Oracle of Ages is an intriguing game for the 2D series. Of the GBC duology, this is the one that has a greater focus on setting temples and puzzles with a higher degree of complexity, and also in making things a bit cryptic to be difficult to figure out, however, that's what makes it a memorable journey.

The main innovation of this title, is that unlike games that have in their title phrases like "A Link to the Past" or "Ocarina of Time", here there is a real time travel to the past involved, because in this game we will travel the lands of Labrynna through the present, but also from hundreds of years in the past. Traveling between both eras becomes something primordial and very entertaining that is very reminiscent of the parallel dimensions of the previously mentioned Super Nintendo game, and personally I have always liked that kind of games in which you have to travel in time to get things that do not exist in the other and vice versa, even some temples make use of this dynamic, and although at the beginning you start with certain restrictions to travel between eras, as you advance in the game you can travel in time with greater freedom.

The game is set in the kingdom of Labrynna, where the Oracle of Ages, Nayru, is located. However a sorceress named Veran ends up possessing her and traveling back in time to wreak havoc on the timeline and conquer the world, the usual. So this time we have to go through 8 temples traveling between two different times in order to obtain the 8 essences of time to rescue our friend Nayru.

Oracle of Seasons has probably one of the most intricate overworld map and temple designs, because figuring out what you have to do or where you have to go is not something you can deduce at first glance. In the beginning the game takes you by the hand, and certainly, it is a somewhat linear game. As you advance in your quest, things will get more and more complicated, so you'll have to have a lot of wit and a good memory to know what you need to do at certain points in the story. And as for the temples... these have a brilliant design, as the puzzles are quite "demanding" to say the least, as these feel like real logic challenges in which you will have to have a lot of patience if you don't want to lose your mind in the process, making this, more than an adventure game feel like one of puzzles because of the great emphasis given to this section, as even the bosses have their logic and many times you will have to think outside the box to solve the puzzles. This is especially noteworthy considering it's a 2D game for the Game Boy Color. The level design is on par with 3D games in terms of complexity. Take for example the water temple in this game, this one is equally or even more difficult than the water temple in Ocarina of Time.

As for the items you can get in the temples, these are not as new as in other games, since they are improved versions or with a little "twist" of items that we have already seen before. But one that I really liked is the replacement for the bow/sling shot, which is a seed shooter whose projectiles have the ability to bounce 2 times off the walls and is used to solve pretty good puzzles. The hook on this occasion works in a pretty cool way, as it swaps your position with the position of the grabbed object.

A section where this game takes inspiration from the N64 installments is in the mini-games, as there are many and each one is quite entertaining, although a bit difficult too. The most difficult one is when you get to the Goron region, it consists of a small memorization game that reminded me of my time when I played Brain Age, only here it's much more difficult because you have to follow a rhythm. I almost lost my mind trying to complete the highest level. I don't recommend doing it.

Conclusion
Oracle of Ages is fascinating without a doubt, although this ends up being like a double-edged sword, as it can result in some pretty frustrating moments being totally honest. But in the end, I'm left with the satisfaction I got from solving those puzzles and those "Eureka!" moments. I recommend playing this game without a guide, as it is something that is really worthwhile, even if there are many moments where you don't have even the tiniest idea of what you have to do.

Secret 2: -----------------aurith/list/--1/

← The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons - Review

Oracle of Seasons is a remarkable game for the 2D branch of the franchise. Of the pair of games released for the GBC, the focus of this one is towards a sense of adventure at its purest, setting simple puzzles to solve, but with sections focused on challenge and discovery, making it a highly enjoyable experience.

The novelty that distinguishes this title from the rest, is that here we will travel through a land in which the seasons have gone out of control, so that it can be winter, but from one moment to another can also be spring, summer or autumn, which is not only an aesthetic change for the map, for example, in winter there can be a mountain of snow or frozen rivers, which we can take advantage of to reach places that otherwise would be impossible to reach, but in summer for example, vines grow on some cliffs which allows us to climb them. It's an idea that although not as ambitious as the parallel worlds of A Link to the Past, it's still pretty cool for making exploration more entertaining and interesting, not to mention that exploring Holodrum in different climates/states of the year has its charm. I feel this in turn is also a creative way to expose the difference it makes to have color in a game versus not having it, as in the original GB a concept like this would have been somewhat impossible to execute just having the green/gray scale.

This game takes place in the kingdom of Holodrum, where Din lives, the oracle of the seasons, but after an event is kidnapped and thus the different seasons of the year lose control, so it will be our duty to get the 8 essences of nature of the 8 temples scattered around the kingdom to rescue Din.

The temples generally present a very good and creative design, almost always being quite intuitive for the player, mostly with simple puzzles, but that are still quite entertaining and will require from your part a little ingenuity to be solved, presenting this game also some pretty cool items that have become some of my favorites, such as the magnetic gloves. I especially like the fact how in this game hearts do matter, as unlike most Zelda games, the enemies and boss battles can be a bit challenging, not that it's a difficult game, but if you get overconfident you could end up seeing the Game Over screen on more than one occasion.

Something I love is that the exploration and discovery factor of the early Zelda games is very present in this title. It pays to be curious and attentive, as many times some puzzles or secrets are revealed when we go to a place with a certain season. There are a lot of references to the first Zelda game, like some of the temples, bosses or even some caves with old people inside that have strange dialogues and sometimes can be tremendous trolls, and curiously, there are also references and inspiration from games like Mega Man, which we can notice especially in those 2D platforming type sections. If you played Mega Man X, the final boss will look familiar.

Conclusion
It's certainly a game with a very good design and pacing, it never feels boring, and the mechanics of switching between seasons made the mere fact of exploring more engaging. If you're wondering where the inspiration from the Mega Man games and the references to the first game in the franchise came from, it's because this game was made by Capcom, and started out being developed as a remake of the first title, but then evolved into a completely different game, and in retrospect, I think it was for the best, as it has become one of my favorites.

Secret 1: backloggd.com/u/M----------------

→ The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages - Review

Similar to what happened with A Link to the Past receiving a sequel (Link's Awakening) that took the bases of the previous game to give a more experimental and "different" adventure, two years after the release of Ocarina of Time would come Majora's Mask, a game that gives a very interesting twist to the original formula to offer one of the most singular adventures in video games in general, I dare say.

Before we begin, I'd just like to quickly highlight the parallels between this game and Link's Awakening. For starters, both are sequels to games considered "masterpieces" that instead of trying to imitate their greatness, they try to go beyond and stand on their own merits, in both we control the same incarnation of Link from the previous game, both take place in what is apparently a parallel dimension, and lastly, even though they may have a mostly goofy and illogical tone, this game having a somber tone while LA a more cheerful one, both share deep messages with allegories to fear of change and death. But well, let's start talking about Majora's Mask.

The story of this game begins shortly after the story of Ocarina of Time. Link embarks on an adventure to unknown lands in search of Navi, that friend who left us once she fulfilled her goal in the previous game. However, as fate would have it, we get caught up in a problem that traps us in a three-day time cycle forever... or at least it will be that way until we find a way to save the world, which will inevitably come to an end in that span of just three days (equivalent to just under an hour in reality). I especially like how immersive this introductory section is, as it puts a lot of pressure on you and makes you understand the danger the world is in firsthand. However, don't panic, even though the game has that 3-day limit, thanks to having possession of the ocarina of time, we can manipulate time as we please, giving us access to three songs; one that allows us to slow down time, another that allows you to jump through it and the last and most important, the song of time, which takes us back in time to the moment when all this mess started. So yes, you have a time limit, but anyway the game gives you enough time to play this adventure as you would play any other, I was able to fool around and explore at my leisure without any problems, and it's worth mentioning that I'm the kind of player who takes his time on everything.

