[IMG]http://www.gameinformer.com/cfs-filesystemfile.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Components-ImageFileViewer/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles-00-00-00-00-09/6102.act610.jpg_2D00_610x0.jpg[/IMG]
If you have never played this game, I suggest you find it on eBay and slap it in your Super Nintendo ASAP. Alternatively get an emulator and download the ROM but the original cartridge brings the best mood. I think this game is historic in a way that it actually went surprisingly religious back in the 90's where video games were just starting to get mainstream and not too many games dared to involve anything too divine or mythologies similar to real life religions. Actraiser did, it fucking took God and Satan, slammed them into a colossal battle of good and evil and even did so with a godly result. (pun intended)
Now, this [U]IS[/U] and old game and as much as it gives me nostalgia, I also see it as an interesting topic of discussion. Since the game nostalgia-thread is kind of dead, I figured I'd create it's own thread since this game really has much more to talk about than what that thread could contain. In my eyes this game was revolutionary although quickly forgotten. It's sales weren't anything too amazing and it never really got the rep it'd deserve.
[h2]#1: Plot[/h2]
So first of all, you're God. The English translators were scared of getting religious nut jobs back-lashing at them so they switched the names around a bit, making the main character "Master" instead. However, in the Japanese version he [B]is[/B] called God and the main antagonist is called Satan. This already sets a pretty epic mood for the game. You just had a massive brawl with Satan and his demonic minions and as a result your earthly power was greatly diminished. Now Satan (who you presumed dead after your fight) has somehow returned and is wrecking mankind. Obviously it's your task as the All-father to protect your mortal children. This sends you and your servant angel to an epic quest to free the mortals from their agony of constant demonic presence, cleansing the lands of evil and kicking Satan's sorry ass once more.
The plot already is biblical in scale and it gives a passive feeling to the player that they're in power. It also gives them a sense of dread since most people who played this knew the story of the Bible. Satan himself along with his seemingly endless army of the damned is against just you. Just you and nobody else. Then again, you're the fucking Creator of the world so it balances out to give you this awesome "lets go and wreck shit" feeling. Not only does this give you motivation to go forward but it also gives you some responsibility. Since you are the caretaker of the universe, you also have to take care of it and it's residents, in this case the humans. You feel pissed if a demon goes and kills your little pupils as you were the one who gave them the land to inhabit and failed to protect them. Really immersive stuff here.
[h2]#2: Gameplay[/h2]
Actraiser was fucking genius in terms of gameplay. Super Nintendo didn't really have as many strategy games as it had sidescrollers. This game took both and slammed them together to create a divine form where both worked in synergy with each other. You had to do the sidescroller segments to advance in the game and unlock new areas but you also had to do the nursing of mankind in the strategy portion to level up your character, gain new spells to wreck shit with, gain more health and also advance in the game. Both sides of the game supported each other and this made you want to actually do both instead of thinking of one of them as a chore and another one the real reward. In the sidescroller it's quite generic. Controls are decent, your sword hits well, enemies have clear hit indicators and it's not overly hard if you just know how to play sidescrolling action games. The bosses usually are from some mythology. Minotaur, the Greek monster of mythology in Fillmore, more Hindu-like bosses in Marahna and slightly Arabic vibes in Kasandora. Northwall has obviously taken ideas from the Viking myths with the massive Tree and it's different areas (referring to the world tree in Viking mythology) and Aitos...I honestly have no idea about that one.
