The Pen Is Mightier Than SWORD (Time Stalkers (DC))

Member Name: scream4bruce

Product:	Time Stalkers (DC)
Date:	01/09/08 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A refreshing RPG, daunting dungeons, consistent challenge

Disadvantages: Not the greatest audio, difficult to earn money, flawed battle system

A fantasy world - a collection of worlds from many eras and locations, with a cast of characters from other games by Climax. Mysterious to say the least.

The rather basic turn-based battle system seems flawed. A monster on your party could hit an enemy on disobeying your order despite not having a move to attack at such range. Battles are not random, but can appear clumsy, with characters running into things and attacking thin air.

Upon entering a dungeon, the party - the chosen hero/heroine and allied monsters - reset to level one, however, their ranks might increase on leaving a dungeon, and with it comes new spells and skills. Though these won't be triggered until they reach a certain level inside a dungeon. Levelling up occurs rapidly, and with the exception of the dungeon boss, the enemy level up as the hero (or heroine) so there is a constant challenge, of which this also applies to quests undertaken that require a visit to a previous dungeon.

The floors of the dungeons are randomly generated; they are similar and are never convoluted in their design; and the auto-mapping keeps them simple and satisfying. Puzzles are absent, but dungeons can be daunting, because for each character there is a hunger meter to watch out for - this gradually decreases and needs be prevented from reaching emptiness. Also, saves within a dungeon are temporary so that saving cannot be exploited.

If I had a criticism of the game, earning money is difficult. Money can be spent on upgrading the house or the monster storage area.

Audio-wise, sound effects can be harsh but whilst the instrumentation is not great, there is some nice music and the tunes differ depending on the character with the Hero's Crest.

Time Stalkers does not make the player break into a sweat to see the endings for the individual characters. Players may be able to complete game in less than twenty hours. While I could well be overrating the game, I liked it for what it's worth. It would be easy to loathe Time Stalkers but I found it to be refreshing challenge.

Summary: Time Stalkers for Dreamcast