I suppose you're still thinking that having a time limit ruins the game and makes it hellishly difficult, after all, Zelda games have a slow pace, one much like a JRPG, however, the three day cycle rather than a challenge, serves more to present a new approach to exploration and side-quests that can arise from the wide repertoire of NPCs that this game offers, but more on that later.

This game gives more importance to the masks, because while in Ocarina of Time they only served to obtain variations in the dialogues of some NPCs, in this game the masks are also used sometimes to give you small passive abilities, similar to the accessories in an RPG, which I like a lot, and although there are some masks that you only use once in the whole game, masks like the kamikaze or the bunny hood were quite good and convenient.

Speaking of one of the main innovations of this game, we have the transformations. Probably since Ocarina of Time the developers realized how limited it could be to have a human with realistic movements to make a more creative gameplay, because you can't really invent things that a human can do, so in this game the transformation masks are introduced, which expand Link's movements and game mechanics, being the forms we can get nothing more and nothing less than that of a Zora (fish man), a Goron (rock man), and a Deku (plant boy).

As for the "main" content that are the temples, this game offers few, and you may think that this hurts the game, but the truth is that no, because the amount of optional content that there is more than makes up for it. But talking about the temples themselves, they are quite good, a bit more complicated compared to other games, but each one offering the traditional structure of getting an item and setting puzzles around it, but not only that, because each temple makes you use each of the transformations, so that in fact the temples are designed around both, the item and the new transformation. My favorite temple is the fourth one, one of the best in the series without a doubt.

Another thing I like about this game is that there are no golden Skulltulas, instead, each temple now has 15 fairies hidden in it, which when you collect them all together will give you a permanent magic upgrade. Needless to say, I prefer this, as it makes exploring each temple more interesting and even though finding some of these fairies can be tricky, they are all hidden just right.

It may seem that this game has fewer items than other Zelda games because there are only 4 temples, but many classic items are not really gone, but are included in the same Link transformations, as the Goron is as if you had the hammer with how strong and heavy it is (or the pegasus boots for giving you a lot of travel speed), the Zora gives you something like the boomerang and a replacement more than superior to the iron boots. In that sense, the transformations are very cool, as they not only change the way you move around the world (being a considerable improvement over Ocarina of Time), but also have their own useful abilities.

But well, let's talk about the real main attraction of the game, which is the 3-day cycle, the aspect that makes this game special, but also imperfect. What really makes it shine is how this system was leveraged to give a little story to each of the NPCs in this game. Unlike previous installments, Majora's Mask gives a greater emphasis on the day to day life of the NPCs, so you will have to pay attention to them, as there are some that have different behaviors depending on the day, time and place. Many of the NPCs are directly re-used from Ocarina of Time, so they will be somewhat familiar to you, but I think the developers of this title took advantage of that factor to give them more distinct situations and personalities. Each one has a problem and helping them will usually reward you with a piece of heart or a mask, or rarely even better things. What's entertaining here is how peculiar and diverse the situations and people we can encounter are. Finding weird NPCs has always been a common thing in Zelda games, but I especially like how for the first time in the series a lot more attention was given to this aspect of the game, they end up making this title particularly very memorable.

The map is smaller compared to Ocarina of Time, and it certainly may seem more linear at first glance for only having 5 areas, but the truth is that there are too many things you can do apart from overcoming the temples to entertain you. Majora's Mask is masterful at giving you plenty of puzzles and challenges that are intuitive and satisfying to complete. Although the scale of the game is smaller in comparison to Ocarina of Time, that adventure and discovery factor that is so characteristic of the series is not sacrificed at all, in fact, in some ways I feel it was enhanced.

In fact, as different as this game may feel from the rest of the series, even its music is there to remind us that this is a true adventure on par with all the other games, with the main theme being a reversion of the classic Overworld theme. The music in this game is great, as it has a certain tetric and chaotic aura, while at other times it can be very calm and even full of melancholy... Although many melodies from Ocarina of Time are reused, the new tracks make up for it by how good they are.

Going back to the 3-day cycle, every time it is restarted you lose your money, unimportant items like ammo, sticks, or nuts, which is not as bad as it sounds, because fortunately the game is fair in terms of what you lose and what you don't lose in each restart, since important things like items or masks you will always keep.

However, the real problem that arises from the 3-day system is the repetition. And although I like that the game is made so that each cycle is different and unique, in a way it makes you take everything with more frivolity, because you are helping people that you know that once you restart the cycle, they will have exactly and again the same problems that you had already solved, and although it sounds like a minor detail, for me this actually breaks a little with the immersion, because I am no longer helping people to solve their problems, but just to get something. And this can become more tedious when you take into account that failing or taking a side quest at the wrong time sometimes means having to repeat it from the beginning. Also when you finish a temple, the curse of that area will be dispelled, but it will return once you restart the cycle, which makes you have to defeat the boss of each temple every time you want to break the curses again (there are some side-quests that require it). This to me also breaks a bit with the logic of this universe, because there are things like the bank that make your money be kept even if you restart the cycle, but on the other hand, why do the bosses of each temple revive even though the mask they give you (proof that they were defeated) you will always keep it?

But... speaking again about a positive aspect of the concept of the 3-day cycle, I like the fact that, even if you have already completed everything in the game, you can replay the parts you liked the most at any time you want without having to create a new file, not something you can do in all games, but in this one thanks to the very nature of the cycle. In addition, living in Termina becomes somehow a daily thing, and little by little, both the place and its inhabitants, become part of you.

Anyway, changing the subject, this remake is pretty good, although it has some questionable changes, but I think I understand, Eiji Aonuma believed that some things from Majora's Mask needed to be changed to make this game a more "suitable" one. However, it's well known that many of these changes were for the worse, and while I don't think they ruin the experience entirely, I understand where the hate from hardcore fans comes from. Be that as it may, the remake also introduces many quality of life improvements and in some ways (just some) feels like a more polished remake than Ocarina of Time. If you want to play this version, go ahead, and if you want to make it even better, use the restoration patch, which modifies some things of this remake to make it more like the original version, but keeping all the good changes of this remake, also adding more quality of life improvements that were not in the original version, nor in this remake.

And well, what to say, if it wasn't for the changes that Eiji Aonuma asked Grezzo, I think this would be one of the best remakes, because the updated graphics make the game look more beautiful and attached to the art style that was portrayed in the concept art, it also adds a lot of detail and color to the scenarios, which makes that unlike the original version, the reuse of assets from Ocarina of Time is considerably less. The downside of the graphical update is that many people don't like it, as the low quality textures and low-poly models, as well as the muted colors of the Nintendo 64 version are for many a fundamental aspect of the experience. In my opinion, again, I don't think they ruin the atmosphere of the game, as I quite liked it, so I think it all depends more on personal preference. The graphic style of Ocarina of Time 3D is great, and I like how this game is just a continuation of that style in many ways.

Conclusion
Majora's Mask is truly brilliant. I love how cleverly the exploration and side-quests are designed, they make it a game rich and varied in content, as well as the approach and often evolution that gives many of the mechanics and concepts established in previous titles end up making it a very outstanding installment.

