MAKER: HUDSON SOFT / FALCOM
RELEASE DATE: 25 OCTOBER 1991 / 1992
STYLE: ROLE-PLAYING
FORMAT: SUPER CD-ROM
RATING:
Overview An overhead, random battle, fantasy role-playing game, Dragon Slayer - The Legend of Heroes comes from Falcom, the company behind the Ys series. All the genre staples are here: a group of up to four characters, weapon and item shops...you know the drill by now. Battles are random and turn based, with the option of using either CD music or PSG which avoids that little extra CD access time (this also applies to village tunes). Later in the game, you are able to see the creatures moving about the landscape, making avoiding battles that much easier if you are just trying to get from A to B without hassle. The plot is hardly anything original, involving the player taking the role of the young prince escaping from his evil guardian and adventuring into the dangerous world outside. The storyline does however develop into something much wider and more dramatic as the game progresses, and is split into several chapters to help mark your progress.
Comment (US Version)
This is another brilliant Falcom RPG. I am not a great fan of the random battle style of gameplay, but Falcom has removed a lot of the frustration by allowing you to see your foes as you progress. Added to this the speed of the battles and the great music that accompanies them and they feel far less tiresome than many other games of this type. The plot is simple at first, but compelling enough to keep you playing, and a lot of enjoyment comes from the little quirks that some of the townspeople exhibit. It really is worth talking to everyone as you get some amusing responses.
Graphically the game is more functional than beautiful, but sonically it soars with a superb soundtrack that, while it doesn't quite compare with Ys, still has its high moments. The arrangement is perhaps less that I would have expected, particularly compared to the music on the Perfect Collection, but very worthy nonetheless. The PSG music has some fantastic sampled drums too, some of the best on the Engine.
Overall, Dragon Slayer is my favourite turn-based-battle RPG on the PC Engine, it's a lengthy and enjoyable quest, with a decent English language translation which is only let down by some of the worst voice acting you will ever hear. But ignore that and buy it. sunteam_paul
/ 1992 
