For those that have never played Lost Kingdoms or its sequel, these two games were action RPGs that FromSoftware developed for the Nintendo GameCube. They both had some pretty dark themes, were fairly challenging, and had a story that asked players to do a lot of interpretation<\/span> for themselves. Common FromSoftware techniques, in other words.<\/p>\n One area where these games did depart<\/span> from their JRPG peers at the time, was<\/span> that you\u2019re not really doing the fighting yourself. Rather, you\u2019ve got<\/span> access to a deck of cards. These cards represented spells that you could cast, and most<\/span> of the spells would either summon a monster to fight for you for a while, or give you a one-off attack to directly target an enemy.<\/p>\n There was a deck-building element in which you could acquire (or capture) new cards, and that was the primary way that you powered<\/span> up to take on the bigger<\/span> challenges. The original Lost Kingdoms was split up into discrete levels, and one<\/span> of the bigger<\/span> challenges there was<\/span> getting to the objective of the level without the deck of cards running out in fighting<\/span> random enemies. You were only able to use<\/span> each card in your deck once per venture, so when trying to complete the level, you need to conserve your best<\/span> cards for the challenges in<\/span> the end.<\/p>\n The most tactical way to play was to venture into a level several times, with the first few trips to collect the treasure<\/span> and explore around for secrets, before retreating back out, resetting your deck, and making a delve<\/span> to reach the end of the level. This slowed down progression through the game, of course, but it gave Lost Kingdoms that methodical, deliberate pacing that is almost iconic to FromSoftware.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t remember Lost Kingdoms II anywhere n<\/span>ear as well,<\/span> but I do remember it had a more open approach to level design, with a greater focus on using spells and abilities to make your way past<\/span> environmental obstacles \u2013 another FromSoftware specialty.<\/p>\n In fact, these games to represent<\/span> so much of what has made FromSoftware such a unique<\/span> entity in the games industry. I have always admired that willingness to have the gameplay<\/span> support the creative vision,<\/span> even if that flies in the face of a \u201cbest<\/span> practice\u201d approach to game design. We see that to this day.<\/span> Elden Ring<\/a> is a big, open-world RPG, but it is nothing like what a Rockstar,<\/span> Ubisoft or Sony would do. In many ways it breaks the carefully focus-grouped<\/span> approach that the other publishers would tell you<\/span> is what the gamers<\/span> want. Yet Elden<\/span> Ring is the<\/span> masterpiece. Lost Kingdoms is a little like<\/span> that. It is, simply, not the kind of game suits at<\/span> other developers would greenlight. That’s likely why we\u2019ve not really seen any other games do what Lost Kingdoms did (though Koei Tecmo\u2019s Nights of Azure shares some elements in its own summon system). The lack of \u201cspiritual sequels\u201d or \u201chomages\u201d is generally a sign that a game flies in the face of best practices.<\/p>\n Reviews for Lost Kingdoms were all over the place, too.<\/span> The now-defunct Armchair Empire gave it 40\/100, writing: \u201cLost Kingdoms is a lost cause if you\u2019re not into card games.\u201d It\u2019s a silly criticism since that\u2019s like saying Call of Duty is pointless if you don\u2019t enjoy gun violence. Meanwhile, the also now-defunt<\/span> GamePro gave it 90\/100, noting \u201cLost Kingdoms may not have much of a plot, but the battle system makes it a fine game worth the attention of all action\/<\/span>RPG<\/span> fans\u201d. I generally find polarising review scores like this to be the indication of a game that puts creativity first,<\/span> because like with any art form, creativity comes with the risk that some people will absolutely hate it.<\/p>\n But there’s a plus side to the more creative<\/span> games – they also tend to be memorable. Lost Kingdoms is right up there with the GameCube titles that I have the fondest<\/span> memories of, and it and its sequel were among the first GameCube games I added to my ROG Ally<\/a> to replay at some point in the near future (for now I’m working through a replay of Lord of the Rings: The Third Age and Final Fantasy XIII). I have, of course, loved seeing FromSoftware emerge and become one of the most beloved prestige developers out of Japan. Demon’s Souls and Elden Ring, in particular, are all-time favourites.<\/p>\n At the same time, however, I do miss<\/span> the FromSoftware that produced more modest titles for a more niche audience but that<\/span> still had enough scale to belong on the shelves next to the big guns. The company was really good<\/span> at that, and we don’t have enough developers that do that anymore.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.digitallydownloaded.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/5658968-lost-kingdoms-ii-screenshot.jpg\")
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