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SCENE
GENRE
GRAPHICS
SOUND
PLAYABILITY
VALUE
OPINION
REVIEW
INDEX |
Setting
the Scene |
If
they don't watch out, Tecmo is going to start getting a reputation
as a company for releasing games that defy easy description
oops,
wait
I think they may already have that distinction! Their last
game, Deception, managed to take everyone by surprise with its
unique game-play elements and extremely dark theme.
Now with little to no fanfare along comes their game Monster
Rancher. Easily one of the most addictive games to come out in a
long time, it's a genre enigma. Not to worry though, by the time you
read this review you will have a darn good understanding of what
this excellent game has got to offer to those willing to sacrifice a
good chunk of their time. |
Genre |
Rarely,
but every so often a game comes out that quite frankly defies being
put into a specific gaming genre. Monster Rancher is definitely one
of those titles. It's a cross between a
strategy/exploration/Tamagotchi style game. |
Graphics |
Well
the graphics in Monster Rancher are a real mixed bag. Now before I
proceed I just want to say that while they are certainly not cutting
edge, the graphics work perfectly within this type of game. I could
not imagine this title being all that much more effective with
hi-res, high polygon count graphics being substituted for what we
have here. That being said, here is how the graphics play out.
For the sake of argument, there are three distinct styles of
graphic treatments used in the game; polygon, pre-rendered and
sprite based.
Your monster, from birth to death is a very nicely rendered
polygon character. When born your monster appears like a very
small/squat version of an adult monster and is somewhat lacking in
detail. After the first year of raising your little tike, the growth
process begins and character details really start to stand out. The
amount of detail given to the monsters is outstanding. They are
often brilliantly colored and uniquely designed. The fluid polygon
texture mapping and animation do a marvelous job conveying your
monsters emotional and physical states. In short, I found the
polygon graphics of the monsters to be outstanding.
The backgrounds at the ranch are all pre-rendered backdrops,
but even they change from time to time as you build onto your house
or monster hut. Another nice touch was the inclusion of seasons
In
the winter you get to watch snow falling all around you property and
in the fall there are nicely done animation effects for the passing
clouds overhead. The game is full of these nice touches and
attention to detail.
The arenas in the battlegrounds vary from class to class and
are all depicted in polygon that rotate and shift with the various
camera angles. Another nice touch that I noticed was that when I
participated in a winter cup fight, the arena was all decorated for
the holidays.
The training and work windows that pop up are the only
graphical shortcoming. They are basically a small step above an
8-bit game. Believe it or not though, it actually works within the
context of this game. The animation style sequences that are uses to
portray your monster working or training are often hilarious and the
color and shape of the little eight-bit monster actually matches
your monster from the main game. Again, it's this attention to
detail that really makes this game shine. |
Sounds
and Effects |
The
music in Monster Rancher is quite unique in its own way. The
melodies that are played throughout the game are a mixture of old
marching band themes, classical melodies and smooth sounding horn
orchestration. All of the music is done with grand majestic
overtones to give one the feeling of a medieval or fantasy like
setting.
The music flows nicely with the overall pace of the game and
actually sounds outstanding when pumped through a surround receiver.
Sound effects are excellent and incredibly varied. Each main
character breed or type has its own sound and effects to accompany
and distinguish it from the others. |
Playability |
There
are basically three main parts in the game; the Ranch - where you
spend your time raising your monster, the Battle Arena - where you
fight you monster and finally the Market - where you can create and
combine monsters, view various statistics, and pick up or get rid of
monsters.
First we'll cover the Market since this is where you will need
to start the game to create or obtain your first monster. In the
Market screen you are presented with several options. You can go
directly to the market and obtain one of the three basic Monster
types to raise. You have a choice between a Dino - A good all around
performer, a Tiger - which is a bit hard to keep healthy, but a
solid choice and finally a Suezo - basically a big eyeball that has
a good intelligence factor. These three monsters are free to obtain
at any time, but the real fun is in making your own. Oh, you can
also give away any monsters that you no longer want at the market as
well.
