Legend of Xanadu
~ THE LEGEND OF XANADU
~
Falcom / NEC Home
Electronics
Super CD-ROM
1994
A number of years have passed since I first beat this action-RPG. I loved it so much back then that I actually found its brilliant sequel just a bit disappointing when I gave it a try shortly thereafter. The first game is about ten times longer and twenty times more difficult; it's an incredible epic that dwarfs the beautiful-but-brief followup in scope, and trekking through it made for one of the most satisfying game completions I've ever experienced.
But I do need to stress
the "long and difficult" aspect. This probably shouldn't
be your first Japanese adventure game; it's definitely
one of the toughest to be found for the PC Engine.
But if you've been through a few Blood Gears, Eferas,
and Magicoals already, then you certainly should
try your hand at this title. I just finished playing
through it for the third time, and there was hardly
any consternation this go--partly because it's a
very memorable game and a lot of it has stuck with
me, partly because I can understand some of the
Japanese now, and partly because I experienced plenty
of other JPN RPGs in the interims. Nonetheless,
it was still quite a challenge--and I loved it just
the same.
95% of the adventure
is composed of Ys-esque fast-paced overhead-view
action that has you knock enemies off by crashing
into them. There are so many people to speak with,
tasks to complete, puzzles to solve, and dungeons
to explore that the whole affair can be quite overwhelming
for the PCE RPG neophyte. And some players may be
turned off by the need to go back and forth between
locations while they try to trigger the next significant
event. But if you dig the Ys style of play and you're
willing to engage in some trial and error, you should
derive plenty of enjoyment from LoX. And while the
game is fetch-quest-based material at its core,
the interesting missions one must undertake--from
holding secret meetings on a slave farm late at
night to pursuing diplomatic relations with a tribe
of yetis--make one forget about the basic go-there-and-come-back
sequencing.
Then there are the
sidescrolling hack-and-slash scenes, which feature
plenty of parallax and large, well-drawn bosses.
You've got to see these sequences in motion to get
a sense of just how beautiful they really are. They're
full-fledged action stages, not mere side-view boss
fights like LoX2 offers. And they can be pretty
difficult at times--as if the overhead stuff weren't
hard enough!
It all culminates
with the most incredible game labyrinth ever created,
a massive thirty-two-floor tower. This is a true
triumph of dungeon design, a maze containing so
many traps, secrets, and puzzles that it can drive
players mad. You actually don't need to know any
Japanese in order to conquer and enjoy it. You just
need to keep your wits about you, pay close attention
to your surroundings, and use plenty of brain power.
Yes, this game is
killer. Most of the music isn't red book, but it's
fantastic nonetheless; and hell, even the cute start-up
screen rules.
The only complaint
I have concerns something I thought was neat the
first few times I played the game. LoX keeps track
of its imaginary land's time of day; and naturally,
townspeople go to sleep at night. This is cool in
concept and allows for some interesting events to
take place, but it sucks to be in a position where
you need to talk to someone who has just hit the
sack, and it's easy to miss things like cave entrances
when it's really dark at night. (I should note,
however, that there are ways to accelerate the cycle.)
But that's a minor
gripe. The game kicks ass, pure and simple. You
might want to play LoX2 first, however, as it's
much easier to get into and complete. In any event,
this one is very cheap, so purchase it and accept
its challenge if you enjoy action-RPGs and have
some experience with Japanese ones.