The strategy portion is from a bird's perspective. You have killed the monster ruling that specific portion of your world in the sidescroller sequence, okay. But now that humans can inhabit it, you got to cover their sorry asses because they're way too weak now to cope for themselves. So instead of bothering with it yourself, you send your servant angel butt-naked with a bow to go and shoot all the dragons, skulls and, bats that try to wreak massive havoc in the midst of the human settlements. Just blindly shooting everything won't work, it's just a temporary solution. You have to guide the humans and make them expand their territory towards the lairs of monsters so they can clank a nice metal cover on top of them and seal them to prevent any further monster spawning. This kills two of your problems in one stroke. Not only does mankind grow in numbers which ranks up your experience and eventually levels, it also removes one of the many monsters that pester your dear humans in the current map. After exterminating each lair, it probably has by then given you another level, increasing your health and sometimes giving you items that the humans find and offer to you as tokens of gratitude. This prepares you for the second sidescrolling sequence that every map has. These are often much more difficult and your economy in the strategy portion will pay off when you actually pass through this with only that one extra health point that you earned thanks to the good nursing of mankind.
[h2]#3: Audio[/h2]
Now, Actraiser was pretty brilliantly designed in terms of audio as well. All of the enemies' attacks have distinct sounds and recognizable so you can hear which enemy is coming, what attack they're going to use and plan your jump accordingly. However, the enemy hit sounds aren't the biggest selling point on the audio side IMO, it's the soundtrack.
I can't even begin to praise Actraiser's amazing soundtrack enough. Yuzo Koshiro, the composer of the soundtrack really went to biblical proportions with the music and the flamboyant feel gives an epic feel to the sidescrolling part of the game. The strategy part is a little more laid-back but also has soundtracks of it's own. Every act that you go through has it's own unique music style: Kasandora, the desert map has Egyptian and Arabic instruments thrown in while Marahna sounds more like India. Satan has an epic score as well and the ending overture fits the content feeling the player has after doing such a massive act. Koshiro really took into account each map, the game's overall theme and then planned the music according to those. Every track was pretty much perfect, but the SNES soundfont let it down at times.
That's where the remakes come in. Koshiro got involved into an orchestral fit of the entire Actraiser soundtrack with Kaoru Wada, another well-known Japanese composer. Together they managed to wrest out an album that contained Actraiser's glorious melodies. Not by SNES's soundfont, however, this time it was made by a professional orchestra and it finally gives justice to the epic feel of the music.
[h2]#4: Media[/h2]
Here's a taste of what Actraiser's music is all about since it makes neat thread music, all things considered:
[video=youtube;MP9rCYoqoH0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP9rCYoqoH0[/video]
Now for some pictures:
[img]http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/793/793000/actraiser-virtual-console-20070530052947255-001.jpg[/img]
[img]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bC1k66MXArM/TbGZC-UEiKI/AAAAAAAAAEI/c6vN7DetiqE/s1600/actraiser.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.sidequesting.com/wp-content/uploads/actraiser-2.jpg?9d7bd4[/img]
[img]http://www.retrogamer.net/users/1566/thm1024/actraiser.jpg[/img]
[h2]#5: You[/h2]
Now, anyone who is reading the thread: Have you played this? How did you feel when playing it? Have you ever completed the game? How did you think about it after completing it? Did you play it again? What do you have to say to the points I made above?
Actraiser is such an awesome game, the second one was shit though. Although it got quite difficult at later levels.
[QUOTE=junker|154;34555566]Actraiser is such an awesome game, the second one was shit though. Although it got quite difficult at later levels.[/QUOTE]
Agreed, I'll never forgive them for removing the angel part in the second one. It was still decent but it's way slower paced.
I really enjoyed the controls and simplicity of the action based levels.
[QUOTE=junker|154;34555566]Actraiser is such an awesome game, the second one was shit though. Although it got quite difficult at later levels.[/QUOTE]
Second one wasnt bad, infact i would dare say it did the action parts better, it's just that it only did the action parts.
[QUOTE=elowin;34558566]Second one wasnt bad, infact i would dare say it did the action parts better, it's just that it only did the action parts.[/QUOTE]
I didn't like the slow-paced Hulk-like movement AR2 had. AR1's combat sequences were a lot faster, you had a constant pace of divine fury and that hit sound "WHAH" was fucking amazing.
This was like my first SNES game I got at a fleamarket. Shit so good.
Played the shit out of this game. Simple but awesome.
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.