The next option within the Market area is the Shrine. This is
where you go if you want to create a monster from a CD. Monster
Rancher will accept any music, Playstation, Saturn or PC CD in your
collection, read the specially coded information on this CD and
create a monster from it. To date there have been 215 monsters
cataloged
that's a lot of possibilities!! For the most part you
have about 20 pure breed classifications. You can then begin
experimenting to see what breeding the pure and mixed breeds will
result in. Each of the monsters you create will have six attributes
that vary with each monster. The attributes are Power, Life,
Defense, Skill, Speed and Intelligence. Each of these attributes can
be improved upon with either work or training, but more on that in a
bit.
Next up is the Lab option. Here you can combine monsters,
freeze them (your freezer has a finite amount of spaces), revive the
critters or send them to digital heaven by deleting them. Combining
or breeding your monsters is a real challenge. The obvious reason of
course for combining your monsters is to develop a better one, but
it's not quite as easy as just throwing two of your creations
together. Some monsters don't combine well, some don't carry over
the attributes that you want and some just don't look as cool as
others! As if this wasn't daunting enough, there are also items that
can be added to the mix that will have various effects on the
overall outcome of your new monster. Some items will bump up the
chances of getting a certain monster type while other items will
increase certain attributes, etc. The list goes on
needless to
say, that being successful in making that champion monster and
becoming a top breeder will require you to spend a lot of time and
experimentation in the lab area.
You can view various stats and information from the Data
option while at the market too. Statistics include information on
your current monster's attributes, its age, how many battles its won
and lost, money earned and fighting techniques that have been
learned. You can also view breeder information and scan your monster
book to see how many types of monsters you have created.
Games can also be saved from the market and finally you have
the option of going to the Ranch, which is where we are off to
now...
After creating or obtaining your monster you will need to
raise the little sucker. As with any child, it's first years are its
most formidable and challenging. How you raise it during this time
will ultimately determine how successful your "kid" will
be. When you first enter the ranch, you have a pathetic little house
that you use to store your items, supplies and stuff. You also have
a ramshackle little hut that your monster is forced to live in. It
looks like the whole place should be condemned in my opinion. Not to
worry though, as your monster wins battles and is successful at work
it begins to earn you cash. You can use some of your earnings to
build a better house and a much nicer monster hut. There are several
variations of each that can be built in stages over the course of
the game. Your initial game begin in the 1000 and works up from
there.
In the monsters first year, it is just this cute little
confused creature. It has no loyalty to you, and must be coddled for
awhile. Each month is broken down into weeks. The first week of each
month is when your monster gets its main meal. You can choose from
meat, fish or potatoes. Each one cost a different amount and each
one will have a slightly different effect on your little brute
but
basically everything you do in this game will have an effect on your
monster. During each month you can plan out a little regiment. Week
one you may want to work your monster. Depending on which job you
select it will have an effect on one or more of their attributes.
Each attribute has multiple levels, the higher the level, the
better. Week two, work the little beastie again. Week three rest it,
and then on week four you may choose to enter the monster in a
tournament battle if one is taking place at that time or you can
work it again and start the whole process over the next month. You
need to periodically pull up the battle schedule to see when a fight
is scheduled for so your monster gets enough rest time in before you
decide to fight it. Each minor event (sleeping, working) takes up a
week of time. You also have the option of sending the little tike to
training. Training is an intense program that focuses on improving
one of the monsters attributes per session. With the proper vitamins
you can manage to squeeze a few points out on some of the other
attributes at the same time to boot. Of course, this could have some
negative side effects as well
this game is full of trade-offs.
On a positive note, you stand a chance of learning a new technique
each time you send them to training. If it lives long enough, your
monster will eventually master all of its character techniques. This
will give you a very real edge in competition. Each training event
consumes 4 weeks of your monsters life and they normally need to
rest a week after they get back, so plan well. You will also be
periodically asked if you would like to partake in an expedition
with an older fellow named Karn. It is on these expeditions that you
will discover all sorts of useful items that can be used during the
game. A small word of advice, you will probably want to breed a few
types of monsters and use them just for expeditions; one with a lot
of power and another with loads of intelligence. Trust me
Now it's onto the battles! After putting all of your sweat and
money and time into your little rascal at the ranch, its payback
time. Major cup battles occur on a scheduled time frame at the end
of each quarter year. If you win a cup battle, your monster goes up
in class and faces tougher opponents. There are six classes that you
need to fight in and win starting from "E" class and
progressing to "S". Each time you win one of these cups
your breeder ranking goes up. You start at an R-1 ranking
your
goal is to obtain an R-10. You also win a good deal of money for
each victory, which you will need for upgrades, training and food.