I don't know how to say it, but it depresses me that there will never be a game like this again. Although the 3-day cycle makes it an imperfect title, it also makes it a very special game like no other.

Additional comments related to the review
I played using the restoration patch made by Project Restoration, which can be found at the following link: https://restoration.zora.re

Like all the games in the New series, it's a game made to be familiar and easy to recognize, but I think as this is the "big" launch game for the Wii U something a little more ambitious and elaborate was required.

What to say... in terms of presentation, it feels like an HD version of New Super Mario Bros. Wii (remembering that the Wii one already felt like an HD version of the DS game), the worlds follow the same themes and it's broadly speaking exactly the same art style, but a bit more refined. I won't deny that the game looks good and has a nice, colorful art style (my favorite parts being the cloud worlds). It's the most polished of all the "New" Super Mario titles in fact, but still, there are some things that look dated, like how stiff and expressionless the character models are, or the fact that most of the assets in this game like for example the backgrounds of the stages are PNGs and not real 3D models. In that sense, although the game complies and looks good, it leaves a little to be desired, because being the Wii U comparable in power to a PS3, it's a little sad that this game looks like a remastered Wii title. It also doesn't help that almost all the soundtrack is reused from previous games, which is a bit tiring considering that New Super Mario Bros. 2 did exactly the same, and this really bothers me a lot, because completely new songs was something to be expected, but unfortunately only the main theme is new.

I guess at least it's a good Mario game, in fact maybe the one I've enjoyed the most from the "New" series. The level design is good and the highlight of this game, you can tell that inspiration was taken from the level design philosophy of Super Mario 3D Land for some of the stages, as some of these are designed around a theme. For example, one level may be entirely about swinging platforms, another may be about going on water spheres, and so on. In itself, this game doesn't present anything we haven't seen before to tell you the truth, but in terms of levels it's pretty solid, not to mention that getting all the star coins is still a lot of fun and my favorite part of these titles.

As news, we have very few, but I'll talk about them anyway. New Super Mario Bros for DS was entirely inspired by the first SMB, the Wii title took inspiration from SMB3, so naturally, this game takes inspiration from Super Mario World. The new Power Up in this release is the super acorn, which although it doesn't allow you to fly like the cape, it does give you the ability to glide through the air at high speed, allows you to stick to walls and also gives you a kind of double jump, and although it's not the most impressive power up, it's certainly the best of all those introduced so far since Super Mario World. There are also some levels that are themed around carrying a baby Yoshi that has special powers, such as spitting bubbles that we can jump on or lighting the way in dark levels, although the amount of these types of levels isn't that great, I guess I appreciate the attempt to want to bring back the colored Yoshis, even if it's only as a momentary gimmick for a few levels. The level selection map is now a large map that interconnects all the zones similar to Mario World, it certainly doesn't have the same charm, but I like that this style of map has been brought back.

Conclusion
Needless to say, it's a Mario game, it's good. However, as a game to start a new generation of consoles it falls quite short, because when it comes down to it, this game feels like a product that was cheap and easy to produce. And truth be told, this is a bit embarrassing, as Mario is Nintendo's most important character and their games should have a bit more ambition and love in them, even though I like this game, I completely understand where the hatred towards it comes from. I think that, if Nintendo had put a little more effort in renewing the presentation of this game, we would be in front of one of the most memorable Mario games, because in terms of level design is quite solid, but the fact that it feels, looks and plays the same as the previous 3 games really end up hurting this game.

And having said that... I admit I enjoyed it a ton haha, I don't love the "New" series to death, but they are games I enjoy quite a bit, and this one has possibly become my favorite of the bunch.

This game has been a pleasant surprise. One would think from the title that this is once again a port of the arcade classic Donkey Kong, but the reality is that this game is a complete reboot (ironically, later would come another reboot) that ends up being a great tribute to the first game starring Mario.

The game starts identically to the original Donkey Kong, with the 4 classic levels, the same sounds, practically the same sprites, and the same objective, to save Pauline, however, when you finish these levels, it is revealed that this is just the introduction of a completely original game with 101 stages, which is much more interesting and mechanically creative. The gameplay is completely revamped, being a sort of combination of the original Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA) and a few more additions to Mario's moveset that make it extremely satisfying to control. This game is a precursor to Super Mario 64 in many ways, as you can perform other types of jumps depending on whether you're crouching or make the jump immediately by flipping to the opposite direction, which like in SM64, serve to reward the more skilled players by conveniently using these moves to skip sections of the levels. I've always loved this sort of thing, as it means that newcomers can play the game with simplicity and gradually learn the gameplay mechanics, but those who want to try to push the envelope and skip the easy parts quickly can do so as well.

This is one of the few games that really understands the console it is made for, meaning that the graphics and length of the levels are meant for a handheld console that you will most likely only play in short sessions. So in other words, this game consists of a series of small levels, each with a unique puzzle and platforming challenge, whose duration can range from over a minute to just a few seconds, making them a perfect snack for those dead moments. And this game is really very creative when it comes to level design and mechanics, as each level has its own little gimmick, all starting from the same basics of getting a key to the goal. There are levels where we are literally allowed to place platforms or stairs at our whim, or others where you must wisely use the elements of the stage to reach the goal.

Conclusion
And what can I say, I loved it, it was a very short game (about 4 hours), but also a very pleasant one to play and full of pure fun. It overflows charm and you can tell it was made by a team with ambition that understood the console for which the game was being created, which ends up making it not only an excellent tribute to one of Nintendo's first franchises, but an excellent Game Boy game in general.

This has become my second favorite Game Boy title, only being surpassed by Link's Awakening, but it's still really very good and I recommend it to any fan of retro Mario games. It's a pity that even though it received a sequel (Mario vs. Donkey Kong), other than that, Nintendo doesn't give much recognition to this game.

After a succession of 9 games in the Castlevania series (yes, for some reason Konami counted Vampire Killer and Haunted Castle), each game making variations to the original formula in its own way, comes Castlevania X: Rondo of Blood, which is a return to the basic gameplay and also serves as a sort of tribute to all the Castlevania games up to that point, a game that came to the PC Engine exclusively for Japan in 1993.

I'll start by talking about what makes this game so satisfying to play, and that is that everything is super polished, calibrated and refined in every aspect, from tiny things like the speed at which Richter and the enemies move (which is a bit faster than past installments), to things like a very well constructed level design. All Castlevania games up to this point have always had parts that are designed to make you fail or trip you up the first time, often feeling unfair, however, in this game even though a bit of trial and error is required, every challenge from the levels themselves to the bosses feel like a perfectly balanced obstacle to be challenging, yet fair, to the point that it's easy to get hooked on this game as each attempt can lead to discovering the rest of the stage until you finally get to beat it.

Rondo of Blood simplifies many aspects of the gameplay, as there is less emphasis on the point system and the upgrades for the whip are completely eliminated in pursuit of having the whip at its maximum level from the beginning, not to mention that the limiter on the number of times you can use a sub-weapon no longer exists and now you can throw them as many times as you want (as long as you have enough hearts). And thanks to that the sub-weapons actually have a more prominent role in this game, as they were slightly re-balanced in terms of behavior, not to mention that when you pick one up, you can go back to the previous one in case you did it by mistake, making the game allow you to carry your favorites always and allow you to plan better strategies for the levels in some cases. Also, Richter can perform a "super-attack" with each of the sub-weapons, which despite consuming a lot of hearts, can save you on more than one occasion and is a pretty cool addition.

