Thousand Arms (PlayStation, 1999)

This is the perfect example of a quirky game.
The idea is simple, a young man wants to follow in the footsteps of his father, a legendary Spirit Blacksmith. What this entails is he must find beautiful women and use their love to forge stronger, more powerful weapons. Depending on which woman you use, the sword could be forged with magic, healing spells or just more strength.
That's where the game excels. In order to make the girls fall in love with you, you must date them. Once on the date, they ask you a series of off the wall questions with even more off the wall answers for you to choose. Most of the time, their almost fall of your chair funny. If you're date is successful, you will earn intimacy points that make it possioble for you too learn even stronger spells off the girls. You can also give them gifts if you want, but that's not nearly as fun.

Graphics: 7/10
3D sprites mixed with the occasional cell to make it almost seem like an anime during cutscenes and battle. It's far from the prettiest game, but graphics were never what makes a game.

Story: 6/10
It's basically the same story as most RPG's. The young boy goes through a series of growing up stuff followed by the defeat of the ultimate evil. But the characters, some of the most original I've seen, make the story interesting.

Gameplay: 8/10
Once you figure out how to Blacksmith, the game is incredible. Though not all that deep, the battle mode is fast and interesting. You have one character attacking in the front line, and 2 in the rear, providing support. You can switch them in at any time, provided excellent strategy oppurtunities. Be warned though, the camera is one of the worst of all time.

Fun Factor:10/10
The dating aspect of this game is priceless. I've spent many days just playing the dating parts, and I HAVE a girlfriend! The characters are fun and the battle mode actually makes you want those random battles.

Overall:8/10
Though flawed, it's still one of my favorite RPG's and I've had it for over 6 years now. Highly recommended for anyone sick of realistic or serious RPG's, or just want something they've never seen before.

I have to say that I am quite pleased that there is someone out there who is selling the instruction manuals for games like this. Having to rebuild the case from scratch sure wasn't wasy but the lynchpin was the book and I have to say that I am quite pleased with how everything turned out. I am sure that I will use this seller again if I have any more instruction manual needs!