Another word of advice; after a major victory do your monster a
favor and treat it to a nice apple snack
There are other
battles that you can participate in throughout the course of each
year. Some of these events are scheduled while others are by
invitation only. Some of these events offer big cash rewards for
victory while others offer useful items such as CD Fragments that
can be used in the breeding process.
Battles are fought out in various arenas and range from four
to eight monsters, including yours. You don't need to defeat every
monster to win, just have the best record at the end to walk away
with the goods. Before each battle you are given the option of
controlling the monster yourself or letting the computer do it for
you. I found the computer to be okay in the early battles, but to
progress and become victorious in the later battles you are much
better off controlling your monster yourself. The computer AI does
not always use the monsters techniques to their fullest and if you
let the computer fight a monster that outclasses you, you are almost
guaranteed a loss or worse. It's also important that your little
runt is well rested before each fight. This will give it more of a
chance for victory and quicker recovery time after a bought.
Control of your monster is much different than say fighting in
Tekken or Soul Blade. The battles are basically fought on a 2D
plain. The R1 and L1 buttons move the monster right and left. The
directional pad has two functions. When on the offensive, it scrolls
through your various techniques and when on the defensive it will
move your monster back, up or down. The "X" button
executes the selected technique and finally the square button can be
used to back the other monster off. Techniques differ in the range
of their attacks. Some are long range while some are medium and
others short. Selecting the proper technique depending on your
proximity from the monster and the amount of Will you have to
execute it is critical to your success in making contact. Each
monster starts a battle with 50 Will points. Each technique uses a
different amount of Will to execute it. Some of the heavy hitters
require 30, 40 even 50 points of Will to pull off. Will points are
recovered by each monster type at different rates. The quicker the
recovery the better! Also, depending on how high your Will is when
you execute a technique will play a part in the success of it making
contact as well. Sound complicated? Well, it is
but believe me
the time and effort spent on mastering the controls will really pay
off when you are kicking some monsters butt that you clearly
shouldn't have a chance to beat.
I could go on and on about this game. There is just so much to
do and discover, but I am sure I have bored you quite enough for
now. In closing, Monster Rancher is certainly not for everyone. The
game takes a lot of time and commitment from you. I have probably
logged around 60 or 70 hours on the game myself and I am only at
year 1071 and hold an R-6 rating (won "S" class once). Of
course I have spent a good deal of time experimenting and collecting
items on expeditions, not just fighting battles. Many people may
find themselves getting frustrated at all that is involved in this
game to be successful. I happened to find it rewarding and heck you
might just actually find yourself getting quite attached to the
little rug rats that you raise.
Oh, I almost forgot
there is also a two-player mode in
this game! You have the option of freezing you monsters and saving
them to a memory card. A friend can do the same, and then revive the
creatures and battle them to see who raised the best monsters.
Battles often become quite heated because you actually have an
emotional stake in your little buggers. This option is just icing on
the cake.
Trust me, this review is only scratching at the surface of
this incredibly deep game. It contains so many nuances and variables
that I could not possibly do it justice in this limited amount of
space. You need to experience it for yourself and discover what
works best for you
Personally I cannot recommend this game
highly enough! |
Value
for Money |
This
game offers virtually unlimited replay value. There is so darn much
to do and accomplish that it boggles the mind. For your gaming
dollars this title is a best buy. |
Opinion |
TOM |
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GRAPHICS: |
Good |
How
can I summarize this game in a few sentences
Sheese, there is
so much to it.
Okay, if creating, raising and fighting monsters that consist
of Evil hares, floating eyeballs, flying dragons, to huge golums
appeals to you, check this game out. It's a unique blend of game
types that work flawlessly together. It's a combination fighting,
Tamagotchi, strategy and adventure/exploration game all rolled into
one.
If you don't value your time to any great extent besides
playing video games, give this gem a try. If it hooks you, it hooks
you big time! |
SOUND: |
Very
Good |
PLAYABILITY: |
Brilliant |
VALUE: |
Brilliant |
OVERALL
|
96% |
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