform(s) | Sega Saturn, PlayStation, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color, PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Switch |
| First release | Grandia December 18, 1997 |
| Latest release | Grandia HD Remaster & Grandia II HD Remaster 2019 |
Grandia (グランディアGurandia) is a series of role-playing video games that have been developed by Game Arts throughout the whole series and have been published over the years by ESP Software, Sony Computer Entertainment, Ubisoft, Hudson Soft, Enix, Square Enix and GungHo Online Entertainment. The latest installment is published by GungHo Online Entertainment with the game entitled Grandia Online. Games in the Grandia series have been released for Sega Saturn, PlayStation, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows. The Grandia + Grandia II HD Remaster collection will be released for Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows (Steam) sometime in 2019; Grandia II HD Remaster will have further improvement updates for the PC version, replacing the already released HD remastered Grandia II Anniversary Edition.[1][2]
The Grandia series sold 2million units, as of April 2009.[3] The latest installment was released for Microsoft Windows in July 2009 entitled Grandia Online; its services remained online for three years until they shut down in 2012.[4]
- 1Games
Games[edit]
| Game | GameRankings | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|
| Grandia | (SS) 87%[5] (PS) 86%[6] | (PS) 89[7] |
| Grandia II | (DC) 89%[8] (PC) 73%[9] (PS2) 73%[10] | (DC) 90[11] (PS2) 71[12] (PC) 70[13] |
| Grandia Xtreme | (PS2) 71%[14] | (PS2) 68[15] |
| Grandia III | (PS2) 79%[16] | (PS2) 77[17] |
Grandia (1997)[edit]
Grandia's story focuses around Justin, a young boy who desires to be a great adventurer. While investigating a ruin of the lost Angelou Civilization, he hears a mysterious request to come east and find out the secret of why these ancients mysteriously disappeared. The resulting adventure takes Justin across the sea to new continents, and even beyond the known end of the world. Graphically, the game used character sprites in a 3D world, rather than polygonal character models that later came to favor. The battle system, like Game Arts' Lunar series before it, placed emphasis on the combatants' location in the field. However, while Lunar only allowed the player to set the team's position in battle, Grandia had characters move to appropriate positions during battle and allowed the player to have them move elsewhere to avoid attacks or reach a more advantageous position. Also notable was how characters could counter or disrupt enemy attacks.
Grandia: Digital Museum (1998)[edit]
Not officially a sequel, but a bonus disc using the same engine as the Saturn version of Grandia. Though it only consists of four dungeons, each one is very large compared to the ones in the original Grandia. Justin, Feena and Sue must explore them in order to recover artifacts from a museum of the original game that Liete has created. These unlock storyboards, special sound plays known as 'Radio Dramas', saves for the original Saturn game, mini-games, bestiary listings and original artwork.
Grandia II (2000)[edit]
Grandia II's story focuses around Ryudo, a sarcastic 'Geohound' (mercenaries who take undesirable jobs). He receives a mission to guard a sister of Granas, Elena, during a rite to reseal an ancient evil god. However, the rite runs into difficulties, leading to a much longer quest to escort Elena across the continent to meet Pope Zera, leader of the Church of Granas. The failed sealing attempt is also tied into the emergence of a strange woman known as Millenia, and a series of disturbing events at towns along the way to the Granas Cathedral. This sequel used a new, fully 3D engine to seamlessly render landscapes and battle scenes. The core battle system functionality stayed the same between Grandia and Grandia II, although it became impossible to cancel an action merely with normal attacks. The magic system was also changed, whereby magical eggs (usable by any character) were used to cast magic rather than having spells linked directly to each character.
Grandia II was remastered by GungHo Online Entertainment in 2015 for Steam and GOG Galaxy. It featured upgraded visuals, achievements, trading cards (Steam), a Japanese voice option, and a hard difficulty.
Grandia: Parallel Trippers (2000)[edit]
Uses the same characters and music as the first Grandia game. The actual game areas are different from those of the original Grandia, though many of the items, moves and enemy names are the same. A group of schoolchildren who live in the 'real' world are sucked into a portal while playing in an abandoned shed next to their school and end up in the world of Grandia. They must find three special keys in order to make their way back home, and enlist the help of Justin and friends, who are always keen for new adventures.
