Jeanne d'Arc

by Sony

Product Features

• Command up to 7 characters at a time and embark on a crusade in a 15th century fantasy setting of ogres, dragons and magical powers
• Explore ransacked villages and battlefields with visuals and cinematics that bring the world to life
• Tactics style action with unique team-based strategy of attacks and defenses
• Combine character skills to initiate special moves and generate powerful attacks
• Control up to seven characters during battle sequences

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000R37S78
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.5 inches ; 4 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: August 21, 2007
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,141 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
  • #16 in Video Games > Sony PSP > Role-Playing
  • #37 in Video Games > Sony PSP > All Games
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Platform: Sony PSP

Jeanne D'Arc PSP

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally a SRPG to make me glad I own a PSP!!, September 25, 2007

By 

Ayinde Waleed - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Jeanne D'arc (Video Game)

With so many great looking RPG titles coming to my favorite handheld (the PSP) these past few months I have certainly had my hands full trying to play and complete them all (Hope I don't get fired from my day job). Catching my attention this time is a "Level 5" PSP exclusive title by the name of "Jeanne D'Arc." This game is everything a Strategy RPG (SRPG) should be and more. Outstanding graphics, an intriguing story and an unbelievably easy pick up and play control scheme. So let get in to the particulars of this wonderful title...

Story: 8.0
The story, which is based very loosely on the story of Joan of Arc, because it is so loosely based on the real story, it is very entertaining. Jeanne D'Arcs' story blends history and fantasy beautifully, it starts with a Young King Henry getting possessed by some demonic power. His father who possesses one of the five armlets that were created to defeat these demons centuries ago, tries to save him but is too late as the demon consumes King Henry. Then enter Jeanne a girl who witnesses her village being attacked by demons, comes across one of these armlets and also believes she hears a call from God instructing her to kill the demons that rampage her village. This ancient armlet is said to be able to transform it's wearer into a great armored warrior. The story progresses mainly with three characters, Jeanne and her two friends Lianne and Roger. Many other characters throughout their journey are introduced and play apart in the main plot, but the majority of the time they are expendable at best. It is the three main characters and their interesting personalities; however that keep the story very interesting.

Graphics: 8.5
Jeanne D' Arcs' graphics are in a word, amazing. The 2D cel-shaded graphics used to bring the colorful and vibrant characters to life are absolutely gorgeous. The developers really impress by creating a product that can really show what the PSP is capable of. To start the adventure and throughout players are treated to some very beautiful anime cut-scenes, which are worthy of praise by any anime fanboy alive. This coupled with gorgeous backgrounds, magic spells, and Jeanne's' armlet transformations are enough to satisfy anyone craving some PSP eye candy. You honestly have to see this game in action to truly appreciate it; online screenshots do not do it any justice.

Sound: 7.5
Every thing as far as background music and battle sounds like arrows whipping and other attack sounds were great. If I was a little disappointed about anything though, it would have to be the voice acting or the lack there of. It would have been nice to here them shout out some of their battle cries as opposed to having to read them in a little bubble. This is a VERY minor complaint though; it just would have been nice to hear seeing as how the voice acting in the anime cut-scenes were so great. It is also a little unfortunate that the anime cut-scenes don't include subtitles, because you'll miss a lot of the story if you play with the sound off.

Gameplay: 10
This area is where Jeanne D'Arc shows that it belongs amongst the handheld Strategy RPG greats. I could not find any flaws in the gameplay, I repeat no flaws in the gameplay what so ever. This game competes with other Strategy RPGs, by using what has always worked. You'll have at your disposable by mid game a small army, but in most cases you will only be able to take 6 in to battle. In some cases you may have less to choose because some characters are default depending on the battle. This of course adds to the tactical experience as to what members you want on the field and where to place them so you are victorious. Thankfully though the game allows you to re-visit some of the places you fought battles to make sure you can get to level up everyone in your party.

