The Wonder Years 3.13.08: Week 46 - Terranigma

Posted by Owain J. Brimfield on 03.12.2008

A real 'nigma of a game [chortle].

Welcome to the column where all gamers of a certain age come to wallow in 16-bit nostalgia. I'm your host, Owain J. Brimfield, and I'll be discussing some of the hidden gems and instant classics of gaming's golden era. Some of these games may crop up on the Wii's Virtual Console at some point, some may be consigned to the annals of history. Either way, they're worth tracking down if you missed them first time round, or replaying if you were lucky enough to catch them. Let's take a trip to:

TERRANIGMA

(Enix, 1995, Super NES)

We're delving into the archives this week to take a look at an action-RPG that most US gamers won't be familiar with, due to the fact the game was never released in America - in theory inexplicably, but apparently because Enix didn't have a US affiliate at the time. It'd be a real shame to let this title fade into obscurity, because it's one of the more original of the real-time RPGs to see the light of day in the 1990s. Rather than taking a traditional turn-based approach, the game plays more along the lines of Square's Secret of Mana (albeit with only one protagonist, not a team of three), with all combat and magic undertaken in real-time, although there's still a leveling system in place. It's also got a nice twist on the typical "good versus evil" mythos that makes up the backbone of most of these types of game, so let's take a deep breath and summarize the plotline:

The world as we know it is a barren and desolate wasteland [actually, is there any other kind of wasteland? Duh.], due to an ancient war between the forces of Light and Dark. So far, so ordinary. Anyway, basically the Earth is in fact a hollow sphere, with the world on the surface being the light side's overworld, and the world on the underworld being the dark side's world. Ahem. So anyway, the world progressed in a state of continual antagonism between the two sides, prospering despite the conflict, until the war came to a head with a final battle, resulting in the overworld being submerged and the underworld being locked away forever. Well, not quite forever of course. So, cut to present day and a young lad named Ark, resident of the underworld's only remaining village Crysta, opens an ancient equivalent of Pandora's Box, which has the unfortunate consequence of freezing all life that remains on the planet. And thus, he's instructed by the mysterious Elder of Crysta to go forth and restore life to the devastated planet. Naturally enough, there are plentiful twists and turns along the way involving the machinations of evil and the enigmatic Dark Gaia, culminating in a pretty epic conclusion.

Gameplay itself, despite a convoluted [in the good sense of the word] plotline, is pretty straightforward. Assuming the standard top-down vantage point (with the exception of a few side-scrolling sections, which threaten to bring back nasty memories of Adventure of Link), Ark progresses through the various stages of Earth's resurrection in a style very reminiscent of said parenthesized elfin hero. Attacks are performed with a quick pressing of the A button, with various differing techniques available depending on your position relative to the enemy and your skill level with the weapon. A quick shielding maneuver is also available, but this doesn't really do too much beyond deflecting the odd projectile. That other staple of the RPG world, magic, is also featured, and is dealt with in a rather idiosyncratic manner which is pleasingly simple. Spells are treated as items rather than abilities, with each spell taking the form of a "Magirock" in Ark's inventory and only capable of a single disposable usage. It's a system that works remarkably well and is pleasingly inkeeping with the general tone of Terranigma's gameplay.

The game as a whole is a surprisingly intellectual effort, with many Biblical allusions cropping up in the storyline - the main character's name is itself a pretty overt reference - and some rather surprising cameos from random historical figures like Christopher Columbus and Thomas Edison. Before the dreaded word "edutainment" starts creeping towards your lips, don't worry - it's all done in a refreshingly non-patronizing manner, with Ark having the chance to help humanity evolve through some of its greatest periods of advancement. It's immensely satisfying to watch the once-desolate Earth become a vibrant hub of humanity. And if the scope of those things is worrying though, don't worry - there's a little dog named Turbo that you get to play around with. As far as lasting appeal goes, the game is split into four rather large chapters, so there's a good 25 hours or so of gaming herein. The graphics and soundtrack are both as splendid as you'd expect from a mid-90s Japanese RPG, although some of the looped songs are a little too short compared to the size of the areas you'll be exploring. The lack of gaming depth may put some more hardened RPG nuts off, and in a way it is a little perplexing that a game as epic in scale as this is treated as an action game - it's probably this inconsistency in overall tone that prevents Terranigma climbing to the heights it should.

Due to its non-release in the US (and, in spite of critical acclaim, its relative lack of success in Europe - the Japanese release fared better though and even spawned a few volumes of manga), the cartridge itself is pretty tricky to track down in ol' Region One, with eBay being pretty much your only bet if you're an American gamer with a taste for Enix. Over here in the middle world, it's still somewhat of an obscure title, with copies selling for around £25 on average, which is pretty decent for a thirteen-year-old game. It's one of Enix's lesser-known titles, but certainly stands head and shoulders on a par with the company's other 16-bit output. It's one of the few games of its ilk that can never be accused of looking down on its playing audience (even the legendary Chrono Trigger was guilty of that in places), and it's more than likely the best RPG you've never played. Well, that and next week's title, but you'll have to wait to find out more about that. Till then, peace out y'all.


Terranigma trivia

• Terranigma is known as The Creation of Heaven and Earth in its native Japan, which I guess was deemed too intimidating a title to be used for the game's western release.
  
• The game is a sort-of-quasi-unofficial-sequel to Soul Blazer and Illusion of Gaia, another of a crop of 90s RPGs that showed the genre could have a modern twist.
  
• Someone once published a Terranigma choose-your-own-adventure book, which is certainly an interesting twist on the concept of tie-in merchandise. Anyone else remember the old dozen or so Mario CYOA titles? They were awesome.

Reactions and interactions

At least someone was intrigued by last week's look at the obscurity of Super Putty:

Posted by: Eric

"First I want to say I love your column. I look forward to reading it every week.

I've never heard of this game but it sounds very interesting. Maybe one day i'll be able to find a copy."

Ah, flattery will get you everywhere. If you do ever get the chance to track down a copy of Super Putty it'll be well worth your while. I imagine it's probably quite easy (and probably legal-ish) to download a copy of the Amiga original somewhere on the interwebs.


The Videosphere

Let's take a look at this week's video highlight. Terranigma is undeniably epic in places, and the mood is perfectly set by the game's introduction video which showcases the resurrection of the Earth. Check it out:




General indulgences

Every week in this section I'll endeavor to provide you, the faithful readers, with a fascinating insight into the various forms of entertainment currently dominating my spare time.

This week, I have been mostly enjoying:

Bully on the Wii. I hadn't realized what a shameless re-tooling of GTA this really was, but the motion-controlled fighting more than makes up for that, so I'll be indulging in a competition with my friend Obert of who-can-get-100%-first. Currently, it's 15.86% to 15.64% in my favor, so a close battle.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, having recently gotten round to renting a copy of the DVD to watch the series again. I'd forgotten quite how good the opening episode was, so I hope the rest of the season is as good as I remember it.

Surfing With the Alien by Joe Satriani which I believe has just had its 20th anniversary. It's still probably the best instrumental rock album money can buy, and for my money 'Crushing Day' showcases one of the loveliest guitar tones I've ever heard.

and... still re-ripping the record collection following the trauma of upgrading to Vista. Currently on the final shelf of the first bookcase, so at least soon I'll have all the metal and hard rock tunes in MP3 form. Next stop - alt-rock.


And finally…

As always, reader feedback and suggestions are welcome, I respond to everything so just drop me a line or leave a comment. You can also check out my science fiction column "The Flux Capacitor" over at 411 Movies. Next week in "The Wonder Years" - gaming's first B-movie themed RPG. Until then - keep it real, keep it retro.