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The Legend of Stafi 4 Import Hands-On

We get a hands-on look at this Japanese platformer for the DS, starring a very cute starfish.

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The starfish isn't often thought of as a heroic sort of creature. When we humans (or Westerners at least) personify animals as protagonists, we often choose the more majestic of God's creatures, like lions or bears. However, the recent release of The Legend of Stafi (or Densetsu no Stafi) 4 in Japan on the Nintendo DS proves that even our favorite tide-pool denizen can enjoy the spotlight.

The game is a colorful and cute 2D platformer starring an adorable starfish named Stafi. From what we can infer from the lengthy opening cutscene, Stafi and his sister are children of a starfish king and queen whose kingdom is being menaced by an evil villain. With the assistance of a retainer who appears to be a clam, Stafi sets out on a typical platforming journey, jumping, floating, sliding, swimming, and spinning his way through colorful levels above and below the water's surface.

Upon starting the game, you're presented with a hub map, where you can visit different non-player characters. One appears to have a list of outfits that you've unlocked, while others seemingly give you clues about what to do next. When you load up a mission, the action shifts to the top screen, while the bottom screen shows you a minimap that marks where you are and the locations of points of interest, such as objectives or a warp point to take you back to the map hub. The game's graphics are vibrant and colorful, with enemies having a more cutesy-style look as opposed to a sinister look. The game's bouncy soundtrack also contributes to the light, carefree feel of the game, as do the cartoonlike sound effects that punctuate the moves Stafi makes, like jumping or spinning.

Move over Nemo, Stafi's cuter and not helpless on land!
Move over Nemo, Stafi's cuter and not helpless on land!

Controlling Stafi is done primarily with the D pad and buttons. We didn't need to use the stylus much, at least for the first few levels in the game, although you can navigate menus by using the touchpad. Over the course of the first few levels, you'll quickly learn Stafi's various abilities. He's very nimble both in and out of the water. While in the water, he can swim in any direction, and you can speed him up by holding down a button. Stafi can push certain blocks out of the way to get to hard-to-reach places. Breakable blocks can be smashed by using Stafi's spin ability, which is also how you defeat enemies, which range from fish to stationary mollusk-like creatures to birds and other terrestrial animals. You can't just keep pressing Stafi's spin repeatedly, though. Spamming the button will make Stafi dizzy, which will stun him. On land, Stafi can walk, duck, run, and jump. Running jumps will get you more altitude, and you can also hold down the jump button in the air to float to faraway platforms.

The levels in the early part of the game are a good mix of underwater and land portions, requiring you to use all of Stafi's abilities to reach objectives. The levels are broken up by doorways that lead into new areas--the minimap on the second screen is a great tool for keeping track of where you are and helping remind you of places you have yet to explore. Along the way you'll find power-ups as well as friends to help you. Mermaids hiding inside of giant clamshells are always eager to recharge your health meter, and you'll also come across telephones that put you in contact with your royal clam retainer, who seems to offer you helpful hints and information.

The Legend of Stafi includes some fun platforming mechanics on land and underwater.
The Legend of Stafi includes some fun platforming mechanics on land and underwater.

While it certainly takes some knowledge of Japanese to understand the story and exactly what's going on in the game, it may be possible for a non-Japanese-reading person to fumble his or her way through The Legend of Stafi 4 and just enjoy it for its light atmosphere and fun platforming elements. However, you'll probably miss out on what seems to be an interesting story, as well as what appear to be unlockable outfits and other extras, which we had trouble figuring out how to utilize. We're not sure how likely it is that the game will be localized for the English-speaking world, but if you're interested in importing the game, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding it at your favorite importer.

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