Azure Dreams

"Dream Forever."

When I first came across this game at a friend's house, I didn't think much of it. To me, it just seemed like your average RPG failure. I asked him about it and he said it was an awesome game, so I borrowed it. Within the next 24 hours, I was hooked. Azure Dreams was a truly great game, with only a few small things that separated itself from greatness. The game has a unique battle style that mixes action/adventure with strategy and other RPG (role playing game) elements. You can also raise and collect monsters known as familiars to aide you in battle.

Story:
In the game, you play as a 15 year old hero whose father supposedly died in a dangerous place known as the Monster Tower. The Monster Tower is a place where people known as hunters would go in search of treasure and valuable monster eggs. This tower lies on the outskirts of the town of Monsbaiya. Now that you are 15, you can venture into the tower for yourself in hopes of reaching floor 40, where a surprise is supposed to await you. In the game, you can make many friends (most of which are young ladies) who react differently depending on how you talk to them. Your next-door neighbor, Nico is a tomboy who will wake you each morning as your character is a little on the lazy side. Your rival, a rich noble by the name of Ghosh Rode, is always trying to put your character down. He is also a hunter and a skilled swordsman who will challenge you a number of times. His sister, Selfi, is a sorceress-in-training who seems to have a thing for the main character. Your family consists of your mother Wreath, and your 7 year old sister Weedy. Your first ally is a familiar named Kewne, who is the only monster of his kind who can speak. The game is very in-depth and contains these characters and many more.

Graphics:
The graphics for Azure dreams can be choppy at times, and the tower designs leave a lot to be desired, but, for a Playstation One game, it isn't that bad. The bright colors are cheerful and bring life to the characters and their surroundings. Using certain items displays a brilliant flash of magic. The monster sprites are well done and rival those of the Final Fantasy series. The floors of the tower are randomly generated, and resemble the floating platforms of Strategy RPG's. The walls of rooms inside the tower are transparent when you enter them, so the camera angle is hardly ever annoying. The camera itself can be shifted to face 8 different directions (N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW), 3 different height options (top view, middle, and low view), and zoom-in to 3 different distances (zoomed-in, normal, and zoomed-out).

Sound:
The catchy music in Azure Dreams is a little on the repetitive side, but it's good for the most part. There's music in the town, tower, as well as certain buildings that have their own tune. Whenever you are near Selfi, her special theme plays, which is pretty cool. Sound effects are well done with slashing of the sword, and taking damage. Some types of items have their own little sound effect. When you're adventuring through a floor on the tower and you hear the music get really intense, congratulations, because you just stepped into a monster den. The intense music is cool for a while but soon gets on your nerves as you fight for your life against a whole den of monsters.

Controls:
The controls for Azure Dreams take a little while to get used to, but they work fairly well once you get the hang of it. The game really has two sets of controls. One is for the town where you can move freely and jump about, while the other is inside the tower where you move on a checkerboard-like setup. In both cases you use the directional pad for moving, hold circle to run, and square for accessing the menu. Out in the town, you can jump by pressing triangle and talk to someone by simply moving up to them. Inside the tower, the controls are a little more complex. I won't get into specific detail, but they are a pain to learn.

Gameplay:
Adventuring through the tower is cool, but it gets really old fast. Plus if you are defeated inside the tower, all of the items in your inventory are lost. This might not sound like a big deal, but once you start getting good equipment, it sure is. Also, the only ways to exit the tower is to find a rare item (wind crystal) or another item that lets you escape at the cost of one of your monsters' life (really big deal!)

Replay Value:
This game doesn't end for a long time as there are many ways to customize the way you play. You can expand your house and decorate it with items, which have little meaning to the game, but still gives you something to do. You can also build up relationships with some of the gals in town. If you fulfill certain requirements, they will become a trusted friend. You can even customize your monsters by giving them different attributes or fusing them to make a new monster. Once it's all said and done, there doesn't seem to be much reason to play the game over again, so I would have to say that this game has a regular average replay value.

Conclusion:
In the opinion of Yams, I give Azure Dreams an 8 out of 10. To conclude, I should say that the gameplay department has a few flaws, but this is still a great game that you should definitely play, especially if you are a fan of turn based RPGs. I myself haven't completely beaten the game yet, but I know enough about it to tell you that this is a game that shouldn't be missed.

Azure Dreams for Playstation received an E for Everyone (Mild Animated Violence and Mild Language) from the ESRB.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/05/04