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Grandia (video game)
Encyclopedia
is a role-playing video game developed by Game Arts
originally for the Sega Saturn
console as the first game in their Grandia series. Initially released in Japan in January 1997, the game was later ported to the PlayStation in June 1999, with an English version of the game appearing on the platform in North America in the following September by SCEA
, and later in Europe in March 2001 by Ubisoft
. The game was produced by much of the same staff who worked on the company's previous role-playing endeavor, the Lunar series, including producer Yoichi Miyagi and music composer Noriyuki Iwadare
.
Since its release, Grandia has become notable for its combat mechanics which have been carried over to future games within the franchise, and has spawned two spin-off titles - Grandia: Digital Museum
and Grandia: Parallel Trippers
- both released exclusively in Japan. In celebration of the announcement of renewing development on Grandia Online
, which acts as a prequel
to Grandia, the game was re-released on Sony's PlayStation Network platform in Japan as a downloadable title in April 2009 and in North America on February 25, 2010. It was re-released in Europe on November 10, 2010.
The game is set in a fantasy
world of emerging technology and exploration. A young boy named Justin inherits a magic stone that leads him on a journey around the world to uncover the mystery of a long-lost civilization. Along the way, he meets other adventurers who join him on his quest, which draws the attention of the militaristic Garlyle Forces who seek to uncover the secrets of the past as well. Grandia received a largely positive critical response during its original release, and was voted by readers of Japan's highly circulated Famitsu magazine as the 73rd greatest game of all time in a 2006 poll.
sprite
s. The camera is fully rotational and follows the party from an angled third-person
perspective; it is often necessary to rotate the camera in order to see hidden items or passageways.
Grandia features a rotational party roster. The statistics
of each party member increase each time they gain a new level by defeating enemies and earning experience point
s. Characters learn new abilities through the repeated use of weapons and spells. Once a particular weapon/magic spell is used a number of times in battle, its Skill Level is raised. Weapons are divided into different classes, including sword
s, maces, axe
s, whip
s and knives. Each party member's potential abilities are listed on a Skill screen within the game's main menu, as well as the Skill requirements that must be met in order to learn them. The game encourages players to periodically switch between weapons. When a weapon or magic element levels up, permanent stat points are added to that character as well. For example, when a character's water skill levels up, they also receive +1 HP as well as +2 MP.
Monsters in Grandia are visible on the field and wander around aimlessly until the party gets close. A battle begins once the monster touches a party member. If the player manages to sneak up on the enemy and make contact from the rear, they gain a preemptive strike and attack first. Likewise, if an enemy touches the a party member from behind, they get the first strike. Combat is shown from a third-person overhead view. The IP bar at the bottom right corner of the screen displays a row of icons, which represent all party members and enemies on the screen. When an icon drifts to the mid-point of the IP Bar, that character can choose their next action. The IP Bar also shows the time it takes for enemies to attack; if the party manages to land a strike during the period where an enemy is preparing an attack, that enemy's attack is canceled.
, insists that there are still uncharted parts of the world, despite general perception that the "End of the World" — an insurmountable stone wall found on a newly discovered continent — has closed the book on the age of adventuring. Other characters include Sue, a friend from his town who acts as a surrogate sister to Justin; Feena, a seasoned adventurer and Justin's idol; Gadwin, a valiant knight who mentors Justin in the way of swordsmanship; Rapp, an ill-mannered youth from the village of Cafu; Milda, a feral giantess who, despite her volatile nature, has a sweet side, particularly for her husband; Guido, a traveling salesman and chieftain of a diminutive, rabbit-like clan called the Mogay; and Liete, a mysterious woman who contacts Justin inside the Sult Ruins. She resides in an ancient space station and serves as a living database of an ancient civilization.
The game's main antagonist is General Baal, the calculating leader of the Garlyle Forces. Despite appearing to be involved in the excavation of ruins for purely philanthropic reasons, he has his own agenda. His son and second-in-command is Colonel Mullen, a tactician who is well liked by his subordinates. Alongside him is his aide-de-camp
, Leen, a young soldier who has gained a special place in the military for reasons unknown. Nana, Saki, and Mio are three female commanders who are each assigned their own squadrons. Despite their best efforts, they often bungle important missions, particularly if Justin happens to be involved. Each one of them has a crush on Colonel Mullen and outwardly show their jealousy of Leen as a result.
Aboard the ship, Justin discovers Sue has stowed away, and meets with another young adventurer named Feena, who joins the two in saving the vessel from a haunted ship that appears in a fog. After a long journey, they arrive in the town of New Parm only to have Feena become kidnapped by the town's mayor, who wants her as his wife. Stealing her away, the three travel to a nearby ruin where they once again meet Liete deep inside, who tells them that Alent lies further within the New World beyond a massive continent-spanning wall known as "The End of the World". The Garlyle Forces intercept the three as they travel farther, and question Justin on his ability to manipulate ancient machinery within the ruins. Escaping their capture aboard a military train, the three make their way to a village at the foot of the great wall, where it is revealed that Leen is Feena's long-lost sister. Resolving to continue their journey, the team make their way up the wall, setting up camps along the way before eventually reaching the top, gaining access to the remainder of the continent on the other side.
