Star Ocean: Second Evolution

by Square Enix

Product Features

• Enhanced remake of Star Ocean: The Second Story exclusively for PSP
• New high-quality animated cut scenes and character designs by Production I.G.
• Characters will now change facial expressions depending on their mood
• Revised game engine and improved real-time battle system keep players immersed in the action
• More private actions and extensive new fully-voiced dialogue bring the story to life

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B001CM0PJ6
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches ; 3.2 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: January 20, 2009
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,114 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

  #7 in

  Video Games > Sony PSP > Role-Playing

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Continuing the franchise for Star Ocean fans, Star Ocean: Second Evolution for the PSP is an enhanced remake of Star Ocean: The Second Story, and delivers the same epic storytelling and dazzling art style updated for today. Set 20 years after the events of its predecessor, Second Evolution receives special treatment in its PSP incarnation. Gamers can relive the adventure, with fully animated movies, all-new character designs, extra playable characters, fully voiced dialogues and more.

Second Evolution is an enhanced remake of Star Ocean: The Second Story, with special features for the PSP.

Fans of the series will recognize the cast of characters. View larger.

The real-time battle system keeps players immersed and engaged. View larger.

The Story Unfolds
It is Space Date 366 and a young man finds himself transported by accident to an uncharted world during a survey of an underdeveloped planet. The son of a hero, with much to prove, he finds himself on the path to greatness. Meanwhile, a young girl watches disaster befalling her world and the arrival of a mysterious meteorite. She awaits the arrival of a legendary hero. A child with a good heart and the ability to use powerful magic, she awaits the savior of her world.

20 years after the events on planet Roak in the original Star Ocean, the son of the hero of the Terran Alliance is thrust back into the fray. He is known as the Hero of Light, and although the importance of his epic quest isn't to be denied, he ends up encountering a number of other characters critical to the plot, including his first partner in crime, Rena Lanford.

All New Look and Sound
Old-school fans will indeed recognize the cast of characters, although Claude, Rena, Dias, Precis, Opera, Ashton, and others are getting the benefit of revamped character designs. Animation studio Production I.G. created an all-new look for the characters in this new version of the game. Additionally, during in-game conversations, characters will now change their facial expressions depending upon their mood.

Just as in Star Ocean: First Departure, new high-quality animated cut scenes, now displayed in 16:9 wide-screen, are once again provided by animation studio Production I.G., helping bring the story to life. There are also new voice actors and extensive amounts of new, fully-voiced dialogue, as well as the opening song Start, performed by Scandal.

Exciting New Gameplay
Star Ocean: Second Evolution has been completely rebuilt for the PSP system, with a revised game engine, and an improved real-time battle system that will keep players immersed in the action. As always the private action system adds depth to the story, introducing riveting subplots between characters. In Second Evolution, more private actions have been added allowing characters to interact in new and exciting ways. Other characters degree of feelings for you will affect how they act towards you, how they assist you in battle, and could even alter the end of the game.

Second Story features extensive amounts of fully-voiced dialogue.

Product Description

Space Date 366: A young Federation officer finds himself transported to a mystical planet, where he is suddenly anointed as the Hero of Light. He begins a journey to fulfill a prophecy and save a newfound race. Continuing the franchise for Star Ocean fans, this PSP release of the classic RPG delivers the same epic storytelling and dazzling art style. Set 20 years after the events of its predecessor, Star Ocean 2 receives special treatment in its PSP incarnation to further entice gamers to relive the adventure. The title takes the next step with fully animated movies, all-new character designs, extra playable characters, fully voiced dialogue, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Second Evolution of the Second Story, March 31, 2009

By	Wolfgang (Alpena. MI, USA) - See all my reviews

Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Star Ocean: Second Evolution (Video Game)

Star Ocean strikes again, this time accompanying the very first Star Ocean, which was never released to North America. Those returning to this game will find the game they remembered. Newcomers will find an enormous RPG, full of continents to explore, hundreds of enemies to vanquish, and an engaging storyline to digest.

