Difference between revisions of "Actraiser"

Revision as of 02:42, 13 May 2013

Japanese box art of the game

ActRaiser is a Video Game for the Super Nintendo created by Quintet and published by Enix. Released on December, 16 1990 <ref name="gamefaqs">Gamefaqs Data Page on ActRaiser</ref>, ActRaiser is loosely related to the Soul Blader, Illusion of Gaia, and Terranigma games. While only in very miniscule references, as with all the aforementioned games.

Gameplay

Actraiser has two forms of gameplay. There are two sections to each area. When the player starts an area he must cleanse it of monsters so people can populate the area. This initial play is sectioned by acts and can be classified as Action. The second genre that the game implements is the God Simulator or City building simulator.

Act Partitioning

While action a very generic title for a genre it is the best description for what happens at this point of the game. Each portion of this part of the game is divided into acts. Generally each area has 2 acts the first is the initial cleansing of monsters and a subsequent boss and the next is the fina; act, generally act 2, and final, harder, boss of the area. In each act the player is presented with a side-scrolling map and must continue from the left side of the map to the right side of the map fighting monsters along the way. The player's avatar wields a sword and various magic that can be used to kill or otherwise defeat the monsters as they appear. When the player reaches the end of the map they are presented with a boss fight. The completion of this will allow humans to repopulate the area and the player guides them as a God.

God Simulator

As a god-like entity the player is presented with humans who follow his commands. The player needs to aid the people in becoming a civilization this is done by:

Defeating monsters that spawn from pools until the civilization is able to seal said spawning pools.
Guide the people in what direction they should build.
Help the civilization grow and evolve into a self-sustaining municipal entity.
Encourage structurally sound buildings.
Finish cleansing the area of monsters, via the second act.

The player is given some god-like abilities, or magic, that help them accomplish this.

God-like Abilities

You, as a God, can use different skills to aid the people in their efforts to build and grow their city during the simulation mode. You can also destroy parts of the land for whatever reason, with some exceptions. The list of skills available during the simulation mode are as follows<ref name="ActRaiser Booklet">ActRaiser Instruction Booklet (1991). ActRaiser. Enix Corporation, Tokyo, Japan. Copy in possesion of author. [Enix, 24-25]</ref>

Lightning - Call down lightning that will demolish all non permanent structures, e.g. homes, with the intention of encouraging the people to build more robust structures or destroying any monsters on the panel.
Rain - Rain will shower the given panel and can water an area with the intention of growing greenery in said panel.
Sunlight - Sunlight will shine down upon the given area. This can melt snow or dry marsh, which may help with city expansion.

Items Available During Simulation

Games In The ActRaiser Universe

There are other games in the Quintet series that reference some common themes between the titles. The games most similar are<ref name="hardcoreGaming101">Hardcore Gaming 101: Quintet</ref>:

References To Other Quintet Games

While the games developed by Quintet are not officially related to one another, the online magazine Hardcore Gaming 101 (published by GameSpy) has referred to Soul Blazer, Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma as the Soul Blazer/Gaia series, pointing out a few common themes between the different titles.<ref name="hardcoreGaming101">Hardcore Gaming 101: Quintet</ref>

The basic story of reviving a dead or dying world is used in all three games.
Soul Blazer, Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma feature two gods, Gaia and Dark Gaia, who are constantly in battle. In Soul Blazer they are referred to as The Master and Deathtoll.
There is a dog named Turbo in each game.
Soul Blazer, Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma use the Earth as a setting. Additionally, the ending of Illusion of Gaia hints at a world similar to the one in Terranigma.
There are some recurring locations, such as South Cape and Mu.
The sprite for Soul Blazer's "Soul of Light" is used as an enemy in Terranigma. Similarly, a monster lair enemy sprite from the Fire Shrine in Soul Blazer is reused to portray the Moon Tribe in Illusion of Gaia.
A secret boss in Illusion of Gaia is Solid Arm from Soul Blazer. Solid Arm will tell Will how after "Blazer" (the hero from Soul Blazer) defeated him, Solid Arm was put to sleep and had his power sealed in fifty red jewels. After being defeated, he claims Will is more powerful than Blazer.
In the secret area in Terranigma, the Quintet staff members refer to the game as "Illusion of Gaia 2".

References

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 The player is given some god-like abilities, or magic, that help them accomplish this.
 ====God-like Abilities====
-You, as a God, can use different skills to aid the people in their efforts to build and grow their city during the simulation mode. You can also destroy parts of the land for whatever reason, with some exceptions. The list of skills available during the simulation mode are as follows<ref name="ActRaiser Booklet">ActRaiser Instruction Booklet (1991). ActRaiser. Enix Corporation, Tokyo, Japan. Copy in possesion of author. (Enix, 24-25)</ref>
+You, as a God, can use different skills to aid the people in their efforts to build and grow their city during the simulation mode. You can also destroy parts of the land for whatever reason, with some exceptions. The list of skills available during the simulation mode are as follows<ref name="ActRaiser Booklet">ActRaiser Instruction Booklet (1991). ActRaiser. Enix Corporation, Tokyo, Japan. Copy in possesion of author. [Enix, 24-25]</ref>
 * Lightning - Call down lightning that will demolish all non permanent structures, e.g. homes, with the intention of encouraging the people to build more robust structures or destroying any monsters on the panel.