Action RPG's #3

StarTropics (1990)
By: Nintendo R&D3 Genre: Action RPG Players: 1 Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Nintendo NES
Also Available For: Nothing

This game is unusual in that it was an NES game made by Nintendo themselves but only released in the US and Europe, with poor Japanese players having to do without. This has probably happened with certain types of sports games or tie-ins to things only popular in the west but this was an action RPG - a genre more popular in Japan than maybe any other! It's also, oddly, a game I never heard about in its day from magazines or other gamers, only learning of it later from collectors. It has, however, intrigued me since then, mainly due to its name and the images it conjured in my head - something to do with spacey, sun-bathed alien worlds overflowing with lush vegetation and glowing sands, punctuated by curious creatures and hiding some sort of magical adventure. The other day I was oafing around in my garden and decided it was time to see what the actual game was like, and if it bore any relation to the version I have been having visions of for many moons. Join me as I venture forth, into the mysterious tropics...

Sadly, it was quickly apparent that the 'star' in the title was a little misleading - the game is set firmly on our own planet, though we do at least start in a suitably tropical (albeit fictional) part of it which is known, extremely creatively, as C-Island. Because it's shaped much like a C, you understand. This is where an archaeologist named Dr. Steven Jones works (and lives too, I guess, given the presumably remote location) but alas, he has gone missing! Leading the search is his nephew Mike who just arrived on C-Island to visit. This takes the form of a typical Zelda-style action RPG/adventure featuring overworld-type areas to explore, most of which contain the usual NPC's/locals to whom you can chat for clues or quests, and dungeons filled with enemies and puzzles to battle though. Both sections are viewed from overhead, though the dungeon sections are more zoomed in and permit Mike more abilities such as jumping and attacking, neither of which can be done in the overworld sections, although there's nothing in them to attack so I guess it doesn't matter.

As with many other games of this type, the 'dungeons' aren't actual dungeons. There are quite a few underground/cavern-type areas here, admittedly, but there are also some outdoor areas including a good few watery bits - only natural for a game set on and around lots of small islands, I guess! Prior to entering the first example, a village elder or something gives you your first weapon which is... a yo-yo of all things! You can't tell this game was designed for the American market, huh? Bizarrely, this plastic whirly thing on a string apparently has the power to kill the horrific creatures you're confronted by in the dungeons, though it's range is very limited and many enemies require more than one hit. Luckily, this pathetic weapon can at least be used without limit, and better examples can be found through the course of the game. There are three 'main' weapons (which the yo-yo is classed as, amusingly), and ten 'secondary' weapons which have a limit on how many times they can be used.

The dungeons are grid-based and mostly consist of a series of rooms and/or small areas connected by doorways. Some of these doorways are open and you just have to reach them; other times they are locked. In the case of the latter, there are generally two ways to unlock them - kill all the enemies in the room (which my OCD dictates should be done anyway) or find the switch. In many rooms, you'll find green blocks which you can jump on. Most do nothing but jumping on some might reveal a hidden switch which you can then jump on to open the door. This means you'll spend a lot of your dungeon time jumping on blocks, at least the first time you tackle a room or area, for you may well need to do some several times since you'll get shoved back to the last restart point if you lose a life. Mike starts the game with three hearts and more can be obtained through the game, but it's pretty easy to take damage. Luckily, the game saves at certain points too, usually after completing an area or quest, but if you're anything like me, you'll still lose lives quite often!

So far so Zelda-ish (except for the lives), but despite my including this game in the 'Action RPGs' feature, I'm not actually sure it is one if I'm honest. Progress through the game is linear, for one thing. There are eight chapters in all, each of which contains one or two dungeons except for the third which features five for some reason. Some of them have objectives unrelated to your main quest (rescuing a baby dolphin, for example) but finding and rescuing Mike's uncle is the main objective. Much of your time in the overworld areas (small towns and/or islands) will be spent finding clues but you can't pick and choose which quests you want to do or which areas to explore - it's all quite structured with one thing leading to the next. You may be wondering at this stage how Mike actually gets from one island to another, and the answer to that is pretty cool - his uncle apparently had a small water craft called Sub-C which you get to appropriate. It even has an AI thingy to help you.

Other help can be found here and there in the dungeons too. As well as opening the doors, some of the many green blocks, when jumped on, will present a special item you can grab. These won't include the two main weapon power-ups which will come to you at specific points in the story, and which thankfully have improved range and power, but will include the secondary weapons and other items which include things like slingshots, throwing bolas, mirrors (to deflect enemy shots), and various other weapony stuffs, as well as potions (refill health), snowmen (freeze enemies), magic rods, and lanterns. There are lots of other things to find too, some of which are for general use while others are purely for advancing the story. Luckily, many items turn up right before you need them too, such as the introduction of a new type of enemy or even right before a terrifying boss battle. Not every dungeon has one - not even every chapter has a boss - but there are still a good few of them through the game and some of the infernal creatures are pretty tough customers.

Indeed, despite the cartoony setup and oddball premise, the game does get quite tricky, especially in the later chapters. The enemies are mainly creatures of the usual type (snakes, bats, rats, etc) as well as a few spookier examples (skulls, mummies, sorcerers). There are over fifty types in all and while they aren’t exactly tactical geniuses, they often come in numbers and the tight quarters of many rooms can make movement awkward, especially when you’re trying to avoid projectiles and time your attacks with that stupid yo-yo. There's also a fair bit of trial and error — disappearing platforms, block-pushing puzzles, hidden doorways, and rooms that basically exist to mess with you, though there are secrets here and there which make up for it. Death can come swiftly and frequently nonetheless, and the limited continues make things feel a bit harsher than most modern players are probably used to. That said, despite the game's linear nature, there's a real sense of progression, both in terms of story and player skill, to keep you playing.

The only major problem I had with the game was the rather clunky, sticky controls in the dungeons, especially while jumping between green blocks (which aren't actually always green, as the screenshot below demonstrates). It's fine if you just need to make your way across them but if there are enemies around, you'll lose a lot of health and lives due to this issue. The second boss, a large octopus, is fought entirely on these green blocks which you have to jump back and forth between to avoid Octo's attacks, and I can't begin to explain how much rage built up inside me as, once again, a jump didn't register or was too slow and I took damage. If you get used to this and the fussy timing of Mike's attacks, though, you should start to enjoy the rhythm of the game. The dungeon designs, while repetitive at times, do get increasingly inventive as well as tougher, and the overworld segments, though simple, allow for some nice downtime between the more intense sections.

It's a pretty big game in any case. The fastest speedrun I can find is about an hour and a half but most walkthroughs are well over two hours, and that's players who know the game well. I suspect it would have lasted an oaf like me months, back in the day. It's quite a pleasant game to spend time with too. The graphics are nice enough, with some nice colours, varied sprites, and a reasonable range of location graphics, and the music is decent too, featuring lots of tunes ranging from relaxing, tropical-tinged themes to more foreboding numbers. The Japanese take on what might appeal to Western players results in some weird choices (I know I keep saying but... yo-yo... seriously?) but, aside from that and the issue with the controls (just me?), it's enjoyable to play through. It might not live up to the sun-drenched, space-adventure fantasy its name first suggests, but what it does offer is a weirdly engaging and occasionally tough island-hopping action-adventure full of heart, imagination, and a kind of quirky charm you don’t often see anymore.

RKS Score: 7/10

Gameplay Video: here's a video of the whole game being played by one of the talented fellows at Nintendo Complete (check out their great channel here). Oh, and don't watch if you want to avoid spoilers!