Fullmetal Alchemist
and the Broken Angel

Edward and Alphonse's quest to become fully human again is mindless, repetitive, banal ... and hugely fun

	Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel
	Square-Enix
	PlayStation 2
	MSRP: $49.99

Review by Mark H. Walker

dward and Alphonse are brothers. Brothers and talented Alchemists. Alchemists who can change objects into forms of metal machinery. Life is good, they have their talent, they have each other, and they have a hit anime TV show—but then their mother dies. Overcome with grief, they attempt to raise her using a forbidden human transmutation. It goes terribly wrong—as forbidden human transmutations oft do—and both brothers are profoundly changed.

Edward's arm and leg are lost, replaced by a kind of a metal-armor-weapon thing, while Alphonse loses his entire body—his soul now inhabiting a mini-BattleMech kind of thing. But all is not lost. If the two can find the fabled Philosopher's Stone they will be able to become real boys once again (Pinocchio pun intended). Such is the story, and Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel is the game.
Developed by Square-Enix (of Final Fantasy, Parasite Eve and Front Mission fame), Fullmetal is an action role-playing game in the vein of—but not as beautiful as—Electronic Arts' Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Players assume the role of Edward in his quest to find the Philosopher's Stone, and hack and slash their way in real time (no taking turns in this game) through level after linear level in their journey to the Stone. Alphonse fights beside you, but is not directly controlled, instead following your broad commands. You can order the hulking robot to guard you, come to you, or attack nearby enemies with a hell-bent-for-metal tackle. There is no multiplayer.

An amusing romp, but little else

I enjoyed playing Fullmetal Alchemist, at least at first. Hacking and smashing your way through a horde of bad guys (and girls) is great fun. Additionally, you may morph common items, such as crates and garbage cans, into cannons, bombs and other useful weapons that help you thin the ever-thick horde of enemies. To add icing to the cake there are even RPG-lite elements in the game. Both Ed and Alphonse level as they gain experience, learning new skills and alchemist tricks.

Unfortunately, what at first was fun grows a bit tiresome three or four levels into the game. There is little room for side quests, and the story—although well written and voiced—takes precedence over the action. Seems like you spend way too much time watching, and too little time doing. And the Alchemist skills? Well, they are cool and all, but not necessary. With very few exceptions, players should be able to beat down the regiments of enemies encountered with Edward and Alphonse's "normal" attacks. Not that Alphonse is a lot of help. Yeah, he'll come when you call, attempt to guard you when you ask, and attack when ordered, but his attacks are often ill-timed and poorly aimed. Yeah, he's better than nothing, but not much.

That said, Fullmetal Alchemist is still an enjoyable romp through the popular anime universe. The game's combination of story, action and universe make it a worthwhile time sink, but certainly not anything to raise dead mothers.

Fullmetal isn't a bad game, but it certainly doesn't have the quality we expect from Square-Enix—but, come to think of it, neither did Front Mission 4. That said, I bet quality won't be a problem with Final Fantasy XII. —Mark

Back to the top.

Home