Discworld II: Missing Presumed...!?: A Retrospective Review

The late Terry Pratchett had written more than 70 books in his career, and sold well over 75 million copies. The greater majority of these books were set in his comical fantasy universe, Discworld, which has spawned a number of made-for-TV movies, graphic novels and board games. But the novels also inspired another medium which, at first, seemed unfitting for Discworld - videogames. Three games were, in fact, derived from Pratchett's wacky world (well, four if you count the commodore 64 adaptation of The Colour of Magic...but no-one really talks about that one). Dicsworld II: Missing Presumed...!? is just one of those great games.



The game is infamous amongst the Pratchett fandom for mixing plot elements from a number of Discworld novels to create a huge plot amalgamation. The basic story is similar to Reaper Man, with Death having suddenly disappeared and the ancient city of Ankh-Morpork having been overrun with undead since no-one is around to collect their souls. The Unseen University, premier college of wizardry, has noticed and has charged Rincewind, incompetent wizard and highly-trained coward, to find Death and bring him back before the epidemic gets any worse. Along the way, Rincewind will encounter a range of weird and wonderful characters, encounter a range of absurd puzzle-solving and challenges, and may even have to become Death himself. As you can probably see, the nature of Pratchett's universe has the potential to make a very unique game - and unique it is, blending the best of Pratchett's humour, served with a side-dish of Python-esque wit to boot.



The game, if you haven't already gathered from the screenshots, is a Point and Click Adventure, or 'Graphic Adventure'. You play as Rincewind and must guide him through the various locations, collecting random objects and solving puzzles, usually with said random objects. Explaining the game is hard, because Discworld II does random to a tee, and, like its predecessor, often requires a departure from logic to solve its puzzles. For example, the first act of the game requires Rincewind to collect a number of odd items to enact the Rite of AshKente, a ritual that summons Death. This isn't merely a simple matter of visiting locations and collecting these items however, as you need to go through a number of 'hoops' to get them. One item you need, for example, is 4ccs of mouse's blood. In order to get this, you have to get a rooster drunk and go to a bar where a vampire is sitting, forcing the rooster to crow. The vampire will feverishly return to his resting place in the cemetery, thinking morning is approaching. You then go to a High Magic Facility at the University and steal a test tube before going to the cemetery to steal the vampire's teeth while he rests. Then you use those teeth to bite a mouse before pouring into the aforementioned test tube. And, hey ho, you have 4ccs of mouse's blood! As a reader of the books, I can concede that mouse's blood is mentioned somewhere as a prerequisite for the Rite, but even so, the extremes this game goes to in order for the layer to obtain such items is wacky and unparalleled. Still, it is pretty damn humorous and is what makes the game unique in its charm. At the very least, this sequel is a fair bit easier than the original, which is infamous for its harsh difficulty level.



But as illogical and wacky as the game can be, DWII is truly a beautiful game to look at, even more than twenty years after its release. Its zany, cartoon look holds up incredibly well, with beautifully drawn locations and characters, adding in an atmosphere aided by a beautiful soundtrack. The team at Perfect Entertainment truly outdid themselves in terms of the game's presentation, its hand-drawn visuals far more exuberant than the first game's jagged pixels. Not to beat on the first game, of course - its visual style is still cute and charming - but the sequel just outdoes it in this area. However, as a devoted Pratcheteer, I had to wonder - why isn't Rincewind wearing his 'WIZZARD' hat in these games? It was a key element to his appearance in the novels but is puzzlingly absent here. Not a major issue, but it did cross my mind.



To finish off then, I would happily recommend Discworld II to both Pratchett fans and those unfamiliar with the man's work. This game was my introduction to the Discworld as a child and, all in all, it really isn't a bad place to start, introducing you to a host of lovable and zany characters. For those dedicated Pratcheteers, you will find great pleasure in finding your favourite characters adapted for the computer screen as well as famous locations such as UU, Ankh-Morpork, Djelybebi and much, much more. For those unfamiliar with Pratchett, it will be just as wild an adventure and worth every moment.

Monster Rancher anime

Transport your mind back to the late 90's when monster-battling shows and games burst onto Western shores. Pokémon had gained significant foothold in 1996 with its first pair of games, Red and Blue, with an accompanying anime that was released just two years later. This, too, proved to be extremely popular. But wait! There was also Digimon, another monster-battling cartoon that also started airing in America in 1998. Parets at the time could barely distinguish between them but the kids knew. Both anime shows proved to be big hits but another slipped underneath the proverbial radar - that of Monster Rancher.

 

If you don't know what the heck Monster Rancher is, then all is forgiven. It is a monster-battling simulation videogame that, while having attracted a cult following of sorts, hardly ever reached the phenomenal success of its peers, particularly in the West. The games are highly underrated and are well deserving of a play if you ever get around to it. But alongside these underrated games came a similarly underrated anime adaptation. The series began airing in 1999 in the West and followed every imaginative child's dream. Genki is a sprightly ten-year-old (his name literally means 'energy' in Japanese) who is unwittingly transported into the world of his fantasy monster videogame. Here, he teams up with a human girl, Holly, and a group of monsters to find the mystery disk needed to summon the Phoenix which is the only monster who can seal away the evil lord Muu forever. Predictably in a series such as this, Genki and his new friends will have to travel all over the Monster Rancher world and encounter trials and tribulations along the way. As Genki himself would say, "Aw, yeah!"

