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Rygar: The Legendary Adventure Review By Dart |
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Reviews -
Playstation 2 Reviews
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Written by Dart
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Thursday, 20 October 2005 |
This is a Rygar: The Legendary Adventure Review for the Playstation 2 by Dart.
Rygar: The Legendary Adventure
By Dart.
The story of Argus.
“Shortly after the Roman Empire’s Conquest of the Egyptian Dynasty.
An Island on an inland sea under Roman control called “The Kingdom of Argus.”
This is where our adventure begins.
A warrior, Rygar, having earned great honor for his role in a naval battle, was receiving the wreath of valor from King Argus’ daughter, Princess Harmonia. Then suddenly a group of hideous monsters burst into the ceremony. After slaughtering the guards, the monsters knocked Rygar into a crevice in the earth and ran off with the Princess.
But while Rygar was lying at the bottom of the crevice, he was awoken and revived by a mysterious voice. And there, he received the Diskarmor, a powerful battle-shield forged by the gods.
With this Diskarmor in hand, Rygar strode forth and swore revenge against those creatures of darkness... the “Titans”.’
With the vast creativity of new video game titles, and the recycling of old titles to new themes, one would assume that some would fall in the cracks of obscurity, only to find them years later and wonder how such a masterpiece could ever succumb to such a fate.
One would be Tecmo’s 2002 release of Rygar: The Legendary Adventure.
How I found this game was by browsing the PS2 section of a local second hand book store. Looking at the cover shots and judging whether it was even worth the $10 or so price tag. I bought it. A gamble I would soon find was well worth it.
Rygar’s quest starts in the island kingdom of Argus, around the time of the Roman Empire. And the background captures that period with precision. The castles, temples and gardens are period correct. And by the aid of the soprano singer Izzy Cooper and the Moscow International Symphonic Orchestra, the game truly brings to life a long dead era of Greco-Roman culture.
The opening of the game was definitely awesome. The graphics were great. As well as the soundtrack. A perfect mix to captivate any gamer. The only downside was the somewhat fake running of the people of Argus. They didn’t seem to flow like they should. But it was a minor detail that would be overwhelmed by the game play.
Most run-of-the-mill hack and slash games utilized swords or spears. But to use a shield as an offensive weapon would seem like an oddity, but soon one would realize that this weapon of choice would be right at home in this epic adventure. The Diskarmor is an offensive shield that is attached by a chain to the user’s wrist. When thrown, a series of spikes come out of the side, slashing and cutting down any enemy that is within range. Throughout the game, the Diskarmor can be upgraded, strengthened and even be enabled to bring forth various beasts to fight on our hero’s behalf. Truly unique.
The enemies of Argus come in the form of the Titans. Although there are many different types of Titans, each are deadly in their own right. Some are quite simple to defeat. Others are very difficult. But all are challenging enough to keep this game fresh every time it’s played.
Bottom line is it is unfortunate that I found this game in a used bookstore. I am very surprised that it wasn’t as popular as games in the same genre. I just hope that many more will find this masterpiece, and treat it as such. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 02 February 2006 )
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Reviews 