Time and Eternity

Ever since this game was announced I followed it and day after day my desire to play it became stronger. When it launched I was kinda shocked because of the bad reception. Most gamers and "specialized critic" (which I've decided to ignore for JRPGs) gave scores between 0 and 4. I had all the reasons to avoid this game but I bought it anyway. For my surprise I must say that I've really enjoyed this game and I don't know what is wrong with all the haters. Yes, the game has a lot of problems. Character animations were developed in a way that they look unnatural. For instance, sometimes they have to finish a pose in the same position as the next one starts. That may look more realistic but at the same time it makes the character staying in a position that he didn't need to be. And in some moments they used poses that weren't fitting in the situation, like the main character smiling when talking serious to an enemy. Some basic problems are still present, like the impossibility to pause the cutscenes. You can skip them after watching for the first time, but you can't pause. If you start watching them, be prepared to watch until the end without interruption. English voices are not synchronized with the animations, so you might get frustated. That may be one of two problems: the translation couldn't fit the timing or NIS America didn't do a good job. You play the game with two characters that keep switching each time you level up or use an item. There's a small dragon helping you too, but you can't control him. The skill system and its evolution is cool, but has nothing special at all. The skills to control the flow of time are very interesting but they make the game easier. The battles occur with random encounters. They are fun but kinda repetitive because enemies usually do the same actions in the same order. And they're not fast because sometimes you fight against many enemies in sequence and the transitions between them take an unnecessary time. Also, I didn't find a real challenge playing in normal mode and doing all the sidequests. Most battles are finished using magic because they do massive damage. I missed the balance of physical and magical skills. There’s also a special type of battle that occurs with giant bosses, but it's less fun than the standard battle. There are loading screens when simpling choosing a place to go on the map but they don't last long. And the soundtrack is something that people should not complaint about: it's really awesome. About the story, I can say it’s very interesting, entertaining and exciting. And when you almost reach the end, you’ll see an unexpected event regarding the main characters. That’s when I say that you must plug yourself into the game and forget about the outside world. You’ll feel like you’re part of it making tough decisions. I'd give a much lower score if I were analysing as a technical reviewer. But I'm a gamer and I decided to give a score based on my entire experience with everything the game offered me. I felt the immersion in an anime world, I got involved with the story and the flaws weren't enough to pull me off. I think that's something most people need to do nowadays: turn on the "let it go" and relax playing. You know what's funny? There's a lot of games considered masterpieces out there and they're full and full of problems. We accepted them as they are, so what has changed? Why people are so critic these days putting the mistakes above everything and being blind against the qualities? Do you really like anime or cartoons? Do you love niche JRPGs? Are you tired of the same games and formulas that are released year after year? Do you want a new experience and immersion to break your gaming routine? Do you accept that this game has flaws that might not be taken too serious due to other things it can offer? Do you want to stimulate NIS America and Imageepoch to continue bringing new games and experiences with the genre? If so, Time and Eternity is the game for you.

Time and Eternity is an great game but may not be for everyone. It is very different than what isout there in the JRPG market. There are some flaws with the game but not enough to not play it. The story line is very interesting once you get into it. It is worth a try for anime or JRPG fans, so don’t hesitate on this title.