Still, there are small changes in the character control, which if you master well, can reward your skill. Richter can perform backflips if you press the button to jump at the right time while in the middle of a straight jump, and also be able to jump up stairs and jump when you're on them, as well as instantly jump down at any time. Also, while you can't redirect your jumps completely, you can redirect where Richter is looking, which makes it so you can jump backwards while flipping in the opposite direction to attack, and if you do a normal jump without moving backwards or forwards, you can slightly change the position you might fall into. I may have gone into too much detail when talking about this, but the way you move has always been a very important aspect, and it's partly these little tweaks and additions that make the gameplay feel so good despite keeping the classic control scheme.

The aesthetic of this game is timeless and perfectly captures the 90s era in all its glory. Certainly the fact that at the time it was a Japanese-only release makes this section have more explicit religious references, and above all, it was what allowed it to have those anime-style cutscenes (which feature voice acting!), which even though I'm more a fan of the somber and mystical atmosphere that Castlevania IV was trying to build, I won't deny that these little pixel art cinematics inspired by the anime of the time also have their charm. Graphically it's not as impressive as the aforementioned SNES title or Castlevania for Shap X68000, however, the artistic style of this game ages better by having a more refined pixel art that wisely combines bright colors with dark colors to give life to the scenarios, and the enemies in this installment look so good, that many of these sprites could be used even more than 10 years later in the installments released for the DS. I almost forgot, but mention to the simplified interface of this game that re-designs the old one so that the score, vitality and what sub-weapons you have can be displayed in an elegant way while covering less screen space compared to the old interface.

One of the things I love most about this title is the variety of stages it has to offer. Thanks to the fact that this game hides a series of secret levels, it can allow itself the freedom of having the typical castle levels, but also levels in which even the weather of the day is sunny, and it is quite entertaining to explore these levels to find the secret exits.

And finally, one of the best aspects of this game is undoubtedly its soundtrack, which thanks to the fact that the game is in CD format, has an extremely high fidelity and does not compare to anything of the time, just listen to this (Bloody Tears). This game has a lot of good remixes of songs from previous games, but it also has many new songs like Illusionary Dance, which is the melody that sounds when you face Dracula and instantly became an icon of the franchise, or my favorite;Opposing Bloodlines, the Richter's main theme and a piece that captures very well the essence of this game; classic enough to not clash with the setting, but at the same time modern, lively and even a little heroic.

Conclusion
And well, needless to say, this game is really solid and I dare say one of the best platformers of the 90s. Rondo of Blood doesn't innovate in gameplay, as it goes back to the basic gameplay as I mentioned before, however it perfects it to such a level that it is considered by many (including me) as the pinnacle of the classic Castlevania games.

And well, I'm glad to have finally reviewed this game, although for the moment I think this will be the last time I'll play it again, because I've already played it so many times, that if I did it once more, I would prefer it to be in its PSP remake, which I personally adore and consider it as the definitive version of Rondo of Blood, but that's a review for another day...

Anyway, play this game if you want to experience a good classic Castlevania, whether it's your first time or your twentieth, rest assured you'll have a spectacular time.

After releasing Super Castlevania IV, which was a kind of remake/re-imagining of the first game in the series, but as many know is almost like a totally different game, Konami decided to release another remake of the first Castlevania, but this time one that was faithful to the original both in level design and gameplay, and above all, in difficulty, so on July 23, 1993 saw the light exclusively in Japan for Sharp X68000 computers.

Certainly as a remake it takes several liberties, as it is not a 1:1 translation with the original game and even most of the bosses and levels are completely new. However, as such the spirit and essence of the first Castlevania is there, the difficulty is high and will require you to memorize the level design to have a chance of beating it, it requires good reflexes and muscle memory, and above all a lot of luck with the bosses which as in the first game, are very erratic and a bit unfair most of the time. This game has the difficulty of one of the 80s, only that in reality the level design is more polished, but it is also more challenging. One of the things to note is that this game is actually more difficult than the first Castlevania, and just look at the iconic wall of the first level that held the chicken and now awaits a nest of infinite flea man ... so yes, this version is aimed at veterans and hardcore fans of the franchise, get ready, because this will be an adventure that will require a lot of patience, persistence and skill, although if you could with the NES, probably you can also with this one.

To balance things out a bit, Simon can now direct his whip downwards or to any lower diagonal, it certainly doesn't offer the same versatility as Castlevania IV's control, but believe me this small addition to the gameplay can save your bacon on more than one occasion. In this installment Simon feels "slow" in trying to replicate the mobility of the original games, so if you're coming from Castlevania IV or any modern game it will be something you'll resent, but eventually learn to get used to. The secondary weapons are the same as the first Castlevania, although if you're a bit lucky you may come across a healing plant, a secondary weapon exclusive to this version and that revitalizes you in exchange for a lot of hearts.

Something that I quite appreciate about this game are its graphics, because for its time they are quite close to those of the PS1 era, it has a very well cared visual style with a well selected color palette, however almost all the backgrounds in the scenarios are static, unlike those of Castlevania IV that had many animated elements. I can assume that Castlevania Symphony of the Night took inspiration from this game in the artistic section, because in general it feels like an evolution of what this game presented.

Something in which this game takes several liberties is also the soundtrack, as most of the pieces are new compositions. And wow, there are some really good new songs, such as the two songs from the doppleganger level, Moon Fight and The Tower of Dolls, which are songs that fascinate me and would reappear in future games in the franchise. Music in this game sounds similar to what the Sega Genesis sound chip was capable of reproducing, only with a bit more fidelity.

Conclusion
Undoubtedly a very good remix of the original Castlevania, which unlike Castlevania IV, decides to take a more faithful direction to the original game while still keeping it fresh with all new levels and small difficulty spikes, making it possibly one of the most difficult Castlevania games, although if I managed to finish it without saves states, I'm sure you can too.

If you're a fan of the first title and want to try something with the same essence but with small twists in difficulty, I recommend you try this one.

Additional comment related to the review
I played this game through the original mode included in Castlevania Chronicles for PS1, which is a port practically identical to the original, but with loading times.

Castlevania IV is a re-imagining of Simon's first adventure, but for the Super Nintendo. It's actually a totally different game, introducing an interesting control scheme never seen before in the series, and also presenting a new approach to gameplay, making it a little less difficult for newcomers to get into the franchise, but without leaving out the challenge altogether.

This is the first Castlevania game to be developed for a 16-bit console as such, and the improvement is clearly substantial in every way, but I'll start talking about the graphics, which are superb especially for its time, as the pixel art is very well detailed and despite being one of the earliest Super Nintendo games, are still an aspect of the game to highlight. Although later installments such as Rondo of Blood leave a little "obsolete" the artistic style of this game, as it has more stylized designs and more vibrant colors, however, I think Castlevania IV is far superior when it comes to attention to detail in the scenarios, as each place is full of small details that fill them with life, from grass growing between the bars in the first level, or things like when the water falls on Simon and you can see how it crashes when falling on his shoulders and head, or when it passes through his legs. The only downside to this is that the game can suffer from constant slowdowns.

Another thing I love is the soundtrack, as each piece takes advantage of the Super Nintendo sound chip in a very unique way. There are songs like the intro and the forest song from the second level that are incredibly atmospheric (and part of my favorites as well), or there are also other songs like the one from the submerged city level that have that cool jazzy feel but surprisingly retain the atmospheric and gothic feel of a Castlevania game very well.

