Japanese PC reviews needed (PC98/X1/FM Towns)
Jul 20, 2010 20:37:26 GMT -5
Post by Ryu the Grappler on Jul 20, 2010 20:37:26 GMT -5
This is my first written review in years, so feel free to offer constructive criticism or flame me if you want.
Hokuto no Ken: Violence Gekiga Adventure
『北斗の拳 バイオレンス劇画アドベンチャー』
Release: May 1986
Platforms: PC-8801、FM-7、PC-9801、X1
Publisher: Enix
Predating the Sega Mark III game version of Hokuto no Ken (a manga franchise known to the English world as Fist of the North Star) by a few months, this little known graphic adventure game by Enix for Japanese computers was Kenshiro's true video game debut. Hokuto no Ken: Violence Gekiga Adventure follows Kenshiro and his young companion Bat as they travel the post-apocalyptic wasteland in search of the city of Southern Cross, the stronghold of Ken's old nemesis Shin, who holds Ken's beloved Yuria captive.
While ostensibly based on the debut story arc of Buronson and Tetsuo Hara's original manga, the events in the game do not resemble the manga's version of the storyline outside the appearance of Shin and his four card-themed lackeys (Club, Heart, Spade and Diamond). In spite of this, almost half of the game's visuals consist of trace-over artwork from the manga, which extends as far as some of the "new characters" such as the woman warrior Leila (who resembles a blond haired Mamiya) and the bandit Jack (think Zeed, but without the "Z-666" tattoo).
As with most games of the genre, the player guide Ken and Bat through the use of a menu-based interface, which range from common commands such as "move", "talk" and "look", to context-based ones such as "ride", "open" and "push". In order to progress through the game, the player must thoroughly investigate the clues in each scene in order to open new options.
The sole unique feature in the game comes from its battle sequences. Anyone familiar with the manga knows that Kenshiro is the successor of Hokuto Shinken, an ancient assassination art that allows Ken to cause an opponent to die from the inside-out by striking the hidden acupressure points on the human body, which usually results in a graphic death. The battle sequences attempts to simulate this by allowing the player to choose which vital point they wish to strike in combat. Each enemy is vulnerable to a set of specific vital points that must be struck precisely and on time in order to win. To figure out the correct vital points for each enemy, the player must uncover clues or talk to villagers. Since the player does not actually "lose" if they hit the wrong vital points, these battles are more like puzzles to solve that can be retried every time the player fails. However, if the player fails to pay attention to the game at all times (for example, a dying character's final words), they may miss a vital clue that will help them in a future battle. As a result, completing the game can be very difficult if players are going through the game blindly with no idea of what to expect.
While far from being the weirdest Hokuto no Ken game ever, Violence Gekiga Adventure is still a bit of an odd-duck compared to later games based on the franchise, which were usually action or fighting games and covered greater portions of the story (usually up to the iconic Raoh saga) instead of a single story arc. However, its still provides an entertaining (if short) experience for fans of the manga or adventure games in general. Be warned that the language barrier is high and no English patch exist as of this writing.
Hokuto no Ken: Violence Gekiga Adventure
『北斗の拳 バイオレンス劇画アドベンチャー』
Release: May 1986
Platforms: PC-8801、FM-7、PC-9801、X1
Publisher: Enix
Predating the Sega Mark III game version of Hokuto no Ken (a manga franchise known to the English world as Fist of the North Star) by a few months, this little known graphic adventure game by Enix for Japanese computers was Kenshiro's true video game debut. Hokuto no Ken: Violence Gekiga Adventure follows Kenshiro and his young companion Bat as they travel the post-apocalyptic wasteland in search of the city of Southern Cross, the stronghold of Ken's old nemesis Shin, who holds Ken's beloved Yuria captive.
While ostensibly based on the debut story arc of Buronson and Tetsuo Hara's original manga, the events in the game do not resemble the manga's version of the storyline outside the appearance of Shin and his four card-themed lackeys (Club, Heart, Spade and Diamond). In spite of this, almost half of the game's visuals consist of trace-over artwork from the manga, which extends as far as some of the "new characters" such as the woman warrior Leila (who resembles a blond haired Mamiya) and the bandit Jack (think Zeed, but without the "Z-666" tattoo).
As with most games of the genre, the player guide Ken and Bat through the use of a menu-based interface, which range from common commands such as "move", "talk" and "look", to context-based ones such as "ride", "open" and "push". In order to progress through the game, the player must thoroughly investigate the clues in each scene in order to open new options.
The sole unique feature in the game comes from its battle sequences. Anyone familiar with the manga knows that Kenshiro is the successor of Hokuto Shinken, an ancient assassination art that allows Ken to cause an opponent to die from the inside-out by striking the hidden acupressure points on the human body, which usually results in a graphic death. The battle sequences attempts to simulate this by allowing the player to choose which vital point they wish to strike in combat. Each enemy is vulnerable to a set of specific vital points that must be struck precisely and on time in order to win. To figure out the correct vital points for each enemy, the player must uncover clues or talk to villagers. Since the player does not actually "lose" if they hit the wrong vital points, these battles are more like puzzles to solve that can be retried every time the player fails. However, if the player fails to pay attention to the game at all times (for example, a dying character's final words), they may miss a vital clue that will help them in a future battle. As a result, completing the game can be very difficult if players are going through the game blindly with no idea of what to expect.
While far from being the weirdest Hokuto no Ken game ever, Violence Gekiga Adventure is still a bit of an odd-duck compared to later games based on the franchise, which were usually action or fighting games and covered greater portions of the story (usually up to the iconic Raoh saga) instead of a single story arc. However, its still provides an entertaining (if short) experience for fans of the manga or adventure games in general. Be warned that the language barrier is high and no English patch exist as of this writing.