Making their way through a forest, the three meet Gadwin, a beast-man and seasoned knight who sees potential in Justin and leads the three to the ancient Twin Towers in order to contact Liete again. After being intercepted by the Garlyle Forces once again, they make their escape, only for Sue to fall ill as they near another village. Fearing for her safety, Justin leaves Sue in the care of the villagers and continues onward with Gadwin and Feena to the bounds of the continent and yet another ocean. Taking Gadwin's ship to another island, Justin and Feena begin to express their feelings for one another. Landing on a beach outside a beast-man village, the three meet Rapp, asks them to help destroy a nearby tower that is emanating a dark energy and petrifying the land. Finding the tower to be controlled by the Garlyle Forces, the team meets with Milda, a beast-woman, inside and join her in destroying the source of the corruption, which turns out to be a plant-like creature known a "Gaia" being grown by Garlyle researchers under the orders of General Baal. After destroying the creature and taking a sample of its seeds, Justin is confronted by Leen who steals them back. Moving forward in search of Alent, the party meets a traveling merchant named Guido who leads them to his home town, where he acts as chieftain despite his young appearance, allowing them access to more ruins. It is here that Feena discovers innate magic powers that manifest in the form of wings when she is in trouble, and is promptly captured along with Justin's Spirit Stone by invading Garlyle soldiers and taken aboard Baal's flagship, the Grandeur. Baal reveals to her that he intends to revive a fully powered Gaia using the stone to take over the world and remake it to his own design. Justin, Rapp, and Guido manage to board the Grandeur and engage the Garlyle troops aboard before confronting Baal. Due to the self-destruct mechanism being activated by accident, the ship starts to fall apart, and Guido and Rapp end up getting separated from Justin, leaving him to face Baal alone. The general forces Justin to hand over the Spirit Stone by threatening Feena, but Baal keeps her hostage anyway. Justin therefore is forced to fight Baal, but learns during the fight that the madman had fused with Gaia. He knocks Justin off the burning ship, but Feena breaks free from Baal and dives after Justin. The Grandeur subsequently breaks apart in the air, apparently taking Baal and the Spirit Stone with it.
After reuniting, the party finally reach Alent. Here, Justin meets Liete in person, who reveals to him that his stone is actually an ancient artifact forged by the Icarians, a race of powerful sorcerers who lived during the Angelou era, and was a gift to the humans who lived at the time to use as they pleased to bring prosperity, but when they became corrupted by dark desires, it instead gave birth to Gaia, who nearly destroyed the world. The Icarians sacrificed themselves to save the planet and humanity, and enacted a spell that two of their kind would be born into the world should Gaia ever be revived, destined to also sacrifice themselves to save the world until the next revival in an endless loop. Realizing Feena and Leen are the current revival of the Icarians, Justin sets off to save them from the Gaia-fused Baal, who now faces mutiny among his troops, including his son Mullen. With Gaia proving more than a match for the entire Garlyle army, Leen accepts her destiny and sacrifices herself to lower his defenses. Although Mullen pleads with Feena to finish Gaia, Justin argues that the problem can't be solved with more sacrifice since Gaia will just revive later. Thus Gaia must be defeated outright to end the cycle. Though Gaia defeat the troops and spreads its corruption around the planet, Justin able to sum up the courage to face the evil with help from his friends, and travels to the underground heart of Gaia itself to destroy it and the Spirit Stone once and for all. With Gaia defeated permanently, the world experiences a new age of peace. Leen is also restored to life with Gaia's destruction. In an epilogue ten years later, Sue, now a teenager, re-unites with Justin and Feena who arrive home after nearly a decade of adventure, with children in tow.
over a period of more than two years beginning after the release of the company's previous role-playing game title, Lunar: Eternal Blue
for the Mega CD. The project, headed by producer Yoichi Miyaji and directors Takeshi Miyaji
and Toshiaki Hontani, was also originally intended for the Mega CD system, but was shifted to the Saturn
early in development due to Sega's abandoning the platform. According to a spokesman for Game Arts, Grandia was created as part of the company's on-going effort to "provide consumers with good games rather than try to follow market trends", opting instead to create a product that would tell a compelling story catering primarily to their existing fanbase. The Saturn version was released in December 1997 exclusively in Japan, along with a special Limited Edition for those who pre-ordered the game between October 25 and November 30, 1997, which included a fold-out cloth map of the Grandia world, as well as a mini radio drama
disc featuring voiced scenes from the game. In November 1998, Granda was re-released in Japan as the Grandia Memorial Package, which featured new instruction booklet artwork and a lower sales price. Sega of America had commented that they had no plans to bring an English version of the game to North American audiences on their system, which prompted an online petition originating on the role-playing game fansite LunarNET designed to alert the company of consumer interest. Despite gathering several hundred signatures in only a few days, as well as promotion from gaming website GameSpot
, the Saturn version was never released internationally.
