On his deathbed, Frederic Francois Chopin begins to dream. Living in 19th-century Poland and France, it’s only natural that he’d dream of Japanese tradition and brightly coloured anime-influenced characters. Ahem. But to end the digression, once in this fantasy world, we’re told that should the line between fantasy and reality in his mind become blurred, Chopin will pass on. As intriguing as this plot is, it’s hugely underused in the game. With mentions rare and fleeting, it seems largely to be an excuse for a clichéd RPG plot involving super villains trying to take over the world.

What it does well is call upon events from Chopin’s life in cutaway segments backed with his compositions - and it’s apparent how these mirror the plot. For example, we’re told of Chopin’s experiences of the insurgencies in Poland, as our heroes explore similar themes in the game itself. It is these events that keep the plot intricately woven with Chopin’s life. Even without these, however, the plot would have inevitably continued along the same lines: largely unconcerned with Chopin as a character and the world as a dream. It feels as though they realised there wasn’t enough mileage in the Chopin plot alone, and in the end it’s so glossed over that it feels entirely pointless.

This isn’t to imply that the plot is bad. Indeed, it’s a story with enough twists and turns to ensure that it’s worth seeing through to the end. The problem is simply that the opportunities afforded to it by the use of a historical figure like Chopin, are missed. As a result, it’s a largely unremarkable story; a real shame considering the unique scenario and the potential that the idea holds.

Outside of the numerous plot-advancing cut-scenes, the game plays much as you’d expect. Travelling from town to town talking to NPCs, and fighting battles to get the all-important experience points and funds needed for new weapons. No reinvention of the wheel as far as that goes, then. The battle system, however, is a lot of fun. There are no random encounters here. Enemies visible on the field will chase you (should they spot you) but can mostly be avoided entirely. Running past is a risk, though, as it leaves you wide open to attack from behind, should the enemy give chase. Conversely, an advantage can be gained for surprising them in the same manner.

Battles play out like a glorious hybrid of Final Fantasy and the ‘Tales of’ series. Combat is entirely turn-based, with a speed stat (along with the way the enemy was encountered in the field) determining turn order. Rather than picking choices from a menu, full control of the character is given in real time. Five seconds are available in which to position your character and attack, heal, or perform other special moves. Position is important here, as special attacks differ depending on whether the character is in the light or the shade. The light level can also have a similar effect on certain monsters. Furthermore, turning your back on an enemy removes your ability to block attacks (normally done with a perfectly timed press of the B button). Even when not attacking, the battle system never forces you to simply watch.

The real success of Eternal Sonata’s battle system is in the characters. All of the characters available behave very differently – each with their own advantages and disadvantages. Everyone that plays will likely have a different favourite party. One character has an incredibly powerful long-range attack that is slow and difficult to aim, while another has a strong short-range attack that is slow. Some characters gain ‘echoes’ (which power up special attacks) more quickly, while others have more powerful special attacks to begin with. It guarantees that however you want to fight in the game, there’s a set-up that’s perfect, and ensures that playing through the game a second time can provide an entirely different experience.

To shake things up a little, every so often the party level will rise, adding benefits to the battle system and balancing these benefits out by disadvantaging the player. These disadvantages usually involve reducing the amount of thinking time available before the clock ticks down, or the amount of time in which to act. Later in the game, the ability to link up to six special attacks in one turn is gained. However, this is offset by frequently changing the actions that the face buttons perform - forcing the player to constantly adapt. While awkward at first, it’s a fantastic system, and keeps every battle interesting.

Unfortunately, the game is both very short and very easy, which makes the ‘new game plus’ mode welcome. In this mode (which contains most of the achievement points) enemies are much stronger, and new side-quests are made available to flesh out the plot a little more. Rather than being an afterthought, this mode is actually far more absorbing than the original play through - with the battle difficulty being spot on. The game no longer feels like a simple procession through the dungeons; it provides a genuine and much needed challenge.

In the end, Eternal Sonata is let down by its failure to take advantage of the story it sets up for itself. That said, there’s enough left in the plot to carry it, and it still remains as very playable RPG with an ever–changing, fast–paced battle system and a beautiful setting.