As a really picky gamer, I found “Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon” to show me the light of an arguably perfect game. Adding on to the fun gameplay and stunning aesthetics, there comes the amazing story and breathtaking soundtrack. The voice actors just add on to the game! That’s why, aside from a few exceptions, this is the best game I’ve ever played.
Details
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon is a role-playing video game for the Wii developed by Namco Bandai Games in co-operation with Tri-Crescendo. The game was released by Namco Bandai Games in Japan on January 22, 2009. It was later published by Xseed Games in North America on March 16, 2010, and in Europe by Rising Star Games on March 19, 2010.
Plot/Story
Seto narrates his story to the player, beginning with how the old man he lived with died at the end of his fifteenth summer. He buries the man in a small hole in front of their home, an old observatory, and from then on he became “truly alone.” After burial, Seto searches the old observatory at night for something the old man had left for him. Entering the study, Seto finds a letter from the old man, along with a strange blue stone. Before he can read the letter, however, a mask-like ghost appears out of thin air and attacks Seto. After driving the creature off, Seto reads the old man’s letter, who tells him to go east to “reach a tall red tower,” where he might find other survivors.
At the entrance to an old subway station, Seto encounters a silver-haired girl singing on a collapsed pillar. Seto accidentally startles her, and she falls to the ground. Worried, Seto dashes to her side and checks to see if she is alive. Touching her cheek, he awakens and frightens her. The girl flees shortly after leaving Seto to linger on the thought of having encountered another human. Getting over the shock, Seto gets up and runs after her into the station.
Throughout the rest of the game, Seto searches for the silver-haired girl, Ren, as well as any other remaining humans. He meets many friends and enemies, clinging on to his dream of finding real people again. Throughout his journey, Seto carries a locket with remnants of his memories inside.
Gameplay
In Fragile Dreams, the player character, Seto, must traverse the ruins of Tokyo and the surrounding areas, fighting off ghosts that lurk within these ruins. The game’s heads-up display includes a mini-map and HP gauge for Seto’s location and health, respectively. Seto will fall unconcious if his HP reaches zero, resulting in a game over. The player controls Seto from a third-person perspective with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. Seto can use his flashlight to illuminate his surroundings or solve puzzles and interact with the environment. When searching for certain objectives or hidden enemies, pointing Seto’s light in their direction picks up and plays their sounds through the Wii Remote’s mini speaker. The Wii Nunchuk, meanwhile, directly controls Seto’s movement; aside of basic movement, he can crouch to hide and crawl through small spaces. Seto will often come across damaged floors, which require slow movement to cross without falling through.
Along with that, a fire will serve as your base, where you would go to see the mystery items you have collected and there you will access the store that is only available at particular times. The mystery items reveal to be artifacts that produce an audio representation of how that artifact related to humans and these are almost never happy. These representations pull on my heart strings and choke me up. I’ve never wanted to play a game next to a box of tissues before this game in my life. This is one of the reasons I love this game so much.
Soundtrack
I don’t want to “fangirl” over the soundtrack too much, but it is amazing. I love emotional music such as this. Everyday I find myself listening to the OST on my phone while laying on my couch waiting to feel inspired. Not only is the soundtrack very well made, it fits with the game (very well!). Just the music alone give me a few hours of joy.
ALL TOGETHER NOW!!
This game is amazing and I love every part of it! I couldn’t stop playing except to tell my parents that the meat was properly seasoned. I would recommend this game to everyone I meet; even people who don’t speak my language (I’ll find some way to communicate with them!).
