Quest 64
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| Quest 64 | |
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| Developer(s) | Imagineer |
| Publisher(s) | THQ(North America) Konami(Europe) Imagineer (Japan) |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo 64 |
| Release date |  June 11, 1998 September 30, 1998 May 31, 1999 |
| Genre(s) | RPG |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone (E) |
| Media | Cartridge |
| System requirements | Memory card |
Quest 64, released as Holy Magic Century in Europe, Australia and New Zealand and as Eltale Monsters (エルテイル モンスターズ Eruteiru Monsutāzu?)[1] in Japan, is a single player RPG developed by Imagineer and published by THQ. It was released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998 and was the first RPG released for the system in the United States. It is part of a series of games by Imagineer, including Quest RPG: Brian's Journey (a Game Boy Color adaptation of the Nintendo 64 game), and a separate puzzle game called Quest: Fantasy Challenge.
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[edit] Story
The game's story takes place in a typical fantasy world. The playable character is an apprentice mage named Brian. Brian sets off to find his father who has left the monastery of the mages—the player learns later that his father is looking for a thief who has stolen the "Eletale Book". The player must also collect elemental amulets, which have been hoarded by powerful criminals and are integral in the defeat of the game's final boss.
[edit] Character histories
The game's main characters and bosses are:
Brian- A young boy who has set out to save his father. He lives at Melrode Monastery, and is an apprentice magician with the ability to use Water, Fire, Wind, and Earth magic.
Lord Bartholomy- Brian's father and Master Spirit Tamer. He lives at Melrode Monastery and set out to get the Eletale Book which was stolen, but was subdued at Brannoch Castle before being able to continue.
Leonardo- Another apprentice magician like Brian who appears at Normoon and at Brannoch Castle near the end of the game. Though not a "main" character, he still manages to help Brian by providing healing items in a room within Brannoch Castle.
Leila- The guardian of Larapool, the city of water. She has the ability to control the water flow of the city, thus giving Brian access to Larapool's entrance to Blue Cave.
Colleen- A Sorceress who has protected the Water Jewel for generations is the only inhabitant of the Isle of Skye; her home is connected to Epona's home.
Epona- The mysterious seer who resides in the Blue Cave; her connection to the Isle of Skye gives Brian access to the Water Jewel. Later on, her powers allow her to enter Mammon's Dimension at the end of the game to provide aid to Brian.
King Scottfort - King of Kenneshire, rules over Dondoran Castle in Dondoran.
Queen Deanna- Queen of Carmagh, rules over Limelin Castle in Limelin and rules alone due to the death of her husband.
Prince William- The son of Queen Deanna and the crowned prince of Limelin.
King Beigis- Militant and power-hungry king of Highland, rules over Brannoch Castle in Brannoch Castle Town.
Fargo- Arsonist and thief who stole the Fire Ruby.
Nepty- Magician and thief who stole the Water Crystal.
Zelse- Magician in a group of vagabonds in Normoon and thief who stole the Wind Jade.
Solvaring- Self-proclaimed "King of the Beasts" and thief who stole the Earth Orb from the King of Dondoran.
Mammon- The demonic embodiment of greed who attempts to trick Brian into releasing him from his prison so that he may seek to possess the powers of the human spirit.
Shilf- Mammon's assistant, hiding in Baragoon Tunnel.
Shannon- A puppet created by Mammon for the sole purpose of leading Brian around the world to collect the Elemental Gems, and who, near the end of the game, threatens to kill Brian's father, Bartholomy, unless Brian kills King Beigis and opens the World of Mammon.
Guilty- King Beigis' monstrous looking apprentice, he has made Brannoch Castle Town a living mess with his magic experiments.
[edit] Places
Holy Plain- Located in Kenneshire, home of Dondoran and Melrode.
Dondoran Flats- area between Dondoran Castle and Loch Kilderey.
