Post by Ayen on Oct 15, 2020 19:02:04 GMT -5
Monster Rancher is a life simulation game developed and published by Tecmo and released to North America on November 24th, 1997. It features you as a monster breeder raising different monsters to battle other monsters all to become the number one ranked breeder in the world. It went on to span several different sequels and spinoffs and even a short lived anime series.
Gameplay: Gameplay in Monster Rancher is kind of like a visual novel. You have various different characters with text scrolls and you interact with only a few different things in the actual game. After you get your assistant you go to town to find your first monster. The Market has three basic types while the Shrine can give you a random generated monster, and the lab helps you to freeze and mix different monsters together to create new types. It’s also what you have to do to get rarer monsters you can unlock later. Sometimes certain items will help you get a certain type of monster.
The different kinds of monsters include, but are not limited to: Dino, Tiger, Suezeo, Pixie, Golem, and Jell. Once you have your monster set you can go to the ranch and begin taking care of it.
Once at the Ranch you can perform different jobs which pays you money and helps raise up your monster’s stats. Stats are power, defense, speed, skill, life, and intelligence. The higher the stats, the more likely you are to defeat other monsters once you get to the tournaments. More on that later.
Another thing you can do is send your monster off to train. This takes up to four weeks and if your monster is successful then they learn a new move that can be used in battle. Each monster has a different animation when they’re working, training, or resting and they’re exclusive to each type. If you have a crossbreed then it will be whatever the main type is, like Dino for example, and it will just be a Dino animation, but a different color.
Another thing you can do at the Ranch is go to the Shop. Depending how far up the ranks you are when you go to the Shop will determine what kind of introduction you get, and whether the shopkeeper has heard of you or not. There you can get different items that either rewards, or punishes your monster and you can use as many items as you want.
Time travels in weeks. For example Apr week 1 - 4. Then it switches to the next month and repeats that number set. The seasons even change as time goes on and battles are on set dates. You’ll also receive different kinds of mail like a discount on training fees or a sale going on at the Shop. And even fan mail. Your assistant will also tell you how your monster is doing each week.
Thirdly there’s the battling. Once you get to the tournament you can match your monster with the different monsters throughout the game. During a battle you can move from the left and right and select different attacks which causes different amounts of damage to an opponent. You can also push them back if they get too close. At the end of the tournament the announcer declares the winner by how many circles they got on a tic-tac-toe like board and you can get prize money and even have your fame go up. Get all the way to the Major Four and win and you beat the game.
Once you’re up to Rank C an old man will visit you and ask if he can take your monster on an expedition to find items and different artifacts. Saying yes brings you to a new part of the game where your monster is on a board and walking down different directions and searching temples for items. This is where you can find rare artifacts that helps you unlock a rare monster which I mentioned earlier. Be careful though as your monster can get lost if he’s in a temple or ruins for too long.
Story: There isn’t much in the way of story in Monster Rancher. You start off as a beginner breeder who just aced the breeders’ exam and you go to FIMBA (Fraternal International Monster Breeders' Association) HQ to meet your new assistant Holly.
Holly is the first major character you meet in Monster Rancher, and is the character who is around you the most. She has a lot of personality and different facial expressions which are just fun to see when she brings them out, and she’s a very good assistant that lets you know when something is amiss. Also one more thing…
The monster you train can die. Each monster has an expiration date and Holly will let you know when they’re getting older. You can prolong their life by freezing them, and if you don’t want to watch the death animation then go to the Market and let them retire. It’s very sad when a monster passes away, but it’s not inappropriate or anything. It’s a good way to introduce a child to the concept of death and it’s just like losing your pet in real life. Very sad.
Graphics: The graphics aren’t too bad as far as PlayStation One games go. The art style is very similar to that of anime and has aged quite well despite how long it has been since the game first came out. The art style and animation compliments the game well and it sucks you into the game’s world quite easily.
Flaws: The game’s number one flaw to me is how repetitive it can be. Whether it be a certain animation, the music, or events. After a while you’ve seen everything there is to see in the game and there’s not much point in playing any further. Even after you beat the game the game continues, but by then what’s the point? If you don’t like repetitive nature in your games then this isn’t the game for you.
Summary: Overall, Monster Rancher is a fun, yet challenging game where you can raise your own monster and have them battle with others. You can even do a versus mode with another player through the use of memory cards and fight to see who’s the better breeder is. It stands as my favorite game of all time, and it still holds up rather well to this day.
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