Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness Reviews
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is a microcosm of everything wrong with modern JRPGs, from its slapdash presentation to its trope-filled narrative. Worst of all, it's seen fit to cram in everything that genre aficionados hate: unskippable cutscenes, greyed-out save points and painfully poor AI are just a few of the hurdles you'll face on your way to fun.
This game tries to hitch a ride on the nostalgia train without paying the due fees first. For hardcore Star Ocean fans only.
Woefully inadequate AI makes boring combat frustrating.
Old school to a fault, the worst thing about this Japanese role-player is it doesn’t seem to have any idea just how clichéd and outdated it really is.
Star Ocean Integrity and Faithlessness is a sub-par JRPG that has a list of problems as long as its name.
This latest installment of the Star Ocean series leaves a blemish on its otherwise good track record.
The things the game does well are worth an experience, but only at a budget price. Until then, I’d recommend looking elsewhere for your JRPG fix, and spare yourself the disappointment.
One small step forward from Star Ocean 4, one giant leap from being a compelling experience. Integrity and Faithlessness is, much like Fiore's outfit, a case of the Emperor's New Clothes.
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness carries a weight of expectation that it is incapable of satisfying. A legacy JRPG franchise, published by Square Enix, should have some meaning, but here it translates to pure mediocrity. Series fans may find some brighter elements to latch onto, but for JRPG stalwarts there are far better examples of the genre.
While Star Ocean started as an innovative series full of fun, bold ideas, its current form amounts to the most middle-of-the-road RPG experience you could possibly have. It's not particularly awful, but in a reality full of RPGs, so many better options exist.
Star Ocean's return is a bumpy ride, with slick combat and smart upgrade systems bogged down by a watery story and some frustrating technical designs.
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness has good ideas but never goes anywhere with them
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is flat-out disappointing, from its bland cast and story to its problematic battle system and recycled content
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness wants to be a grand sci-fi JRPG, but its mediocre production values undercut it at almost every opportunity.
While it’s understandable that Square Enix wanted to create a Star Ocean more like the fondly remembered early titles of the series, they seem to have forgotten what made those titles great. Whatever it was, Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness has none of it.
It seems Star Ocean fans are let down once again, with another mediocre entry for the series. This is hard to recommend, even to hardcore JRPG fans. Stale combat, and other gameplay issues ultimately prevent this game from being able to stand up with previous, more enjoyable Star Ocean titles.
Star Ocean is perhaps more accurately described as Star Pond, or Star Singular Drop In An Unseen, Unexplored Ocean. Limited and lacklustre.
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is an RPG that merely fulfills its obligations. It's not awful thanks to a cast of likeable characters and an interesting premise, but an abundance of clichés, uneven polish, and messy combat and AI make it less than memorable. And as its main story only provides around 20 hours of playtime instead of the 60 or more the series usually delivers, some of those obligations aren’t met in full. As for me, I can't say I regret my time with Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness, but 20 hours was enough.
Overall, Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is a step up from Star Ocean IV and also a step in the right direction for the series.