Fans of Action RPGs have been waiting a long time for a
new game in the genre to appear. Not since the days of the
16-bit systems have we had any good Action RPGs to play in
North America. With the release of Alundra, Working Designs
has fixed this situation. Alundra is basically the sequel to
the classic Sega Genesis Action RPG Landstalker. Fans of the
original will recognize the similar styles instantly upon
playing Alundra.
Gameplay- If you've played Landstalker, then you know
what you're in for. If you haven't , then get ready for a
very high learning curve. Gameplay is good but tedious, and
there will be tons of instances where you feel like smashing
your controller into a wall. Alundra features lots of
platforming, ranging from moderately difficult to very
diffcult. There are particular spots in the game where the
player will attempt a sequence of jumps, and it might take
them 20 or 30 trys to get it right. There is also plenty of
puzzling fun for the player, ranging from basic switch
flipping, to more diffcult styles such as timing puzzles.
There are tons of puzzles, and Alundra will humble you with
them. Since this game is an Action RPG, all monsters are
faced in realtime. There are plenty of areas in the game's
dungeons where the player can encounter as much as four to
six enemies on screen at once, but once you get the hang of
the game's controls, you won't have trouble dispatching
enemies. The boss characters are another matter altogether.
WD decided to make them a tad more difficult for the english
version, and it shows. Gamers must be patient, as some
bosses will require upwards of thirty hits to kill. I had my
butt kicked by half the bosses, when I first encountered
them. There will be players who hate this game, because of
its slow and tedious gameplay. As a fan of the original, I
like it, but I do wish that occasionally certain obstacles
had been removed, because it seems like overkill sometimes.
Overall gameplay is fun, but frustrating, This game will
test your patience, so make sure to practice your breathing
techniques while playing Alundra. I give gameplay an
80/100.
Graphics- Alundra features 2D backgrounds viewed at from
the classic three-quarter overhead perspective. This view
has been used in so many of the classic Action RPGs, like
Zelda, and Secret of Mana. It's an acquired taste now, but
personally I find the graphics to be very good. The
backgrounds have good detail, and, while the color palette
isn't the best, everything looks good. Most of my favorite
areas were in dream sequences, which encompass everything
from tropical forests to snowy castles. The sprites in the
game animate well, and slowdown is pretty rare. The boss
characters look good, especially some of the latter
monsters. Spell effects unfortunately are boring and get old
very quickly. I give graphics an 85/100.
Control- Control is decent, your character will respond
instantly to touches of the buttons or the D-pad, but I
would have preferred it to be more precise. There are many
instances where the player will make a jump onto a small
platform, and then slip off the other side. The game's
overhead perspective doesn't help the control much either.
Sometimes the player will have trouble identifying what
jumps can and cannot be made. This is more than a little
annoying , considering the backtracking that missing some
jumps will force. Spells are cast immediatly upon touching
the correct button on the control pad. The menu system is
excellent, with ease of access and use. I give control an
70/100.
Sound- This is the one area of Alundra that I have real
problems with. The sound effects are okay, and there are
plenty of them. However, I did not enjoy the game music at
all. I found it to be boring, and in many instances to not
fit the situation that was onscreen. In general WD has put
forth some the best game music ever, and this game is really
the exception to that rule. I give sound a 60/100.
Story- Okay, probably the most important aspect of an
RPG. Yes, Alundra has a good story.You take the role of the
main character in the game, Alundra, a dreamwalker, and you
are fiighting an evil demon called Melzas, who is trying to
destroy your world. You do battle against him in both the
physical realm, and in the dreamworld. Alundra has the
ability to enter the dreams of others and rid them of the
demons which have possessed them. The story can be a tad
confusing at times, and requires the player to really pay
attention to all the conversations within the game. The
story is also sad at times, as the character is confronted
with the death of many NPCs in the game, some to which
Alundra will be very close. There are also plenty of
subplots, some dealing with lies, and star crossed love. I
did like the story, and felt it was one of the strong points
of the game. I give story a 90/100.
Overall- I really like Alundra. This type of game isn't
for everyone though. It's difficult, and many players will
not have the patience to see it through. It is the best
Action RPG available on any Next Gen system though, and will
most likely remain so until Zelda 64 is released later this
year. If you're looking for a good Action RPG , then Alundra
should do the trick.
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