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Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade 
Release date: 14 Mar 2005
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Mygamer review
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Decent…for a Launch Game
As far as launch games go, Untold Legends stands higher than most, but when compared to other titles in the genre, it emerges as rather average.
Untold Legends was released to retail simultaneously with the launch of Sony’s new PSP handheld. Being the only current action RPG for the system, this game certainly plays well. However, when compared to bigger console games like Champions: Return to Arms or Baldur’s Gate, it simply does not contain or convey the same level of polish and detail. But, that said, it’s perhaps not truly fair to compare a handheld game to similar console titles of the same genre.
Players have the choice of playing as one of four character classes. Only four types of playable classes seems a little limited when compared to other RPG games, but it is an expectable number considering Untold Legends is a portable game. Each race has their own stereotypical strengths and weaknesses; for example, the warrior knight is strong with melee attacks, while the druid has a high proficiency rate when wielding magic.
The play control and button scheme has been well thought out for the PSP hardware. Since the PSP does not sport a second analog stick and houses two shoulder buttons as opposed to the PS2’s four, the developers have added a very functional shift key. The Right shoulder button is used as a modify key for just about every other button on the PSP. Camera rotation is performed by holding ‘R’ and tapping the triangle button. The camera then rotates in the direction the onscreen character is facing. While this is not as smooth as using a second analog stick it still works well for the PSP’s button structure. Unfortunately, though, zooming in and out from the game’s overhead third-person perspective is not an option.
Movement is performed by using the analog nub, and eight spells can be selected via the D-pad. These magic spells can then be mapped to either the triangle or circle button. The ‘X’ button is used to attack with your melee weapon and square acts as the action key (pick up stuff, open chests, etc.). When the Left shoulder button is tapped, a health potion can be immediately used. When ‘L’ is used in combination with the ‘R’ shift button, a magic potion will be used. The Select button brings up the sub-screen, while Start will bring up the menu to save the game. The Right shoulder button can also switch between a ranged and melee weapon or bring up the mini-map when used with the corresponding face button. Action RPG games have to give players the option to change everything on the fly, and the designers of Untold Legends fulfill that need despite the fact that they had less buttons to work with. Credit needs to be given for the well thought out ‘hot key’ button structure. The ability to save anywhere and anytime is also an extremely handy function.
Gameplay is your basic hack-and-slash action RPG affair. The player assumes the stereotypical role of ‘the hero’ who must battle legions of evil creatures to return the world to a blissful state of peace. The more monsters you kill, the more experience points you gain, the stronger you become, and the more skills you learn. It’s a simple gameplay mechanic that has been around since the earliest of videogames but, though formulaic, there is something strangely addictive about it. Untold Legends tries to imbue a little more story than some hack-and-slash titles by adding many NPCs that offer a few lines of textual dialog. Unfortunately, one of the biggest let downs in the game is the lack of real voice work. Written text just is not as powerful as well acted spoken words. Each PSP game disc can hold close to 2Gbs in storage space, so there probably would have been plenty of room to cram in some spoken dialog.
The music grows repetitive very quickly. Within the opening moments of the game, the player will have the game’s first song memorized. This would be great, if only the music contained a higher level of distinct quality. Each musical track is performed over seconds instead of minutes, which swiftly makes each one monotonous. However, all the musical compositions play very clearly when channeled through headphones.
The graphics are also rather well executed for a launch game. There is enough detail in the character models and environments to grant Untold Legends a thoroughly respectable average score. It is also a plus to see each piece of wearable armor change cosmetically when equipped to your character. However, the game would have benefited through more options for changing the physical look of your playable character, such as hairstyles or skin colors. But since the camera cannot zoom, it really wouldn’t affect the overall visual aesthetic much anyway. There is no option to change your character to male or female, either, as every character class has a default gender. Another downfall arises through every room in each environment always accommodates a square shape. Uneven and irregular rooms could have brought a little more variety to each level. Some of the particle effects and magic spells seem a little cheesy and jaggy as well. The screen of the PSP also tends to blur when the central character moves. Anyone who has ever visually recorded a television or a computer monitor and watched the results will understand this hazy and ugly blur effect.
Perhaps the best way to play Untold Legends is with a couple of friends. Up to four players can quest together using the PSP’s ad-hoc mode. However, when three or four players are fighting in a co-op quest, the game can drop to a seriously low frame rate. Unfortunately, Untold Legends cannot be played online. This is a shame as it would have been the perfect game to utilize an online multiplayer option.
Untold Legends does many things right, but it lacks the overall flare to set it aside from other games. The repetitive music, limited character classes, blocky level structure, and a lack of online play are all somewhat of a disappointment. Plus, the game has some seriously long load times. From initially turning the power on, the player must wait between two and three minutes before all the loading and pop-ups clear. Also, whenever the character moves into a new area, the game loads for a solid 30 seconds, and since Untold Legends has to load often, the UMD disc spins a lot, and at high speeds. This rapidly drains the PSP’s battery. Game time when using a fully charged battery will range between 2-3 hours when playing a single-player adventure without the Wi-Fi on. Expect to get much less game time on a fully charged battery when playing wirelessly with friends.
Untold Legends creates an enjoyable experience considering its label as a launch title. However, that should never excuse poor development or production value and many parts of the game feel rushed and incomplete. Was Untold Legends rushed to retail in order to coincide with the PSP’s US launch date? If more development time had been invested, the game perhaps could have risen closer to greatness. That said, as a handheld launch game, Untold Legends will certainly please players. But if it were to be released six months into the PSP’s lifetime, it would drop in score tremendously as it cannot compete with other titles in the same genre category. Since previous action RPG games have raised the quality bar so high, players will also feel let down with the lack of extra options and detail. Though it may be found lacking when compared to existing console titles, it will please early PSP buyers, and Untold Legends is certainly worthy enough to warrant a launch purchase. Just don’t expect a handheld version of Champions of Norrath. Luckily, a sequel has already been announced, complete with online play. Untold Legends is one of those burgeoning franchise titles that will definitely evolve on all fronts as sequels emerge and expand on its basic premise and ideas.
Review by Zachary Gasiorowski on 8 May 2005
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