In March 1999, Game Art's Japanese publisher ESP Software
showcased a PlayStation version of Grandia at that year's Tokyo Game Show
expo, along with confirmation that the game would be released in English for the first time in North America by Sony Computer Entertainment America
. Working Designs
, which had previously worked with Game Arts on bringing their Lunar games to the region, had expressed interest in publishing the game, but were ultimately unable to secure the rights. New features for the PlayStation version included support for the system's DualShock
analog control sticks and vibration function, as well as compatibility with Sony's Japanese-only Pocketstation
peripheral, which allows players to download game data on a portable device for use in a special mini-game. Although the company had expressed interest in bringing the game to the PlayStation as early as 1998, technical problems originally prevented the title from being ported to the system. Game Arts was later able to release the game with a slight loss in frame rate
and a marginal decrease in video effects the following June. The North American version was originally announced by Sony as a summer release during the 1999 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles
, but was pushed back to the following September. Grandia was later released for the PlayStation in Europe in 2001 by Ubisoft
.
Nearly ten years after Grandias release on the PlayStation, Game Arts announced in April 2009 that the game would be released as a downloadable title on Sony's PlayStation Network service in Japan in celebration of the resuming development on the company's long-dormant Grandia Online
project.
The music for Grandia was written by Noriyuki Iwadare
, who had previously worked with Game Arts as composer for their Lunar series on the Sega CD. Iwadare was called upon to write the music due to his relationship with the company, and claims that his work on Grandia was "a turning point in my career", and described the music-making process as "very interesting". Grandias sound team utilized the "latest technology" available at the time to create the game's background themes, included the game's main theme, "Theme of Grandia", which was composed by Iwadare in just one night after looking at an illustration for the game. In addition to music, the game also features voice acting during battles and certain story scenes, with the Japanese version featuring a number of anime
and video game veteran actors. Two of the English version's main characters, Justin and Gadwin, were officially left uncredited. "It's the End" by Japanese rock group L'Arc-en-Ciel, from the band's 1999 Album Ray, was used as the game's official commercial theme song during its re-release on the PlayStation.
In December 1997, selected music tracks from the game were released in Japan on the Grandia Original Soundtrack by King Records across two discs, which were organized as "Orchestra Side" and "Synth Side" according to the type of instrument samples used to compose them. A follow-up album, Grandia Original Soundtrack II, was made available in June 1998, containing an additional two discs of music not featured on the previous album. One year later, in June 1999, a compilation album entitled The Best of Grandia was released by Twofive Records containing some of Iwadare's favorite music from the game, including a never-before released track, "Pavane". Iwadare also produced a special arranged album called Vent: Grandia Arrange Version, with "vent" (vɑ̃) being the French word for "air", which Iwadare chose because it "carries the image of cool pleasant wind". The album was released in February 1998 by King Records and contains 12 arranged tracks, which Iwadare designed to be "an album, which people would listen at leisure on Sunday mornings".
granted the game a 32 out of 40, earning it an editor's choice Gold Award. Despite not being released outside Japan, GameSpot
covered the Saturn version in a 1998 import review, claiming that Grandia "beats out Final Fantasy VII
in all of the ways that matter," adding that the game was "not only longer, with a more engaging cast of characters, but it lacks the lulls that so many RPGs have because of these merits," awarding the game an Editor's Choice Award. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine called the game "arguably the best RPG for Sega's Saturn console." The game earned an honorable mention during the 1997 CESA
Japan Game Awards as runner-up for game of the year, and would go on to sell 344,554 copies, becoming the 15th highest-selling game for the system in the region. In addition, North American imports of the game were higher than many other games in the genre at the time due to its positive overseas reception and cancellation of the English release on the platform. In 2006, readers of Famitsu voted the Saturn version the 73rd greatest game of all time during the magazine's Top 100 Favorite Games of All Time feature.
's popular Final Fantasy series, calling it "every bit as worthwhile as Final Fantasy VIII
, just in different ways," calling attention to its sound quality that is "as complete and detailed as it visuals", but finding fault in the game's translation and voice work that was declared "inexcusable by today's standards." GamePro
magazine felt that the game had aged during its two-year transition to the PlayStation, but that the game's presentation was still "amazingly detailed and well designed." The publication would cite the game's music as its major downfall, calling it "repetitive and annoying and will have the player reaching for the volume control", as well as the relatively low detail on enemy monsters when compared to the rest of the game, yet ultimately felt that "Grandia's puzzles, gorgeous locations, and solid story more than make up for its minor flaws." IGN
, conversely, found the game's music to be "good", yet found its "overly simplistic tones and themes" to be a turn-off for some, yet adding that "you'd be selling the game short if you didn't push through and see the game to conclusion." "In 2000, IGN would rank Grandia 17th on its list of the top 25 PlayStation games of all time, calling it "Game Arts' magnum opus and probably their most historically significant project." Eurogamer
, in a 2007 retrospective, called the game "fantastic", praising the title's "vastly enjoyable battle system which few other games have rivaled, even in recent years".
Game Arts
is a Japanese video game software developer located in Tokyo, Japan. Originally established in 1985 as a computer software company, they have since expanded their enterprise to produce for a number of game console and handheld systems...
originally for the Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
console as the first game in their Grandia series. Initially released in Japan in January 1997, the game was later ported to the PlayStation in June 1999, with an English version of the game appearing on the platform in North America in the following September by SCEA
Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. is a major video game company specializing in a variety of areas in the video game industry, and is a wholly owned subsidiary and part of the Consumer Products & Services Group of Sony...
