Radia Senki: Reimeihen

"So addictive -- where is the remake?!"

Gameplay - Absolutely addictive. The controls are easy, obviously, with one button for menu and one button for attack/talk/search. Start and Select aren't used at all. The battle system in this game is awesome; when you encounter an enemy, the screen freezes so you don't have to chase forever. After the battle, you return to your original spot, which is normally a god thing. You can control your party by telling them to gather in one spot (good for retreating or fighting harder enemies), try to play dead (so much better than the classic Flee) and evade, or attack freely. The AI in this game isn't so bad; my only complaint is that you can attack five times while your ally gets slaughtered and attacks once. Especially for the melee fighters, you often have to protect them because they just don't attack often enough. Otherwise, you chase and attack and can bring up the menu to cast spells, use items, or change group commands. This is such a welcome relief from the standard turn-based RPG battle system. The spell system is confusing; you gather scrolls to learn four spells per character, but I never figured out whether casting offensive spells did anything. One thing was very annoying though, and that is constantly retracing your steps. I realize this game is only 256K, but still, you start in one city (Elfas), trek to another place, go back to Elfas, pass the first city to find another one, then back to Elfas, continue ad nauseum. But just as you're about to smash the controller, it stops and you're in a new world. Then again, modern RPGs still haven't learned *cough*Suikoden3*cough*. At least when you're retracing your steps, there don't seem to be as many random encounters. Random encounters in new places, however, can sometimes be every two squares, which also gets irritating. Another small criticism, is that magic spells and Items don't have in-game descriptions. When you buy most items, you can see their effects, but some items cost a good deal of money and you have to guess what they do. All the spells sound great, but I have no idea what any of them do (except for the obvious Healus). Overall, I found myself saying "just one more level" way more often than I do even in RPGs made a decade later.
Pros: Active battling, fun for button mashing; super easy menu/battle system.
Cons: AI could be better, and going through the same forest 10+ times is frustrating. Also, descriptions of the Items would be appreciated.
Score: 8/10

Story - You wake up in a forest, not remembering who you are, only your name (which you decide). Immediately you meet your first ally and are plunged into battle. The story reminded me strongly of FFV, in that it isn't particularly memorable, but it makes sense if you pay attention. Basically, someone's been kidnapped and you have to save them, battle the evil leaders, save the world, discover who you are, etc etc. The character development is well done, though; I found myself actually caring about the characters, instead of just seeing them as a party to kill the monsters. Secondary characters fade in and out nicely, while your main bunch is easy to remember and each character is unique.
Pros: Story makes sense, only a handful of characters to remember. Cons: Nothing innovative.
Score: 9/10

Graphics & Sound - The graphics are great, though sometimes with a full party and several enemies, things tend to flicker, which makes navigation more difficult. Very nice graphics for the NES, cutscenes are well-done, backgrounds are nice. NO MAGIC GRAPHICS?! When you cast a spell, the screen flashes, that's it. How am I supposed to know what happened? You never see enemies' stats, so you can't tell whether you just hurt them or healed and berserked them. Music is really good for this game, given its limitations. Very fitting theme for each city, good dungeon music, battle music. Nothing too memorable, but it does the trick.
Pros: Good graphics, nice music.
Cons: No magic graphics.
Score: 9/10

Play Time/Replayability - I put a good fifteen-plus hours into this game before my computer just shut down. Too bad the save function doesn't work on the ROM. I wouldn't replay those fifteen hours, so replayability is nil.
Score: 7/10

Rent/Buy - If you have a NES, this game is definitely worth buying, as long as the save works. If you can find it for rent, you live in the wrong place.

Overall, this is one of my three favourite NES games, and definitely my favourite RPG on NES. It combines so many elements that have been used in later RPGs, and is way ahead of its time. Such an awesome game!!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/05