August 9, 2010 - Mediocre - If you're one of those players who simply can't make do without a Tales-like RPG experience every few months, Arc Rise Fantasia might have enough of what you're looking for. But for most players, the game will simply be a flashback to the bad ol' days of the mid-'90s, when shoestring localization budgets botched many an epic RPG adventure.

August 9, 2010 - Mediocre - Most random encounters are trivially easy, but bosses hit like trucks. The result is a serious need to power-level and grind up enough gold to buy every upgrade you can and stock up on a bounty of healing items if you want a chance of even eking by. But when the reward for beating the next boss is just more bland gameplay, it just isn't worth the effort.

August 5, 2010 - Mediocre - Ultimately all the fighting, tweaking and customization in this sprawling epic are in service of dull-as-dirt plot and characters. It's a shame, too. Visually L'Arc and his crew are appealing. Perhaps it's asking too much for a game like Arc Rise Fantasia to be original or even competent in its storytelling. The JRPG is nothing if not enslaved to tradition.

August 3, 2010 - Mediocre - If the only system you have is a Wii and you need an RPG, this certainly isn't a bad title to settle for. For gamers with more console options, however, the enjoyment you'll derive from Arc Rise Fantasia will likely be tied to how much you like combat, since the story certainly isn't anything worthwhile.

August 13, 2010 - Mediocre - Arc Rise Fantasia isn't a bad game, but it's an unfortunate victim of the "two steps forward, one step back" rule. As a result, the good moments do manage to outweigh the not so good, which is a lot more than can be said for many games that hit the market at this time of the year.

July 16, 2010 - Mediocre - Arc Rise Fantasia is one of those games that doesn't do a whole lot wrong, but doesn't do a whole lot right either. The battle system works well enough, the story is comprehensible, and the graphics are actually quite pretty, for a Wii game. But it couldn't be more generic if it tried.

August 3, 2010 - Mediocre - There's certainly some ambition behind Arc Rise Fantasia, but the game doesn't come close to approaching its potential. The intricate combat mechanics and exciting battle system can't make up for the poor production values, not to mention the sheer amount of repetitive grinding the game demands.

August 13, 2010 - Mediocre - Arc Rise has all the pieces of JRPGs that I'd come to fear over the years. The oddest thing about my time with Arc Rise, though, was that I actually kind of enjoyed my time with it despite the terrible story and boring stretches.

August 12, 2010 - Mediocre - Arc Rise Fantasia is a struggle from beginning to end; it's a game that makes very little effort to make you like it. While that may be a mysterious and sexy characteristic for a stranger at a bar, it doesn't work as well for games. Furthermore, a title that so blatantly copies genre greats should really be a lot more fun to play.