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Posted by @ 1:54 PM, EST
Core posted first impressions of Namco’s RPG, Seven: The Cavalry of Molmorth.
Here’s a bit:

In some ways, Seven plays like a standard RPG: the player must move their party around in mostly 2D isometric environments, talking to NPCs and wandering into areas where monsters lurk. However, combat supports a large number of allied characters (up to sixteen), so the player does not directly control their attacks individually; rather s/he controls the formation of troops by rotating ranks of troops from the back to the front at the end of each turn. This system looks like it will give rise to some interesting strategies later in the game.

The combat itself is fast and intense, throwing waves of enemies at the player and his AI controlled allies. The environments are huge and open, giving the player freedom to explore and destroy things at will. The weapons are well balanced and fun to use, but unfortunately the euphoria of wielding your Mobile Suit’s withering arsenal is marred by the klutzy controls. The key layout is not great, and can only be reconfigured superficially, but what is most frustrating is the inconsistency when moving. For instance, when simply walking or staffing, the MS seems sluggish, and control is annoyingly imprecise. However, double tapping in one direction produces jet-assisted movement, but for some reason MSG is all to eager to interpret any repeated d-pad input as a double-tap, and the author often found himself catapulted off in some untoward direction when all he wanted to do was turn left.