Quest 64The first RPG for N64 is here. Check out my full review to see if it lives up to expectations |
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Publisher: T*HQ Developer: Imagineer Genre: RPG Origin: Japan
Almost two years after the system's release, the RPG genre finally debuts on the N64 with THQ's Quest 64. IGN64.com has been monitoring game's progress for a while and although the game certainly had all the potential to succeed, the finished product seems to be lacking that spark of ingenuity that attracts many gamers coming back to the genre. Don't get me wrong, Quest 64 is not a bad game at all. It's got great graphics and sound, and THQ should be commended for producing an above average attempt to give N64 owners what they've been asking for since the release of the system: A game with more depth than the pursuit of an evil witch who has kidnapped some animal sweetheart. Unfortunately, this is the main area where Quest 64 doesn't succeed. Replace "witch" with "wizard" and "animal sweetheart" with "father," and you've got Quest's plot. Neverthless, beginners who have little to no experience with RPGs and are looking for a first encounter with the genre will love Quest. Story The story of this 3D RPG follows the adventures of Brian, a young adventuring boy who has the unique power to manipulate nature, and has been annointed as a guardian of humankind, a so-called Spirit Tamer. Equipped with a large list of magic spells, Brian can alter and control four nature spirits -- earth, water, fire, air -- to his liking, and to the disappointment of his enemies. For example, you can mix earth and fire to create a lava spell. These talents are sorely needed, as Brian battles the Master Wizard who has stolen the mystical volume of the spirit tamers and is throwing the land into darkness and spritual chaos. During his quest, Brian will encounter many towns in peril, people looking for "something," and big, bad boss monsters that won't to do him in. Sadly, the story never really takes off and many gamers will be slightly bored by the premise from the get-go. Unlike many N64 titles, Quest does little in the way of cut-scenes to drive the story. If you enter a ship to cross a lake, for example, you will simply go under deck and then come out in a different area. If you're waiting for big surprises, character development or plot twists, Quest is not the game for you.
Gameplay On the other hand, the magic system coupled with the C-Button control is fairly innovative. In order to raise Brian's magic abilities and advance in the game, players must find magic gems that are hidden in the game's polygonal landscapes, castles and caves. You have to have a good eye to discover them, as they are represented by faint little geysers. Once you find one, you determine which one of your nature spirits you want to raise by pressing the corresponding C-Button. As you build up your four elementals, you can mix more powerful spells. Unfortunately, the balance in Quest 64 is way off. You can basically beat the game with a minimum of spells (you'll figure them out) and there are plenty of spells you will just never use. Whereas most RPGs encourage the player to experiment with different spells against different enemies, the differences in Quest are so slight, you can almost always stick to one elemental and succeed. We were sure that Imagineer would adjust the balance of spells vs. monsters in the final version of Quest, but sadly that didn't happen. The real-time battles are a cool idea (although they happen far too often while you're roaming the landscapes). You can run around and try to avoid enemy attacks during battles and escape by moving outside the octagonal zones that divide the battle grounds. While there are plenty of different spells to be discovered in the game, the limitation of one physical attack (hit someone with your magic stick) and the lack of other party members with different attacks is really restrictive to the depth of the battles. But what really kills the game for older gamers (including me) is the item and barter system -- or the lack thereof. Although there are plenty of taverns and stores in the town, you can't buy stuff. That's right. You don't earn money by fighting enemies and you can't buy new items. Every item you can use in the game can only be "given" to you, and has only one use. This simplistic gameplay makes Quest an ideal game for beginners who don't want to mess with too many menus. Expert gamers, on the other hand, once they get used to orienting themselves in a 3D environment (good thing there is a compass and the fact that the game automatically turns you into the right direction after fights), will cruise through the game in about 20 hours.
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Overall Peer Schneider
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