| Introduction:
Before such great sequels as Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma
there was the game that started it all. That game is Soul
Blazer. The weird thing about Soul Blazer is that it's not
the flashiest game I've ever seen, and the storyline is a
bit on the odd side, yet this game is nearly impossible to
put down. King Magridd has made a deal with the evil demon
Deathtoll in which King Magridd will recieve one gold peice
for each captured soul he turns over to Deathtoll. Your goal
as the hero is to free the captured souls, teach King
Magridd a thing or two about life, and defeat the evil
Deathtoll once and for all. But it's not gonna be easy.
Graphics [9/10]:
The graphics in Soul Blazer are not terribly flashy but they
are very detailed and very colorful and seem to fit in with
the overall look and feel of the game. I was especially
impressed with the graphics detail of the the bosses. The
great thing about the graphics in Soul Blazer was the fact
that they didn't look like any other game I had ever played.
Very original and extremely refreshing. And also each area
had a distinct graphical look to it so you never got tired
of seeing the same old backgrounds.
Sound and Music [8.5/10]:
The sound and music in Soul Blazer was very well done. Maybe
not on the same scale as a Seiken Densetsu 3 or Final
Fantasy 3 but still very easy on the ears. I think what I
liked most about the soundtrack was that it was unlike any
other video game soundtrack i had ever heard. Very original
and very catchy in places. The sound effects are also very
original and even almost odd in places. But the great thing
about that is that you don't easily forget them so when you
hear a sound it's immediately recognizable. Overall the
sound and music are top notch.
Gameplay [10/10]:
The gameplay in Soul Blazer is easily its best aspect. Very
easy to navigate menus and very tight and responsive play
control make tackling this adventure a breeze. In fact the
play control in Soul Blazer is one of the best control
systems I have ever played in any game let alone an RPG. I
wish more RPGs would have this great a play control system.
I would have liked the magic system to be a little more user
friendly but since using magic isn't in any way mandatory I
can overlook this slight flaw. In fact the only time I even
used the magic was at the end while fighting Deathtoll.
Challenge and Replay [9/10]:
I will admit that Soul Blazer was a tad on the easy side and
I would have liked it to have been a slightly longer quest
but as good and enjoyable as it was it's hard for me to
complain too much. Experienced RPGers might find the game a
little too easy but take my word for it, the game is so much
fuun you'll hardly notice. As far as replay value goes, I've
played through the game at least 10 times and I still find
myself pulling it out and playing it again fairly often.
It's really just so much fun. And isn't that what a good
game's all about anyway.
Conclusion/Overall [10/10]:
Despite the slight flaws in the game I had to give this game
a 10 simply because it's one of the most fun games I have
ever played. It might not be on as grand a scale as a Chrono
Tirgger or Final Fantasy III but in its own right it's just
a very well done game. I highly reccomend this game to any
and everyone without hesitation. A true classic!
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