Lunar Silver Star Story

The following review for Lunar Silver Star Story featured in the July 1999 issue of Gamers Republic. The review is for the re-worked Playstation port. But the legacy of Lunar stems all the way back to the Sega CD.

The evolution of the RPG has been littered with twists and turns, as designers throughout the years have attempted with each new project to improve or re-invent any number of proven elements. Outer territory maps, fighting engines, village and town architecture, commerce systems, levelling up, and all walks of intermissions have been worked and re-worked. Graphically, companies have wrestled with sprites and polygons, CG, and FMV in an effort to engulf the end user in new and better ways.

Surprisingly, among the hordes of traditional RPGs (excluding strategy and action-based RPGs) that have been created, only a few stand out as truly memorable experiences - a testament to the dedication it takes to tug on the heart strings while pleasing the gamer in all of us.

Few have done it better than the original Sega CD version of Lunar: the Silver Star. Five key elements came together perfectly over a development period that seemed to last forever: detailed hand-drawn graphics, a brilliant original fighting engine, anime-styled cinemas, an epic story, and music that literally took you away.

Now, years later, during the first stages of polygonal dominance, the game is returning, fully realized. Gamearts have taken the time to expand on every aspect of their original vision, and Working Designs have added even more to the U.S. version, by far their most exhaustive localization yet.

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete has been reinvented to such an extent that those with faded memories of the Sega CD game will barely recognize it and first-time Lunar players will revel in its deep plot and insane amount of thought-provoking gameplay. If you've grown accustomed to the recent RPG formula in which, by leveling up high enough and stowing enough healing herbs and MP, you can cruise through and watch the story unfold, well, forget it. As it was, and should always be, no matter what your level in Lunar: SSSC, a lot of thought must go into each and every scenario in the game.

At no time will the enemies, or especially the bosses, let you easily pass. You are almost always in danger of either dying or running out of supplies; the balance in the game is uncanny. The amount of supplies Nail (Alex' pet, a floating cat-like creature who's the brunt of many a joke) can carry is limited and each party member is restricted to a very small number of herbs or replenishing objects.

During battle, Nail's rather expansive inventory cannot be accessed, so you need to be outfitted correctly at all times. Lunar's stubborn bosses are another story. The higher your level, the higher their resistance, so forget about levelling up and cutting right through them; Al won't save you either.

Strategic inventory management, healing, spell casting, and technique are all required each and every time you encounter one of these behemoths. Not since Final Fantasy III have I been so challenged in the boss fighting arena. Battles aside, Lunar is to hand-drawn RPGs what Castlevania SOTN was to hand-drawn 2D.

The reworked visuals are exceptional, with animated backgrounds and detailed architecture in and around every city and town, not to mention the hours of gorgeous cinemas. In one pivotal scene aboard a massive sea-going vessel, Luna serenades the stars in a stunning visual array incorporating rendered and hand-drawn elements. It's the sort of moment RPG players live for.

There are two aspects of this epic that I found less than stellar: I like the old music better—a lot better—and some of the speech during battles wore a bit thin after a few hundred clashes. Overall, I think battle cries are a good idea, but I think they should evolve with a character's strength and experience. The re-recorded soundtrack is very good and of the utmost quality, but in my opinion it doesn't convey the sense of majesty that the original did. Of course that's just my opinion; I could be wrong.

These slight personal misgivings don't even nick the surface of this momentous fable that is filled with well over 50 hours of hard-core role-playing, seldom exhibited on any format. Working Designs have done a fantastic job on the speech and taken full advantage of Dual Shock technology to bring you the ultimate Lunar experience.

Not only does the controller rumble, but it does so to match the cadence onscreen during the game and the cinemas! For those of you who appreciate a bit of modern humour in your role-playing diet, plenty can be found around the game's outskirts. Sticking to the main conversations, the story unfolds in traditional form, but should you stray into the game's many nooks and crannies you'll find all manner of pop culture witticisms.

A word to the wise before I run out of space. If you're in the market for a Lunar SSSC Strategy guide, may I suggest the WD Official version. The budget (or as we say here at GR, "boo-jae") books made from versions obtained in shady ways will not include the correct hidden bromite locations, as WD had the foresight to derail their unofficial ways and changed them at the last minute.

