Handheld
Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled
By Ryan Newman
Jul 20, 2009, 7 :14 am

One of the more beloved role-playing games (RPG) to come out of the 16-bit era was SquareSoft’s (now Square Enix) Chrono Trigger. Featuring an epic storyline that spanned several epochs, a time-activated combat system that involved multi-member combos, and a memorable cast, Chrono Trigger has continued to charm throughout the years with releases on the PlayStation and DS.

In Montréal, Canada, some were more than enamored with Square Enix’s earlier work; they were inspired.  Maya Anderson, Eunice Chou, Vincent Dehaut, and Pierre-Yves Leclerc joined together to form Studio Archcraft in 2001 to create their own RPG. In an interview with 4 color rebellion, Dehaut listed Final Fantasy 6 and Chrono Trigger as inspirations, but the team didn’t want to simply recreate their muses, they wanted to surpass them. Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled (Black Sigil), originally known as Project Exile, is that game.

To say that Studio Archcraft didn’t succeed isn’t necessarily true. It’s a tough call actually, because it depends on how much leeway you wish to give to an homage. I call Black Sigil an homage because that is what I took from it, though it could easily be mistaken for something a little more litigious.  I view Black Sigil as I viewed the numerous Doom clones in the 1990s: more of the same stuff that I enjoy. Of course, most Doom clones weren’t as accomplished, technically or design-wise, as id’s offering, and the same applies to Black Sigil and Chrono Trigger. I signal Chrono Trigger out specifically because it’s clear just how much its influence dominated the development. Perhaps unsurprisingly, where the two diverge the most, in the approach to engaging enemies, is exactly where Black Sigil comes up short.

Fans of the era will find themselves on familiar footing, although most will be surprised at the presentation. While the graphics and sound follow the formula, and are far from taxing the DS, they are both outstanding. The world view is a bit pixilated – in true Mode 7 fashion – but the local views and character designs are great, featuring plenty of detail and eye-catching colors. Even the static character conversation images are good, drawn in a style that hints at a manga influence with some Western sensibilities. The in-game characters and conversation images do a great job conveying the emotions of the characters, particularly the Warner Bros.-style scripted comedic sequences and deadpan responses when jokes fall flat during conversations. Paths aren’t always clearly visible, but hitting walls and dead ends is fortunately infrequent. Elevating throughout is an infectious soundtrack with zippy and sweeping tunes that compliment the visuals nicely.

The story is epic in its own right. You won’t be jumping through the ages, but you will find a lengthy quest that manages to avoid the failing of many RPGs by having characters that avoid being on either end of the personality scale, silent and brooding or loud and wacky. Black Sigil certainly takes its cues from their inspirations for the dialog, but the banter is more playful and the requisite silent party members less melancholy. The characters aren’t necessarily memorable, but they centered enough on the scale to keep them interesting. It helps that they have their own storylines, and you aren’t immediately the be-all of their lives; they have their own plans and will pop in and out as they go off to do their own thing. The multiple stories tie in cohesively to the main plot, making for a satisfying adventure.

The protagonist, Kairu, is the exiled stepson of the Kingdom of Bel Lenora’s Duke Averay. Banished from the kingdom due to his lack of magical abilities, under suspicion of the populace due to a famous trader with a similar affliction, he is joined by his stepsister, and powerful magician, Aurora. The two find themselves traveling around the world and discovering dungeons, ruins, and kingdoms warring with one another. The story begins to kick in whenever the duo find themselves in a land where magic is barred, which, followed immediately by Aurora’s groan-inducing abuse of the McGuffin to get them in trouble, is when the other characters enter the scene. The tales aren’t Baldur’s Gate depth, but they are more involved than usual and offer great pretexts for voyaging.

The most striking resemblance to Chrono Trigger is undoubtedly the combat system. Utilizing a similar advance-time system, characters have a meter that continually builds but drains once an action takes place; likewise, characters can even link their moves together to perform team combos. It’s nearly identical. But there is a big difference: random encounters. Enemies aren’t visible on the screen, so there is no way to actively avoid them. And oh how you will wish that you could avoid them. My biggest problem with Black Sigil is the encounter rate; it’s absolutely ridiculous. I’m talking a fight every three or four feet. The slogging makes getting from town to town, much less exploring for treasure, a chore. The core system is definitely good, but there are other problems in conjunction with the encounter rate that can make the game downright irritating.

Two big problems that plague combat are the presence of obstacles on the battlefield and the buffer zone around objects. There were times when a character clearly had enough clearance to circumvent a hindrance, but the game wouldn’t let them advance, often completely blocking members from reaching the enemy. Due to there being a limited number of battlefields per area, those that are poorly designed will be fought on over and over. With no option to set up your members before a battle, the only way to avoid slugging it out in an unfavorable position is to run away. The undocumented escape feature – hold B – might seem like a sound workaround, but it’s not: enemies get ‘free’ hits while your characters run in place before escaping. This leads to a serious problem of attrition in that even weak creatures are dangerous due to the high encounter rate gradually draining your skill points and potions; it doesn’t matter than your health is restored after each battle whenever enemies can take a third of your health off with one attack. You are especially out of luck if you aren’t near one of the infrequent save or heal points while in a tough area, because the game is highly restrictive on where you can save. Quick saving is possible, but it’s there for when you need to quit in a hurry, with the manual warning to not rely on it as not saving often may leave you stuck. How can you get stuck? The encounter rate, that’s how. There are some instances in which the party splits, doubling the pain. To top it off, many enemies get a parting shot before they die.

Healing is the most obvious solution to being wounded. That is easier said than done. You will have various healing spells accessible by different party members, but there are times when magic isn’t available, either due to a story element or when you suffer an adverse effect (i.e. blindness) before the battle even loads. Purchasing healing items is troublesome due to the high cost of everything, where hours of work can be wiped out with a few new weapons – and the handful of herbs being consumed within a few rounds. I don’t mind grinding – I find some grinding comforting – but Black Sigil goes far overboard, to the point where I began grunting whenever the screen switched to load yet another fight.

Navigating outside of battle can be a pain too. The world map on the top screen is crammed, with the small location keys still large enough to cover passages and peninsulas – and forget about a local map. Running would be a great way to cut down on travel time, but for some reason it is limited to local areas, significantly increasing the time it takes to get between locations. Rookie studio or not, these are some pretty basic problems that seem out of place in a title that otherwise gets so much right.

Whenever the stars align and the gaming gods take pity on your frayed nerves, an area will be merciful on your party and let you pass with few encounters, allowing you to experience just how good the game is. For all of the genre’s advances and the recent re-releases on the DS, there is still a great foundation to Black Sigil that is enjoyable. The characters, story, combat system, all are beyond above average and often border on great – but the encounter rate is an albatross that swallows whole all features and items implemented to negate its impact. If you feel as though you’ve had your fill of 16-bit era RPGs, then Black Sigil simply isn’t the title for you and it is best to skip it. If you happen to enjoy a more traditional approach, with great presentation, a well-told story, and banter refreshingly light on histrionics, then you have a 30- to 40-hour adventure waiting for you that is well worth taking – providing you have the patience for it.

Overall: 7.5/10
I really want to give Black Sigil a higher recommendation. So much of the game is excellent, well worth your time and money, but the hang-ups are so irritating and repetitive that many will simply give up in frustration. I nearly did myself. If you have the patience, though, then you are in for a treat.