, and later in Europe in March 2001 by Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
. The game was produced by much of the same staff who worked on the company's previous role-playing endeavor, the Lunar series, including producer Yoichi Miyagi and music composer Noriyuki Iwadare
Noriyuki Iwadare
is a Japanese video game composer.-Biography:He was born in Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. He began to compose video game music after years of being involved with university bands. The first award he won the Best Game Music award, the Mega Drive/Genesis category for Lunar: The Silver...
.
Since its release, Grandia has become notable for its combat mechanics which have been carried over to future games within the franchise, and has spawned two spin-off titles - Grandia: Digital Museum
Grandia: Digital Museum
is a role-playing video game developed by Game Arts and published by ESP Software for the Sega Saturn. Released exclusively in Japan in May 1998, the game is a spin-off of the company's first Grandia title, and is designed to be more of an extension of the original than an independent game,...
and Grandia: Parallel Trippers
Grandia: Parallel Trippers
is a role-playing video game developed by Game Arts for the Game Boy Color handheld system as part of their Grandia series. The game, published by Hudson Soft and released exclusively in Japan in December 2000, is a spin-off of the first Grandia title, and features characters, music, and a similar...
- both released exclusively in Japan. In celebration of the announcement of renewing development on Grandia Online
Grandia Online
is a Japanese free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by Game Arts and published by GungHo Online Entertainment for Microsoft Windows as part of their Grandia series...
, which acts as a prequel
Prequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
to Grandia, the game was re-released on Sony's PlayStation Network platform in Japan as a downloadable title in April 2009 and in North America on February 25, 2010. It was re-released in Europe on November 10, 2010.
The game is set in a fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
world of emerging technology and exploration. A young boy named Justin inherits a magic stone that leads him on a journey around the world to uncover the mystery of a long-lost civilization. Along the way, he meets other adventurers who join him on his quest, which draws the attention of the militaristic Garlyle Forces who seek to uncover the secrets of the past as well. Grandia received a largely positive critical response during its original release, and was voted by readers of Japan's highly circulated Famitsu magazine as the 73rd greatest game of all time in a 2006 poll.
Gameplay
Grandia's environments are depicted as three-dimensional maps, with characters represented by 2-D animated bitmapRaster graphics
In computer graphics, a raster graphics image, or bitmap, is a data structure representing a generally rectangular grid of pixels, or points of color, viewable via a monitor, paper, or other display medium...
sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
s. The camera is fully rotational and follows the party from an angled third-person
Isometric projection
Isometric projection is a method for visually representing three-dimensional objects in two dimensions in technical and engineering drawings...
perspective; it is often necessary to rotate the camera in order to see hidden items or passageways.
Grandia features a rotational party roster. The statistics
Statistic (role-playing games)
A statistic in role-playing games is a piece of data which represents a particular aspect of a fictional character. That piece of data is usually a integer or, in some cases, a set of dice....
of each party member increase each time they gain a new level by defeating enemies and earning experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s. Characters learn new abilities through the repeated use of weapons and spells. Once a particular weapon/magic spell is used a number of times in battle, its Skill Level is raised. Weapons are divided into different classes, including sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s, maces, axe
Battle axe
A battle axe is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes...
s, whip
Whip
A whip is a tool traditionally used by humans to exert control over animals or other people, through pain compliance or fear of pain, although in some activities whips can be used without use of pain, such as an additional pressure aid in dressage...
s and knives. Each party member's potential abilities are listed on a Skill screen within the game's main menu, as well as the Skill requirements that must be met in order to learn them. The game encourages players to periodically switch between weapons. When a weapon or magic element levels up, permanent stat points are added to that character as well. For example, when a character's water skill levels up, they also receive +1 HP as well as +2 MP.
Monsters in Grandia are visible on the field and wander around aimlessly until the party gets close. A battle begins once the monster touches a party member. If the player manages to sneak up on the enemy and make contact from the rear, they gain a preemptive strike and attack first. Likewise, if an enemy touches the a party member from behind, they get the first strike. Combat is shown from a third-person overhead view. The IP bar at the bottom right corner of the screen displays a row of icons, which represent all party members and enemies on the screen. When an icon drifts to the mid-point of the IP Bar, that character can choose their next action. The IP Bar also shows the time it takes for enemies to attack; if the party manages to land a strike during the period where an enemy is preparing an attack, that enemy's attack is canceled.
Characters
The story centers around Justin, an aspiring adventurer from Parm. He lives with his mother, Lilly, in their home in the upstairs floor of their family-owned restaurant. Justin's father vanished years ago on an adventure, and his mother is worried that he will try to follow in her late husband's footsteps, yet Justin, a romanticistRomanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
, insists that there are still uncharted parts of the world, despite general perception that the "End of the World" — an insurmountable stone wall found on a newly discovered continent — has closed the book on the age of adventuring. Other characters include Sue, a friend from his town who acts as a surrogate sister to Justin; Feena, a seasoned adventurer and Justin's idol; Gadwin, a valiant knight who mentors Justin in the way of swordsmanship; Rapp, an ill-mannered youth from the village of Cafu; Milda, a feral giantess who, despite her volatile nature, has a sweet side, particularly for her husband; Guido, a traveling salesman and chieftain of a diminutive, rabbit-like clan called the Mogay; and Liete, a mysterious woman who contacts Justin inside the Sult Ruins. She resides in an ancient space station and serves as a living database of an ancient civilization.