The WD book is also filled with extensive maps, intelligent writing, and official art. So do yourself a favor and make an effort to seek out the Official guide. I'm not against unofficial strategy guides when the developer and publisher have given their blessing, but hack books made from beta versions sold to the highest bidder… well, that’s not good for anyone.

And so there you have it. Lunar not only lives up to the hype, but exceeds it by setting a new benchmark in packaging at the same time. A finer package and contents you will not find on these shores. May you all achieve the status of Dragonmaster ... before the sequel hits, perhaps this year!

Chrono Trigger Review Super Nintendo

The following review featured in the November 1995 edition of Superplay published by Future Publishing in the UK.

The Review is writtin by Wil Overton.

Chrono Trigger is one of my all time favourite games. I will aim to include some screen shots soon

With the mighty Final Fantasy III the reining king of the RPG world, and still generating a huge amount of interest around the globe a year after its Western release, it's no wonder that Chrono Trigger has been one of the most eagerly awaited games on the American SNES calendar since we covered its Japanese launch back in issue 32.

Even Square USA's own project, Secret Of Evermore, seems to have been pushed back to make way for the time-travelling creations of Messrs. Toriyama (DragonBall), Horii (Dragon Quest) and Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy), the aptly entitled Dream Project responsible for this, Square's first 32Mbit title. It's a tad unfortunate for Chrono Trigger that it has got such an illustrious predecessor to live up to in FF III, when it's actually got more in common with Secret Of Mana than Square's flagship series. With a smaller cast of characters and a more action-led story, it doesn't set out to convey the same sort of epic drama that has endeared FF to its fans' hearts (surely it would just be Final Fantasy VII if it did?).

What it does try to be is a fast-moving adventure with always somewhere to go, some item or person to find, and less of all that wandering about without a clue where to go next. If you get stuck for what to do in Chrono Trigger, then you really haven't been paying enough attention. The game could have modelled itself on FF a little more in the character development department though. Whereas Locke and co. in FFIII all had histories and a story to tell which was essential to the game advancement, the only character in Chiono Trigger to have any sort of past is the noble frog prince as we learn how he came to have his amphibian form.

As for the rest of them - nothing, nix. Your hero is just as anonymous as the boy from Mana, and the rest only reveal anything about themselves when you first meet. It's surprising how much of a difference it makes when a character has some sort of motive for his actions - in the end I felt more for the frog than anyone else.

If it's emotional attachment to characters and an exciting story you're after, then the words you read on the screen are all important. Unfortunately Ted Woolsey's English translation is on a par with his previous efforts in that if you don't mind monsters talking hip, and horrendous puns such as eating Jurassic Pork soup in the prehistoric age then fine. Personally, I wish he'd think a little more about the atmosphere the game is trying to create. It's hard enough to lose yourself in a video game world without being constantly reminded of how clever the translator's trying to be. After all, you are meant to be 'role' playing. If the script doesn't quite hit the literary heights, the rest of the game works fine. The battle engine straddles FF and Mana nicely with a good mix of avoidable and non-avoidable encounters to keep you on your toes when wandering about.

There's a little strategy in that you can sometimes hit more than one enemy at a time and, of course, the nice addition of the combo attacks improves things no end. Square have given the magic in particular some lovely graphical effects that easily match those in FFIII and even if the graphics in general don't quite match Final Fantasy (although they do surpass it in some parts) they're definitely superior to Mana. If all the above sounds a little negative don't be too put off. This is a fine game and one Square fans will get a lot out of. The time travel premise is superbly implemented, and the way things are intermingled through the different periods means the main underlying story stays strong throughout all the individual quests. Definitely recommended... if you've got the time (ha!).

Bahamut Lagoon review Super Nintendo

The following review of Bahamut Lagoon, a 24Mbit cartridge on the Super Nintendo produced by Square Soft was originally published in the May 1996 edition of Superplay magazine in the UK.

Nintendo may have lost Final Fantasy VII, but there's still more than enough Square to go round...

With a young programming team under the supervision of Final Fantasy producer Hinorobu Sakaguchi, Bahamut Lagoon continues Square's foray into the world of simulation wargames that started last year with the stylish Front Mission.