Perhaps the most controversial change, but one that I personally adore, is the great versatility given to Simon when it comes to attacking with his whip, as now instead of just being limited to the direction he is facing, you can direct the whip upwards, downwards or even diagonally. This in itself makes the game get a more frenetic pace, because if you know how to use the whip with precision you can defeat in the blink of an eye the enemies that come your way, which allows a faster progress through the levels. Many are annoyed by this and the fact that you can redirect your jumps as well, as it makes everything much easier, but I think it's a good change, and a good attempt to evolve the gameplay of the series that unfortunately was not taken up in later installments. Other small tweaks that I appreciate for how significant they are is that you can now get on ladders by jumping on them and also instantly get off at any time from them, which really makes a difference.

The level design is spectacular, and this game is a good example of how technological advances can really change the way game levels are designed, as the levels are full of little gimmicks that make use of the Super Nintendo's capabilities in creative ways in the stages. Not to mention that I think this game has a difficulty curve that makes it easy for new people to have a good time with a reasonable challenge that increases with each level.

Speaking of boss battles, the variety of monsters you face in this game is good and even though some still have that erratic factor that makes them a bit unfair at times, there are other battles that I quite like, specifically the last 4.

Conclusion
Castlevania III set the kind of level design, music and atmosphere that the series should have, and I think this game set very well the kind of locations and attention to detail that game settings should have, as well as the smooth and satisfying gameplay that the series should follow, a culmination that came with Symphony of the Night in my opinion.

This game is superb no matter where you look at it, it won't be perfect, but it is truly one of the greats and a good reimagining of Simon Belmont's first adventure.

A MASSIVE improvement to the first game in every way.

I'll start by talking about everything that this game corrects from the first one, being the most important thing that now the controls are responsive and there are no more slowdowns, this game runs smoothly and you can tell that the development team had more mastery of the console they were working for. Second, the sub-weapons are back, and although there are only 2, axes and holy water, they are still my favorite and really the difference between having nothing. And lastly, the level design is superior in every way, as not only are there very creative levels with very unique mechanics, which is remarkable for one of the first games in the series, but the boss battles are also quite good. And best of all, you no longer lose your whip upgrades when you get hit (although you can lose them if you get hit by a certain enemy).

The graphics and music received a slight improvement, and overall it's a very enjoyable game to play, even though there are only 6 levels in total. The story is also somewhat interesting, as we once again take on the role of Christopher Belmont, only years after the original adventure. Our protagonist was in the task of training a successor for the Vampire Hunter whip, being the candidate nothing more and nothing less than his own son, however, he ends up being controlled by Dracula, so it is Christopher's duty to take the role of vampire hunter once again to stop his son and Dracula. It's not really a plot I should be talking about, as it's not a big deal at all, but I do find the parallels it has with the plot of Symphony of the Night striking, where they also take control of a Belmont to resurrect Dracula.

Something I liked about this game is that it has a Mega Man-like structure for the first levels, in the sense that we can choose how we want to play them in any order, and I like the idea, as that gives variety to the type of scenarios that can be presented in this type of games, although it is an idea that would only be taken up in a certain way until Order of Eclessia.

Conclusion
In short, one of the Game Boy games that I enjoyed the most, and if it wasn't for the fact that the 2 final bosses are extremely difficult and unfair, so much so that it contrasts with how well balanced the rest of the adventure is (which subtracts some points to this game in my opinion). Had it not been for those two bosses I would have beaten this game without save-states.

You can tell that the goal this time was not simply to make a Castlevania game for the Game Boy, but a GOOD Castlevania game in general. However, I only recommend it if you're a fan of GB games, as it may be too archaic if you're not.

An admirable, but disappointing attempt to adapt the series to the portable format.

In a nutshell, it's a game with good ideas and you can tell it almost achieves the task of being a decent Castlevania game, however, the constant slowdowns, unresponsive controls coupled with an unfair and punishing level design make this game a fiasco. Things I don't like is that in this game there are no sub-weapons, it's just you and your whip throughout the whole game, and what I liked least of all is that you now lose whip upgrades every time you are hit by an enemy, which makes the game harder than it should be, and you can tell it was made hard on purpose to extend the length of the game, as there are only 4 levels in total. It is certainly a very small game, the music is decent, although nothing memorable and as for its graphics, they are quite simple.

Conclusion
I suppose it's admirable for being the first attempt to adapt the franchise to a handheld console, especially since it came out only a short time after the Game Boy was released, yet it suffers from the same problem as Super Mario Land, in the sense that the game doesn't feel very good to play, and the fact that in this case the level design demands a very high degree of skill makes it worse, because even if you have the skill, the game doesn't play well enough for your skill to be truly reflected.

Live A Live is a lost gem from the past, more specifically from the Super Nintendo era. In its time it didn't sell well, so Square Soft chose to consider it as a failure and leave this game in oblivion, a totally undeserved fate... or so it was until it was unexpectedly and miraculously brought back with this magnificent remake.

I don't like to use the term "ahead of its time" but in this case, Live A Live was.

I think we all know Kirby Super Star for SNES, a game that distinguished itself from the rest by having the caption "8 Games in one!". I always thought it had a very good design, because in an era where games were getting longer and longer to finish (something that happens even today with games that last longer than they should to finish), having a game that is divided into small games with different gimmicks and themes each one sounds like a pretty fresh and striking idea, because you never get tired of one in specific for the short duration they have. Well, what if I tell you that Square Soft did exactly the same thing 2 years before Kirby Super Star, but for JRPGs with Live A Live.

This game is exactly about that, in base, you have 7 short stories, each one with different elements in its gameplay and theme, each one with its own protagonist, and each one set in a different time era, so you have the typical ones, as can be the prehistory, the present and the future, but you also have unique scenarios like the ninjas, the Chinese imperial era or the old west. Something to highlight of this game, is that in 1994 RPGs did not really vary much from the same medieval setting, but Live A Live presented with a lot of different scenarios that make parody, reference and tribute to all kinds of works such as movies, anime, maga and even other video games.

Something that all chapters of the game share is the combat system, which moves away from the traditional turn-based system to develop the battles in a grid in which both our opponents and ourselves can move to execute all kinds of attacks. This game simplifies things a bit, because as such there are no MPs, you are free to use the character's skills at no cost, you can use them whenever you want and however you want, from the weakest and most ineffective kick, to the most destructive attack. I have to say that it's quite easy to understand and has a simplistic approach so that even the most novice can enjoy it, and overall I think it's a brilliant combat system, because each battle feels like a different puzzle, which although simple, is satisfying to complete.

You'll be thinking that the premise is quite similar to Octopath Traveler, but even though they have the same concept, the way they approach it differs a lot. While in Octopath Traveler the stories had to have more or less the same quality, length and structure, in this game it is quite the opposite, as all the stories are made to be different from each other, both in quality and length, as each one wants to achieve something different, and that is exactly what makes it special. Each of the stories is well written, but what in my opinion really makes them shine, is that they use mechanics from the game itself to really make you feel involved in the stories. Live A Live is one of those games that really takes advantage of the unique medium that video games are to give you a narrative and experience that would only be possible in a video game itself. And that's something to point out, because you can't say the same about other games that came out around the same time, or even many that come out today.

