Growlanser V Generations

Growlanser V Generations is the fifth non-stop dramatic RPG Growlanser series.

Everything from the game design has been completely redesigned from the previous works, featuring a new battle system, 3D graphics, and a role-based story.

In the localized version, this game is known as “Growlanser Heritage of war”.

Table of Contents

Story

• JP (LE)
• JP
• ENG (LE)
• ENG

Growlanser V Generations (Limited Edition)
Developer	Career Soft
Publisher	Atlus
Release	JP: May 18, 2006 (PlayStation 2)
Genre	TRPG
Mode	Single Player
Prequel	-
Sequel	Growlanser VI Precarious world

Growlanser V Generations
Developer	Career Soft
Publisher	Atlus
Release	JP: August 3, 2006 (PlayStation 2)
Genre	TRPG
Mode	Single Player
Prequel	-
Sequel	Growlanser VI Precarious world

Growlanser HERITAGE OF WAR (Limited Edition)
Developer	Career Soft
Publisher	Atlus USA
Release	NA: September 18, 2007 (PlayStation 2)
Genre	TRPG
Mode	Single Player
Prequel	-
Sequel	-

Growlanser HERITAGE OF WAR
Developer	Career Soft
Publisher	Rising Star Games
Release	EU: June 13, 2008 (PlayStation 2)
Genre	TRPG
Mode	Single Player
Prequel	-
Sequel	-

There were several who prayed for peace in an attempt to put an end to the war that spread on this continent. They revived the powerful weapon “Admonisher”, threatened each country with that weapon, and forced the end of the war.

And they, who do not belong to any country, called themselves Peace Maintenance Brigade and cracked down on combat activities. Twenty years later, it has continued to this day without any major war.

But the continent’s peace, which had been kept in a dangerous balance, was already reaching its limits. Peace can no longer be maintained by the methods of the parents’ generation anymore.

The protagonist travel the continent to protect the peace of their generation. The story of this work is different from the previous work, which had a strong sense of war. The protagonist is a member of the Peace Maintenance Brigade that acts to prevent war.

The continent on which the stage is set is threatened by an aquatic monster called Screaper, but for some reason the surrounding sea area is covered with something like a barrier and it is not possible to go out to the open sea.

Even in such a situation, human beings did not stop fighting and continued to shed useless blood between human beings while being frightened by the threat of Screapers in the closed continent.

Peace Maintenance Brigade was organized to crack down on warfare, using the ancient weapon Admonisher unearthed by those who were worried about the situation as a deterrent.

As a result, although the war disappeared for the time being, the tentative peace in which the force was suppressed by force produced a repulsion, and it was in a state where it managed to maintain a balance on a dangerous level.

Peace Maintenance Brigade loses its function due to the incident caused in such a situation, and the protagonist rush to the continent to recover the situation.

The story of this work is a “Role system”, and consists of 5 chapters where the 1st to 4th chapters are short stories of important characters in the story, and the 5th chapter is the main story of the protagonist. It is possible to draw the character’s emotions from various angles.

As the subtitle of “Generations” shows, the theme of will to be passed down from generation to generation is clearly drawn. The story of the “generation” unfolds through various characters, such as those who are driven by the negative will left by the old generation, and those who bet their lives for the new generation.

Although it is different from the orthodox warfare style, the conflict between nations and the swirling development of various speculations are still alive. Unique elements such as Peace Maintenance Brigade and Screpaers are also fully utilized in the story, creating a world view that does not lose the character of the series while giving out a unique color.

Growlanser V Openings

• JP Version
• US Version
• JP-Full (Fan Edit)

Growlanser V Manuals

Gameplay

From RTS-like battles that give instructions to each unit as appropriate from the previous works, the system is renewed by adding strong action elements.

During the battle, the protagonist is operated directly, the attack target is decided by pressing the ○ button in front of the enemy, and the action is added such as entering the defensive state with the × button.

Allies are supposed to act with their own thoughts by AI unless instructed except during missions. It is possible to issue instructions such as movement, attack, and magic in the same way as the previous works.

This time, you can give instructions to your friends such as movement and defense even during non-combat. There are also moments that use this to proceed.

In addition, it is now possible to look around the entire map at all times during operation.

The play feeling has changed significantly from the previous work, but the fun of real-time mission clear (RMC) battle, which is familiar to the series, is still alive.

As with the previous work, the story unfolds constantly during the event battle as “battle is also a part of the scenario”, and you can enjoy battles in various situations where the situation changes rapidly.

In the event battle, it is the same as the previous work that the three grades of “MISSION COMPLETE”, “MISSION CLEAR” and “MISSION FAILED” are given according to the result.

For the first time in the series, anime movies have been inserted throughout the story, and the performance output has increased.

Skill Plate System

It is a skill acquisition system unique to this work, and by earning skill points while equipped with weapons and armor, you can obtain the “skill plate” hidden in that equipment. You can also acquire the skill by placing the plate on the “Skill Tree Screen”.

