Review: Mysterious Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer
I never really pinned myself as someone who could do roguelikes. Nethack always struck me as rather bewildering, but maybe it was just the cryptic @ symbolizing my existence and the fact that nearly every other character on the keyboard was out to get me. Call me a noob! Fortunately, for the roguelike-curious, Mysterious Dungeon titles are friendly and fun.
I never really pinned myself as someone who could do roguelikes. Nethack always struck me as rather bewildering, but maybe it was just the cryptic @ symbolizing my existence and the fact that nearly every other character on the keyboard was out to get me. Call me a noob! Fortunately, for the roguelike-curious, Mysterious Dungeon titles are friendly and fun.
Shiren the Wanderer is a remake of the 1995 Super Famicom game. While most of the entries in the series feature characters from other gamesthe next one headed our way is the second with Pok?mon-- Shiren has an all original cast. Storywise, it's the tale of a masterless samurai on the road with his trusty weasel pal, Koppa, to find the lair of the Golden Condor. Supposedly that's where El Dorado is hanging out these days!
For those unfamiliar with rogue like qualities (named for grand-daddy of the genre, Rogue, from 1980) there are various web guides available, but we'll skim and say: turn-based RPG in a randomly generated setting where death is permanent. By turn-based we don't mean J-RPG style with a "fight" button, but rather every time that you move, the enemies move, and if you're standing they won't move either. By permanent death we don't mean that your $30 investment is thrown out the window after one wrong step into the gaping maw of some horrific monster -- just that death sends you back to the first village with no loot, no money, no experience, and a brand new journey ahead of you.
There are some loopholes, however, because the world itself is semi-persistent. This means that, for example, after a few "rounds" a new restaurant opens, people sometimes remember you, and anything you place in a warehouse will stay put regardless of how many times you starve to death. Pack lots of rice balls.
The characters are fun to interact with, and even though you see many of the same ones from adventure to adventure, their positions are just as random as items (Master Sword +2!), monsters, and the very paths you walk. Some of them will give you great hints. My favorite is having the Smithy upgrade a weapon and then stowing it for after your inevitable doom. If you repeat this procedure, each weapon type has an upgrade limit, and you start to feel badass pretty quick.
Don't mistake fun for easy. You'll die in the most ridiculous ways, like accidentally doppelganging an enemy only to have "you" deal your death blow, but that is part of the charm of rogue likes. If you're loath to give yourself up for dead, send a call for help out over Wi-Fi and see if you can get someone to rescue you. What a shiny innovation! Don't overlook the puzzle dungeons for prizes in the first village, either.
Between the cute 2-D graphics, the comfortable, nostalgic soundtrack, and the super addictive "Just one level further!!" game flow, my wander-lust is on full blast. Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer is a great way to dip a toe in the rogue like pool.
Con: The productivity hit while you spend all your time bashing your head into this game?
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