viciouskillersquirrel
Member
Before the Playstation and during the SNES/MegaDrive era, Sony was purely an electronics and music company, right? Not so. They also had a games development studio by the name of Sony Imagesoft.
Sony Imagesoft hasn't been remembered as a studio that produced anything memorable or remarkable, but during the SNES era, they created something unique. They created an action platformer that dared to go where no game of its own time or since has tried to - Indian/Hindu-themed fantasy crossed with a bit of Chinese.
The Box Art
The US Boxart - it's very 90s
The Japanese Boxart - it's very DBZ
The Story
The story is simple, but effective and mythical in its qualities. You have a long-dead war that has been revived and you, as the last survivor of an heroic bloodline have to rise up and defeat the baddies.
Like with most myths, no further explanation is given as to Ashura or his origins. That detail isn't important - it's your hero who is the focus.
Sure, it's basically your "The princess has been kidnapped - you must save the princess" kind of storyline, but the presentation of it in this game will change that into a quest for the ages.
The Gameplay
You play the game on a world map across three continents. At first this is linear, but as you get further into the game, you get branching paths that let you choose which level to tackle next.
The game's world features a staggering variety of levels - forests, cliffs, skies, temples, fortresses, rivers and even a level that's basically a waterfall of sand. Each is beautifully decked out and the indian-style music that plays makes them a joy to explore.
There are three basic modes of play in this game:
1) Action Platforming:
This is the main mode you'll be in for most of the game. You hit Y once, and Sky will punch. Hit it three times in succession and he'll do two punches and a roundhouse kick. Jump and hit Y, and he kicks in the air. Pretty basic stuff.
The real fun comes from his spiderman-like ability to cling to walls and from his magic.
At certain points in the game, you gain extra life and a new magic spell to work with. These magic spells do various things, like restore your health, shoot you horizontally across the screen (useful for crossing spike pits), cast lightning down upon your foes and even transform you into an invincible phoenix for a short amount of time.
Some spells, like the Starburst can be throw-away, but others, like the Comet Dash are exceedingly useful and necessary for you to complete the game. Otherwise broken bosses become pussycats if you're packing the right spells. The key is to experiment.
Careful though, as your magic is exceedingly limited and should only be used when necessary.
2) Side-scrolling Flying Levels:
Some levels have you flying across the screen using your standard bullet spell, the Dragon Slash to clear monsters in your way. Think Gradius, but with a Super Saiyan on a kite instead of a spaceship.
3) 3rd Person Flying Levels:
These levels come up when you need to fly between continents. They're basically bonus levels where the key is to obtain as many gems as you can (100 gems gets you a 1-up) without touching the floating spikes.
Screenshots
No description of this game can really do it justice. The game is simply beautiful and if you disagree, you have no soul:
The first level - Sky using the Dragon Slash
The Tower of the Tarolisk - Sky facing The Beholder
The Cliffs of Peril - The first of the side scrolling flying levels
Temple Infernus - Sky facing Ifrit
3rd Person Flying - Sky takes to the sky
The first level - Facing Ashura for the first time
The Falls of Torment - Prelude to one of the hardest levels ever.
Vids and Music
Trust me, it's even better in motion. The faux-indian music in the background is the best part. It imparts on the game a mournful, mythical atmosphere. Here's a sampling:
The beginning of the game / Faltine's Woods / Temple Infernus
Petrolith Castle (Ice Palace)
Sand Rivers of Shirol
Falls of Torment / Lair of Kharyon
Gateway of Eternal Storms
Final Thoughts
This game was simply amazing. Unfortunately, being a Sony game, it is unlikely to appear on the VC any time soon. Also unfortunately, being rather obscure, it's also unlikely to appear on PSN or see a current-gen remake (which would be glorious, by the way) either.
You can track down used copies of the game on eBay if you have a working SNES, however - and it's well worth it. This game was truly a gem.
