Category Archives: Classic Play

A Treasured Past: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars


The era of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) brought the gamers of the 90′s many amazing titles and memories to be held as they progressed into the new millenium. There was The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, the Donkey Kong Country series, and of course Super Mario World just to name a few. None of these titles were quite like what we received when Square Enix (Square at the time) and Nintendo joined forces to deliver a Mario/Final Fantasy hybrid in Super Mario RPG: The Legend of the Seven Stars (SMRPG:LotSS). Unfortunately due to it’s release date being near the end of the console’s life cycle in 1996, just months before the Nintendo 64 (N64) was released, a lot of people missed out on this classic title.

The adventure starts off with a cutscene utilizing beautiful pre-rendered 3D graphics in which Princess Toadstool is whisked away from a flower garden just a short distance from Mario’s Pipe House. As the hero he is, he leaps into action as the prologue begins. The plot starts off with the typical storyline of nearly every Mario game, rescuing the damsel in distress. Later on in the game it is revealed that it goes much deeper than that and the fate of the world’s wishes is at hand. Throughout your experience you encounter many new characters and species that are relative to both the Mario universe and the Final Fantasy universe, with some surprise appearances in between.

One of the most captivating features that draws most in and keeps them playing is the soundtrack composed by Yoko Shimomura, Koji Kondo, and Nobuo Uematsu. Each and every track is so full of emotion that the music itself could tell a great story on it’s own. When you combine this with the fun battle system and isometric maps that you’re able to roam around on, as well as the witty humour the writers added in, it’s no wonder why this game is in held in such high regards by die-hard fans of both Nintendo and Square.

Now, you’re probably thinking, “since this game was so great how come they never followed it up with a sequel?” Many fans, including myself, ask this question as well. It’s known, however, that Square and Nintendo had a disagreement about evolving into using discs on future consoles, since the N64 was right around the corner and Sony was already using them. This isn’t to say that SMRPG:LotSS didn’t have an impact on future projects though, being the first RPG Mario starred in. It allowed Nintendo to expand on their ideas and produce the games we know and love today such as the Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi series. Since Square developed the game, all of the material used in the game that was new to the Mario series at the time belongs to them. Most fans still want some of the content, especially characters such as Geno and Mallow, to make an appearance in future games once again. At this point in time, 16 years after the North American release, it seems highly unlikely. For now we’ll have to continue replaying this title while they’re locked up in Square’s vault, waiting to be played with once again.

About these ads

The Computer Adventure Era In All Its Glory: Beneath a Steel Sky

logo

Beneath a Steel Sky is set in an intriguing future Australia, full of people to meet and places to explore.

In a dystopian future of Australia, Robert Foster has been living outside of the city with a group seen as savages in a wilderness known only as “The Gap”. He has been here ever since he was involved in a helicopter crash as a child, when the man he now calls grandfather found and took care of him. Robert was the only one to survive the crash. The crew aboard? Dead. His mother? Dead. He is left here to live out his days in the wilderness, until a fateful day that changes everything.

Beneath a Steel Sky is a rare game. It comes from the lost era of computer-based adventure games from the 90′s. Launched in 1994, its now 18 years old, but still feels relevant to present day tastes. The game is fully voice acted, so you are every bit as engrossed in the story as with most modern games. However, Beneath a Steel Sky is written much more effectively than many other games. The plot dialogue is very well written and voiced, often changing the pace from mystery and intrigue to humor and more lighthearted moments in perfect rhythm.

Robert Foster is one day picked up by the city’s military, and is flown away by helicopter while watching his adopted family and friends die as a bomb is detonated. He is taken back to the city, until yet another crash takes place, which he of course survives. Foster meets every possible sort of person in the city, and uncovers a deep mystery of a council ran by a man who fused his mind with a computer named LINC.Along the way Robert also has his best friend with him, a robot named Joey. Joey is a sarcastic, humorous character that often lightens the moment, like many of the games other characters.

Robert posing as an inspector as security looks for him.

The puzzles found in Beneath a Steel Sky are always well thought out, and do a good job at balancing difficulty without too much frustration. Nearly every screen is filled with people to talk to and items to interact with, and the solution to most puzzles require real-world logic.

Beneath a Steel Sky is a great play, and lucky for you, its now free. Create an account on GOG and you will find it available for free download. Also, you can find an updated version with a few new features on iOS. However, if you’ve never played the game before I suggest playing it on your PC first, the iOS version takes away some of the thrill of the first play through, and is only a better choice for fans of the game.

Beneath a Steel Sky is one of the greatest adventure games made, and with a copy of it now available for free, there’s no excuse to keep you from downloading a great play. The game’s story and puzzles will certainly keep you busy, and the humorous dialogue will stick with you for a while. Beneath a Steel Sky is truly a classic.