"One of the few games that can be fun despite being literally impossible"

In 1990 Sega released a little known, but very unique RPG for the Master System and GameGear called Dragon Crystal. What makes Dragon Crystal different than any other game at the time, and the vast majority of games today, is the level design. Each level is randomly generated, as are the number, types, and positions of all of the items, enemies, and the level exit and start positions.

Each level is a maze, with a varying degree of complexity. There are several different level themes, such as forests, deserts, and a field of statues. Areas that have not been explored are hidden under trees/cactuses/statues/whatever makes up the walls to the maze, and as you move through new areas they will vanish and be replaced with ground you can walk on, and the walls will become colored. Like everything else about the level, where you begin and where the exit is located is chosen randomly, so you may start far away from it, or the starting position might be in the same room as the exit. However, if you take the exit without exploring you will miss out on all of the items in that level.

There are a ton of items to collect, including swords, armor, pots, books, rods, and magic rings. Each level contains a variety of items, but which ones are determined randomly. It will be necessary to completely explore each level since the only way to get better items is to find them. The difficulty increases very quickly, so if you run through levels without picking up better equipment, you will find yourself in a lot of trouble.

Books, pots, rods, and rings come in a variety of different colors, and you will not know what each one does until you use it. The color each type of item changes in every game, so one time a purple pot might be a healing potion, but the next time you play the purple pot might reduce your speed. These four types of items can have a wide range of positive and negative effects, and unfortunately the only way to find out what those effects are is to try it your self. Even items with a negative effect can be useful because if you throw them at an enemy since the enemy will be afflicted with the effects of the item. Rings, swords, and armor can also be cursed, so you will be unable to remove them without using the right item. Some cursed items are just nuisances that have a strength/armor class rating of zero, but others have more series consequences such as randomly warping you around the level or draining your food supply.

While the placement of items is random, weapons and armor have a minimum stage that they will first appear on, so there is zero chance of you finding the best sword on the first floor. The placement of enemies is also governed in this way, so you will never encounter a super strong enemy early on, and the amount of enemies in each room is limited too keep things fair. As you fight enemies you will gain experience points and eventually increase your level, which will further boost your strength, hit points, and defense. Unlike most RPGs you will not have to spend countless hours fighting random battles to get enough experience because the amount of points needed to raise a level is low enough to keep this from being necessary. Actually, it is not even possible since there are no random battles, and the number of enemies on each floor is finite.

Another unique gameplay aspect is the combat system, which is turn based, but unlike traditional turn based RPGs such as Dragon Warrior and Final Fantasy, it is not menu driven. Instead combat is very similar to playing chess, where once you take an action, such as attacking or walking around, all of the enemies will take one action and then stop until you move again. In this way the game is still turn based, but plays like an action RPG. For the most part fighting a single enemy isn't particularly hard unless you are very weak, though enemies that have projectile weapons or can move a distance of more than once square in a single move can cause a lot of trouble. The difficulty comes when fighting more than one enemy at a time, since you will be attacked more than once every round and damage can compound very quickly.

Combat is a very simple since the game is turn based, so there are no fancy combos to learn or anything like that. Your only attacks are to stab with your sword or use/throw an item. When you are engaged in combat, your current hit points are displayed on the top of the screen and a message window appears at the bottom telling you how much damage was done to you and the enemies, as well as any status ailments inflicted or cured. When combat is over you gain experience and are told if your level has risen at all, and then the windows disappear.

In between fights you will be able to restore your health by either using items or eating food, which will exchange food points for hit points. If you every run out of food your life will begin decreasing with every step until you either find more food or die of starvation. Should you happen to die, for whatever reason, you may be given a chance to continue, if you have collected enough gold. The exact amount of money varies every time and you never know if you have enough, so continuing isn't guaranteed, it is just an occasional bonus. When you continue you will have only the sword, armor, and ring that were equipped when you died, and you will restart on the same floor, but it will have been regenerated.

The difficulty of the game is hard to gauge because of how much is determined randomly. If you start the game nearby a better weapon and perhaps a healing ring, you may have a chance. However, every time you go to a new floor there is a possibility that you will end up completely surrounded by numerous enemies. With fifty different floors the chances of you running into this situation at least once is fairly high. Also, while there is a minimum level that the stronger enemies will begin appearing on, there is a chance that you won't have found good enough weapons and armor before you start encountering them. As a result actually finishing the game may border on impossibility.

As if the randomness and lack of saving don't make the game hard enough, some of the later enemies have really nasty attacks which cause permanent damage such as reducing your levels or destroying your armor or sword. Levels take a lot of time to rise and the difference between one level can make a significant difference in your chances of surviving. Likewise, if your sword or armor is destroyed it may be a while before you can find another one of equal strength. This means that if an enemy or item destroys your only good sword or armor, the game is pretty much over.

Dragon Crystal controls very well, and because there are so few buttons on the GameGear, it is also very simple. You move with the directional pad and attack by pushing against the enemy as if you were going to walk into it. All equipment management, item usage, and stat viewing are done through one organized menu. The game controls smoothly and responds immediately to input from the controls.

The game looks and sounds good for a being on portable system. The levels don't have much artistic design, with the walls being on shape repeated over and over again, however this is necessary for the game to be able to distinguish between explored and unexplored areas. The enemies have a lot of variety in both abilities and design, and Sega made good use of the relatively large color palette on the GameGear. The music in the background is pleasant enough to listen to and works with the game. There are very few sound effects, but they are of decent quality as well.

A high level of difficulty in a game generally isn't a negative quality, however there is a thin line between challenging and next to impossible. Unfortunately Dragon Crystal doesn't just cross that line; it runs past it at full speed and never looks back. Had there been a way to save every couple of floors, it would have been possible to finish the game, however the chances of going through all 50 floors without your luck running out are slim to none. Fortunately there is an emulator for the GameGear out, so you can use save states to improve your odds.

Even without an emulator Dragon Crystal shouldn't be ignored. If you play the game just to see how far you can get without trying to finish the game then you will still be able to enjoy playing. The ending isn't exactly a shining example of great story telling, and is about the same as the original Zelda or Contra games, so you shouldn't be playing it for the story.

As for actually getting a hold of a copy of the game, your best way is to download a ROM. Used game sellers, even online ones such as eBay or half.com, rarely have a copy of either the GameGear or Sega Master System versions of Dragon Crystal. However, if you are a fan of RPGs and manage to get a hold of it, you should try it out.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/01/03, Updated 09/26/05