A cute little 2D Zelda-like. Gotta give this game credit for being on the Game Gear, there just aren't that many games like this on the platform and it absolutely biases my review score.
It looks and sounds really nice. The sprites are expressive and have great animations, especially the player character. Monsters have a good amount of visual variety. The world and the dungeons is also nicely detailed and varied - even though many of the areas are grassy plains and forests, somehow each place manages to have its own aesthetic identity. The music is good enough, not super memorable but fits the game well. Sword attacks have a thunk, thunk, THUNK rhythm that I found satisfying.
For the most part, the adventure is quite straightforward. You unlock new abilities and items that allow you to solve puzzles and defeat dungeons. Talking to NPCs gives you hints on how to proceed. Some of the later "puzzles" are just unfair. There is one NPC you can trek across the world to speak to for vague hints, but I had a look a couple of things up.
However, other than that - the game is fun! The combat is very simple, but each enemy has just enough variety to present a new challenge. Navigating the world is fun, the NPC dialog is cute (I played a fan translation), the animal transformations are great - and it's on the Game Gear! Worth checking out.
It looks and sounds really nice. The sprites are expressive and have great animations, especially the player character. Monsters have a good amount of visual variety. The world and the dungeons is also nicely detailed and varied - even though many of the areas are grassy plains and forests, somehow each place manages to have its own aesthetic identity. The music is good enough, not super memorable but fits the game well. Sword attacks have a thunk, thunk, THUNK rhythm that I found satisfying.
For the most part, the adventure is quite straightforward. You unlock new abilities and items that allow you to solve puzzles and defeat dungeons. Talking to NPCs gives you hints on how to proceed. Some of the later "puzzles" are just unfair. There is one NPC you can trek across the world to speak to for vague hints, but I had a look a couple of things up.
However, other than that - the game is fun! The combat is very simple, but each enemy has just enough variety to present a new challenge. Navigating the world is fun, the NPC dialog is cute (I played a fan translation), the animal transformations are great - and it's on the Game Gear! Worth checking out.
Game Review - originally written by Spinner 8
You know, every once in a while, Game Gear games can be pretty damn sweet. Take this here Sylvan Tale game for example. Action RPGs (such as this one) are rare, and GOOD action RPGs are rare indeed. This is just the tip of the iceberg as to why Sylvan Tale is cool. Actually it’s pretty much the entire reason; it’s a damn fine action RPG. The music is simply awesome, especially considering the system (with one small exception!), the graphics are very well done, and the gameplay’s there. It’s ALL there. There’s a plot too, but it doesn’t matter. Who cares? Swing your sword around and kill things! That’s what life’s all about goddammit!
You know, every once in a while, Game Gear games can be pretty damn sweet. Take this here Sylvan Tale game for example. Action RPGs (such as this one) are rare, and GOOD action RPGs are rare indeed. This is just the tip of the iceberg as to why Sylvan Tale is cool. Actually it’s pretty much the entire reason; it’s a damn fine action RPG. The music is simply awesome, especially considering the system (with one small exception!), the graphics are very well done, and the gameplay’s there. It’s ALL there. There’s a plot too, but it doesn’t matter. Who cares? Swing your sword around and kill things! That’s what life’s all about goddammit!