The most replayed SNES RPG in my collection!
GAMEPLAY ~
Yes, this is a basic hack and slash title. I'll be the first to admit it. But it was a good H&S title that did some things a bit different than other H&S titles.
What most people remember is the "Crab-walk". This new feature allowed you to walk sideways in the direction you are facing. as well as the sideways movement this also drew your sword straight out, this also pulled all loose Gems towards you.
There is around 6+ areas that you explore and conquer, thought the over-world map is not free-roaming, the areas are almost completely that, when you release the right creature!
When in the main stage of the area your main point of the section is to re-populate the current town or castle. To do this you need to clear out all monsters from their lairs they come out of. When you do, a new creature is added back in town, sometimes they are useful, most of the time, they just add another part to the recovering surrounding.
There is also a magic system accompanied by a floating spirit over your head and a vast amount of USEFUL weapons and armor! Some even needed to pass certain parts of this title!
It was like ActRasier, but without the long process of appealing people.
STORY ~
You are created by the Master (Gaia?) to revive this sealed world and destroy the ultimate plague upon those captured by the evil DEATHTOLL!
GRAPHICS ~
In reality this wasn't the most advanced title when it came to graphics. But alot of other events really push this tile for all it's worth. The stages were huge and the environment could be warped by different monster lairs unlocked. Lets not forget the rebuilding of all those civilizations! Everything has a meaning! Even if you release a door or a snail or a fish! Everything led to something else. A whole world is designed by what lairs you unlock.
The bosses were the best looking part of this entire game. Most of them took up the top half of the screen and looked cool! From a skeleton pirates boney hands to the final demons fire pillars everything was top notch!
SOUND ~
I really liked the music of this game! Who could forget the music of the Seabed of St. Elles! or the Castle Towers of Madrid! It was awesome! The FX’s could have used some work, from the swords noise of "whack-hum" to the sound of the HERO getting hurt. It was kinda cheap, but I guess the FX had to be sacrificed to allow such awesome music, so turn down the FX and listen to the great song of the Basement of Dr. Leo!
REPLAYABILITY ~
This game had a bit of things to hunt down. From Alphabet Labeled Emblems to "Hot" objects used to summon the legendary Phoenix magic, trust me, these quests made the game alot more enjoyable, and alot more easier. But once all of this is collected and all hidden characters released, this game does not hold much more, so play it twice!
OVERALL ~
This was an epic title with a great approach towards RPG innovation! This game did spawn two semi-sequels Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma and a ton of memories I’ll never forget! Thank you Enix for everything you've done for future gaming!
As in my Illusion of Gaia review, I think SquareEnix should realize what a great title Soul Blazer was and consider a re-release for the GBA system. This would be a step closer towards making the GBA more accessible towards the older players and introduce this classic to a whole new generation of players!