In the previous adventure (First Departure, also for PSP), four heroes banished evil from their continuum and restored peace to their separate worlds. Now, Ronyx's son, Claude, is unintentionally sent to a primitive planet, Expel, upon investagation of a barren plane. There, he meets a young girl, Rena, an odd looking villager with mysterious healing powers. He soon learns that her world is in danger.

Before his arrival on Expel, a shimmering meteorite slammed into Expel. With its coming came forth hordes of monsters that rampaged the surface. Claude, after using a light gun, is proclaimed by Rena's village to be the "Hero of Light," the one who is destined to deliver them from this evil invasion. Soon, Rena and Claude depart on their great adventure to put a stop to, not only sinister creatures overtaking Expel, but to a divine conspiracy that has silently raged for centuries and centuries.

In your journey, you will meet up to ten different characters, whom you can choose to accompany you on your mission, including three secret ones and many who can be added at the price of another. Another feature unique to the Star Ocean series is Item Creation. Here, you can do almost anything you can think of: create your own custom weapons, cook delicious food, conduct alchemy to make precious stones out of iron, and forge jewelry.

The battles themselves are also rather exclusive to the series. It's in real time: there's no polite attacking in this game. You and your battle party are free to roam the battle area as you see fit, whether if it's to close in on an enemy or to gain distance between you and your attacker so you can summon a spell. Leveling up is a huge part of this game, so be prepared to do a lot of it. When you leave one area and go to another on the World Map, you may suddenly find yourself 10 levels behind your enemies --- not a good place to find yourself. With every level up you get, you also get money (FOL, as it's called here), experience points, and something else special: Skill Points.

See, with the whole Item Creation idea, you need to do several things before you can gain skills. First, you need to buy the sets in various towns in the Skill Guild. Then, you need to gain enough skill points to level up your chosen character in the skill you want he/she to have. When you accumulate enough skills, you learn a Specialty. It sounds quite complicated, but it's really quite simple when you get into the menu.

Another good thing I found about this version of the game. The voice actors are incredible: it really brought something new to the game, a charm it didn't have before. Most were improved greatly from the PSOne actors. It's not a buy-or-not feature, but it was a new delight to a returning lover of this game.

Bottom line? If you're at all like me, and you played this game so much, so religiously, that you actually wore out the PSOne discs, buy this game. If you have never heard of Star Ocean, and if you love RPGs, and if you don't want to miss out on one of the most epic games out there, I would give serious thought to picking this up.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Star Ocean 2 does it again!, February 5, 2009

By	Donnie Darko "RPG Loser" (Sesame Street) - See all my reviews

Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Star Ocean: Second Evolution (Video Game)

I bought the original Star Ocean 2 for the PlayStation almost 10 years. That feeling that I had when I first played it then has the same effect on me when I bought Second Evolution for the PSP. Simply amazing. This game has one of the best storylines an Rpg could have. It's definitely an underrated one because at the time it came out FF8 ruled the land, so it was overlooked somewhat. The battles tend to get frustrating at times, but all that's forgiving as you progress through the story. There's so many things you can do in this game, like create your own weapons and items. And there's even private actions in towns where it effects the emotions of your characters and how they feel towards one another. They've updated and added some stuff too. Like Anime cutscenes, new voices (which are a lot better and less annoying) and other things, but I don't wanna spoil it for you. :)

All in all, this is an amazing RPG. I'm so glad they re-released it for the PSP. Buy it!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Long winded, May 18, 2009

By	Binky Boy "binkyboy" (TomorrowmorrowLand) - See all my reviews

Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Star Ocean: Second Evolution (Video Game)

Enjoyable and demanding, this game tends to encourage marathon play times and can be a bit hard to put aside. The cons, however, are that you have to mash the buttons a lot to get through the more grueling dialogs that seem to be focussed more on the characters repeating each others names followed by a very slow animated "...". Sequences which must be replayed due to failure can get grating. The pros for this game, however, do outweigh the cons. It is difficult without being impossible, it is stingy at times with money and goods, and has a unique and interesting skill "tree" that has more intellectuality rather than function. Played this over a long trip and it definitely was a good way to pass the time.