Star Ocean fans wanting to play on their Android phones have had to resort to emulation for about a decade now, but STAR OCEAN: ANAMNESIS is fixing all of that by bringing most of what makes the series great to Android in a very mobile-friendly package. The game is full-featured and bite-sized all in one, and series fans will find a lot to love, and of course to groan over, as with every entry in the long-running series. The battles in this game are every bit as fun and gorgeous as they’ve ever been in the series, and there’s a vast selection of characters to fight as and alongside. Series frontrunners like Fayt Leingod, nameless side characters you would never get to play as in the mainline games, and even legendary figures like the progenitor of Earth’s legendary Kenni bloodline are all here.
Story-wise, there’s not much here that hasn’t been done before in some form, aside from the mobile mechanics and their excuse. Once again, a spacefarer from an advanced society is trapped on a backwater planet, and once again, they’ll have to contend with the quandary of whether to honor the Underdeveloped Planet Preservation Pact, whatever stranded them on the planet, and of course, whatever happens to be going on within the bounds of that planet and any other planets they head to. In this case, you’ve also got Coro, your ship’s AI, and a mysterious girl named Evelynne, able to magically summon characters and equipment. This is your standard gacha game in that regard, though you’ll find it’s far more generous than the likes of Fire Emblem Heroes and Fate: Grand Order. You can end up seriously overpowered early on without spending a dime, if you’re into that sort of thing, or you can hold off on abusing the gacha mechanics and strategize your way through action-packed 3D battles with different enemy and attack types, skill and attack costs, and a menagerie of other features pulled from different points throughout the series. As a bonus, you can even have a favorite character who sits in the bridge of your ship with you and offers some light banter. Unfortunately, though you can build a dream team across the game’s entire timeline, these characters will, for the most part, not interact with one another in the series’ typical and often hilarious or heartwarming fashion.
If you’re sick of fumbling about with game dumping methods and relatively fiddly emulators to get your mobile Star Ocean fix, this is the mobile game you’ve been waiting for. It offers quick encounters and an easy-to-digest storyline that makes it perfect for quick play sessions on the go. Even if you’re not a Star Ocean fan, if you like character collecting, Japanese RPGs, or campy space operas, hit the Play Store button below and give this one a go.