The game's main antagonist is General Baal, the calculating leader of the Garlyle Forces. Despite appearing to be involved in the excavation of ruins for purely philanthropic reasons, he has his own agenda. His son and second-in-command is Colonel Mullen, a tactician who is well liked by his subordinates. Alongside him is his aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
, Leen, a young soldier who has gained a special place in the military for reasons unknown. Nana, Saki, and Mio are three female commanders who are each assigned their own squadrons. Despite their best efforts, they often bungle important missions, particularly if Justin happens to be involved. Each one of them has a crush on Colonel Mullen and outwardly show their jealousy of Leen as a result.
Story
Grandia is a set in a fantasy world where societies thrive in an era of increasing technological developments following the collapse of the ancient Angelou civilization centuries before. General Baal, leader of the militaristic Garlyle Forces, along with his son Colonel Mullen and Mullen's love interest Lieutenant Leen, make their way to an arcaeological site where treasures of the ancient people are believed to be resting. Justin, a young boy keen on adventure who lives in the port town of Parm just outside the dig site, travels to the area along with his friend Sue to investigate, as well as gather clues about an artifact left by Justin's missing father, the Spirit Stone. Slipping past the Garlyle soldiers into the ruins, Justin finds a holographic device that displays the image of a women named Liete, who tells him that his stone holds great power, and he must travel far to the east in search of Alent, the ancient city of knowledge, to learn of its true potential. Returning home, Justin avoids his mother and sneaks out to the docks early the next day to board a ship bound for the New World across the ocean while promising to become a great adventurer like his father.Aboard the ship, Justin discovers Sue has stowed away, and meets with another young adventurer named Feena, who joins the two in saving the vessel from a haunted ship that appears in a fog. After a long journey, they arrive in the town of New Parm only to have Feena become kidnapped by the town's mayor, who wants her as his wife. Stealing her away, the three travel to a nearby ruin where they once again meet Liete deep inside, who tells them that Alent lies further within the New World beyond a massive continent-spanning wall known as "The End of the World". The Garlyle Forces intercept the three as they travel farther, and question Justin on his ability to manipulate ancient machinery within the ruins. Escaping their capture aboard a military train, the three make their way to a village at the foot of the great wall, where it is revealed that Leen is Feena's long-lost sister. Resolving to continue their journey, the team make their way up the wall, setting up camps along the way before eventually reaching the top, gaining access to the remainder of the continent on the other side.
Making their way through a forest, the three meet Gadwin, a beast-man and seasoned knight who sees potential in Justin and leads the three to the ancient Twin Towers in order to contact Liete again. After being intercepted by the Garlyle Forces once again, they make their escape, only for Sue to fall ill as they near another village. Fearing for her safety, Justin leaves Sue in the care of the villagers and continues onward with Gadwin and Feena to the bounds of the continent and yet another ocean. Taking Gadwin's ship to another island, Justin and Feena begin to express their feelings for one another. Landing on a beach outside a beast-man village, the three meet Rapp, asks them to help destroy a nearby tower that is emanating a dark energy and petrifying the land. Finding the tower to be controlled by the Garlyle Forces, the team meets with Milda, a beast-woman, inside and join her in destroying the source of the corruption, which turns out to be a plant-like creature known a "Gaia" being grown by Garlyle researchers under the orders of General Baal. After destroying the creature and taking a sample of its seeds, Justin is confronted by Leen who steals them back. Moving forward in search of Alent, the party meets a traveling merchant named Guido who leads them to his home town, where he acts as chieftain despite his young appearance, allowing them access to more ruins. It is here that Feena discovers innate magic powers that manifest in the form of wings when she is in trouble, and is promptly captured along with Justin's Spirit Stone by invading Garlyle soldiers and taken aboard Baal's flagship, the Grandeur. Baal reveals to her that he intends to revive a fully powered Gaia using the stone to take over the world and remake it to his own design. Justin, Rapp, and Guido manage to board the Grandeur and engage the Garlyle troops aboard before confronting Baal. Due to the self-destruct mechanism being activated by accident, the ship starts to fall apart, and Guido and Rapp end up getting separated from Justin, leaving him to face Baal alone. The general forces Justin to hand over the Spirit Stone by threatening Feena, but Baal keeps her hostage anyway. Justin therefore is forced to fight Baal, but learns during the fight that the madman had fused with Gaia. He knocks Justin off the burning ship, but Feena breaks free from Baal and dives after Justin. The Grandeur subsequently breaks apart in the air, apparently taking Baal and the Spirit Stone with it.
