Naza, Nihon!?
After playing all the localized turn based JRPGs for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, I need to go back to being a weeb! I still plan to compare and discuss the probable whys and hows the US never got the good games, but I've opted to take a greater approach to this topic. I need more data, and I'm starting here. Emerald Dragon!
My recent YouTube vice president rhythm has been recommending me retro RPGs a lot lately. I don't know why... One of those games is the Japan only, Lunar-esque Emerald Dragon. It pre dates Lunar by three years, by the way, so that's an opposite comparison, but you get the point. The way it was described by reviewers told an interesting and unique story that caught my attention. I wasn't sold on one aspect, which is why it took a while to play, but life is short. Let's get silly!
In Emerald Dragon, you play as a young dragon named Atrushan, henceforth Atru. Atru lives with a tribe of dragons who were kicked out of the holy land, Ishbahl, thousands of years ago. A curse now permeates the land, killing all dragons who still inhabit the area. Fifteen years before the start of the game, a human ship crashed near the tribe. Humans can't cross the barrier between the two worlds, so something is strange. But one child was saved, though she had amnesia. The dragons renamed her Tamryn and raised her. The dragons rarely mate, so youthful entities are sacred to them. Thirteen years later, Tamryn grows curious about her past and asks to return to the human world. The leader of the tribe, White Dragon, allows it and teleports her away. As a going away gift, Atru rips off his horn and gives it to Tamryn. She is to blow it in case she's ever in trouble. Three years later, Atru hears the horn.
White Dragon transforms Atru into a human and warps him near Tamryn's whereabouts. He quickly finds her, and he gets caught up in a war between humans and demons, all to save his best friend. Along the way, he meets a wide and colorful cast of characters all fighting for the same thing. Grizzled veterans who care for their fallen allies, a stern priest with a checkered past, a horny prince stalked by his overly formal tutor, aloof and non traditional archers, and five bunny women. There is tragedy, humor, love, and redemption. Someone dies, and it's hilarious for the dumbest of reasons. Twists, turns, war, wars, and we finally learn the hard truth about where Tamryn came from and where they're going at the end. It is an incredible journey that sucked me in.
While on that journey, you play as Atru and only Atru. This is what scared me off for so long. The battle party is five people large, but you only control one of them. You can give orders of who to attack, and (I think) use items, but that's it. You can't even see what spells your mages have. I eventually came around to this when I realized this was a role playing game in the truest sense. You're not playing Cloud and his two friends from time to time. You're Link with backups, Ashe without gambits, or the Dragonborn with more companions. In fact, only Atru and Tamryn can level up. Everyone else only gains levels when they leave the group. They're secondary. Tamryn should have been playable to emphasize her importance and to break up the monotony of being a boring swordsman, but whatever... Keep in mind, Atru isn't a boring swordsman. Dude can transform into a dragon! It only lasts one turn and leaves you in critical condition, but it's hella rad and does a hella amount of damage. And works for the lore! Actions are ruled by "points." Movement drains those points, and every weapon costs a certain amount of them to attack. It can lead to you keeping a slightly weaker weapon because you can get twice as many actions off. It's a neat system that creates some brain scratching options.
Emerald Dragon was originally a PC Engine 89 game, and those visuals were brought over. High quality character portraits are all over the dialogue, and there are even full screen cutouts! It's a unique aspect of the game that you don't see often. Breath of Fire I comes close, but those scenes disappear after the golem. Sprite work isn't as excellent, but it's still well detailed. I find it a bit too blocky for me.
The soundtrack is beneath the story and character quality. It's not bad by any stretch, I just found it wanting. Nothing jumped out to me as my song, and nothing is stuck in my head. I actually think a few songs are a tad annoying... But there's voice work. It's mostly just people yelling their loved one's name or laughing. But there is the occasional entire sentence to drive home the gravitas.
Let me gush about the small things real quick. The world feels so neat. It's not the best, but the lore is fleshed out and meaningful. There are so many cute things to experience, and I want to explore further. It's rare that I want more of a game, but Emerald Dragon does it for me. What's really neat is I want to give the original version a try. The PC Engine game has three more characters. They're not huge deals, but it's more of what I want. Also, a different soundtrack that might be better than what the SNES has.
Emerald Dragon, translated by Translation Corporation, gets an 80%. A slightly better cast of characters, or one who doesn't feel tacked on, and villains would have been nice. Evil for the sake of evil, ya know... More varied and lasting townsfolk NPCs, and control of Tamryn would have tipped this game into a goat. It's still great and one of those hidden gems, but I think about what could have been. What a fun game!
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