While the RPG elements are negligible and only really serve as intermissions that tie the thirty-odd skirmishes together, the game's real gimmick is that you can feed a dragon, who fights alongside your party, with anything that comes to hand. Armour, weapons, spells and potions can all be forced upon the hapless beast to change his characteristics and sometimes even his appearance.

Although raising your dragon is supposedly a large part of the game, in reality, it's a rather hit and miss affair. Whilst as a general rule, if you feed them fire magic, their fire attack will increase, you can't actually see how much the dragon will be affected until you feed him the item. What's initially appealing about Lagoon is the sumptuous graphics.

The lead graphic designer, Hitoshi Sasaki, obviously had a vision, and, as he is also credited as the head game designer, it would appear that Lagoon is really his baby. Every screen seems to be overlaid with a mist and diffused light effect that creates a very convincing mystical look. Character designs are yet another variation on the Final Fantasy SD look, but with more fluid animation during the battle sequences.

The downer is that, like Front Mission, Bahamut Lagoon just isn't hard enough. Even without a grasp of Japanese, it's possible to make steady progress through the battles using just the default parties and settings. Make sure you've got enough healing potions, and regularly upgrade weapons and armour and even bosses fall fairly easily. After the sixth round, bonus levels are also available where you can boost your supplies and also uncover treasure which makes life even easier.

Compared to the likes of Tactics Ogre (which we defy anyone without a thorough grasp of the Japanese language to get more than a few hours into) Bahamut Lagoon seems fairly lightweight, and Square fanatics shouldn't feel too cheated if it never appears on Western shelves.

Not content with providing Super Play with two new games in this issue, Square Soft (Japan) are assaulting the Japanese market not only on the ground, but via satellite as well. Their next official cartridge release after Treasure Hunter G is Treasure of Rudola - The World of Downfall and Revival, an RPG which, instead of providing different story endings depending on what characters you choose, gives you three totally different scenarios.

The human race has only sixteen days to live before the, not so benevolent god, Rudola fufills his habit of making a new dominant race of beings every four thousand years. Races like the intelligent Danan's, an aquatic race and even a society of giants have all risen and fallen by Rhuda’s hand over the years. Each scenario has its own hero, Sirent, Cion or Dune and you can choose to complete the tasks in any order.

You also get to decide how many days out of the sixteen you spend with each party. As certain events happen on specific days, there's a fair amount of playing involved if you're to uncover all of Rudola's 32Mbit of secrets. Treasure of Rudola also allows you to mix up your own magic (or Kodama as the game calls it).

The actual spell you cast is determined by whatever name you call it. You can use up to six words to label your magic, and, although the game supposedly generates a spell depending on what you type in, we suspect it's just a random choice from a set list, as you only get to discover what the magic does by casting it.

Whether you type using romanji (Western characters) or Japanese isn't yet known. With a battle system that looks very much like Final Fantasy and graphics dissimilar to Bahamut Lagoon, Treasure of Rudola is set for a Japanese release on 5th April. Meanwhile, in what might seem like a bid to get rid of all their remaining Super Famicom projects in one fell swoop, Square have no less than four games running on Nintendo’s Satellaview channel at the moment. Dynamite Racer, Love Balance, Trigger Conflicts and Radical Dreamers are all RPGs, but with some interesting twists.

Trigger Conflicts has a vertical shooter at its heart, and, by finding treasures and money, you can upgrade your ship for the next stage. Radical Dreamers: Unstolen Jeweller is more of a storybook affair somewhat like Chun Soft's Sound novel series with a time limit on battles and multiple endings. Whether these are full Satellaview-only mini games or demos prior to a proper release we've yet to discover, but They certainly sound more interesting than Square’s current line-up.

Fast Blanking Operation (pin 16 on SCART)

The fast blanking signal instructs the TV to select either external CVBS information or external RGB information. This is used to impose an on screen display (OSD) presentation (normally RGB) upon a CVBS background. This function is used when using the UHF selector on the RCU.

Fast blanking information has the same nominal phase as the RGB and CVBS signal, and is defined as follows on the SCART connector:

CVBS mode: SCART pin 16 voltage = 0 to 0,4 V (low) RGB mode: SCART pin 16 voltage = 1 to 3 V (high)

Normally the OSD is generated within the MPEG 2 decoder, but the encoder can superimpose OSD (RGB) on top of a CVBS signal emanating from VIN6. The encoder is synchronised to the CVBS signal.