After reuniting, the party finally reach Alent. Here, Justin meets Liete in person, who reveals to him that his stone is actually an ancient artifact forged by the Icarians, a race of powerful sorcerers who lived during the Angelou era, and was a gift to the humans who lived at the time to use as they pleased to bring prosperity, but when they became corrupted by dark desires, it instead gave birth to Gaia, who nearly destroyed the world. The Icarians sacrificed themselves to save the planet and humanity, and enacted a spell that two of their kind would be born into the world should Gaia ever be revived, destined to also sacrifice themselves to save the world until the next revival in an endless loop. Realizing Feena and Leen are the current revival of the Icarians, Justin sets off to save them from the Gaia-fused Baal, who now faces mutiny among his troops, including his son Mullen. With Gaia proving more than a match for the entire Garlyle army, Leen accepts her destiny and sacrifices herself to lower his defenses. Although Mullen pleads with Feena to finish Gaia, Justin argues that the problem can't be solved with more sacrifice since Gaia will just revive later. Thus Gaia must be defeated outright to end the cycle. Though Gaia defeat the troops and spreads its corruption around the planet, Justin able to sum up the courage to face the evil with help from his friends, and travels to the underground heart of Gaia itself to destroy it and the Spirit Stone once and for all. With Gaia defeated permanently, the world experiences a new age of peace. Leen is also restored to life with Gaia's destruction. In an epilogue ten years later, Sue, now a teenager, re-unites with Justin and Feena who arrive home after nearly a decade of adventure, with children in tow.
Development
Grandia was developed by Game ArtsGame Arts
is a Japanese video game software developer located in Tokyo, Japan. Originally established in 1985 as a computer software company, they have since expanded their enterprise to produce for a number of game console and handheld systems...
over a period of more than two years beginning after the release of the company's previous role-playing game title, Lunar: Eternal Blue
Lunar: Eternal Blue
is a role-playing video game developed by Game Arts and Studio Alex for the Mega-CD as the sequel to Lunar: The Silver Star. The game was originally released in December 1994 in Japan, and later in North America in September 1995 by Working Designs...
for the Mega CD. The project, headed by producer Yoichi Miyaji and directors Takeshi Miyaji
Takeshi Miyaji
was a Japanese video game developer who founded the developent companies Game Arts and G-Mode. He was best known as the creator of the Silpheed, GunGriffon and Grandia video game series. His work on the Lunar and Grandia series in particular had a major influence on the development of role-playing...
and Toshiaki Hontani, was also originally intended for the Mega CD system, but was shifted to the Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
early in development due to Sega's abandoning the platform. According to a spokesman for Game Arts, Grandia was created as part of the company's on-going effort to "provide consumers with good games rather than try to follow market trends", opting instead to create a product that would tell a compelling story catering primarily to their existing fanbase. The Saturn version was released in December 1997 exclusively in Japan, along with a special Limited Edition for those who pre-ordered the game between October 25 and November 30, 1997, which included a fold-out cloth map of the Grandia world, as well as a mini radio drama
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
disc featuring voiced scenes from the game. In November 1998, Granda was re-released in Japan as the Grandia Memorial Package, which featured new instruction booklet artwork and a lower sales price. Sega of America had commented that they had no plans to bring an English version of the game to North American audiences on their system, which prompted an online petition originating on the role-playing game fansite LunarNET designed to alert the company of consumer interest. Despite gathering several hundred signatures in only a few days, as well as promotion from gaming website GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
, the Saturn version was never released internationally.
In March 1999, Game Art's Japanese publisher ESP Software
Entertainment Software Publishing
Entertainment Software Publishing , or ESP, is a computer game publisher. It was created in 1997, primarily as a support company for the developer studios that made up GD-NET...
showcased a PlayStation version of Grandia at that year's Tokyo Game Show
Tokyo Game Show
The , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association and the Nikkei Business Publications, Inc...
expo, along with confirmation that the game would be released in English for the first time in North America by Sony Computer Entertainment America
Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. is a major video game company specializing in a variety of areas in the video game industry, and is a wholly owned subsidiary and part of the Consumer Products & Services Group of Sony...
. Working Designs
Working Designs
Working Designs was an American video game publisher that specialized in the localization of Japanese console role-playing games, strategy video games and top-down shooters for various video game platforms. Though the company had published many 'cult hits', it was known best to fans as the...
, which had previously worked with Game Arts on bringing their Lunar games to the region, had expressed interest in publishing the game, but were ultimately unable to secure the rights. New features for the PlayStation version included support for the system's DualShock
DualShock
The DualShock is a line of vibration-feedback gamepads by Sony for the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3 video game consoles. The DualShock was introduced in Japan in late 1997, and launched in the North American market in May 1998...
analog control sticks and vibration function, as well as compatibility with Sony's Japanese-only Pocketstation
PocketStation
The is a peripheral by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation home video game console. Categorized by Sony as a miniature personal digital assistant, the device features a monochrome liquid crystal display , infrared communication capability, a real-time clock, built-in flash memory, and...
peripheral, which allows players to download game data on a portable device for use in a special mini-game. Although the company had expressed interest in bringing the game to the PlayStation as early as 1998, technical problems originally prevented the title from being ported to the system. Game Arts was later able to release the game with a slight loss in frame rate
Frame rate
Frame rate is the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images called frames. The term applies equally well to computer graphics, video cameras, film cameras, and motion capture systems...
and a marginal decrease in video effects the following June. The North American version was originally announced by Sony as a summer release during the 1999 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, but was pushed back to the following September. Grandia was later released for the PlayStation in Europe in 2001 by Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
.
Nearly ten years after Grandias release on the PlayStation, Game Arts announced in April 2009 that the game would be released as a downloadable title on Sony's PlayStation Network service in Japan in celebration of the resuming development on the company's long-dormant Grandia Online
Grandia Online
is a Japanese free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by Game Arts and published by GungHo Online Entertainment for Microsoft Windows as part of their Grandia series...
project.
