Mazes of Fate

"Fate has been good to us"

The first console my family owned was a TI-99/4A. At my young age, it was hard to enjoy any of the games we had, but one I always came back to was Tunnels of Doom. It was an RPG dungeon crawler that frustrated me to no end. The game expected me to remember what I named my characters, but I always gave them long and complicated names, and I'd forget who was who when it was time to tell somebody to pick up an item. I didn't touch the dungeon crawler design again for several years. In fact, I'd forgotten all about it. So it's somewhat refreshing and nostalgic to come across Mazes of Fate, a game whose design is firmly rooted in the RPGs of old.

Graphics:
Mazes of Fate has spent three years in development, and that time has made sure this is one of the prettier RPGs for the Game Boy Advance. The game is basically tying together three different visual styles. The first is an isometric view of the overworld and towns almost on par with Golden Sun. The camera is pulled back quite a ways, however, so you don't get to see much detail. But when you enter a building, the view changes to a still, up-close shot of all the characters inside. And the character drawings are some of the cleanest I've seen in a GBA game. They convey a great sense of personality and look like they were pulled from an old 2D feature-length movie.

But Mazes of Fate's main draw is its first-person dungeons. First-person anything on the GBA has rarely worked out, but the effect here is handled flawlessly and recreates the feeling of an old-school dungeon crawler without any hitches. The monsters within are also drawn with the same care as the game's human characters, but their animations are a tad stifling. With only one or two basic animations per monster, it's kind of distracting when compared to the rest of the game. But when compared to the rest of the genre on the GBA, I'd say Mazes of Fate is doing very well.

Sound:
Even the soundtrack isn't too bad. It's not nearly as good as other RPGs, but it fits the fantasy theme well without feeling generic. The music in the dungeons is surprisingly catchy, changing between a little kooky, a little eerie, and sometimes even throwing in a cool drum beat. There is always the occasional shriek or wail in the background, too, which makes me jump every time. But the monsters themselves don't make much noise. In fact, none of the characters say much. Even if this is a GBA game, nobody sighs or grunts to give you any sort of indication that they're still alive.

Gameplay:
When you first set out in Mazes of Fate, you may wonder what the heck you've gotten yourself into. Though this is an RPG, it's not like the rest of the RPGs being made today. This is an homage to what many of us consider the good, old days of dungeon crawlers, games all about navigating through intricate mazes and fighting monsters along the way. But Mazes of Fate recognizes the current trend, and you'll still find some solid, more "traditional" RPG elements. For instance, the first 30-45 minutes is spent in a city, doing favors for different people before you can finally leave. This becomes a puzzle as you attempt to figure out what item you need before this person will conform to what you want, or even who you need to talk to in what order. The game focuses a lot on interacting with people, so much so that you often have a choice as to what to say. What's great about these interactions is that they are not definite. I have complained time and time again about games that keep giving us yes/no questions but don't do anything different for answering either way. Mazes of Fate does. Early on, you are sent into an old woman's basement to rid it of rats. While down there, it's possible to steal some of her money. If you don't, this woman will reward you with a special ring. If you did steal the money, that becomes your reward. In other scenarios, you can turn down people who want to join your party or even pick a fight with (and kill) some random guy in a tavern. None of these events dramatically affect the story, and sometimes things will have to pan out a certain way, anyway. You may only miss out on a side quest or useful bonus item, but having these decisions is such a great addition and makes Mazes of Fate a more real adventure.

But when they named the game "Mazes of Fate," they weren't joking around. The dungeons here are complicated, sometimes spanning three or four floors with all the dead ends and locked doors you hoped you'd never see in an RPG. I spent almost two hours in the first big dungeon, and it about drove me crazy. Granted, there is a map screen you can consult which shows you every hallway and room you've previously seen. So backtracking or finding areas you haven't visited yet is convenient. It's just that these dungeons are so big. It all looks the same, too, and it can get pretty tiring spinning around in circles and constantly relying on a map. Monsters are a frequent threat in the meantime. But this isn't like your usual RPG where monsters pop out of nowhere to challenge you in yet another random battle. Monsters roam freely through the dungeons, and you can just as easily confront them as you can turn and run the other way. There is no concrete battle system where you have to select "flee" to escape. If you want to attack, you go up to them and do it. But in typical RPG fashion, attacking means selecting which monster to focus on and hoping you get a hit instead of a miss. A defeated monster will sometimes drop an item, but it also gives you experience points. Yes, you still have to level up, but it is entirely up to you how it is done. Each time you reach a new level, you are given three points to assign to any category, be it your lock-picking skills, magic ability, accuracy using a one-handed weapon, or even the rate at which you heal yourself.

