The Nightmare of Druaga Preview

The wedding was set when Gil was called to help quell a raid on the city by a group of monsters. But was that raid merely a rouse to enable a masked enchantress to kidnap his love, Ki?

Gil must travel to the dreaded Tower of Druaga, and battle his way through a myriad of monsters to save his ladylove. The way is perilous, and there may be more at stake than merely rescuing his kidnapped lady.

The Nightmare of Druaga combines role-playing elements, and an ‘at-once’ turn-based combat system in the Arika/Namco Hometek title for the PlayStation 2. The game is slated for release toward the end of October, and is essentially a collaboration between The Tower of Druaga title and Chunsoft’s Mysterious Dungeon series.

At its core, this is a dungeon crawl that is relatively two dimensional in nature. You can move diagonally and attack diagonally, but the game has one view, an angled down view, and sometimes the walls can obscure your view of the game. Each level of the game is a maze, with an entry point and an exit, a key you must find to move to the next level, and mobs and treasure to find en route.

As you find items, some may be easily identifiable while others may need to be appraised. To appraise items, you need to use the feather you are given each time you enter the dungeon to return to town, then go to the academy of science and speak to the appraiser. For a fee, he will tell you what each item is. And you can combine the properties of items to create a more formidable item.

For example, as you journey the Dark Ruins, you encounter some chests and one yields a mysterious weapon. Upon your return to the city, you find out that the weapon is a bronze hammer, which does more damage than your sword. You can visit with certain NPCs (non-playing characters) who can combine the attributes of certain items together. Should they do so successfully, you end up with a much better item.

Another aspect of the game is the inscriptions. Inscriptions can only be attached to a finite number of items, but by inscribing an item means you will not lose it if you fall in a dungeon. You will also lose half your gold as well. There are severe reprimands for trying to shortcut through the cycle of time and reset the adventure without suffering the consequences of a misstep during the gameplay.

This is a game that has more than just the initial mission to rescue Lady Ki. There are quests you can undertake to aid the citizens of Babylim.

Of course, as you work through a dungeon, you will likely retread familiar territory, and that can mean bashing the same mobs over and again. Not to fear, the developers have given you an extra challenge. If you are in an area that you have been in before, you may be given a bonus dungeon to try out. Bonus dungeons do not give you any more experience points toward level, but they do allow you to find better items. But be prepared, it is tough down there. When you are on a completed dungeon level, and pick up the key, you approach the door. Break down the door to go to the bonus dungeon, but use the key and you will go to the next level of the quest you are on.

The sound effects in this game are not very conducive to creating an immersive environment. Clunking around on wood with sandpaper attached to the shoes passes for the sound of walking. The mob sounds and combat sound are equally below average. The musical score is nice and fits the mood and locations.

The controls take some time to get comfortable with. The left thumbstick allows you to move in the city, but in a dungeon it merely cycles you through your items (handy to use a potion quickly, though). The D-pad controls movement in the city and dungeons. L2 will allow you to skip a turn and acquire more health.

Graphically this game looks very nice for a two-dimensional title. The environments are lush, the special effects are wonderful and the overall animation is solid.

One drawback is that each time you save, you are asked to turn off the PS2. This may only be something particular to the preview build received, but it can be a bit annoying.

Despite a linear storyline and some rather obvious and over-worn plot elements, The Nightmare of Druaga is a charming and entertaining vehicle for gamers looking for an addictive and enjoyable romp. The game, at this stage in the development has a few little drawbacks, but shows a great deal of promise.