The skill plates placed on the left edge of the skill tree screen and the plate placed connected to that plate can be grown by earning skill points. In addition, skill points are accumulated even when the growable plate is not placed, so it won’t be wasted.

The ability tree system has a large number of equipment, and it’s fun to collect equipment to get the ability plate. Along with that, the gemstone and ring weapons were abolished and returned to the Growlanser I format equipped with weapons, armor, and accessories.

Chapters

As mentioned above, the main story consists of 5 chapters as follows:

1st Chapter: Seldiss’ Role

20 years before the main story. Having lost his orphanage in the war, Seldiss was traveling in search of a way to eliminate the war itself. He eventually discovers the ancient weapon Admonisher, but since he was against preventing war using force, then he tried to find another way.

However, soon after he realized the reality of the loss of innocent life in the war, he decided to use the Admonisher. Then, it led to the establishment of Peace Maintenance Brigade.

2nd Chapter: Randy’s Role

It has been 20 years since the establishment of the Peace Maintenance Brigade.

Randy, a historian who in his youth belonged to the Seigi Sentai (Justice Ranger) is dissatisfied with the attitude of the peacekeepers and is seeking a new path to peace by uncovering the secrets of ancient civilization.

Meanwhile, he gets involved in a certain incident.

3rd Chapter: Lockbein’s Role

Lockbein is a former general of Neylern, country colonized by Grangale.

He is very respected by the Neylern people, the soldiers still called him General, Even though he is no longer recognized as a general by the Grangalians.

He is very loyal to former royal family, respecting Vittorio as his monarch. For the oppressed people, he rushes to regain his homeland. Eventually, it became the source of the war that engulfed the continent again.

4th Chapter: Fanil’s Role

Peace Maintenance Brigade researcher, Fanil is developing new energy to save the declining land.

She has the special ability to memorize pictures & letters she has seen once that made her an extraordinary researcher.

One day, she goes to investigate to study “alternative energy using fairies” and meets the fairy, Corin.

5th Chapter: Zeonsilt’s Role

Zeonsilt, who was an orphan brought up in Warslee has good fighting ability, well-known in the village.

Eventually, he joined the Brigade in Operations Division after an incident in a territory of Peace Maintenance Brigade, eventually commits himself to a battle that determines the fate of the continent.

To save his life, He was given surgery which gave him a special ability, “ultrasonic barrier” which weakens the Screapers.

In addition, there are 3 side stories that can be played if the conditions are met.

Sheris’ Role

The younger sister of the King of Cyriltia, Sheris serves the important responsibility of Captain of the Guard. Her brother who is the King was ill and could not attend parliament meetings, so she was granted diplomatic privileges to represent the Kingdom of Cyriltia and attended the peace assemblies in his place.

This side story tells the story of Sheris in revealing the truth behind her brother’s illness.

Loofass’ Role

A captain of the Grangalian army, Loofass impressed by the actions of the Peace Maintenance Brigade, and then agreed to speak to the King of Grangale.

He left Jaergen Village to fulfill his promise to prepare a conference between Vittorio, who declared Neylern’s independence, and the King of Grangale.

This side story tells of Loofass’ journey from Jaergen Village to meet the King of Grangale and the drama he goes through along the way.

Zeakvalt’s Role

About 200 years and a few decades before Seldiss and his friends founded PMB, Zeakvalt and his comrades were determined to beat the sealed Queen Screaper to stop the decay of this continent. By modifying their own bodies, they gained the ability to defeat Queen Screaper.

However, only 27 people were able to survive the body modifications. In order to defeat the Queen Screaper, the cooperation of each country was required. Zeakvalt and his comrades submitted a request to meet the king of each country to ask for cooperation.

Vacation System Removal

The vacation event, which was the relaxing period of the story and allowed protagonist to deepen his friendship with friends, was removed again. Although sometimes there is a short break in the story, it is only a part of the story and not a vacation system like Growlanser I and Growlanser IV.

For the time being, there are more opportunities to talk with friends when the party disbanded in a town where they take a rest between stories like this. Affection will be raised mainly here.

Revival of Character Making

The character making of the protagonist, which was abolished in the previous work, has been revived.

It is not a simple event like Growlanser II or Growlanser III, but a group of events as complicated as Growlanser I is prepared.

This time, there is also a mechanism that the title of the protagonist will be different depending on the result of character making.

Fairy

As a trademark of this series, this time too the fairy is in charge of being the spokesperson for the protagonist. Parameters are set as in the previous work, and you can learn various skills by training. But, unlike the previous work, the protagonist has to pay money to train her.

Unlike the previous work that can be selected from multiple, fairy in this work is only a character called “Corin“.

It is an eclectic form of Growlanser I and Growlanser III which are fixed fairies, and Growlanser IV which can be trained.

In addition, this time fairies are not only exclusive to the protagonist.

There is a community of fairies, and fairies are scattered in various places and each has a human partner.