The two fast blanking inputs are associated with the auxiliary RGB/CVBS inputs and the other associated with the Digital Encoder input. These are selected by I²C.

For more information refer to the post SCART Connector Pin Assignments.

Scart Connector Pin Assignments

The SCART (Syndicat des Constructeurs d'Appareils Radiorécepteurs et Téléviseurs) connector is used for combined audio and video connections. The connector is also known as Pertitel connector or Euroconnector.

A formal description is given in the CENELEC EN 50 049-1:1989 standard or in the IEC 933-1 standard. Different pin-configurations exist. Which confirations are available depends on the video device used. Sometimes one can choose the configuration (like composite or S-video) by changing a software setting. Two status signals define (partly) which video signals are active. A video device can use these status signals to automatically switch between internal or external audio/video signals.

Male front view

RGB Connection

Output connector		Input connector
1	Audio right out	2	Audio right in
3	Audio left (or mono) out	6	Audio left (or mono) in
4	Audio return	4	Audio return
7	Blue out	7	Blue in
5	Blue return	5	Blue return
11	Green out	11	Green in
9	Green return	9	Green return
15	Red out	15	Red in
13	Red return	13	Red return
16	RGB status out	16	RGB status in
14	RGB status return	14	RGB status return
19	Sync (composite video) out	20	Sync (composite video) in
17	Sync return	18	Sync return
21	Shield	21	Shield

S-Video Connection

Output connector		Input connector
1	Audio right out	2	Audio right in
3	Audio left (or mono) out	6	Audio left (or mono) in
4	Audio return	4	Audio return
15	Chrominance out	15	Chrominance in
13	Chrominance return	13	Chrominance return
8	Video status out	8	Video status in
19	Luminance out	20	Luminance in
17	Luminance return	18	Luminance return
21	Shield	21	Shield

Composite Video Connection

Output connector		Input connector
1	Audio right out	2	Audio right in
3	Audio left (or mono) out	6	Audio left (or mono) in
4	Audio return	4	Audio return
8	Video status out	8	Video status in
19	Composite video out	20	Composite video in
17	Composite video return	18	Composite video return
21	Shield	21	Shield

(Composite) Decoder Connection

Receiver connector		Decoder connector
1	Audio right out	2	Audio right in
2	Audio right in	1	Audio right out
3	Audio left out	6	Audio left in
6	Audio left in	3	Audio left out
4	Audio return	4	Audio return
8	Video status in	8	Video status out
19	Baseband out (scrambled)	20	Baseband in
17	Baseband out return	18	Baseband in return
20	Composite video in (unscrambled)	19	Composite video out
18	Composite video in return	17	Composite video out return
21	Shield	21	Shield

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EasyLink Connection (additional)

Television connector		Video recorder connector
10	I/O Control Bus	10	I/O Control Bus

EasyLink enables bi-directional communication between a television set and a video recorder. This way a video recorder can, for example, copy the channel settings of the television set. Who knows the details?

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Signal Levels

Signal	AC level	DC level	Impedance
Red, green, blue	Peak to blanking: 0...0.7 V ±3 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
Sync	Peak to peak: 0...0.3 V -3 dB...+10 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
Composite video	White to sync: 0...1.0 V ±3 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
Chrominance	0...0.3 V -3 dB...+10 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
Luminance	0...1.0 V ±3 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
MAC	Black to white: 0...1.0 V ±3 dB	0...2 V	75 Ohm
Audio in	0.2...2.0 V (nominal: 0.5 V)		>=10 kOhm
Audio out	Nominal: 0.5 V (maximum: 2.0 V)		<=1 kOhm
Video status	Low data rate communication: 0.0...2.0 V (e.g. remote control; Easylink)	Internal: 0.0...2.0 V External (16:9): 4.5...7.0 V External (4:3): 9.5...12.0 V	In: ZR>=10 kOhm ZC<=2 nF Out: ZR<=1 kOhm
RGB status		Internal: 0.0...0.4 V External: 1.0...3.0 V	75 Ohm