Like in any good SRPG these battles take place on a grid, and players are limited to a number of spaces they can move with an attack or use of an item/spell ends that characters turn. As players begin to find different characters with different weapons and abilities, the tactics will continue to change. Lancers, for example, can hit two spaces ahead of them, instead of one and Archers can attack from long distances causing more damage from above.

During battles, players can attack, use skills or cast magic spells. These skills can be added by collecting skill stones which players get when they defeat an enemy. Your characters can only carry six of these stones at any one time once again adding to your decision process before going in to battle, because there are more than a hundred of these stones in the game.With these stones you can choose different skills and put the on each of the characters before each battle. These skills can range from making stronger regular attacks, alter stats, or attack a number of enemies at once. Some stones can only be used by specific character types, so choose carefully.

Later in the game you will come across a character that will allow you to combine these stones. By combining two skill stones, a new one is created which will give you even more powerful abilities. This is the main reason I loved this game the customization is so deep, but yet so simple to use. Some of the new abilities created will allow players to counter enemies before they attack you, run longer distances, instill massive damage, and more.

There are also two neat and innovative features in this game that have not been seen in others. These effects are called the "Burning Aura Hotspot" and "Joint Defense".

With the "Burning Aura Hotspot" a hotspot will appear behind any enemy that is attacked and any party member who stands in that will get an attacking boost. If the "Burning Aura" falls on a character already occupying the space, the Aura will move with the character, giving them the ability to use the damage bonus elsewhere.

The other feature is "Joint Defense", which when characters are no more than one space apart, they will combine their defensive abilities reducing the damage caused by enemies significantly. This feature is especially useful when fighting a tough boss.

Bottom Line:

With Jeanne D'Arc's simple, and easy to understand battle system it is amazing how much depth there is here. Anyone with half a brain cell can pick this game up and start playing with out any frustrating with menus, customization, gameplay. I am betting most SRPG fans are probably awaiting the two other great SRPG's on the horizon for the PSP in the way of Final Fantasy Tactics and Disgaea for PSP. Both are due out this year and are sure to be better than excellent. But, Jeanne D' Arc is a new and original title no one has seen before on any system and should not be missed by any PSP owner. Lastly let me say that after having tried almost all the SRPG's available for the PSP I was left disappointed after every one. So what do I have to say about "Level 5"s latest addition to the PSP Library? Just two words to them...Thank YOU!!

25 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fun for tactics fans out there., August 24, 2007

By 

M. Su "More Dessert" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jeanne D'arc (Video Game)

There isn't many tactics fans remaining, for the few us that remains, this is a great pickup. Since finishing up Advanced Wars on DS (which was awesome by the way), there hasn't been a good tactics yet.

Got the PSP just for this game. Jeanne D'arc doesn't break any new grounds, but everything it does, it does well. Music, Voice, Story, Controls, all very smooth and interesting, best of all, it brings back the good ol' memory of FF Tactics.

Update - Just finished the game.

Wow, what an experience. One of the few games I've had the patience to finish thru completely. At first, the characters seems a bit bland, once you get past about level 20, then there is plenty of customization to do. Especially when you get the Bind Skill function, it adds a new level of customization.

Pros:
*Excellent story
*Controls are accurate, the rotating camera saves the day
*Plenty of customization
*Decent length, though when you play a good game, it's never long enough
*Bargain price at $29.99, save $10 compared to the usual PSP releases

Cons: (it's very minor)
*Kind of slow - The constant loading and final boss battle
*Some characters were never used, it was repetitive with others so that made them less useful
*Weapon - Whip, did anyone get to use this?
*Could of used few more extra side quests, battleground should of been a bit deeper.

