Crystalis
| Crystalis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | SNK |
| Publisher(s) | SNK |
| Platform(s) | NES, GBC |
| Release | NES version April 13, 1990 July, 1990GBC version June 26, 2000 |
| Genre(s) | Action adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
Crystalis (God Slayer: Haruka Tenkou no Sonata, God Slayer: Sonata of the Far-Away Sky) is an action adventure video game produced by SNK for the Nintendo Entertainment System and released on April 13, 1990 in Japan and in July of that year in the United States.
The game mechanics and story are best described as the precursor of SNES's The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Despite its quality, Crystalis never became a runaway hit, although it is considered today a cult classic among other titles such as River City Ransom and Terranigma. Upon its release, it moved to #7 in the Top 50 chart of Nintendo power (achieving a 'purple' color usually attributed to big movers). This can be linked to an initial review of the game by the magazine. However, a more extensive walkthrough never occurred (NP coverage stopped at the swamp area) and within a month the game disappeared from the gamer's radar, and consequently, the Top 50. In retrospect, Nintendo Power followed games developed exclusively for the American market, such as Snake's Revenge and Startropics, which became runaway hits after full walkthroughs over several issues. Crystalis had no such luck. Crystalis did get an extended Player's Corner coverage by the magazine many years later. This was during the heyday of the Super Nintendo, and other games were given the same treatment such as Star Tropics and Destiny of an Emporer.
Nearly ten years after the game's initial release, Nintendo bought the rights to Crystalis and released it for the Game Boy Color on June 26, 2000. The remake is a wildly different game, exemplified by the opening that does not include "End Day" October 1, 1997, where civilization nearly destroyed itself.
On the NES, Crystalis utilized the MMC3, a standard Memory Controller that allowed access to more than 32kb ROM.
The game's story appears to be heavily influenced by that of the Hayao Miyazaki anime film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, as well as some aspects of the art design (for example, the giant insect boss in the swamp appears almost identical to the giant bugs seen in the movie).
Story
Crystalis takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, where the aftermath of a global thermonuclear war has reverted civilization to a primitive, medieval state while populating much of the scorched Earth with fierce mutant creatures. What little remains of humanity lives in small, isolated enclaves, while a man known as Emperor Draygon (ドラゴニア, Dragonia) who controls the world's last remaining military power is attempting to conquer what's left of the planet. To this end, Draygon is attempting to enter the Tower, an ancient weapon of mass destruction created to "oppress evil", but which would actually destroy all mutant and human life if activated.
The player takes the role of a young 20th century boy, cryogenically frozen for 100 years, who awakens to this world and, assisted by 4 sages, gradually learns that he is the destined savior of humanity whose purpose is to seek out another cryogenically frozen survivor (a girl known as Mesia), reassemble the 4 components of the legendary sword "Crystalis", and together defeat Draygon and destroy the Tower before it can end what remains of life on Earth.
In the end, the player discovers that the main character, as well as the other frozen survivor, were both scientists who worked on the tower as well as the computer that controls it. Both of them were preserved to awaken at a future date, at which time they would judge how humanity is doing. Although evil does re-emerge, it comes not from the humans themselves, but from the android Azteca. Azteca was left behind by the scientists to guide humanity in a positive direction. However, he had been built too well and experienced negative human emotions. He cut off all these emotions, which resulted in a personality split. The negative emotions formed a personality that called itself Draygon, the enemy of the video game. After the hero defeats Draygon, he and Mesia disable the tower, allowing humanity another chance.
Differences Between the NES and GBC Version
The GBC version has a modified storyline, new music (save for one or two tracks), a modified sub-menu, a modified display (which allows enemies with greater reach to strike you from beyond your sight), EXP roll-over, a low-life beep, a "standing still" animation frame for the hero among other minor modifications in gameplay. The enemies are slightly modified as well. Certain creatures bestow different ailments, are no longer invincible/invisible to the hero, and will respawn after being scrolled off the screen instead of exiting and re-entering the room. Perhaps most notable in the GBC version, monsters are no longer immune to certain swords--a common and often complained about occurrence in the NES version, albeit at the cost of the uniqueness of each sword. The re-released Crystalis was developed by Nintendo Software Technology (NST). Emperor Draygon's name returned to "Dragonia" in the GBC version. In the original, DYNA (a metallic monster) was the final boss, but in the GBC version players have to face Lord Draygon after defeating DYNA. The route to Dyna is also different; instead of a gauntlet, the player has to navigate through a maze of doors. An additional cave was created at the start of the game.