Legacy Review





Developer: Redshift Publisher: Redshift
Release Date: N/A Also On: None

In late June 2004 people were asking for reviews of some RPGs for the Palm OS and I immediately thought of Legacy by Redshift. I had heard only great things about the developer and the game so I contacted them for a copy. That, my friends, was a mistake. My PDA used to get great battery life and I had all sorts of free time. Now I stay up until the wee hours of the morning finishing my current quest and have to constantly charge my battery from all the playing time. I still haven’t been able to stop playing this game (early September).

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Legacy is THE Role Playing Game to own for Palm/Tapwave systems. It has everything you could ask for from an RPG. Except perhaps, the story. There is almost none to speak of except for your standard RPG filler and even then it’s sub par, but that’s okay. I don’t care too much for the story anyway.

Legacy is a PC style RPG (hence, the lack of story), that includes different characters, leveling up, massive maps, towns, dozens of creatures, hundreds of weapons and numerous spells. All of this is presented to the user in a very user-friendly atmosphere that never intrudes with the gaming experience, but enhances instead.

There are numerous quests to go on that will be assigned to you by various people in each of the towns. The barkeep will usually have one, some peasant, that sort of thing. Whether it is finding gold for a beggar or finding the Priests amulet (one of my favorites), they are all quite enjoyable and don’t take to long as to cause boredom.

The interface is one of the best I have seen on a system with such a small screen. Party members are dealt with at the bar and can be traded independently with one another. Party selection is a crucial part of the game. Only the front two members of the party can attack directly so I decided to keep a healer in the back for helping the party and someone equipped with a bow and arrow to help attack the monsters. Items, the quest log and the map are also available in the menu.

The graphics in the game are great for a Palm OS system. The characters are extremely detailed and even show what items they are using on their person at all times. The labyrinths, forests and towns (all shown in first person) are all detailed enough to walk around in without needing a map and will impress almost all that play. While the game requires a 320×320 screen, 320×480 is highly recommended.

The sound in Palm OS games is steadily improving and Legacy doesn’t differ from this. Ambient noise really does it for me, and this game has it. From cracking fire to creaking doors this doesn’t disappoint. While the game doesn’t have a soundtrack it does provide all I’m looking for.

While the game length is great to start with (30+ hours), the game is almost infinitely playable because of the add-on expansion packs. There are already several released and there are soon to be more. While I am not a fan of old-school/PC style RPGs Legacy had me hooked from the beginning. For having almost no competition other than themselves Redshift really outdid themselves with this one. I can’t wait for the sequel.

Graphics: 8.5
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 8.5
Creativity: 8
Replay Value/Game Length: 10
Final: 9.1
Written by Chris Review Guide

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