West Carmagh- Western portion of Carmagh bordered in the south by the Dindom Dries, in the east by Loch Kilderey, in the southeast by East Limelin, and in the north by Kenneshire. Home to Larapool and Normoon, as well as Cull Hazard and Blue Cave.
East Limelin- area between Highland in the south and West Carmagh to the northwest. Home to Limelin, capital of Camagh, and Baragoon Tunnel's north gate
Dindom Dries- Desert wasteland (caused by the Eletale Book) in northern portion of Highland bordered in the north by East and West Carmagh. Home to Ruins of Greenoch, Boil Hole's north gate, and Baragoon Tunnel's south gate. Has a huge phantom city in the middle of it named Shamwood .
Baragoon Moor- Located at the south-central end of Highland. Home to Brannoch Castle Town, capital of Highland, and Boil Hole's south gate.
Loch Kilderey Giant lake in the center of Celtland.
Isle of Skye- Island in the center of Loch Kilderey.
Cull Hazard- Cave linking Normoon to West Carmagh.
Boil Hole- Cave linking the Dindom Dries to Baragoon Moor and the hideout of Fargo.
Baragoon Tunnel- Mine shaft linking Dindom Dries to East Limelin and hideout of Shilf, Mammon's servant.
Blue Cave- Maze Cave in Larapool, it links Larapool with Glencoe Forest and Crystal Valley.
Glencoe Forest- Lies between Dondoran Flats and West Carmagh, east mouth of Blue Cave is here.
Windward Forest- Forest in West Carmagh separating it from Normoon.
Connor Forest- Forest between the Dondoran Flats and the Holy Plain.
Crystal Valley- Cavern under Blue Cave, home of Epona.
Connor Fortress-Fort in Connor Forest, hiding place of Solvaring.
[edit] Gameplay
The game differs from most other RPGs in that the experience system is not based upon a traditional "level-up" model. Instead, experience is gained for specific stats based on how the player performs in battle. If the player gets hit a lot for instance defense will increase. Every battle also gives experience for magic upgrades. Whenever the player reaches one hundred percent on their magic level, they can choose an element of magic to upgrade (from Fire, Water, Earth, and Wind). Leveling up these elements grants the player with new attacks and strengthens existing ones.
The game's difficulty could be regarded as beginner-level for the genre. Of note, the game has no money system. Every item in the game is either found in a treasure chest, given to the player free of charge if they do not have one, or dropped by a monster also if the player doesn't have one already. Nor does the game deal harshly with the death of the player; when the player runs out of HP, the game will return him to the last inn at which he saved. He will have 1 HP, but that can be restored by saving inside that very inn. He will be allowed to retain all spells, items, and experience he has gained, though any items used before death will not be returned.
[edit] Criticism
The game's world has been acclaimed as being very colourful and open to exploration. This notwithstanding, the game is a very straightforward RPG. There are few surprises for the character and absolutely no cutscenes, puzzles, or mini-games. Critics of the game call attention to a number of issues. The 3D graphics are noticeably low in polygon count in comparison with other N64 titles of the era. The only way to save game progress is to talk to the owner of an inn in a town. This latter can be particularly tedious for a player who is stuck in a remote area and needs to stop playing. The game can only be saved to the controller pak, a separate memory card, rather than to the game-pak itself; many N64 games of the time allowed the player to save games directly to the cartridge.
[edit] Version differences and glitches
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- Although the game has been released in Japan as Eltale Monsters, the in-game title screen still gives the working title Eltale (エルテイル) as its name. [2]
- The protagonist's name in the Japanese version is Jean-Jacques (ジャンジャック?), while he is called Ayron in PAL region releases
- Even though the Dark Gaol Key and Eletale Book was in the end, you could take them out of the World of Mammon by beating the King and being defeated by Mammon without saving or using the World of Mammon Rest Place.
[edit] References
- ^ Buy Eltale Monsters. Play-Asia. Retrieved on 2007-07-13.
- ^ SPACEWORLD'97. Nintendo. Retrieved on 2007-07-13.
- MobyGames - A Game Documentation and Review Project[1]
