Sony‘s PlayStation 2 has had its fair share of decent RPGs, but Grandia III – first released in 2005 by Game Arts and Square Enix – is one that sticks in my mind clearly.

Grandia III is beautifully-produced, with excellent audio/visuals – maybe a bit too much in terms of video cut scenes – but nicely produced nonetheless.

You play a young boy called Yuki (and his companions), and who is drawn into a rescue mission when he sees a young girl being chased by a group of men. As a pilot, Yuki flies from location to location, using a variety of different vehicles, all powered by some kind of magic. This ‘flying’ theme is a major part of Grandia III‘s gameplay.

Combat in Grandia III is similar to the other Grandia games. It’s essentially turn-based, but with real-time elements. There’s a timeline, and all participants are shown on it as moving icons. If you time your attacks correctly you can cancel an opponent’s attack, and this is key to winning most of the tougher battles. It’s what makes Grandia so good.

Whether this third game in the series is better than the second one is a matter of taste. Personally, I prefer Grandia II, although there’s no denying that the more-refined interface and extended visuals of Grandia III are highly appealing.

More: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandia_III