Rings of Power Sega Megadrive Review!

So the first Megadrive review I'm going to post is for a lesser-known, turn-based RPG by Naughty Dog. It has issues, but it's a fairly solid game with a gigantic world to explore, a non-linear story and seems to be kinda based on the exploits of a certain Hobbit.

Okay, so it's called, "Rings of Power", so the interest of any fan of J.R.R. Tolkien's scrawlings is probably going to be piqued by the title alone. The influences are seemingly taken from The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings in equal measure, but masked well enough to stop the game feeling like a rip-off. 

Basically, you're a young Sorcerer named "Buc", and you live in a world where sounds make you want to lobotomise yourself, Dragons roam free and magic is used to solve disputes. It is a simple land with simple folk, and, right up to the point you took control, all is well.

Then, horribly coincidentally, bad things start to go down. Your master, with whom you have trained with your whole life, is murdered right before your eyes! By a fellow student, no less! Of course, being the diligent apprentice, you swear to avenge said master. However, right before your master's execution, he was prattling on about a mythical object known the "Rod of Creation", and how it actually existed in the real world. This item was a thing of great power, divided up into 11 "Rings of Power", (y'see what they did, there?), by the Gods and dispersed all over the land in order to protect the various races of the world from its power. Obviously, you must find these rings, that's the point. You will meet young prodigies of varying professions along the way who will aid you on your quest too. Your party will eventually consist of 6 members; a Sorcerer, a Necromancer, an Enchanter, a Knight, a Conjurer and an Archer. All have their merits and different-looking magic, but fundamentally, they're all the same.

Gameplay wise, everything is taken care of in 16-bit RPG style with an isometric view. On-screen is an HUD of sorts, displaying the money you've collected, your food and water levels and a compass. Your food and water levels decrease over time and you must buy replacements at the multiple stores in the game, lest starvation and/or dehydration kick in and eventually kill your party.

As this is an RPG, there's the standard Experience Points system. You have a fight and win, you gain experience. Gain enough experience and you'll gain a level. Higher levels mean more Health Points and stronger magic. Simple. However, there's a slight twist to this one. There's only 9 levels of experience, so once you hit level 9, there's no more grinding to be done. You gain XP from completing certain tasks as well as battles and once you've hit maximum level you'll be able to use all the magic in the game. There's no physical attack battle command like in other RPGs, so you'll be happy to have all the magic. With the lack of a physical attack option, There's no weapons or armour to equip , so you'll want to become familiar with the various types of magic quite quickly. Some cause damage to enemies, while some cause status changes like freezing. There are also some which cause your enemy to lose "Max. Points", which is confusing and pointless. Another obstacle to overcome while trying to enjoy this game.

Now, this game has its quirks. On one hand, it is completely awful! The music is jingly-jangly ear-pollution! The graphics will make you want to change the contrast setting of your TV/Monitor! The controls are more than a bit sluggish! A lot of the story is misleading and vague and the characters in the game have no back-story whatsoever! But on the other hand, this thing is a masterpiece! It is non-linear! For the most part completable in any order you like! the world is massive! Many, many numerous cities and towns, polar regions, drinking and gambling establishments and even a nut-house! There's tonnes of different magic spells to learn! There's Pirates, Dragons and even BOOBS! If you can, please try to get past this game's negatives as you will be rewarded!

I'd suggest this title to the more hardened retro RPG gamer out there. It is a huge game with a tonne of secrets to uncover, a full day/night cycle, (not Real Time) and the overall feel of the game is familiar, but with enough differences from the standard RPG template to still feel unique. The bad sound, dodgy graphics and clunky control system are likely to put off new players though. 

This is still one of my favourite games for the Sega Megadrive and if you're an RPG fan, give it a go! There's only a small collection of RPGs for the Megadrive anyway so what have you got to lose? :-)