Audio
| Voice actors | ||
|---|---|---|
| Character | Japanese | English |
| Justin | Fujiko Takimoto Fujiko Takimoto is a Japanese voice actress born in Osaka, Japan who is famous for her part in voicing child Link from The Legend of Zelda series. She is currently affiliated with Arts Vision.-Anime:*Captain Tsubasa *Mahoujin Guru Guru... |
Snazin Smith |
| Feena | Noriko Hidaka Noriko Hidaka , real name , maiden name is a seiyū, or voice actor. Hidaka is most known for the roles of Mikage Matsunaga , Minami Asakura , Akane Tendo , Satsuki Kusakabe , Near , Seta Sōjirō , Jean , Kikyo , and Noriko Takaya .Hidaka... |
Angela Anderson |
| Sue | Kumiko Nishihara Kumiko Nishihara is a Japanese voice actress who was born in Chigasaki, Kanagawa and works for Aoni Production.-Notable anime roles:*Ayane's High Kick *Cool Devices *Digimon Frontier *Dragon Ball Z... |
Blaney R. Aikman |
| Gadwin | Rokurō Naya Rokuro Naya is a Japanese voice actor. He is the brother of voice actor Gorō Naya. A lifetime resident of Tokyo, he is affiliated with Mausu Promotion.-Anime:*Aquarius Camus in Saint Seiya*Sensui Shinobu in Yu Yu Hakusho*Enchou in Crayon Shin-chan... |
Uncredited |
| Rapp | Kappei Yamaguchi Kappei Yamaguchi , better known by his stage name of , is a Japanese voice actor and actor from Fukuoka, affiliated with Gokū and 21st Century Fox.He is best known for the roles of Ranma Saotome , Jackson Neil , Tombo , Yattaro , InuYasha , Ryuichi Sakuma , L , Usopp... |
John W. |
| Milda | Chika Sakamoto Chika Sakamoto is a Japanese voice actress from Tokyo affiliated with Arts Vision.-Television animation:*Baby and Me *Ashita no Nadja *Legend of the Mystical Ninja *Fighting Foodons *Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ... |
Sharon Coleman |
| Guido | Yoshiko Kamei Yoshiko Kamei is a Japanese voice actress from Ibaraki Prefecture. She is affiliated with Mausu Promotion.-Animation:*Atashin'chi *Baby and Me *Beyblade *B't X... |
Scott Beers |
| Liete | Kikuko Inoue Kikuko Inoue is a popular Japanese voice actress and singer. She has been part of the singing groups DoCo and Goddess Family Club, among others, and is the manager of her voice-acting company, Office Anemone. Inoue tends to play the "perfect girlfriend" or "motherly" role in many series, but she has also played... |
Sharon Coleman |
| Puffy | Hikari Tachibana Hikari Tachibana is a Japanese voice actress . Notably, she performs the voices of Princess Zelda and Tetra in the video game The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and had a minor role in two episodes of anime series InuYasha... |
Hikari Tachibana |
| General Baal | Norio Wakamoto Norio Wakamoto is a veteran male seiyū and budō expert affiliated with Sigma Seven. He was born in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, and was raised in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture. He graduated from Waseda University... |
Scott Beers |
| Colonel Mullen | Jūrōta Kosugi Jurota Kosugi is a Japanese voice actor. His deep voice is often used for rough and imposing characters. He is well known for playing the role of Sukashii from Kyattou Ninden Teyandee and Asuma Sarutobi from Naruto.... |
Tim Bosley |
| Leen | Hikari Tachibana Hikari Tachibana is a Japanese voice actress . Notably, she performs the voices of Princess Zelda and Tetra in the video game The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and had a minor role in two episodes of anime series InuYasha... |
Nicole Weiss |
| Nana | Yumi Tōma Yumi Toma is a Japanese singer and voice actresss from Chiba. She has been part of the singing group Goddess Family Club. Tōma also works for Aoni Production. Because of her mature voice, she often plays strong, beautiful women.... |
Maria H. Hernandez |
| Saki | Junko Hagimori Junko Hagimori is a Japanese voice actress who works for Aoni Production.-Anime:*Lu and Su in Blue Gender*Higuma-san in Bonobono*Nene-chan's Mom in Crayon Shin-chan*Misaki Sakura in Hanasaka Tenshi Ten-Ten-kun*Cookie in Kishin Corps*VesVes in Sailor Moon Supers... |
Blaney R. Aikman |
| Mio | Aya Hisakawa Aya Hisakawa is a Japanese voice actress and J-pop singer born in Kaizuka, Osaka. In addition to releasing various solo CDs, she is well known for her anime voice roles, and has also done some work in video games. She is best known for her role of Sailor Mercury of the Sailor Moon fame and also Cerberus from... |
Christal Garcia |
| Lilly | Yumi Tōma Yumi Toma is a Japanese singer and voice actresss from Chiba. She has been part of the singing group Goddess Family Club. Tōma also works for Aoni Production. Because of her mature voice, she often plays strong, beautiful women.... |
Angela Anderson |
| Nicky | Uncredited | Anthony Garcia Jr. |
| Boy | Uncredited | Anthony Garcia Jr. |
The music for Grandia was written by Noriyuki Iwadare
Noriyuki Iwadare
is a Japanese video game composer.-Biography:He was born in Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. He began to compose video game music after years of being involved with university bands. The first award he won the Best Game Music award, the Mega Drive/Genesis category for Lunar: The Silver...
