If you can see your way past an obnoxious main character and a fairly linear gaming experience, you'll find a lot to enjoy in Grandia 2. The battle system surpasses that of any other RPG on the market, and you'll be going out of your way to hunt down innocent little monsters and deliver them to their final reward. The minor and incidental characters are all significantly more amusing and interesting than most of the major characters, and most of their dialogue is light, funny, and everything good RPG dialogue should be. It's a shame that the story is so straightforward; the game could stand to give players a little more freedom (or at least a little more reason) to explore the world Game Arts has created. While Grandia 2 succeeds in sustaining the quality of the original, it does little other than give an amazing facelift to the game that was first introduced on the Saturn. However, that's enough to warrant a purchase for most RPG fans; let's just hope the inevitable sequel shows a bit more innovation.
