The LV. Cap: Golden Sun: Dark Dawn Review

It has been six years since we have seen the Game Boy Advance RPG classic Golden Sun. With two successful games, the series went on hiatus. Now, it’s back and it brings new graphiics, touch screen controls, new story, and overwhelming nostalgia. Was Golden Sun: Dark Dawn worth the six year wait? Find out in the review!

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Golden Sun: Dark Dawn
Nintendo DS
1 Player
Developer: Camelot Software Planning
Publisher: Nintendo
ESRB Rating: E10+ For Everyone 10+
Price: $34.99

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Pros
Story: Dark Dawn takes places 30 years after the first Golden Sun games. After the Golden Sun event, the world of Weyard was safe from the dangers of alchemy. Now a new threat has taken place upon the world and a new band of heroes must find a way to stop it. Even if you are a noob to the Golden Sun series, the game has you covered as the opening of the game tells about the first two games. There is tons of detail and lore to the story and it’s great.


Gameplay: The gameplay for Dark Dawn is just like the previous games. You have your standard turn-based combat and then you have the puzzle solving out of combat. The gameplay is very well paced as you’ll be figuring out puzzles in dungeons and fighting off enemies. You won’t get swarmed by enemies and the puzzles aren’t troubling at all. Plus, you’ll be collecting creatures called Djinns. These Pokemon-type creatures help you power up your character’s stats and can be used to attack, buff, or be used as a summon during battle. With over 70 Djinn to collect, dungeons to explore, and levels to be earned in battle, the gameplay is a basic RPG formula but it works great.


Middle Ground
Graphics: The graphics in Dark Dawn are tolerable. Everything  is colorful and has its own unique style that makes it a Golden Sun game. However, I believe that the graphics are a little rough on the edges. I know that the Nintendo DS has limitations with 3D graphics but I think they could have been a bit sharper. The game still looks good though.


Touch Screen Controls: Since this game is on the Nintendo DS, of course they would implement in the gameplay. You can use the stylus to move your character and select your options. However when you use an ability that requires you to swipe the stylus across the screen, sometimes the game doesn’t get the input. Luckily, you can switch between using the stylus and using the buttons on the Nintendo DS or use both at the same time.


Cons
Do You Like To Read?: With most RPGs, you’ll have to read dialogue to get through the story. Dark Dawn is no different but damn. From the very long beginning cutscene explaining the previous games to dialogue between characters, you’ll be reading a lot. So if you are a person who doesn’t care for the dialogue between characters, you’ll be sitting there waiting until you can move on.


Don’t Know What Golden Sun Is?: If you didn’t know about Golden Sun before Dark Dawn, you might be a bit confused. Even though Dark Dawn tells you about the previous games, it will be overwhelming. Golden Sun is very detailed in its lore. This may turn new players off as they won’t know what the hell the game is talking about.


Overall/Verdict
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn is a great return to the series. The gameplay is solid and the story brings Golden Sun back from the Game Boy Advance days. However you will need to read a lot, the lore is very detailed and can confuse new players, and the touch screen controls can use  some work. If you are a fan of Golden Sun or a fan of turn based RPGs, pick up Dark Dawn. For people that skip through cutscenes, you won’t have the patience to sit through the game.