"One of the last US games for the Saturn is a classic"

Magic Knight Rayearth (MKR) is anime based Action/RPG that requires you to explore, solve puzzles, manage Items, and fight the baddies on your way to saving the magical land of Cephiro from the evils of Zagat.


Story :
You play as three 14 year old girls that reside in Tokyo Japan.Hikaru (Fire power) , Umi (Water power) Fuu (Wind & Healing Power).Once summoned to the land of Cephiro you begin to explore under the guidance of a wizard named Clef.As you proceed through each town you get closer and closer to Zagat and figuring out the mystery that lies behind Cephiro.


Graphics:
The Graphics are of the typical anime style game.Smooth 2D textures mixed in with a clean prerendered background combine for a very crisp and easy going mood. Nice addition's to the game are the 100+ hand drawn cut sequences that really add to the story's depth and further draw you in. My only real complaint is the bit of polygonal jagginess you get from some of the 3d sprite bosses. While minimal, I do feel that Working Designs should have stuck with the 2D theme throughout.


Sound:
Not a big variety of music, yet the smooth tunes of village exploration serves it's purpose. Music for the bosses are a bit more up tempo, which get you into the action right away.
The effects are quite decent as well.With all the ''hiya's!'' you can handle from weapon swinging, there's never really a dull moment. The one area that really stands out is the vioce acting. I just can't seem to get over how superb the quality of the voice acting is. Each character's voice and tone of speech fit's in perfectly with thier personality and gives you more of an incentive to love or hate that character.


Gameplay:
While the gameplay is simple enough for a child to comprehend, many areas are somewhat complex. Using your weapon is efficient and has a very straightforward approach. You can use a power-up attacks by holding the attack button for a prolonged period of time and unleashing a wicked blow to the enemy. As for your magic spells, I thought this was the games biggest flaw. Each character only has three magic spells that can be used. There is also an inbalance of magic spells where some spells take up MUCH more magic points than others. I thought there should have been at least 5 differnt magic spells and perhaps better coordination as far as how many magic points it takes to use a certain spell and how much damage it inflicts on the enemy.Puzzles are an issential part of Magic Knight Rayearth. In Order to gain more Magic and Heart(energy/life) points you have to find the heart and magic jewels! While some are easily obtainable others are well hidden and require time and a good plan to reach them. The puzzles also blend well with the game and don't give a feeling of straying away from the games' storyline.


Overall:
Magic Knight Rayearth is a fantastic game that will have you drawn in from the begining.with 30+ hours of gameplay, many puzzles, and miniquests within this game, it should keep you having fun for a good amount of time. There is something for everyone here. If your a maticulous RPG fan and absolutely MUST obtain every item, there are over 100 rainbow amulets (some are very tough to find) to collect. If your an action fan, there are a wide variety of enemies and bosses to test your skill. And if your just simply a video game fan, then this game is for you!


MY SCORE :

STORY: 8/10
GRAPHICS: 9/10
SOUND: 8/10
GAMEPLAY: 9/10

OVERALL SCORE : 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/21/00, Updated 05/21/00