Arcus Odyssey
System: Genesis
Release Date: September 1991
Developer: Wolf Team
Publisher: Renovation Products
Genre: Action
The world is coming to an end at the full moon in Arcus Odyssey! The dark sorceress Castomira wanted to control the darkness in the hearts of men. The princess Leaty brought goodness to the hearts of men. Their war happened 1000 years ago and ended with Leaty sending Castomira to the eternal darkness. But the dark lords have waited 1000 full moons and they now seek to bring her back to finish what she started in taking over. Four brave souls plan to fight them off, so take control of the one you want and destroy them all.
You begin by choosing which of the four brave Arcian warriors you’d like to control. Jedda is a swordsman who has a strong shockwave attack and decent magical abilities. Erin is a warrior-maiden who has a chain whip that can be swung around in a circle, but isn’t much of a magic user. Diana is an amazing archer who has learned to bounce arrows off the wall, as well as use strong magic. Bead is an old magician who has a short range on normal attack, but extra strong magic. They all control the same, so choose who has the attack you like the best and head into the first act.
Game play consists of spamming the C Button to attack as you walk around the level. Enemies are placed in fixed positions and respawn as you leave the screen and come back. Many enemies will shoot projectiles that will harm you, unless you hold the C Button to put up a shield. I didn’t use the shield much at all in my time. As you walk around the levels, there are a number of treasure chests. These contain a number of treasures. Some of these treasures are very useful, like the lamp of life to replenish your hit points or the doll of life that resurrects you if you die.
The rest of the treasures were less useful to me. Well, other than the magic crystals which allow you to cast spells. I did like the potion of invincibility, but I had little use for the herbs or the elemental summons. In the second level, you find a few characters you can choose from to take on as a helper. One of them has a homing attack that I found very useful. Unfortunately, you only have them for a short time. Later on you grab another helper, but they are fleeting, as well.
Levels are very straightforward once you know what you’re doing. There are strict events that must be hit. The first time through it took me about an hour and a half, but every subsequent playthrough took less than an hour. After killing certain bosses, you pick up a gem that either extends your life bar or powers up your attack. Pick the red gem to upgrade your attack a few times and enjoy the power. You get an extra life bar every 10000 points anyway. The bosses are easy to take down if you’re sufficiently powered up and saving the day is a great feeling.
Graphics: 3.0
Sprites and levels look good enough to me.
Sound: 3.0
The music and sounds are solid and enjoyable.
Gameplay: 3.0
I didn’t find much use from the items other than the lamp of life, doll of life, and potion of invincibility.
Difficulty: 3.5
There are a few spots where it’s cheap, but you can find safe spots when you need.
Fun Factor: 4.0
I liked my time enough to play through all four characters.
Overall Rating: 3.3
Arcus Odyssey earns a B+. This is a solid game. It goes by quickly, so you can enjoy a hack and slash adventure whenever you want.