This is a game I played quite a bit in my youth as I rented it several times. I enjoyed how different it was for the time. A lot of people compare it to Legend of Zelda; however, I always balk at these comparisons as it is a much different game. Zelda was an adventure game with light RPG elements. This one was an action RPG and it included speaking to townsfolk and completing quests for them and climbing mountains to free people imprisoned and trying to stop a tower from destroying the world! You also get to ride a dolphin on the sea! So it is varied and interesting to traverse this rather well done interconnected world.
The story has a young man waking from a deep sleep where he finds himself in a strange world filled with monsters and towns, swords and sorcery! A cataclysmic event has reduced the world to an earlier era and it is up to this young man to help the people of the world however he can and defeat an empire that has appeared in the land, taking over towns and enslaving the people! He will be given swords with the power of the elements to aid his quest and will learn magic to help him progress.
Very good game, the game play is very similar to the later game Secret of Mana as you walk through the world gaining levels to help you get through the vast world and its many monsters. I will say, at times the world is incredibly annoying as the monsters will respawn indefinitely; however, the save system in this one is good as you can pretty much save anywhere. The swords are cool as they power up to shoot the element the represent and the magic is cool too having various effects such as healing, flight, barriers and even one that can change your appearance! The game also features something I do not like, and that is a very low level cap. Once you hit 16, you're done, so if you are having trouble with the monsters, getting stronger is not an option.
So, a very fun game with very few faults. As far as length, for a game of the NES era it is rather lengthy; especially considering the interconnected world. It is also very winnable without the aid of guides as I won it a few times back in the day. I mention this, due to the fact a lot of the earlier era RPG games were hell to get through without help! Making you do vague things, with only the barest of clues. This one, most of it is very easy to figure out with the exception of a certain item needed to defeat the second to last boss. Overall, though this is super enjoyable and I played it recently and it is still a blast!
