Monday 14 January, 2008

Summary

Azure Dreams is set in the town of Monsbaiya, with a gigantic Monster Tower looming over it. The tower holds swarms of hazardous traps and monsters, but also gold, which lures in many adventurers to the town. You play the role of a boy named Koh, whose father was the strongest monster hunter around. Unfortunately, your father mysteriously dissappeared in the tower when you were a boy, and the point of the game is to figure out what happened once you become of age.

Gameplay

Although this game was not a major success, I absolutely love it. Though the game is a simple dungeon crawler, it is especially item based. An entire run through the tower could be ruined if you dont get a 'wind crystal' which will warp you back to town. That may seem harsh at first, but if you get a nice supply of them during a run, you can bring one with you the next time you enter the tower. However, the game is effective on making sure one doesnt cheat their way through it. First, you start at level one everytime you enter. Second, you can only bring 5 items with you when you enter the tower. Lastly, you cannot save and exit on a level and then restart it, or else your character will die.
But these characteristics is what makes the game so fun. When playing you can come up with various types of strategies needed to beat the game, but then be in major trouble if you mess up. The game is addicting, however the story is a little weak. It folds out to be the stereotypical 'guy trying to take over the world' type story. But in all honesty I could care less. The minigames, monster collecting, girl flirting randomness of the game just keeps me entertained throughout the end. This is definitely one of the best games I have ever played.

Design

The design of the game is unfortunately rather mediocre. The game is basically go through this dungeon to get to the top. The graphics are alright, even for its time, and the few cut scenes that the game has doesn't really play into the story that much. But the soundtrack of the game is very well composed. It fits this game perfectly, and always catches the mood that the game is trying to convey.

(Nicolas Kent - Grader)

We are expecting 2 separate entries, each with a gameplay section 2-5 paragraphs long, and the second with a design section of 2-5 paragraphs.

Your Gameplay section doesn't explain much about the nature of the game. I'm not sure whether this game is 2d, 3d, and RPG, a first person shooter, a squad based strategy game, etc.

What about the designs of the levels? How is the tower laid out? What is preventing you from reaching the top of the tower? What makes you absolutely love the game if you find the design mediocre? If you could care less about the story and find the gameplay entertaining and enjoyable, why is it badly designed?

Is the interface well done? Are the enemies and items well balanced? Is the fantasy universe compelling? Do the elements of design that are important vary greatly from game to game?