A record number of RPGs were released in the U.S. in 1999. Some were spectacular emotional roller coasters, and others were merely ehhh… But, one role-playing game that stood out above the rest, was Star Ocean: The Second Story. Not only does this excellent title deliver solid gameplay, it also boasts a whopping 80 plus endings.

One might begin to ask "Why is it called Star Ocean: The SECOND Story? I've never heard of a Star Ocean: The first Story… what gives?" Well, like many titles created in Japan, the original Star Ocean was never released in the U.S. During the great RPG drought in America, Star Ocean was a Super Famicom (the equivalent to the Super Nintendo in America) title in Japan, and was on its way to the U.S. But before Enix could localize Star Ocean, they closed their doors in America. Don't fret though, a new Star Ocean that is said to be similar to the original is to be released on the Gameboy Color sometime in 2000!

Unlike many RPGs of today, SO2 does not ride on story alone, and it shows. While a very original tale of a technologically advanced world trying to take over 'the universe', I was expecting more of a futuristic space opera where the spaceship is king and nothing's the way it seems… err… well, scratch that last part. Instead we're stuck on the "stupid planet" that is oblivious to the conflict surrounding them. Every RPG has some kind of civilization like it, where nobody knows what you're talking about or shuns you because of your technological superiority. As a result, the whole thing ends up being the swords and sorcery game that we know all too well.

In Star Ocean 2 you choose one of two main characters at the beginning of the game: Claude, the son of a great admiral in the earth federation who does not want special treatment or to be known for his famous father, or Rena, an adopted, level headed young girl who joins Claude in order to find her birth mother. Both are pretty dynamic characters, but unfortunately the story doesn't change that much no matter who you choose. Throughout your journey you will meet a lot of interesting supporting characters, ranging from a lowly pharmacist who leaves his home in order to join you, to a young adventurer who, after a freak accident, is stuck with two dragons attached to his back. In all, there are 13 characters to recruit during your journey, but you can only choose 8 of them.

The translation isn't the best I've seen, but certainly isn't the worst. As you may or may not know, Sony of America localized this game, not Enix themselves. Sony isn't exactly known for being the best translators in the gaming world, but I think they didn't do a bad job, despite some problems. There are some really awkward phrases like "Why are you being here?", but for the most part it wasn't too shabby on Sony's behalf.

If there's one thing this game has going for it, it's in the department of gameplay. Forget the story, this is why you started playing RPGs in the first place. Star Ocean 2 delivers a very innovative item creation system. When a character gains a level, they get a certain amount of points called "skill points." In turn, these can be used to assign certain skills or jobs to a character, somewhat similar to the famous "jobs" system in Final Fantasy V. If you assign certain combinations of skills to a character, an "ability" is unlocked. For example, Craft, Metal Casting, and Functionality will create "Customize," which allows you to customize weapons to your liking. Other abilities include cooking, to create your own foods for healing, blacksmith, an ability that lets you make armor, and dozens of others. The whole system is a little frustrating, but fun nonetheless. Expect to spend hours on end trying to master all the skills and abilities.

Another unique and innovative gameplay feature to note is "Private Actions." If you press the "square" button seconds before entering a town or city, you will access this feature. What it does is when you enter the town, your party splits up and does their own thing and you are left with only the character you chose at the beginning of the game (Claude or Rena). So what is the significance of this? Well, if you manage to find one of your party members roaming around town, you can talk to them. Sometimes if you talk to a character at the right time in the story, you will get to see special scenes that you wouldn't normally see. Kudos to Enix for thinking up this awesome option, expect to see some clones in the future.

While still a traditional RPG, battles are obviously tilted toward the action side. Actually, at the beginning of the game, you are given a choice between three different battle systems: Turn based, similar to the systems we're used to, semi-active, a system that is active in nature but has turn based elements as well, and active, real-time battles in all their glory. All three are loads of fun, but I suggest you use the semi-active system if you're looking for something new. This is a great feature to have and is the reason that this game appeals to such a wide variety of people with different tastes and preferences. But alas, battles can get extremely repetitive after about 20 hours of gameplay.

Speaking of gameplay hours, Star Ocean 2 has a lot of them. This is one of those games that will keep you busy for a long time trying to find all the secrets and extras. The game itself is about 35 hours in all, but the secrets add about 20 hours to the fun. You can even travel back in time to go to a secret dungeon with 13 floors! And believe me, it isn't easy. I wouldn't recommend going to it unless your characters are at least at level 100.

There is only one word to describe the visuals in Star Ocean 2: Stunning. When you see these graphics you will be in disbelief, to say the least. The characters are simple super-deformed sprites, which have an anime-esque feel to them. There is some pixelation when the camera zooms in on a character, but that happens very rarely and is nothing to whine about. The backgrounds are what make the visuals a joy to look at. Each city and dungeon has its own gorgeous pre-rendered backdrop that just makes you want to stop and enjoy the scenic view. Artists spent a considerable amount of time on each one to make sure they were perfect. If they can do this on the current Playstation, just think of how Star Ocean 3 will look on the Playstation 2!

Like many RPG companies today, Enix took the cinematic approach with Star Ocean 2; but not to the point of one of those "games that you watch because there's so much Full Motion Video" titles. No, SO2 is different. As a matter of fact, there are only about 5-6 CG sequences throughout the game that last about 2-3 minutes each. Some gamers might turn away from this game because of this, but what Star Ocean lacks in cut scenes, it more than makes up for it with good solid gameplay.

The Orchestral soundtrack from Star Ocean 2 is one of the most original scores I've ever heard. It's hard to believe the music is from a video game. Tunes ranging from depressing, heroic, to upbeat funk fests spice up the game for a more enjoyable experience. The level of variety is unprecedented. This is easily one of my favorite soundtracks for a game ever. Go to an online game site or your local video game store and buy the soundtrack now.

The one thing that I can't stand about Star Ocean 2 is the horrid voice acting. Sometimes it's actually humorous, though. Phrases such as Claude's "Well, that's somewhere around 80 points!" or Dias' "Peice-uh' junk!" just make you laugh at the horrible quality of the voices. The sound quality of the voices is also awful, with so much distortion that you'd think it were on the Super NES. With over 3000 voice samples in all, Sony certainly put quantity in front of quality.

Star Ocean 2 is one of the greatest games to come out in 1999, and it will be one of my personal favorites for years. After elaborating and elaborating I have finally come to the bottom line. While not the best game ever made, no fan hungry for action, excitement, drama, and adventure should miss this one. A true gem indeed.