|
Albert Odyssey Working Designs - 1996
Perhaps I should mention to you, the dear reader, that I went out and bought a Sega Saturn just so I could beat this game. I had to go over to Sundu's house every time I wanted to play it, and all I would do is sit there watching him play a better game and charging up my characters in this one. I really hate this game, and I think that the saying "I Hate This Game," came from playing Albert Odyssey. Yet I do keep on playing it all the time. It's pure evil, this game is. Anyways, the game itself. I'm not entirely sure if it is a sequel to some game that never made it to the USA, but Albert Odyssey contains no one named Albert. Of this I am sure. Of course, it probably would have helped if I actually kept track of the plot of the game, but I did play the game off and on for over 2 years, so, even if I did, I wouldn't remember now. All I do remember is that the art was done by the Lunar guys, and the translation was done by Working Designs, which made it bearable, if that. The game starts off with the normal main character being rescued by Angel-like people who raise him after his parents die. But the "twist" if you will is that his father's talking dagger (Yes dagger, not sword, dagger. Sure, talking is fine, but a dagger?) comes along with him. So you get to control Pike, the character as he decides to set out and find a cure for his adopted mom (Whom he wants to do the nasty with, or at least that is how I read into it. Victor, what is wrong with you?) who has been turned to stone by some bad guy who I really don't remember ever beating, now that I mention it. So on his travels he meets this girl. Hmm, can we say love interest? But she turns out to be half-beast or something along those lines (It's all fuzzy in my head) and just tries to sell him stuff, then leaves. I think we see her once more in the game, and nothing big comes of it. Next we meet the real love interest, who stays with Pike thru the whole journey. Then we meet the other characters. A female monk, a dragon (who is the man) and a gay-birdman thingy, who is really really broken. And by broken I mean gay. Thank you Working Designs for not leaving anything to the imagination on this one. The basic plot is that you have to stop some villian from destroying the world. I don't think people will be playing this game ever, for one it is on the Saturn, and for two, there are many better games out there. For instance, if you still want a Working Designs logo on your game box, go get Lunar or Arc the Lad. I spent most of the game trying to build up my characters, for I played this game mostly while playing another. Sorry to say, but it is the truth. So when I thought I had gotten to the ending, I got excited. Yay! End in site! Can put down the controller and the long load times between battles! But then, just as FF6 may have tricked you up, the end IS NOT THE END! You get to see a fake ending, then some stupid girl comes and recruits you for another quest. NOOOO! I thought I was done! Alas was I wrong. It is like the development crew realized that their game wasn't crappy enough, so they added another one on top of it. The worst part of it was that I was actually thinking, "I can't be done yet. I haven't seen half of the characters in the instruction book." (Bytheway, the Instruction book is beautiful. Congrats Victor, at least you can do something right.) So then you lose one of the better characters, the female monk who could heal, and gain a crappy magician, who FELL DOWN EVERY TIME SHE ATTACKED and just plain sucked. Yes she did trip for every battle animation. This was almost as bad as the gay-dance that Amon, the broken birdman did after they won every battle. Well, the game goes on, but I am not going to. Suffice to say, the plot is relatively simplistic and the characters are normal as anything. The only thing going for it was the script, which was really well written. I would say that this is one of Working Designs greatest script "translations" ever, since when I was paying attention to the plot, I was rolling out of my seat, I was laughing so hard. I can't say it was the best ever, for I don't want to sit back down and replay it to make sure, but it ranks up there in zanyness. Thank you Working Designs for giving me that much at least. Could you try decent gameplay next time? Next paragraph below. Suffice to say that this game if perfect if you want some game to play while watching someone else play a better game. You never have to pay attention, for you can hear the Saturn load the battle screens, and if you have the lights off, you can see the flicker of darkness as it loads the fight. Then push confirm for a while. When it flickers again, move the joypad. Put in the dryer and push for repeat.
Controls: 5 - They move ok and all, I could, and I did play this game upside-down looking at the TV thru a mirror. It was the only way to play it and still feel like you were getting something accomplished. Graphics: 4 - They were sprites, which I love, but they weren't incredibly great sprites. Descent at most. Sound: 3 - All I remember is that the battle noises sucked. So I turned off the sound really soon into it. Style: 4 -If you can call 2 games when you only wanted one, style, then yes it has some. 1st Hour: 6 Hoping it will get good at some point. Already tired of the load time for battles. 5th Hour: 7 Since there is lots of plot at the beginning, you are laughing a lot. Which is good, for that is all the game has going for it. 1st Week: 4 Mmm level building goodness. 1st Year: 4 Ditto. But for some reason you keep returning to it. Some reason you don't understand. We will call that an addiction to Working Designs' crack-games. 2nd Year: 4 Finally beat it after you beat FFX and wanted to see something bad.
Fighting Hellhounds and a scary enemy Reviewed by Hawke, who needs to get some more Working Designs crack-games in his system. Namely Arc the Lad. |
