 |
| Title: |
Azure Dreams |
| Publisher: |
Konami |
| Features: |
GameBoy Color/GameBoy/Super GameBoy Compatible. Battery Back-Up.
Exchange Option By Link Cable |
| Format: |
RPG |
| Reviewer: |
Heiss |
|
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|
Introduction
In late 1997 an RPG with an unusual name called "Other Life Azure Dreams" was released for the Sony PlayStation
in Japan, and the game itself was described as one of the strangest ever created for that game console--incorporating
dungeon hack-and-slash, treasure collecting, monster breeding, dating sim and city sim all rolled into one. July
1998 saw the release of the English version for the PSX, with the title shortened to "Azure Dreams,"
and it received mixed reviews; you either liked it or hated it. That same year saw the release of the Game Boy
Color in the USA, and with it came the announcement that Azure Dreams would be ported to the GBC. And now, almost
two years later, the game is finally out. Was it worth the long wait?
Gameplay
You play Kou, a rather mischievous teenage boy living in the desert city of Monsbaiya, a town whose claim to fame
is a huge, looming Monster Tower located right beside it. Treasure hunters come to this place seeking valuable
and rare items, among them the prized Monster Eggs. Boys are only granted access to this tower when they reach
the age of 15, as it can be a dangerous place crawling with monsters, and only the most experienced Monster Tamers
are able to brave its topmost levels. One of these was Kou's father Guy, who disappeared years ago following a
mysterious incident. As Kou turns 15, it will be his chance to discover what really happened to his father, as
well as earn enough experience to be a respected Monster Tamer.
Hindering your quest is the tower itself, as each level changes its layout every time you enter it--the effect
of a magic spell meant for people to lose their way. Worse, another spell that lowers your strength is activated
once you pass through the entrance, and the result is that you always start out at Level 1. Once inside, the entry
way will be sealed shut, leaving you no choice but to ascend the upper floors by way of exit ports found on each
level. You can only leave the tower by using a WindGem that transports you back to town.
The tower has winding passageways filled with monsters, traps and items. Items are plentiful--money, gems, magic
orbs, seeds, oils, weapons, shields, and other special items can be found scattered throughout the floor; most
of these can help greatly in your quest and can also be sold in town for large sums of money. Your inventory slot
is limited to 20 items, and once it's full, you must discard or use items in order to free up space to get more
items. Inventory doesn't work the same way before you enter the tower though, as you can only enter the tower with
5 items.
Traps are either seen or hidden, and they can cause all sorts of havoc for you and the monsters, like putting you
to sleep, rusting your weapons, or turning you into a frog temporarily. Some traps can teleport your familiars
to another part of the floor, or even transport you all to a higher floor. As you move around, an auto-map feature
gradually reveals the map of the current floor. Using special items like the StarSpecs will also reveal the entire
floor, with the location of traps, items, roaming monsters, and the exit.
Monsters
Occasionally, you will find a Monster Egg, and you can hatch the Egg by warming it either in the tower or the Monster
Stable at your house. Once an egg hatches, out pops a monster, and by placing a Monster Collar around its neck
it becomes your familiar and will assist you during your adventure, battling monsters or providing you with a spell
boost during combat. Unlike Kou, however, monsters retain the levels they gain during your adventure.
The lead monster of this game is your father's familiar named Kewne, who joins you at the start of your adventure,
using the Monster Collar your mother gives you during the beginning of the game. Another collar can be found in
the upper levels, and you can use this to have two familiars follow you around as you explore the tower. As you
go higher, the monsters become tougher, so it's vital to raise your level and the level of your familiars--a good
tip is to have all your levels at least 2 or 3 levels higher than the number of the floor you're exploring.
The monsters are an assorted bunch, ranging from the cute-looking Wumps and Trolls to the strange-looking Cyclones
and Garudas. They are classified into three types: Fire, Water, and Wind, and possess powers related to their type.
During battles, it's a good thing to note that Fire beats Wind, Wind beats Water, and Water beats Fire; for example,
a Fire monster will have the advantage during combat with a Wind monster, but will have a much more difficult time
fighting a Water monster. Some monsters also have unique skills inherent to no other species: one of my favorites,
the Submar, can burrow underground and provide you with an instant map of the entire floor and the location of
everything on it. Another monster, the Barong, eats whatever item you throw at it and spits out another item back
at you. If you throw enough items at it, you might get a rare or powerful item in return.
You can set your familiar's position and AI while exploring the tower; choose an AI setting from 1 to 5, where
"1" makes it just sit there, "3" will make it give you a spell boost during combat, while "5"
makes it attack aggressively, fighting every single monster it encounters. One strange thing about this game is
that while Hit Points are regained just by walking around, the monster's Magic Points gradually decreases with
each step; once a monster's MP reaches zero, it will be unable to move. Setting monster AI to 4 or 5 consumes MP
faster--you can conserve MP by just keeping the monster in your bag while exploring, only letting it out when you
need help, or by feeding it Vit Seeds to regain MP.
Combat is in real-time and pretty straightforward enough: face the monster, hit the A button to attack and that's
it. Sometimes a battle screen similar to Pokemon will appear, and battles will shift to turn-based mode. Combat
tends to be prolonged in the battle screen mode rather than the real-time mode, and victory results in earned experience
points for you and your familiars. A defeated familiar becomes battle-incapable and returns instantly to your bag,
while your own defeat sends you back to your house, losing every item in your current inventory except for your
familiars.