Grandia Xtreme (2002)[edit]
This incarnation of the Grandia series was considerably more battle-focused than the earlier games. The main character is a Ranger known as Evann recruited by the army to help neutralise the so-called Elemental Disorder, which has been causing havoc. A much improved Grandia II battle engine was used in Xtreme, and various other features were added to the game outside of combat to give it more the feel of a 'dungeon crawler' such as Diablo. Rather than having a party decided by the plot as in previous Grandia games, Xtreme gives the player 8 characters from which the player is free to choose his preferred team. Graphics are much improved on Grandia II — the battling is quick and fluid, and loading times everywhere in the game are some of the fastest in any PlayStation 2 game. Battles are also more large-scale than any past Grandia game, with often over 15 combatants at one time. The character empowerment system was somewhat a mix of Grandia and Grandia II, with techniques being learned and upgraded through use, but skills and magic being found and equipped. The game was criticized for having a weaker story, relatively uninteresting characters and only two 'towns,' which was a large change from past Grandia games which focused on story and travel.
Grandia III (2005)[edit]
Grandia III's story focuses around Yuki, a flight enthusiast who has experienced some difficulty in getting his planes to fly. His latest project flew him into a situation in which he saved a girl named Alfina from a group of menacing pursuers. He and his mother, Miranda, agree to escort Alfina safely back to her home in Arcriff Temple, where she serves as a communicator between humans and a group of powerful creatures known as Guardians. However, once at Arcriff, Yuki and Alfina discover that the lives of the Guardians are being threatened by Alfina's brother, Emelious, who is working to restore an evil being named Xorn to power.
Grandia Online (2009)[edit]
A MMORPG that ran from 2009 to 2012.
References[edit]
- ^'Grandia + Grandia II HD Remaster announced for Switch; Grandia HD Remaster announced for PC'. Gematsu. 20 August 2018.
- ^'Grandia + Grandia II HD Remaster details new and updated features'. Gematsu. 19 September 2018.
- ^'MMORPG 'Grandia Online' of popular RPG 'Grandia' of 2 million series in cumulative total, Conference held on 20th May'. GIGAZINE. April 21, 2009.
- ^http://www.hellandheavennet.com/news/2012/08/grandia-online-service-ends-next-month
- ^http://www.gamerankings.com/saturn/197484-grandia/index.html
- ^'Grandia Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia II Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia Xtreme Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia Xtreme Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia III Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^'Grandia III Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
External links[edit]
| Wikiquote has quotations related to: Grandia |
The Dreamcast may be old enough to get a driver’s license, but that doesn’t mean your saves are left in the dust. The remastered version of Grandia II — available on Steam as of today — is actually able to use saves from the Dreamcast version of the game, Kotaku reports. You can even transfer them back to the Dreamcast’s VMU and use them with the original game.
“The VMS file format is the same file format used by the original Dreamcast console. Because the Anniversary Edition is based off the original Dreamcast code, we also write and read to the VMS save file format within the data/save file directory,” a representative from publisher GungHo Online Entertainment told Kotaku. “This allows the player to import their own VMS save files that can be downloaded from any Dreamcast community website like Blue Swirl.”
“Also, since Dreamcast emulators also use VMS save files, they can also bring any of their personal save files over from their emulator and continue on within the Anniversary Edition,” the representative continued. “Any Grandia II VMS save file will work. This allows the Grandia community to share VMS save files easily between their friends & fanbase regardless of platform.”
Of course, in order to use old saves with the new versions of the game, you’ll first need to get them on to your PC. Luckily, this can be done without much trouble, assuming you still have your old Dreamcast around. Tutorials explaining the process can easily be found online. Sniper 2 pc game free download.
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In order to celebrate the return of Grandia II, the game is currently available for $15 on Steam and GOG. After the end of the month, the price will rise to $20. The game supports Steam Achievements and Cloud Saves, and features built-in gamepad support.