Controls:
Moving around in a dungeon is grid-based. Tapping forward or backward on the D-pad will move you one space. There's no middle ground. You then use the left or right directions to turn and the L and R buttons to sidestep. It's easy to get the hang of, though you may not like it at first since this is such a drastic change from what you may be used to. But the same could be said about any first-person GBA game, as they are recreating a 3D environment in a 2D interface, and Mazes of Fate controls well for what it is and where it is.

Frustration:
This is not an overly difficult adventure, though. Your characters' HP slowly replenishes over time, and you can even camp out when no monsters are around to speed the process up. Most monsters are a pushover, as well. When the villain of a particular dungeon confronted me, I was prepared for the worst... but then I took him down in two hits. Sometimes three or four monsters will trap you in a corner, though, and that's when it gets intense. The only annoying thing about combat is how often misses occur on both sides. It isn't uncommon for you and your opponent to take five or six swipes each without any of them connecting. Is everyone such a bad aim in this world?! But monsters do not respawn, so once you've cleared an area, you can relax knowing they won't be back. This allows you to focus solely on the puzzles and not have to worry about run-ins with monsters. And the puzzles do get hard. Sometimes you have to figure out a combination in a group of switches. Other times you'll need to scout every last inch of a dungeon--sometimes traveling through fake secret walls or finding invisible switches--in order to progress. But while this is more entertaining than the typically boring Final Fantasy dungeon, it does get to be a bit much. There was one dungeon which hid a key so well, I must have traversed the entire thing ten times over before finding it. That same dungeon was actually an extension of a previous dungeon. Once I finished in there, I had to backtrack to the first dungeon and enter a third dungeon. By the time I got back to the surface, four hours had passed. In the olden days of dungeon crawlers, this was all you did: crawl through dungeons. But I can only take so much. I like visiting towns and doing side quests between dungeons. It's a "breath of fresh air," if you will. Being stuck in those dark and dank "mazes of fate" for hours on end gives me a headache I'd rather not have. Luckily, this doesn't happen very often.

Lasting Appeal:
Mazes of Fate is a long game, too. It can take upwards 20 or even 30 hours to reach the end, depending on how many side quests you take or how long you get stuck in a dungeon. While there's a good chance you may get tired of mazes, the game is very easy to get in and out of. By this, I mean you can save anywhere and at anytime, so there's no need to feel pressured to make it all the way through a dungeon in one sitting. A quest log in the menu screen will also fill you in on any major and minor errands you have taken on, assuring you will always know exactly what is expected of you, even if you haven't touched the game for several weeks. And for those of you who enjoy playing games a second time, Mazes of Fate has a lot to offer. There are three starting characters to pick from as well as several potential party members. You could even try going through the entire game by yourself, always turning down people who want to be on your team. And with the many subtle differences between dialogue options, it'd be interesting to see how much the story is affected.

Overall:
If you only like your RPGs Final Fantasy style or not at all, this game won't do much for you. It's absolutely nothing like Final Fantasy. Mazes of Fate is, however, a great throwback to the days of "ye olde dungeon crawler." If you have ever played one of those, you'll feel right at home. The retro feel is recreated perfectly yet offers a bit more familiar RPG substance (which is integrated very, very well) for those spoiled by modern adventures. You can even alter certain aspects of the game depending on what you say to people, and that's an awesome feat few other RPGs have bothered to incorporate. Dungeons can be hard to stomach sometimes, but I think you'll find Mazes of Fate to be a fun and refreshing "last gem" for a dying Game Boy.

Points:
+ Looks good
+ Decisions have consequences
+ RPG elements work well
+ Mazes can get pretty in depth
-- Mazes can get pretty tedious
-- Battles aren't very intense

Score: 9.0

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/07