, who had previously worked with Game Arts as composer for their Lunar series on the Sega CD. Iwadare was called upon to write the music due to his relationship with the company, and claims that his work on Grandia was "a turning point in my career", and described the music-making process as "very interesting". Grandias sound team utilized the "latest technology" available at the time to create the game's background themes, included the game's main theme, "Theme of Grandia", which was composed by Iwadare in just one night after looking at an illustration for the game. In addition to music, the game also features voice acting during battles and certain story scenes, with the Japanese version featuring a number of anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
and video game veteran actors. Two of the English version's main characters, Justin and Gadwin, were officially left uncredited. "It's the End" by Japanese rock group L'Arc-en-Ciel, from the band's 1999 Album Ray, was used as the game's official commercial theme song during its re-release on the PlayStation.
In December 1997, selected music tracks from the game were released in Japan on the Grandia Original Soundtrack by King Records across two discs, which were organized as "Orchestra Side" and "Synth Side" according to the type of instrument samples used to compose them. A follow-up album, Grandia Original Soundtrack II, was made available in June 1998, containing an additional two discs of music not featured on the previous album. One year later, in June 1999, a compilation album entitled The Best of Grandia was released by Twofive Records containing some of Iwadare's favorite music from the game, including a never-before released track, "Pavane". Iwadare also produced a special arranged album called Vent: Grandia Arrange Version, with "vent" (vɑ̃) being the French word for "air", which Iwadare chose because it "carries the image of cool pleasant wind". The album was released in February 1998 by King Records and contains 12 arranged tracks, which Iwadare designed to be "an album, which people would listen at leisure on Sunday mornings".
Reception
Saturn version
Grandia received near-universal acclaim during its original released in Japan, garnering a 9 out of 10 from both Sega Saturn Magazine and Saturn Fan, as well as a 8.75 out of 10 from Weekly TV Gamer. Weekly FamitsuFamitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
granted the game a 32 out of 40, earning it an editor's choice Gold Award. Despite not being released outside Japan, GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
covered the Saturn version in a 1998 import review, claiming that Grandia "beats out Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VII
is a role-playing video game developed by Square and published by Sony Computer Entertainment as the seventh installment in the Final Fantasy series. It was originally released in 1997 for the Sony PlayStation and was re-released in 1998 for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers and in 2009...
in all of the ways that matter," adding that the game was "not only longer, with a more engaging cast of characters, but it lacks the lulls that so many RPGs have because of these merits," awarding the game an Editor's Choice Award. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine called the game "arguably the best RPG for Sega's Saturn console." The game earned an honorable mention during the 1997 CESA
Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association
Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association is a Japanese organization that was established in 1996 to "promote the computer entertainment industry [...] with the aim of contributing to the strengthening of Japanese industry as well as to the further enrichment of people's lifestyles." It...
Japan Game Awards as runner-up for game of the year, and would go on to sell 344,554 copies, becoming the 15th highest-selling game for the system in the region. In addition, North American imports of the game were higher than many other games in the genre at the time due to its positive overseas reception and cancellation of the English release on the platform. In 2006, readers of Famitsu voted the Saturn version the 73rd greatest game of all time during the magazine's Top 100 Favorite Games of All Time feature.
PlayStation version
The PlayStation version of Grandia met with similarly positive reception to the Saturn release, though sales remained lower than the original in Japan, selling approximately 97,460 copies in its first three weeks. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine named it as one of the "25 Games You Must Play in 1999", praising the title's colorful presentation and "innovative battle system" and "elegant character advancement system", yet found the game's English voice acting to be "depressingly awkward". GameSpot once again compared Grandia to SquareSquare (company)
was a Japanese video game company founded in September 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto. It merged with Enix in 2003 and became part of Square Enix...
's popular Final Fantasy series, calling it "every bit as worthwhile as Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy VIII
is a role-playing video game released for the PlayStation in 1999 and for Windows-based personal computers in 2000. It was developed and published by Square as the Final Fantasy series' eighth title, removing magic point-based spell-casting and the first title to consistently use realistically...
, just in different ways," calling attention to its sound quality that is "as complete and detailed as it visuals", but finding fault in the game's translation and voice work that was declared "inexcusable by today's standards." GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
magazine felt that the game had aged during its two-year transition to the PlayStation, but that the game's presentation was still "amazingly detailed and well designed." The publication would cite the game's music as its major downfall, calling it "repetitive and annoying and will have the player reaching for the volume control", as well as the relatively low detail on enemy monsters when compared to the rest of the game, yet ultimately felt that "Grandia's puzzles, gorgeous locations, and solid story more than make up for its minor flaws." IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
, conversely, found the game's music to be "good", yet found its "overly simplistic tones and themes" to be a turn-off for some, yet adding that "you'd be selling the game short if you didn't push through and see the game to conclusion." "In 2000, IGN would rank Grandia 17th on its list of the top 25 PlayStation games of all time, calling it "Game Arts' magnum opus and probably their most historically significant project." Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
, in a 2007 retrospective, called the game "fantastic", praising the title's "vastly enjoyable battle system which few other games have rivaled, even in recent years".