Overall this is a great buy, now it'll be really hard for D&D Tactics & FF Tactics to justify charging $10 more.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent choice for tactical RPG newcomers, February 16, 2008

By 

Geoffrey Parker - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Jeanne D'arc (Video Game)

Jeanne D'arc is the first PSP RPG from developer Level 5 (Dragon Quest VIII, Dark Cloud 2). This time they tried their hand at the tactical role-playing genre, instead of their usual action-RPG and standard turn-based offerings. The result is successful in all respects. The combat system works well and offers plenty of tactical options. The special attacks, spells, and other abilities equipped by characters via skill stones that are dropped by enemies or purchased in shops; are varied, and have a significant effect on combat. The game-play balance is well-tuned to the mid-range. Experienced players will rarely have to play a stage more than twice, but the difficulty level won't frustrate those playing a grid-based tactical RPG for the first time. Except for enemy reinforcements that magically appear in inconvenient places in a couple of stages, Jeanne D'Arc never feels cheap; but you feel as though you earned your victories. The story isn't epic, but its fanciful take on the
hundred-years war and the tragic figure Jeanne D'Arc, is more than interesting enough to give you a reason to keep playing through the stages.

If I was going to recommend a grid-based tactical RPG to someone that never played one before, this is the one that I would recommend; more for the things that it doesn't do, than the things it does do. The developer generally steered clear of a lot of the more tedious game-play elements of well-established tactical RPGs like Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem, and Disgaea; making it a good introduction for new players.

For example:

There is very little need for level-grinding in Jeanne D'Arc. Maps completed in story mode often become Free Combat stages that can be used to level up and accumulate gold, but it really isn't necessary. Free Combat stages usually have different enemies, and item drops, than they did when they were visited during a mission; so they are worth visiting again, but only once. Completing the stages to advance the story, and completing each Free Combat stage once; will provide about all of the experience points that you need to complete the game. Occasionally it may be useful to play a handful of free combat stages to level-up a rarely-used character, but even characters that are never used in combat receive significant experience points. None of the characters are generally more than 7 or 8 levels behind any other character, and they will close the gap quickly if used for a few battles.

There are no character deaths in Jeanne D'Arc, except ones that are scripted as part of the story. Characters that fall in battle are all full revived when the stage is cleared. If you don't clear the stage, the game is over anyway. That means that you don't have to replay stages that you've cleared, over and over, until you get through them with all of the characters that you want to use later still alive. There is, on the other hand, no way to revive fallen characters during a battle.

Gold-farming is almost pointless in Jeanne D'Arc. You can get plenty of cash by selling unneeded skill-stones dropped by enemies, especially if you use the skill-stone binding system to combine common skill-stones into rare ones. Past the mid-point of the game you will rarely buy anything from the shops except for healing items. All of the really good items are acquired free as rewards when you complete certain combat stages the first time. You don't have to play stages over and over again, just to get enough gold to buy the best armor and weapons. I finished the game with over 15000 gold pieces, and over a hundred spare skill stones left; without making any effort to accumulate money. There just wasn't anything else to buy.

There is no wandering around the game-world for hours trying to find the one location to visit, or one person to talk to; that will move the story forward, and open up the next area. In Jeanne D'Arc, pressing the Objective button from the world map display at any time will tell you exactly where you should go next to advance the story. You are free to visit any location that is visible on the world map, but you always know where to go when you are ready to move on. This removes the exploration aspect that is important to some RPGs, but most tactical RPGs don't place much emphasis on exploration anyway.

Overall, once you start Jeanne D'Arc, the game tries not to give you a reason to put it down and play something else for a while; which is a good thing.

From a technical perspective, everything is fine. The graphics are similar to PS2 tactical RPGs, and the music is serviceable; if not inspiring. Most of the cut-scenes have no voice-acting, but the voice-acting that is there is very good. The animated cut-scenes are also well done. Not as impressive as Valkrie Profile Lenneth, but still very good for a game that isn't from Square Enix. Jeanne D'Arc isn't a long game by RPG standards, but it is reasonably long for a PSP game. There
are about 40 hours of solid game-play, and the game shouldn't require more than 50 hours to complete. With a list price of $29.99, the game is an excellent value.

People that have spent 100 hours or more grinding their way through games like Disgaea and Final Fantasy Tactics will probably find Jeanne D'Arc too short and basic for their taste; but everyone else Jeanne D'Arc is a well-made game, with an interesting story, that is an excellent choice for newcomers to the tactical RPG genre. It is also one of the best titles in the PSP library.

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