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Yet Another Golden Grunty

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 24 / 26
Date: October 13, 2003
Author: Amazon User

From a story viewpoint, this is the most interesting of the .hack games so far. Kite's efforts to find a way to help his friend Orca and other players who now lay comatose find him cooperating with a surprising array of characters. Several new companions appear, including Balmung, who originally stood in Kite's way. In addition, Kite manages to unite Helba and Lios in an effort to fight the encroaching virus wave that is attacking not only the game, but the world beyond it. And in the background, frightened CC Corp executives are preparing to pull the plug on the games servers - even though this will end all efforts to cure the injured.

If the story and character definition have improves, though, the game play has stayed the same. This isn't all bad, since the .hack series is marked by an easily playable game interface for what is actually a complicated RPG dungeon based battle style. But after two games, the third gets a bit repetitious. The dungeons aren't quite the fun they were, and long time players will find themselves rushing through the levels once they have figured out the needed battle strategies.

Which introduces the real flaw in spreading the game over four volumes, something I'll call 'over-levelling' for lack of a better term. All of the games allow the player to continue once the core game is complete. During the down time between games one is encouraged to play to complete side quests and improve stats. Which I did after completing .hack//MUTATION.

Unfortunately, the side effect is that all my main characters were already at high levels when I started Outbreak. The result is that I spent a whole game with Kite getting exactly one experience point per kill. In other words, he advanced exactly one level during the entire game. That is tedious, and reduces character development to a continuous quest for items that will permanently improve stats. Also, high stats mean you tend to blast through most conflicts without much need for finesse.

Despite this, .hack//OUTBREAK is one of this years better games. The marketing scheme where the story is allowed to progress ovewr several media makes the .hack universe a rich experience, and the games are marked by a high level of professional quality. If you are a fan of dungeon based RPGs you will want this. The accompanying Liminality DVD, by the way, is the best so far in the series.

Sweet

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 07, 2003
Author: Amazon User

First of all, the two idiots who rated it one and zero screwed up this game's rating, but whatever. It's a great game, better than Mutation, and even better than Infection, in my opinion. Although it is identical to the first two games in many aspects, this is both a good and rarely bad thing. The story and characters are better than in this edition, the spells get pretty badass, and the weapons look awesome. For those of you who have played the first two, you finally get Balmung in this game, which makes it tough to decide between him and BlackRose. But anyway, great game with better characters and character development. Very recommended.

.hack//outbreak

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 7
Date: March 18, 2004
Author: Amazon User

While .hack// is quite a phenomenon, a review of the enjoyment of this game has nothing to do with the anime series (although fans of the series can find little easter eggs in the game series).

The strengths of .hack//outbreak are the same as the first two in the series (.hack//infection and mutation): it has a great plot line, interesting new skill system, easy to use interface, and you can continue on your character into the next of the series. This is as expected, there were no changes to the game design. Despite this, I found this game to have lost some of its excitement (relevant to the series, it still found this game more exciting than other comparable games, like FFX or X-2).

In my opinion, they introduced a weakness to the series by making this a 4 installment series rather than a 3. I've started the 4th game and am very excited, but due to the total series game play hours and the layout of the plot, it would have been better as a 3 game series (with no plot changes, just the quantity of material per release changed). Go capitalism.

Like the previous game, if I were to say this game had any other weakness, it would be that it is quite a bit shorter than many comparable games. With completion of the story line (in this installment), the extras, and just having a little fun, I completed the game in about 30 hours.

Overall, the .hack//outbreak is a must have if you wish to play the series. I don't think that the series would have been as much fun if I did not play all of the installments. Having finished the first three game, .hack//mutation is my favorite of the series so far, but quarantine may very well take that throne once I finish it.

Holy cow

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: October 06, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This is so far the best of the four part saga. Now I won't soile it by telling to much but if you ever saw how the first boss in Dot Hack//Sign. The one chasing Aura. That is a key in this game. I really think hat people will love this game. You really do need to be at least level 53 to start. Five stars

average rating --- 2 stars

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 24
Date: January 23, 2004
Author: Amazon User

4 short games, 50 dollars each. Now, 2 games would have been fine. 4 games is a joke. The creators are obviously trying to mooch all the money they can. The first game got repetitive. They have taken it to a whole new level.

You still do the exact same things. If you find a great sword you can't use it, but you can give it to the person who wants it. If you get to the bottom theres a boss and a cutscene. Later you go into another dungeon that looks EXACTLY the same as the last one.

The game fails to prove it's own worth. Now, if they only made 2 long games, as I have said, that would have been fine. Get a new engine guys, or a new concept. It doesn't work 4 times in a row.

gravely disappointing

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 10
Date: December 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Drawbacks
-the graphics and gameplay are idenical to the first 2 games.
I have become so sick of the same dungeons, and fields...I can't count how many times I've been into a blue dungeon idenical to the very first one in part 1 (infection)
-The storyline has gone from intriguing, to bizzare and confusing.
-the one and only new city looks ALOT like the 2nd city in .hack//infection (dun loriage), and it's very tiresome to shop there due to the fact the shops are very far apart and the graphics just repeat.
- the game itself is incredibly short.
- the DVD was also bizzare, and the story line (if there is one) was just a bunch of random events, and people talking about the epitath of twilight.

The Good
- the new characters are more colorful than the last.

I was a huge .hack fan..now I feel jipped.
I'm definately never buying from Bandai again..
rent it...you'll have no time completing it several times over in 4 days.

This Game Rules!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: December 31, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The whole .hack series is very good and the game itself is great. the story is getting more interesting and i only wish to say to those who review this game poorly that no game is perfect and the world can not be complete;y new because the basis of the game is in an online game. AND IF YOU CANT UNDERSTAND THE STORY YOU SHOULD GO BACK TO KINDERGARTEN! Maybe this game is just for people more intelligent than you raters who rate it low

dot hack Outbreak (part 3)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 12
Date: June 08, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game was the greatest of the three dot hacks I haven't played 4 but it seems to be the best. You get new people after you beat the second one you get to use Wisemen in the 3rd one you find out that Mistral is pregnet and is a housewife it's crazy but I give this game five out of five it was hard at the end for me becuase I thought I could beat the last boss at level 72 but I couldn't so I gained more levels and then I went to the area where the red wand was found and beat that you see a new guy laughing and disaper out of thin air. and you get Sora's Blade which is a rare level 34 which is cool it glows white. when you fight the last boss use the new blademaster and Blackrose which you have to do. The new blademaster is level 60 which ruled for me becuase I went to hard levels and gained mondo exp. you get a new Heavy Axe which is a girl you find out that she is level 1 which is a laugh what I did was gave her level 60 heavy items and a level 34 heavy axe. and I went to the first area to a level 18 and made her up to 20 then I left to the other area and I got her up too level 70.

one of the best RPG's

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 7
Date: October 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

i have played .HACK and right off and it's fun. if u like RPG's i recomend this game or just buy the whole saga for that matter.

JUNK

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 28
Date: August 21, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This is the most boring role-playing game I've experienced. The first 5 hours have a great plot, and then *nothing*. Just hack'n'slash and repetitive dungeons for the next 20 hours. I quit the game before finishing.

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