This remake is fantastic, because although the original experience is still great, all the improvements that are included in this version are too good. For starters, similar to what happened with Final Fantasy VI, the characters now look like their sprites in the battles when they are walking around the map, and not only that, but all the pixel art was redone based on the originals, but giving them more colors and detail, and more importantly, a lot of new and detailed animations were added both pixel art and CG that give a little more life to this game. The graphic style of Octopath Travler was used for this remake, but even so, both games look very different, because while in Octopath Traveler the scenarios have a lot of details and realistic effects, and the textures had a pixel art look to give it that retro effect, in Live A Live its use is more measured and the pixel art of the characters is much more expressive, pixel art textures are still used for the environments, but in a more subtle way, which gives a cleaner and more concise look. I still don't know if I prefer how Octopath Traveler or Live A Live looks, but I like that even though both games are made with "HD-2D" graphics, the art style feels distinct enough to give Live A Live a unique feel and identity.

In the original Live A Live sometimes knowing where to go could be very ambiguous, that's why one addition I appreciated was the radar, which tells you which areas you have already explored and where to go to continue in the story, and it's a great addition because in case you prefer a more original experience you can always disable it (the game itself mentions it when you start the game). The radar is something original from Octopath Traveler, however, something I didn't like about its implementation in this game is that to disable it you need to go to the settings menu instead of being able to do it by simply pressing the R1 button, as you could in Octopath Traveler. I say this because the radar is sometimes redundant and I prefer to disable it to immerse myself more in the game. I only recommend it in the near future and far future stories, as sometimes it's ambiguous to know what to do next (although they also added a couple of dialogs that mitigate this), in all other stories it's not so necessary (unless you're really lost).

Speaking of the soundtrack, I think Yoko Shimomura's work for this game has become my favorite from her, both for the quality of the pieces and the variety of them. Normally in Kingdom Hearts all the songs have a similar style, but here all the songs vary in style to better stick to the era they try to represent, I give as an example these two songs, which precisely contrast how different they can be despite having been composed by the same person (Clash in China) (The Wilds). Frankly, I loved the whole soundtrack of this game, has become one of my favorites. The team that was in charge of making the arrangements did a magnificent job.

I've already talked about how Live A Live pays tribute to other media, and to top it all off, after finishing the 7 main stories, you unlock a secret chapter that pays tribute to the JRPG genre itself and the game that started it all: the first Dragon Quest. The story and the setting are more or less the same, a silent hero (which I recommend to put your name hehe ...), which must rescue his beloved princess of the fearsome dragon lord, I mean, lord of the dark, so to achieve such a feat you must go through the same steps of the hero before you to defeat the villain of this story. And I say no more, for this is a game that is best when you play it without spoilers, and especially in this chapter, for knowing absolutely nothing about the latter other than the initial plot is what makes it even better. (I wasn't sure about even mentioning this part of the game, but given that the average review on this site makes even bigger spoilers, and even the trailers themselves do, I figured it would be appropriate to do so).

Conclusion
It was all the idea of Takashi Tokita, the original director of Live A Live, who prior to this game had already worked on Final Fantasy IV and later was one of the directors of Chrono Trigger (which now playing this game, I can notice a lot of the influence his direction had). You can tell that at the time it was a game made by a development team with a lot of passion and dedication, and fortunately the same can be said of this remake.

And I have nothing to say other than that I highly recommend playing this game. I played it without many expectations really, but after finishing it, I can only say that I'm very sorry I didn't give it a chance earlier. Live A Live is a masterpiece not only of the genre, but of video games.

Frankly, it has become one of my favorite games of all time, maybe in this review I didn't explain many of the reasons why, but that was to avoid spoilers, because it really is a game that should be played by everyone.

Castlevania III unlike the second title is not as experimental, in fact, it is almost the same as the first Catlevania game, however, if you analyze it carefully you realize that it is not only the best of the NES trilogy, but it changed the Castlevania franchise forever by improving and defining the type of levels, the type of music and the artistic tone that the games would follow from this one.

This game is the prequel to the first games and tells the story of the time when the Belmont family first confronted Dracula and his dark forces. In general, the gameplay is exactly the same as the first game, as I mentioned before, however, the way in which this game expands the gameplay is by adding new playable characters, which you can recruit depending on which routes you take in the first half of the game, although only 1 will be able to accompany you at a time. Each character has their distinct advantages and disadvantages and it's great to experiment with each of them, as you have Sypha who has powerful magic attacks, but is extremely vulnerable, Alucard who doesn't have a great variety of attacks, but has an enviable mobility, and Grant who stands out for his versatility. If you play alone with Trevor this game can be even more difficult than the first Castlevania, but if you use the characters wisely you can overcome the challenges more easily and it's more fun that way I think. Still, the level design and enemy positioning are nothing to take lightly, so you'll need to have your skills at your best if you want to have a chance of getting to Dracula.

This game has an excellent setting thanks to its dark scenarios, although the graphical leap from the previous games to this one is not remarkable, what can be highlighted is how the art style has more identity and is much more refined, it is difficult to notice for an 8-bit game, but I am not exaggerating, being this game a turning point that would further define the kind of colors and places that a Castlevania game should have, almost all future games in the series include a reference or homage of some kind to this game.

The music is a great point to highlight, because in the NES era it was common for developers to include chips to expand the possibilities of the game, usually they were used to make the games have bigger levels or to have better graphics, Castevania 3 on the other hand uses a chip to improve the music. And god, the music is superb, the best soundtrack of the NES hands down.

Conclusion
Many say that the pinnacle of 2D Castlevania is Rondo of Blood, and while I agree with that, none of that game would have been possible without this one. If Super Mario Bros. 3 didn't exist, this would be my favorite NES game, its music and atmosphere are pervasive and although it's still not for everyone, if you're a fan of the classic Castlevania formula, be sure you'll have a great time with this game.

P.S: don't play the international version of the game, as it unbalances the difficulty making it harder than it should be and the quality of the music is considerably inferior, better play the Japanese version.

The fifth installment in the Zelda series had a titanic task, because not only had to be a game at the height of A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening that had left the bar very high, but also had to be the first game in the franchise in 3D. And everyone already knows how the story ended, this game not only far exceeded what it set out to do, but it was so good that it went down in history as one of the greatest games of all time. It has its well-deserved reputation and is a masterpiece not only for the Zelda series, it transcends entirely to be a game that directly told the entire video game industry how a 3D game should really be made.

FIN.

...

...


Actually... I don't need to explain anything else, the previous paragraph is more than enough, but my reviews are always long and in order not to break the tradition (and for everyone who wants to stay and read more) I'll expand the review, so here I go.

Expanded Review
This game perfectly translates the Zelda formula to 3D, to such a level that it makes you think that this franchise was born from the beginning really to have 3D games. Ocarina of Time was extremely ambitious for its time, Nintendo could have made a more direct translation of the mechanics that characterize the franchise for a 3D game, but the developers decided to go a step ahead and directly reinvented many mechanics to adapt things from the past to the new format, which in essence seem to be the same and the obvious evolution, but from a design perspective such transition is not so evident, and therefore, such change was what allowed an infinitely higher range of expression for the way the mechanics are expanded and the levels of this game are designed. It's not for nothing that franchises like Castlevania or Mega Man on PS2 never really shined in 3D, as they were a literal translation of the formula to 3D without being an adaptation or evolution as such over them.

