Magical powers, Psypher abilities and potions. These are only a few things that gamers can look forward to when they play "Odin Sphere." "Odin Sphere" made two games, one for the PlayStation 2 and a remastered version for the PlayStation 3 called "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir." The "Odin Sphere" games are known for their action packed gameplay and unpredictability.
Psyphers are weapons that each respective character had in the game, and the Psyphers came in the form of a spear, a sword, a crossbow and a chain. These weapons are called Psyphers because of the jewel on the weapon. The jewel is what gave the Psyphers the power to bestow abilities to the user.
I was looking forward to playing "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir" because I knew it was going to be better than the PlayStation 2 version which it was; I never wanted to go back to the PlayStation 2 version again after that. Here are other differences that I noticed as well.
Subtle differences
When I played "Odin Sphere" for the PlayStation 2 on normal, I quickly found myself overwhelmed by enemies on both sides with only one Psypher skill to keep me alive. Incidentally, the only Psypher skill that most of the characters started off with was Cyclone which could kill enemies and the character as well.
Playing "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir" on normal, I was not as overwhelmed by enemies. I used a 10-hit combo attack I crafted during the tutorial on the Prelude level which was powerful enough to kill every enemy on the level. The combo kept me alive until my character found and learned her first Psypher skill.
Difficulty
When I played "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir" on the PlayStation 3 on normal, I did not see myself getting up and walking away frustrated because the enemies kept coming continuously. The enemies and characters' hitting power was equal and unrivaled. Also, I had access to powerful healing potions early on which I did not have in the PlayStation 2 version.
In the PlayStation 2 version, I did not get access to the elixir potion until the mid-point of the third character's book, which I could have used earlier on because playing the game on Normal meant I needed more than my Psypher skills to stay alive which was not always enough.
Bosses of Armageddon
When I first fought the Bosses of Armageddon on normal on the PlayStation 2 version of "Odin Sphere", I barely destroyed them, and that was with the help of my healing items which I found myself needing to lean on every minute of the battle.
I got a chance to fight the Bosses of Armageddon on Normal in "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir," and they were barely a viable threat. I only had to heal once throughout the five battles. My Psypher skills brought me the victory in those battles and not my healing items.
Conclusion
"Odin Sphere" and "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir" play differently on Normal in many ways. However, they have one thing in common, and that is their ability to keep gamers entertained for hours. "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir" maybe only eight months old, but its replay value is already reached legendary status in my book.
I encourage every gamer to play through both games on normal difficulty once and experience the difference as I have, it will be an enlightening of epic proportion. I had high hopes for "Odin Sphere Leifthrasir," and the game did not disappoint me in the least.