DESCRIPTION

Taking place in and around the town of Walondia, players find themselves trapped in an ethereal existence, able only to help the town's forlorn inhabitants. You aid these people by possessing them, after which you must find and alleviate the cause of their misery. Doing so will make them happy, forcing you to leave them be and move onto the next miserable existence. You find yourself in this predicament, because, as the mercenary Leise, you angered the God of Light by removing a sacred artifact from its resting place. To atone for your sins you must, among others, help reunite a daughter with her father; aid a clumsy monk in unleashing his full potential and pay back the crippling debt of yet another.

As you wander about, trying to solve your vessel's quandary, you'll encounter enemies that, in true RPG fashion, must be fought in turn-based battle. They are easily spotted however, and thus battles can be avoided if so desired. When engaged in combat, your character is capable of performing a host of defensive maneuvers, each of which is assigned to a particular face button on the controller. A standard block reduces damage significantly; another counters the enemy attack; a third, while not very effective, grants your character more "Strage" points; and the fourth avoids the attack altogether, but in doing so, consumes a quarter of your Strage Meter. Each of these blocks must be timed correctly, in real-time, in order to be successful. The caveat, however, is that each enemy's attacks vary in both speed and frequency. Once filled, the Strage Meter allows your character to unleash a devastating attack.

Runes and Amulets form the basis of Tsugunai: Atonement's magic system. Acquired Runes can be used to cast basic spells, but by placing them in the grooves found within the various Amulets, you'll unlock their true power. Doing so will grant the player the ability to summon beasts during battle, who will then fight alongside your character. Throughout your quest you'll flit from body to body, but only by completing the quests of a select group of people will you be able to return to your own body. The title's soundtrack is composed by Yasunori Mitsuda. ~ Gavin Frankle, All Game Guide