The dungeons are very well designed, and it's impressive that for a game from the early 3D era it has such well thought out puzzles and great design in general, it has aged excellently.

The overworld map is gigantic, and wisely interconnects different areas of the game the further you go so as not to make exploration a burden. However, as a kid, sometimes traversing the map can be tiring because of how slow Link walks and how far away everything is at first, and it's a shame that pegasus boots weren't added to the game. This has its reason of course, because now to go fast around the map we can ride a horse, which solves the previous problem, but only partially, because riding a horse is only an option when Link is an adult. And later in the game you also unlock fast travel options, however, when you do this you probably won't need to go back to the time where you are a child more than a few times.

The soundtrack in this game is simply magical. Many melodies are too short and simple, but they are extremely catchy and memorable, although this was done on purpose, as the music has a leading role, because simple commands like fast travel to certain places or calling your horse are linked to a melody, and to invoke those commands you must play the melody yourself, and that's why they were made short and easy to memorize. I know it may sound a bit goofy nowadays, and in the long run it's even a bit tedious to have to play a song every time for such basic actions, but I don't know, it's something that makes this game even more magical.

The controls can feel... a bit "clunky" nowadays for a 3D game, but if you compare it to any other game of the time, you realize that the controls and character movement are brilliantly designed and way ahead of their time. Obviously this isn't a platformer, so you don't have the mobility and versatility of Mario, you're still Link from previous games, only now in a 3D environment. Link as such could never jump at will and always had a somewhat slow mobility.

A substantial improvement over previous installments is the combat, this went from only consisting of pressing the A button, to be expanded so that now things like dodging, good timing, blocking with the shield and even the trajectory of your thrusts is determined by the position to which you are moving the analog stick. It may not sound like a big deal, but for a series that used to have a very basic combat system, to see such a significant expansion is to be admired and especially for its time. And all of this was made possible by the brilliant lock-on system, which was a revolution for its time.

Unlike Mario, adapting Zelda to three dimensions was even more complicated, because while Mario could still afford to have levels, models, animations and sound effects a little more "unreal" or "artificial" so to speak, Zelda games have always tried to be set in fantasy worlds, but worlds that should feel natural and "believable". This particular title was given a realistic setting to achieve that goal, which we can tell from the graphical style, the animations and the immense amount of attention to detail in the world. The dungeons now have ambient music instead of traditional video game music, and while I would have liked the normal songs better, I understand the change. Things like the sound of your footsteps changing depending on the ground you're walking on, the voices changing pitch if you're underwater or not, Link shivering from the cold and sneezing if the place is icy, the day and night cycle that was added as a gimmick precisely, all this and among other things serve to increase the realism. The atmosphere of this game is very well achieved thanks to the above and the very good characterization of the places you visit.

Although the game in structure and story is broadly almost the same as A Link to the Past, so if you expect something new in that sense this game does not offer it, but I really do not blame them, ALttP game is the GOAT. Back to the point, perhaps due to memory limitations and also because it would be too large in scale to develop, the concept of two parallel worlds had to be discarded, but not completely, as this was integrated in the form of a time skip that changes the world design a bit, but not only that, but also Link's abilities by turning him from a child to an adult. And this game separates the two characters so that even as an adult, you have to resort to your child form for its peculiarities, such as being small in size or being located in a different time.

This game adds a new collectible to complement the exploration of the world, similar to Dragon Quest IV's mini medals, the infamous golden skulltulas, and I must say that the challenge of finding them all is a bit absurd. Some are hidden brilliantly, but others are hidden wickedly and are nearly impossible to find, as some appear exclusively at night and in very specific locations. It's a completely optional quest, but it could have been handled better, you can tell that many are only there so that the game can have that amount of "100", besides only 50 being necessary to get the rewards that are really worth it.

The heart pieces on the other hand yes they are hidden in a better way, similar to how they were in A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening, only 2 or 3 will be very well hidden, but the rest are enjoyable to search and discover. And overall, this game has A Link to the Past type moments, where it's hard to figure out where you need to go next, but the addition of Navi was vital to mitigate this and better guide the player's progression.

The graphics in this version are great, it's like the exact same game, but with PS2 graphics, and that somehow looks really good on the 240p screen of the 3DS, it still looks great even to this day (and Princess Zelda looks gorgeous in this version). And I'm glad that for this remake they went for a realistic style instead of an animated one, as the original Ocarina of Time was made to be a realistic game from the start, as I said above. It also comes with a lot of small tweaks to make the experience smoother. The original Ocarina of Time is still a great experience, but if you want a more modern experience that is still completely faithful to the original, this version is the way to go.

Conclusion
Plot twist! The conclusion was always the very first paragraph of this review, so go read that. Thanks for reading and goodbye.

A fantastic remake of a fantastic game.

This is a game that I am very fond of, so for the occasion this time I will start with my personal story, not only of how I came to know this game, but how I became a fan of the series.

The only reason I started playing the Dragon Quest series years ago was because I wanted to play this game. When I was a kid I tried it on my DS and was completely in love with it. Its music, how classic and traditional it felt, the graphics and that story just captivated me. However, I had the bad luck that when I started the game my DS broke down, I didn't get through the first part (when you're still a kid, how ironic), and it was really a very sad moment.

The years passed and in my mind lingered that memory of that charming game that I never got to know completely. So I made up my mind that I would play this franchise no matter what it took me to get back to this game. I tried a bunch of times to get started with the series to prepare myself for this title. I tried the first game, but it felt very archaic and I ended up abandoning it, I played Dragon Quest IV, but it didn't hook me so I skipped it, I played the third one and it didn't click with me either. A few more years passed, and coming with another mentality and tired of linear games, I decided to try the first Dragon Quest and the rest is history. I went about playing each game in order of release without stopping, my motivation throughout being this game, and when I finally got to it... frankly I was moved, and it became one of my favorite games of all time. At the time I played the Super Nintendo version, but I knew that the PS2 and DS remakes improved the experience quite a bit, so I've decided to play it in its PS2 version for this review. But well, enough of the stories. Let's talk about the game as such.

~ Dragon Quest V Review ~
Dragon Quest IV had already established the "perfect" formula for the franchise, Dragon Quest V what it does is to take that same formula and tell from it a very heartwarming and special story. The way it makes you live it from the time you are a child to the time you are an adult is quite nice.

As a child, the world feels vast, mysterious and magical, you are accompanied by your father who is on an odyssey whose goal is still unknown, at this stage he is certainly the strongest of all, although you are a bit restricted because you can't get too far away from him, but that's what makes the adventures even more memorable.

Once as an adult, you live the travels with a bit of loneliness and see the darker side of life, although on your own, you are able to travel to more places and know more of the world, here opens the possibility of recruiting monsters which serves to not have to fight all the battles with only one character, and ends up being something very fun to have a party made up of you and those monsters that hopefully joined you. Eventually you stop being alone, because at some point in the story you have to get married for certain reasons. However, this is not as simple as it sounds, here occurs simply one of my favorite moments in the entire franchise, as the way the game makes getting married feel like YOUR decision and that it is meaningful is remarkable, and it is in moments like this where I can't help but think how great video games are as a medium, because a movie or a TV series could never evoke the emotions that this game is able to generate throughout the entire adventure, it is here where you understand why Dragon Quest has always had a silent protagonist, because it is what allows you to feel not only as the spectator of a story, but as someone who is also part of it in a way.

