Lightbringer Longplay (Arcade) [4K]

Game Info --------------------------------------------------- Developer: Taito Publisher: Taito Year of Release: 1993 Game Review & Impressions --------------------------------------------------- With the release of Rastan in 1987 and Cadash in 1989, Taito was certainly at the forefront of creating coin-op experiences based around “Sword and Sorcery“ and High Fantasy. Lightbringer (also known as Dungeon Magic) represents an evolution of the ideas from those earlier titles, introducing better graphics, audio, and increased depth to a genre which, in my mind, always seemed to be at odds with an industry focused on taking your money as quickly as possible. For what is ostensibly a beat ’em up, the game uses a somewhat unconventional isometric viewpoint from which to view the world. The game is divided into three separate “scenarios“, which I suppose are analogous to D&D campaigns, each of which focus on adventuring through an expansive dungeon with multiple paths to the end goal. Furthermore, there are locations, NPCs and treasure that can only be accessed by certain character classes, so this is definitely a game with longevity. On the subject of classes, the character you choose has a big impact on your adventure, and these fall broadly within the typical D&D archetypes. Cisty, an elven archer, excels in ranged combat and is the most agile of the group, whereas as Ash can equip a variety of shield to deflect incoming blows and has access to various elemental weapons throughout the game. All four characters have their own unique play-style, special moves and equipment, so there should be something for everyone to enjoy. Your adventurer will increase in power. stamina and combat prowess throughout the course of the game by slaying monsters and looting treasure, so hunting for secrets and loot caches can yield substantial rewards, should you have the time to do so. Moving on to the combat mechanics, these should be familiar if you’ve ever played a side-scrolling brawler. Tapping the attack button unleash a series of strikes with your equipped weapon, which can be chained into combos to deal increased damage to the foes you’ll face. Holding the attack button down will charge up a special attack which generally knock enemies down or have some added utility, and melee-focused characters can also pick up and throw enemies and heavy objects. I don’t think the combat is as satisfying as other fighting games, mainly because the enemies are far too prone to blocking and counter-attacking for my liking, but it’s not bad. I had assumed, incorrectly as it turns out, that Lightbringer was released after Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom, but the reverse is true. This means that, in my mind at least, the significance of Lightbringer in the evolution and conceptualisation of the “action RPG“ genre is greater than I had supposed. It’s a clear step-up in terms of graphical fidelity and sophistication over Golden Axe and Rastan, and features basic puzzles and interactive environments, which would become a staple in future games. It’s an impressive game, one I intend to come back to in the future - it’s impossible to discover everything in a single playthrough, and with the choice of three other characters and alternative routes, I’ve only just scratched the surface of this action RPG. Information & Trivia --------------------------------------------------- - Dungeon Magic (alternative title) Chapters --------------------------------------------------- 0:00:00 Attract mode 0:05:00 Scenario 1 0:23:14 Scenario 2 0:41:18 Scenario 3 1:09:30 Final Boss 1:11:53 Ending