Arcana (video game)
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| Arcana
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| Developer: | HAL Laboratory | |
| Publisher: | HAL America Inc. | |
| Designer: | ||
| Release date: | May 1992 | |
| Genre: | RPG | |
| Game modes: | Single player | |
| ESRB rating: | None | |
| Platform: | SNES | |
| Media: | 8-megabit cartridge | |
Arcana (known as Card Master in Japan) is a RPG for the SNES, by HAL Laboratory. The game was novel in representing all of its characters as cards, but it plays like a dungeon-crawling RPG, rather than a card based game. In keeping with this metaphor, the death of a character resulted in a "torn" card, and the magical properties of some cards were used to explain abilities of the game's characters.
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[edit] Gameplay
Arcana retained many conventions from earlier NES games and, as is common in RPGs, the game's intent was to be difficult and challenging to the player, so as to create a feeling of reward upon completion.
Assuming a first-person perspective, the dungeons and towns of the game were navigated from the viewpoint of the characters and, with a few exceptions, the conversations between characters held true to this as well. Battles within the game were also portrayed in the first-person, displaying the protagonist characters along the perimeter of the screen, with the enemies in the center. Arcana's battles, however, were not graphically intensive and the characters' animation was limited to, at most, five frames. Breaking from the established format of displaying the damage incurred by characters above their heads, this information was instead summarised in a text display at the bottom of the screen.
The map's tile based dungeons were, arguably, the most challenging aspect of the game. Seeing often only what was immediately before the characters, the player was free to move in the four primary compass direction. Labyrinthine in their design, and oftentimes fraught with dead-ends and hidden dangers, the detail in the drawing of these dungeons compensated for their relative lack of animation.
[edit] Difficulty
The game's difficulty was boosted by various factors employed by the designers:
- Easy Game Overs. In contrast to the norm for RPGs of the era, which dictated that the death of one character in the player's party was usually a recoverable loss, in Arcana, the death of any character save an Elemental resulted in Game over. This meant that an unexpected confrontation could result in a speedy demise.
- Little forewarning. Due to the convoluted nature of the passages, a common cause of death for a player's character, was the sudden discovery of a Boss character. The gravity of situation would not be apparent to the player until the fight had begun. The presence of these boss character was not always deductible in advance, and in many cases resulted simply from the player's movement onto a particular tile.
- Scarcity of save points. Saving the game was limited to the town area of each level. As such, it was very possible to be in a difficult situation without any restorative items, leading to a potential sense of panic in the player, who would find themselves in a race to escape to the solace of the town before being engaged by monsters.
- Limited inventory. The party's inventory was limited to 42 item slots. Unlike many other RPGs, where multiple copies of the same item can "stack" in one slot, the items in this game did not stack, providing a very strict, and oftentimes small, item limit.
- Linearity. Having completed a dungeon, the player could not subsequently return. The dungeon the player explored was determined by their progress in the story, not what they chose to do. This prevented players from returning to a dungeon with easier monsters, occasionally getting them stuck in a dungeon that is too powerful for them.
[edit] Battles
Battles within the game followed a strict turn system. As each character took their turn, various options were presented to the player. Here is where another factor in the game's difficulty arose: Rooks, the principle character, possessed many of the vital battling techniques. Because he could switch the Elemental spirits, flee the battle, and use magical card spells - which, though powerful, were expensive - Rooks was the most valuable resource to the party. If Rooks was incapacitated, the entire party became crippled. As in just about any other RPG, a battle was followed with the rewarding of Experience Points and Gold. However, unlike many other RPGs, the level progression of all of the characters was standardized; there was no randomness to what statistics increased when a character levelled.
[edit] Elemental Spirits
Four elemental spirits, Sylph (Wind), Efrite (Fire), Dao (Earth), and Marid (Water), rotated through the same slot in the battle formation. Rooks and a spirit are always in your party, providing 2 other spots for party members. Unlike the human characters, an elemental can die and the game will continue. Their card will be torn, and they can be rotated out for a live elemental. If Rooks is incapacitated, however, the player could end up stuck with a dead elemental.
[edit] Characters (original names in parentheses)
Rooks: Hero of the story and the last surviving Card Master. His parents were killed during Galneon's coup ten years ago. Rooks is the only character who can call the spirits to change which one is in your active lineup. His other talents include swordsmanship, healing magic, and magic to negatively effect enemy stats.
Ariel (Alan): Rooks' childhood friend, he hasn't seen him in ten years. Ariel seems to have several apprentices whom he taught, however what exactly they were learning is unknown as each has different styles of battle. It was because of Ariel's request to go to Balnia Temple that Rooks' adventure begins. However, there is more to him than he shows.
Teefa (Tifa): One of Ariel's apprentices. She is decent in battle but her real talent lies in sorcery. Teefa is the only character in the game who can master the 11th level Attribute spell. Also, she can cast some healing magic. The first to join your party while following Ariel's request.
Salah (Sarah): One of the two missing daughters of King Wagnall of Lexford who Axs has been taking care of since the coup. Like Teefa, Salah is primerily a magician. It was she who healed the injuries Rooks sustained during Chapter 1.
Darwin (Arwen): A wandering elf with two different color eyes that switch depending on which side of the party he is placed on. The fighter-mage character who is good at both talents. His reasoning for joining Rooks' party is unclear at first but will be revealed over time. Darwin is also the character who joins the most; he accompanies Rooks in three chapters while the others only are playable in two.
Axs (Ax): The last surviving member of the Knights of Lexford; a group that once consisted of himself, Rooks' father and Ariel's father. After the king died, Axs became the caretaker of his young daughter, Salah. A warrior through and through, Axs uses the least amount of spells and none that have any offensive powers.
Galneon: The former Court Magician from Lexford, he assassinated King Wagnall one day ten years ago and claimed the throne for himself. Currently, he is attempting to gain the three treasures necessary to revive the Evil Empress Rimsala.