Also, shame on each and every one of you for not playing this when it first came out >:-( You're the reason we can't have nice things.
Sony Imagesoft hasn't been remembered as a studio that produced anything memorable or remarkable, but during the SNES era, they created something unique. They created an action platformer that dared to go where no game of its own time or since has tried to - Indian/Hindu-themed fantasy crossed with a bit of Chinese.
The Box Art
The US Boxart - it's very 90s
The Japanese Boxart - it's very DBZ
The Story
The Skyblazer Manual said:
The story is simple, but effective and mythical in its qualities. You have a long-dead war that has been revived and you, as the last survivor of an heroic bloodline have to rise up and defeat the baddies.
Like with most myths, no further explanation is given as to Ashura or his origins. That detail isn't important - it's your hero who is the focus.
Sure, it's basically your "The princess has been kidnapped - you must save the princess" kind of storyline, but the presentation of it in this game will change that into a quest for the ages.
The Gameplay
You play the game on a world map across three continents. At first this is linear, but as you get further into the game, you get branching paths that let you choose which level to tackle next.
The game's world features a staggering variety of levels - forests, cliffs, skies, temples, fortresses, rivers and even a level that's basically a waterfall of sand. Each is beautifully decked out and the indian-style music that plays makes them a joy to explore.
There are three basic modes of play in this game:
1) Action Platforming:
This is the main mode you'll be in for most of the game. You hit Y once, and Sky will punch. Hit it three times in succession and he'll do two punches and a roundhouse kick. Jump and hit Y, and he kicks in the air. Pretty basic stuff.
The real fun comes from his spiderman-like ability to cling to walls and from his magic.
At certain points in the game, you gain extra life and a new magic spell to work with. These magic spells do various things, like restore your health, shoot you horizontally across the screen (useful for crossing spike pits), cast lightning down upon your foes and even transform you into an invincible phoenix for a short amount of time.
Some spells, like the Starburst can be throw-away, but others, like the Comet Dash are exceedingly useful and necessary for you to complete the game. Otherwise broken bosses become pussycats if you're packing the right spells. The key is to experiment.
Careful though, as your magic is exceedingly limited and should only be used when necessary.
2) Side-scrolling Flying Levels:
Some levels have you flying across the screen using your standard bullet spell, the Dragon Slash to clear monsters in your way. Think Gradius, but with a Super Saiyan on a kite instead of a spaceship.
3) 3rd Person Flying Levels:
These levels come up when you need to fly between continents. They're basically bonus levels where the key is to obtain as many gems as you can (100 gems gets you a 1-up) without touching the floating spikes.
Screenshots
No description of this game can really do it justice. The game is simply beautiful and if you disagree, you have no soul:
The first level - Sky using the Dragon Slash
The Tower of the Tarolisk - Sky facing The Beholder
The Cliffs of Peril - The first of the side scrolling flying levels
Temple Infernus - Sky facing Ifrit
3rd Person Flying - Sky takes to the sky
The first level - Facing Ashura for the first time
The Falls of Torment - Prelude to one of the hardest levels ever.
Vids and Music
Trust me, it's even better in motion. The faux-indian music in the background is the best part. It imparts on the game a mournful, mythical atmosphere. Here's a sampling:
The beginning of the game / Faltine's Woods / Temple Infernus
Petrolith Castle (Ice Palace)
Sand Rivers of Shirol
Falls of Torment / Lair of Kharyon
Gateway of Eternal Storms
Final Thoughts
This game was simply amazing. Unfortunately, being a Sony game, it is unlikely to appear on the VC any time soon. Also unfortunately, being rather obscure, it's also unlikely to appear on PSN or see a current-gen remake (which would be glorious, by the way) either.
You can track down used copies of the game on eBay if you have a working SNES, however - and it's well worth it. This game was truly a gem.
Also, shame on each and every one of you for not playing this when it first came out >:-( You're the reason we can't have nice things.