Monsters can also be upgraded by using Fusion. Two different monsters can be fused together, resulting in a stronger
monster with traits of the former two. In general, fusing two monsters with different levels will result in a monster
with the higher level of the two. Also, fusing two different types will follow "Fire beats Wind, etc."--the
stronger type will emerge from the fusion. You can learn the result of a planned fusion by bringing your familiars
to Mademoiselle Lauriche, the town fortune teller. It's best to experiment with fusion before saving, as you might
end up losing a prized familiar.
Other Game Aspects
Only two save slots are provided, but you cannot save your game anytime in the tower. Saving can only be done while
going up a floor, and you'll be presented with a choice whether you want to save your game or not. From time to
time you'll meet other people in the tower; these are people who knew your Dad, and they will help you out by healing
you, exposing traps, or giving you items.
In town, you can save your game by talking to your Mom, who also opens the safe where you can store up to 20 items.
Every monster you encounter will be recorded in the Monster Book that your little sister Weedy keeps; talk to her
to view it. When you hatch a monster from an egg, you have the option to name it, and additional info about it
will be recorded in the Book. You can also trade monsters with other players via link cable, a process that shouldn't
be a mystery to Pokemon fans.
As your experience grows, you'll discover that people will react differently to you; once regarded as the town
troublemaker, people will now seek you out for help, and these mini-quests involve retrieving an object from the
tower. When you've saved at least 10,000G you can hire Tonka to work on your house; this will make your house bigger,
and you'll be able to house more familiars in the Monster Stable.
You should also help your friend Nico Southey with her fundraising to bring a little bit of culture to Monsbaiya;
do this by donating lots of money, and you'll soon see improvements in the town itself. It also helps to be nice
to the snooty Rode siblings, Ghosh and Selfi. You can choose to battle the arrogant and pompous Ghosh in the tower
when you encounter him, but being extra nice to Selfi no matter how mean she is will result in a gradual change
in attitude towards you.
Controls, Graphics, Sound
The A button does most of the action and selection functions while the B button cancels, speeds up the text, or
used as a Dash button by pressing it simultaneously with the direction pad. Pressing START will bring up the Item
Menu in town or a range of choices in the tower: Items, Status, Skill, Plan, Fusion, and Map.
The Item Menu displays 5 items at a time per screen, and pressing START here will show a brief description of the
item. The Status screen shows your current condition and your familiars' stats. The Skill menu will list your familiar's
abilities and spells; read their description by pressing START and use them by selecting with the A button. The
Plan menu sets your familiar's strategy (position and AI), while the Map screen displays the map of the current
floor.
Controls tend to be a bit sluggish and unresponsive at times, particularly when there are lots of moving elements
onscreen and during battles; if one of your familiars is engaged in battle and you are far away it will take some
time before you can aid it.
Graphics are colorful and features a top-down overhead view, rather than the isometric perspective used in the
PSX version. Most of the monsters are represented by different sprites and you can spot them from a distance--no
monsters hiding in the grass here. The colorful floor layouts tend to be a bit overwhelming as your characters
can sometimes disappear into the background. Animation is smooth; Kou seems to be marching all the time, with Kewne
floating effortlessly beside him as he moves about the tower floors. The exit level sequence is similar to the
PSX, as Kou rises to the next floor and his familiars turns into twirling crystals that follow him.
Town graphics are detailed but resorts to diffused monochromes--this is supposed to be a desert town after all,
and it sure looks like one. The music is excellent; most are identical to the PSX version, from the tower exploration
music to the flamboyant theme music of the House of Rode.
Other Comments
In the PSX version, Azure Dreams featured several other goals, among them involving Kou winning the hearts of at
least 8 women in Monsbaiya, wooing them one at a time by being sweet to them or doing them favors. This dating
sim isn't present here, which is just too bad, since it added to the uniqueness of the game.
The other goal was to slowly turn Monsbaiya into a booming, prosperous city, by earning enough money to build and
upgrade its facilities, like a hospital, temple, and library. Thankfully, this is present in the game, though the
town is considerably smaller and it takes a huge amount of money to build new structures.
Exploring the tower can get repetitive after a while, but there is something to be said for a game that makes you
want to play just one more level, and Azure Dreams does exactly that--it makes you curious enough to see just how
far up can you go. Besides, it's not exactly as if you don't have any sense of accomplishment, despite your being
reduced to Level 1 everytime you enter the tower; your familiars retain their levels, and they should be really
strong enough to help you survive the more powerful monsters on the topmost levels.
The ability to not save the game at any time is a hindrance, as the game only saves right before you enter the
next floor--if there's a battle waiting for you the moment you enter and you're not prepared for it, you're dead.
The auto-map feature is helpful, but the map displayed is so small it can cause eyestrain, particularly on monochrome
GB systems.
Which brings us to the inevitable comparison with another popular game with monsters. So is Azure Dreams a Pokemon
killer? Nope, and it shouldn't be viewed as a Pokemon rip-off either--it's basically a dungeon hack game with monster
breeding elements. Your main goal isn't to "catch 'em all" here, or to participate in League battles,
but to reach the top floor of the tower and find out if your father's alive.
It's unfortunate that this game took so long to be released on the Game Boy platform--had it been released in late
1998, it could've taken a fair share of the Pokemon market at that time, but coming on the heels of Pokemon's success
now, it will probably be viewed as just another Pokemon clone. Which is really a pity, since it's a very good port
of the PSX game. It's not for everyone, but Azure Dreams should be viewed as what it is: one of the most unusual
RPGs ever created, and a worthy Game Boy title for RPG fans. |
