First LookMonster Rancher 4

Tecmo stopped by recently and gave us a look at the fourth entry in its popular Monster Rancher franchise. The PlayStation 2 exclusive refines the gameplay of its predecessors and introduces some unique new elements that take the series in a new direction. We were able to get a look at a near-final version of the Japanese game, which is slated to ship next month, and were pleased by what we saw.

The first new major addition to the Monster Rancher formula is a stronger emphasis on the story. Whereas the previous entries in the series revolved around an anonymous main character played by you, Monster Rancher 4 will put you in the role of a young boy named Phan, a colorful monster breeder recently expelled from an elite breeding school. The game opens with Phan arriving on an island after stowing away on a cargo ship. After a bit of conversation that introduces a portion of the game's cast of characters, Phan ends up at a shrine and generates his first monster, a garu, which serves as the game's default monster. As always, you'll be able to generate your own monster by inserting any CD or DVD when prompted by the game. This time out, the game will feature more than 300 monsters spread across roughly 20 categories.

Once you have your monster, you'll head out to a modest farm and be given the option of hopping right into the game or going through a tutorial that walks you through the basics. Fans of the series will notice quite a few changes to the classic Monster Rancher formula when they get to the farm and start raising their critters. The most significant changes are the ability to have up to five monsters at one time and an entirely new way to train them. This time out, you'll train your monsters by assigning them specific daily exercises designed to beef up their attributes. As they work on their individual regimens, the monsters will become more powerful. You'll be able to increase the benefits of training by purchasing equipment to maximize your monster's workouts.

The training process is quite a bit more regimented in the new game, thanks to the enhanced in-game calendar, which lets you map out your monster's activities for up to eight weeks into the future. From the looks of it, your time in the game is broken up into weekday and weekend activities. Weekdays are spent breeding and training your monsters, while weekends are reserved for travel to other towns, tournament participation, and adventure sequences. The adventure segments are similar to the expeditions in the previous entries in the franchise, but this time out you'll be exploring with up to three monsters in tow. Each adventure segment will offer five levels to explore and a boss to face off against on the last level. During your exploration, you'll come across chests containing various items and engage in random battles that will reward you with extra experience for your monsters. Your monsters can be quite useful as you explore, as some will let you ride on them to get around quicker, while others will be able to squeeze into areas you can't.

The tournaments in the game seem to follow the same tiered structure as before, but the combat mechanics have been overhauled. Whereas the type of attack you executed in the earlier games was determined by your proximity to the target, this time you'll have three types of attacks mapped to each face button. Your attacks will be broken up by strength and accuracy--you'll have normal; high accuracy, low impact; and low accuracy, high impact attacks. The combat has been fleshed out to include counters, which occur when you pick the same type of attack as your opponent, and friendship attacks, which are combo attacks that let two monsters perform a combo attack if they're sufficiently friendly with each other. The matches will also be given a bit more variety with the inclusion of tag-team battles. The new mechanics are complemented by a tweaked display that now includes a "history" bar that tracks which attacks you and your opponent have executed. This actually adds a bit of strategy to the matches, as you can try to find patterns in your opponent's attack history and then use that information when trying to pull off counters.

While there have obviously been quite a few changes to the game, the core mechanics of monster raising are the same. You'll still have to worry about your monsters' moods and their feelings toward you, as well as their general health. Your monsters won't die, but, in a Logan's Run-style twist, they're shipped off to mandatory retirement when they reach a certain age. You'll still be able to make use of the old fogies by breeding them to produce a monster that blends the best elements of its parents.

The graphics in the game are a throwback to the polygonal look of the original PlayStation games, although with considerably more detail, thanks to the generous polygon count. The assorted critters look quite good and animate well. The environments we saw were bright and colorful and fit the spirit of the Monster Rancher series nicely.

From what we've seen so far, Monster Rancher 4 is looking like a promising new entry in the series. The new gameplay elements should offer a richer experience, and the plethora of monsters should satisfy even the series' die-hard fans. Monster Rancher 4 is currently slated to ship this October for the PlayStation 2. Look for more on the game in the coming months.