Anyway, after the previous stage, the 3rd and last one follows, where you will have to finish to fulfill your father's objective and now yours as well, and here those who accompany you are a couple of children whose identity I will not reveal, but who will help you to conclude this odyssey once and for all.

As you can see, it's a pretty unique premise even today for a game and especially for a Dragon Quest, where the adventures always revolve more around the adventure and the search for magical items over the life of the protagonist, his family and friends, and that's precisely what makes this game so special, that story that makes you live. Undoubtedly the addition of the party chat that this remake has makes the experience even more special, because it allows you to know more about the personality of the characters you meet along the journey, their opinions, how they feel, and for a game as focused on the story as this one is, the party chat is an excellent complement. As a curiosity, the story of this game takes place many years in the future of the story of DQIV, and I really like the references you can find to that title. However, you can play this game without knowing anything about the previous one, as it is an independent story.

As for the combat system, this remains virtually identical to the previous games, but a feature that was quite striking and novel at the time is added: the recruitment of monsters. Some of the monsters you fight can join your party permanently as if they were a main character. They do not have any kind of participation in the story, but it is an aspect that makes the gameplay of this particular Dragon Quest more interesting, because besides offering you human characters for your party with their unique characteristics and qualities as in a traditional RPG, it also does exactly the same for many of the monsters that you can find throughout the game. This mechanic works randomly, but still feels like a very unique and novel feature for its time, which can make your playthrough more memorable if you're lucky enough, or if you like to grind and want to customize your party with the perfect monster team. On the other hand, if you're the type of person who doesn't care for monster catching, the game also gives you the option to play it with a party made up entirely of humans, although this won't happen until the second half of the game, so the decision is yours. In my case, I always prefer to have a party made up of humans, especially in this title, because the characters are nothing more and nothing less than your own family, and it's nice to be able to travel and fight with them, it's a very unique feeling.

Something that this remake implements as a novelty is that it now allows you to control 4 characters in battles instead of only 3, as was the case in the original version of SFC. This is frankly a very welcome addition, as it allows you to have more flexibility to strategize and approach battles. Although truth be told, this also makes the first half of the game easier than it already was in the original version, especially if you have a decent character lineup. To be frank, I would have liked this game to have been better balanced to make it more difficult, as it is sometimes very easy, and makes the battles not as fun as they were in DQIII or DQIV, although on the other hand, this is more than perfect for beginners.

In terms of structure, this one is even more linear than DQIV, mostly because there is a greater emphasis on the story. But just like in Dragon Quest IV, the places you visit, the dungeons, and the battles are distributed in such a way that you never feel that the game is being too restrictive with you, as that feeling of being in a great adventure is always present, the game doesn't always take you by the hand, which makes you as a player have to pay attention to what the NPCs say and you have above all an incentive to want to explore the world and be able to continue with the story. The way the game makes you revisit places you've already seen not only to reward your curiosity with special items as previously happened in the other games, but also to denote the passage of time in the characters and NPCs fills you with a strange feeling you could say... nostalgic with a hint of melancholy, because now the NPCs remind you of you and your adventures and are no longer just there to talk about rumors of items or to give you clues. There's a lot of attention to detail and you can notice that thanks to the fact that many dialogues change after certain events in the story even when you might think they wouldn't, and I'm glad that the party chat does nothing but denote this aspect of the game, making even the dialogues you can get from your companions differ when you visit certain towns depending on the moment in the story.

The soundtrack of this game is full of lovely and unforgettable pieces, it is simply masterful. From the moment you start the game and hear the majestic ocean theme... from the moment you hear that map theme that evokes desolation and uncertainty... from the moment you hear that sweet and comforting town theme... from that moment you realize that this game's soundtrack will be beautiful. The music of Dragon Quest V has something that feels more special, which will be accentuated by the symphonic versions of this remake.

Something that leaves a little to be desired are the graphics of this remake... in general terms, it doesn't look bad, in fact, there are places that look better than decent, but the character models look ugly. It has the merit of being the first game in the franchise to be made with full 3D graphics, however, DQ8 was released only 8 months after this one and it showed us what a 3D Dragon Quest should really be. Even with everything, I personally like the look of this game, the monsters in the battles look good and it's the first time they are fully animated, not to mention that seeing the DQVII engine looking so good gives me pleasure, and I love the look of the overworld map, it's like walking on a sphere and I wish more games would adopt that style, a game like this that has day and night cycle especially benefits from that. The transition from PS1 to PS2 really was a significant improvement, although it certainly lacked polish in some parts.

And well, overall despite the drawbacks like the graphics that could have been polished a bit more, this remake is fantastic, Arte Piazza did a commendable job in updating DQ5 to the level of DQ7. Improvements like being able to control 4 characters in battles instead of 3, some quality of life improvements like a map that you can access by pressing the square button that works better than the original, better menus, among others and the party chat are improvements that I appreciated a lot (especially because it makes choosing the other wife worthwhile). Small changes were also made to the game script, but nothing significant. As a remake it's not as ambitious as the ones developed by Heartbeat, but it's still pretty good. I find it a pity that Dragon Quest VI never received a good remake like this or the previous ones.

The fan team that translated this game into English did an incredible and titanic job, taking into account the huge amount of text this game has, I'm thankful for their work with this version of DQV (and DQIII for SFC as well).

Conclusion
One of the best games ever, one of my all time favorite games and a game that will always be an important part of me.

← Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen - Review

Another excellent 2D action game by Inti Creates. This game is to the first Gunvolt what Mega Man X4 is to the first Mega Man X: a game that shines not by changing the game formula, but by introducing a new playable character and giving him his own story.

Copen is amazing, as playing as him is a delight. Somehow Inti Creates created another character that is very novel and unique in how it plays, yet simple to understand and satisfying to use. His play style is even faster and he has an even more versatile move, but something that makes him even better than Gunvolt is that just like Mega Man, you can acquire the ability by defeating a boss by defeating it. The only bad thing I see him is that he's too powerful for his own good, to the point that if you found the first game easy, this one will be even more so. I feel like this was made that way because Copen is harder to use, as it requires more precision and getting the S+ rank is more complicated for that very reason, so to balance it out they made him more powerful, however, that compounds my problem with this game, as playing with Copen is still easier than Gunvolt if you play normally, but harder than Gunvolt if you're chasing the S+ rank.

On the Gunvolt side of things, Gunvolt remains pretty much the same as in the last installment, and I'm glad that was the case, as playing with him is still satisfying and this time around the levels and boss battles are a bit more fun. I guess the only thing I have to highlight about this character is that he's better balanced than Copen, which makes the ""challenge"" a bit more interesting. Yeah, Copen is a better and more satisfying character to use, but somehow, I found more enjoyment playing as Gunvolt.

As for the story... this one still isn't for me. A new antagonist is introduced, which is none other than the cut-out boss from the previous installment, Zonda, though the bizarre thing here is that it's revealed that Zonda all along was a little girl... and not only that, Lumen is also transformed into a little girl and Copen's assistant AI is also transformed into a little girl... yeah, I think I'm noticing a certain obsession on Inti Creates' part.

Conclusion
And that's Azure Striker Gunvolt 2 in a nutshell, there's really no change in game structure besides Copen as a playable character, so this game has exactly the same strengths (frenetic gameplay, good game design) as well as the same weaknesses (poorly balanced ranking system, bad story) as the first game, just a bit more refined, so I don't have much to explain here other than to say that it's a good game.