Sabre Wulf

"You MUST get this game!"

Its amazing. Not only does it combine several different gameplay genres, it has *loads* of innovation.

A little bit about how the game works:
You explore the 3D-world and every now and then you find a hole in the ground which you go down and you're in 2D. Its always the same from there on. You find the item hidden in the level, in order to get to it you have to tactically use the ''magical creatures'' you find - not always an easy task. Finding the item disturbs ''Sabrewulf'' (also a character in Killer Instinct), then all the obstacls and enemies disappear from the level and you have to run back to the start chased by Sabrewulf, that part isn't about tactics, its all about quick-reflexes since you have no time to time jumps. The item you brought back you might need to use in the adventure part to progress in the game, or you might be able to trade it for items to use in the 2D part. And that, in a nutshell, is how the game works.

Like it says on the box, its ''arcade action for the thinking gamer''.

Its not easy though - theres a very fair learning curve which starts you out with some almost boringly easy levels - but before long, you'll really have to think in order to complete the levels. And the chase at the end gets harder each time, as the levels become more complex and the 'wulf gets faster. After a while, you can't just outrun the 'wulf, he's too fast - you have to outsmart him by quickly changing direction or forcing him to go in a pit. All this done at speed, makes a nice change of pace by the end of the level.

The adventure sections remind me a lot of Zelda in some ways but are perhaps a little too easy. Its all-too obvious where you have to go next. But they are essential for the game to work because they give you a purpose. It would be quite repetitive without them. They also present the storyline, with some quite funny dialogue in places - links the game together nicely.

What makes the game so great is the attention to detail. In the 3D sections, theres are even birds flying around - everything is so smooth. The 2D sections look every-bit as good as the Donkey Kong Country games. This is the best-looking game I've ever seen running on a GBA - no doubts what so ever.

The sound effects and ''voices'' are really entertaining - and the music is top-quality. Really pushes the bar up even higher as far as sound is concerned. It always amazes me how Rare seam to know better than anyone how to get really great sound out of the GBA. Donkey Kong Country and Grunty's Revenge are both excelent-sounding - and now Sabre Wulf raises the bar again. Wheras other GBA games from other developers all sound very poor.

Probably my only main complaint is the controls. Its all very simple - move with the d-pad and jump with A, thats the same with both the 2D and 3D sections of the game. But selecting and using the creatures is frustrating since you have to press B and select the creature from a menu which appears at the top of the screen. The game still runs as you do this, and by the end of the game you have 10+ different selections, it can get quite frustrating, especially when you have to do it at speed. But I can't really see how it could be improved though, with the limited number of buttons on the GBA.

To summarise:

Graphics: 9/10
The best I have seen on a GBA. The only reason why I gave it 9/10 is in the hope that it might be better-improved by future titles.

Sound: 10/10
Here we have wonderfully-composed, subtle background music combined with atmospheric sound-effects (like rain, etc). Really makes a change for the genre. Add to this the excelent sound-effects and voices.

Gameplay: 10/10
Not only combines the gameplay from Donkey Kong Country with adventure/RPG elements, it also improves on what we've had before. Theres great variety here and its really innovative/different to anything you've played.

Lifespan: 6/10
8 worlds, each with 8 2D levels, and each of those you can replay to get better times. Its not an epic, but its not so incredably short that you would not buy it because of its length - and you'll want to replay it, its just too good to play once!

I'm very impressed. This is Rare's 3rd fantastic game on the GBA. They really are raising the standards of what you'd expect from a GBA game - and are so far ahead of other GBA developers. I can't wait for Banjo Pilot and other no-doubt fantastic Rare handheld games in the future.

OVERALL: 10/10
One of the best games on GBA.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/30/04