Difficulty:

Easy

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Immersive"

I played this game as "Soleil", the European name for "Crusader of Centy". Neither name has much to do with the story, as far as I know, but that's standard fare for RRPGs, I think. I have two words for those who disagree: "Final Fantasy".

Graphically, the game is really pleasant, making use of the Genesis palette to the max, never boring you with a standard tone. The music is also very cheery, except for the boss battles where it gets adequately sombre.

The in-game story is nice, but ultimately standard. You don't play Crusader of Centy to gain insight on the human condition. The little touches and ideas are really nice, though, and made this game one that I remember fondly: The protagonist has to learn to jump from a rabbit, races in a buggy against a cheetah, fights a boss à la Pac-Man and loses his speech but can talk to animals. If that wasn't enough, a section of the game transforms you into a green ball of slime, and you get to play the "chicken, fox, worm across the river" puzzle to regain your human body. Ah, you also invade heaven to fight God, who -fortunately- isn't there to pummel you.

The fight system is interesting too, with animals providing you new abilities when you toss your sword, and with combinations possible -and indispensable, at some points in the game. For example, the penguin gives you an ice sword, the lion a fire sword, and both together give you a powerful black sword. Other possibilities are the flying squirrel, which allows your sword to bounce off walls, and the butterfly, which gives you control over the toss.

Ultimately, the story grew on me. When killing the last monsters in the game, particularly the final boss, I didn't want to. I wondered if there was any other way.

My main impression with the game is, then, that a mostly standard storyline serves to pull together a bunch of very interesting details, and that you won't regret playing this if you got a Genesis and can get a copy. Many interesting ideas were put together in this game, and I would like seeing them in newer creations.