 

The series setup, as has already been noted, is familiar if you've seen Pokemon or Digimon. Genki and co. travel from place to place, encountering new friends and a 'villain of the week' monster. There is some difference to the other monster-battling anime in that it isn't merely the monsters who do the fighting - the humans actually join in this time around. Genki, in particular, chooses to do battle in his yellow Rollerblades and from the moment he does this, it makes him such a lovable character. He starts out the series as a typically impulsive, brash ten-year-old kid who gradually develops into a mature young man capable of critical thought and strategy. The cool thing is that he is no exception - every one of the seven main cast members receive appropriate development throughout the series. Tiger (ironically named since he looks more like a blue lion) learns to operate in a team as opposed to his 'lone wolf' persona and Moochi goes from being an innocent harmless monster into a monster that can fend and fight for himself and others.

 

Like a great many shows like it, Monster Rancher's animation is either a hit or a miss. Some episodes are really quite well animated whereas other episodes feel like a slideshow, especially where the fights are concerned. But one thing that the series never fails to exhibit is its charm and colour which is evident in every scene. This is further aided by the beautiful soundtrack. Even when the show does descend into some darker moments - and trust me, it does have its darker moments - it shows off even more musical strength with a soundtrack that oozes doom and dread. Perhaps the only downside I can think of is that the music tends to get repetitive after watching for a while as the themes are consistently used.

 

Unlike its contemporaries, Monster Rancher ran for only three seasons. The first and second seasons covered one whole story arc - that is, Genki and his friends' quest to find the Phoenix and stop Muu. The third season continues whee the second left off,with Muu's former right-hand mook, General Durahan, filling in the power vacuum left by his former master, and trying to revive the evil lord once again. Season 3 is decidedly lighter and softer when compared to the first two, since it also introduced coliseum battles which brought a more ambitious, competitive side to the characters that gave little breaks between the world-saving.

All in all, if you missed the Monster Rancher anime the first time around, it is more than deserving of a look. Combine a dark storyline with light-hearted and well-developed characters and you've got yourself a fun and engaging series. All three seasons are available on DVD and can be purchased from Diskotek Media so if you haven't already doen so, buy them already!

Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Retrospective Review

Superhero videogames haven’t always had a good reputation. Fighting against movie tie-ins for the title of ‘videogame concept most done poorly the most’, there are only a handful of great superhero games to name. Before Batman: Arkham Asylum, I would have fearlessly said that Spider-Man 2 was the best among them. However, Rocksteady’s unexpected hit starring the Caped Crusader, released in 2009, easily made that opinion an uncertain one. Like the Bat, this one came out of the shadows and caught the gaming world by surprise.

The plot, written by Paul Dini of Batman: The Animated Series fame, revolves around Batman trying to stop his archenemy, Joker, who has managed to lead a complete takeover of the titular asylum, unleashing its inmates, many of which happen to be some of the Dark Knight’s most dangerous foes. The player is therefore tasked to proceed through the asylum and its intricate security systems and passageways, solving puzzles, taking down inmates and putting away some of the most dangerous foes in the Bat’s comic book history. While the plot has its share of twists and turns, its really not the star of the show here nor is it really meant to be. It shines where it matters the most – gameplay.

 

Gameplay-wise, if Spider-Man 2 was the first Spidey game to make you feel like the wallcrawler, then Arkham Asylum was the first Batman game to make you feel like Batman. Everything, from Batman’s oddly pleasant weighty feel to his wide assortment of gadgets, is incredibly satisfying. Of course, the thing that players often revere about this game is its fun battle system. The fun lies in its beautiful simplicity, allowing you to chain combos with the Square button and counter with triangle without ruining the flow of the fights. There’s nothing sticky or restraining about Asylum’s fights – in fact, much the opposite. Moves can be pulled off with such ease and yet with the grace of a dancer that it’s impossible not to have a good time. Often, the only frustration that occurs is if an enemy attacks you and breaks your combo chain. But it’s also that frustration that brings you back in for more.

 

If the simple delights of subduing inmates weren’t enough, the boss battles in Asylum ices the top of the cake. The boss battles are pleasantly reminiscent of PS1 platformers like Crash and Spyro, where the player is forced to think and use different tactics for each individual villain. The joy of the boss fights is that they require a mix of Batman-like detective skill and gadgets. Figuring out their weakness makes it all the more satisfying when you finally defeat them. As for the villains themselves, there’s a good selection from Batman’s past rogue gallery including Bane, Scarecrow and Poison Ivy as well as the aforementioned Joker. While the voice acting for these characters (as with pretty much most of the game’s voice acting) is brilliant, some of them feel as though they were merely shoehorned into the plot just to serve as a boss. The motivations of these characters don’t always seem plausible to me. Then again, this is a game about a bunch of super-powered lunatics in an asylum so perhaps we can let that one slide.

Anyway, as we all know, Batman isn’t merely a skilled martial artist, but also The World’s Greatest Detective. As far as I know, Batman games before Asylum never attempted to show this side of the character, but alas, here it is. In certain situations, the player will switch to a first-person view and be required to scan evidence (i.e. traces of alcohol or footprints) in an enclosed area and then go follow said evidence to reach a certain goal or objective, usually a non-player character. These sections are pretty cool in concept and look impressive visually, but gameplay-wise, are easy and underwhelming. Perhaps responding to this criticism, Rocksteady beefed up these sections in the first sequel while Warner Bros. Montreal took this up to eleven in Arkham Origins.

But where the Arkham series was concerned, Asylum really hit the ground running. Not only did it start a brilliant Batman subseries, but it restored gamers’ faith in the superhero videogame genre. A superhero videogame could be done properly. The proof is in the pudding, and the pudding is this brilliant game.