An event called “Fairy Contest” is prepared, and the purpose is to beat the rivals with the raised fairy. There are unique fairies who will be rivals in various places, and by defeating them, you will have the right to challenge the Queen who stands at the top. Defeating the Queen is also essential to reach the fairy’s ending.

Costume change is also possible following the previous work. However, this time, in addition to being replaced by the player, Corin will change her own costume depending on her mood every time the protagonist rests overnight at the inn.

Friendship Medal Event

Similar to the confession event in Growlanser I, there’s an event with every member before the last battle. This event is known as the “Friendship Medal Event”, and even with each character presented in the anime movie.

As the name suggests, this event involves an item called a “Friendship Medal” that appears throughout the story involving many important characters.

So unlike the confession event in Growlanser 1, the importance of this event is well described through this medal.

Another difference with confession event in Growlanser I, this time, player can see several member events in 1 playthrough as long as the conditions are met.

But especially for female party members, the protagonist must choose 1 of them to continue the story. So it’s possible to view all events by loading the save data before this event starts.

Last Boss

At the final phase of the game, there is a sense of urgency and a turbulent, and the existence of Last Boss was revealed from an early stage, and the horror and mightiness are firmly depicted in the work.

She is the only female last boss in the series.

Learning from Growlanser II The sense of justice and Growlanser III The dual darkness, which did not seem to be the last boss because the final battle was not so exciting, and Growlanser IV Wayfarer of the time, which the the last boss who was worked in the shadows too much causing his existence to thin out

It seems for the last boss in this work, those criticisms have been fixed.

After defeating the last boss, you will select the ending you want to see from the confessed characters. Since you can save it just before, you can see it for everyone immediately.

Opening & Ending Theme

The Opening theme song is highly evaluated and is often called the best OP of all time. The lyrics also match the theme of this work, and the degree of matching with the scenario is high.

The anime movie is not an OP-exclusive one like Growlanser I and Growlanser IV Wayfarer of the time, but a combination of anime movies that appear throughout the story. However, due to the good situation of the animation in the works and the good editing, it matches the song very well, and it is a fascinating OP movie.

Opening Theme: Innovation
By: CRUNCHY BRUNCH

Ending Theme: 風の彼方 “Kaze no Kanata” (Beyond the Wind)
By: CRUNCHY BRUNCH

This OP concept was inherited by Growlanser VI Precarious world and Growlanser IV OVER RELOADED, which also have animations throughout the story, but this work has the best match between the video and the song.

Original VS Localized Version

Among all Growlanser games, Growlanser V is the one that has the biggest difference between the original (Japanese) version and the localized (English) version. Here are those differences.

1. OP & ED Theme

In the original version, OP & ED is presented with the theme song as mentioned above. While in the localized version, OP & ED are only presented with BGM (without song).

2. OP2 (Character Introduction)

Excluding Growlanser III, this series always comes with another OP which is a character introduction scene.

(though in Growlanser II, there is no main OP and only character introduction OP with theme song).

In the original version of Growlanser V, there are 2 OPs consisting of the main OP (OP1) and the character introduction OP (OP2).

While localized version only has the main OP.

3. Protagonist Gameplay

Between the two versions, there is a big difference between the protagonist’s gameplay. In the original version, some commands are done through the controller.

For example, if you want the protagonist to continue to attack, you must keep pressing the O button repeatedly. Or if you want the protagonist to continue to defend, you must keep holding down the X button. And, when you want the protagonist to move, you have to move it using the left analog.

These three commands cannot be done through the menu. While the menu is only for spell, knack, item, and equip commands.

In the localized version, all commands can be done through the menu. But the player can also command the protagonist through the controller like the original version, except for the defend command. Defend can only be done through the menu.

The gameplay in the localized version is the same as the gameplay in Growlanser VI and has become easier for players who are familiar with the gameplay in the previous work (I-IV). As for the characters other than the protagonist, there is no difference in their gameplay.

4. Names

Almost in all Growlanser games, there are some differences in the names between the original version and the localized version. But in Growlanser V, the differences between the names are very bold, because it involved all characters including the protagonist name and the game title itself.

– There are some names that barely change like:

Corin → Korin
Sheris → Sherris
Mervina → Melvina

– There are some that change moderately like:

Chriass → Krious
Gyaricke → Gaerik
Zeakvalt → Ziekwalt

– There are some that change completely without leaving a trace like:

Billy → Alasdir
Zeonsilt → Haschen
V Generations → Heritage of War

5. Seiyuu Comment

Once the player manages to beat the game and save the clear data. Players will be able to access the Appendix menu on the start screen which contains the gallery.

In the original version, the menu in the Appendix consists of 4 sections including Seiyuu Comment, where players can listen to comments from the voice actors in this game. This feature has been a trademark of the series since Growlanser I.

While in the localized version, this section has been removed from the Appendix.

6. CRUNCHY BUNCH Video

Still in the Appendix. In the original version, players can see a video of CRUNCHY BUNCH singing the song which is the opening theme song. While in the localized version, this section has been removed from the Appendix too.

Playthrough