Beyond Oasis Review

I remember fondly (sort of) the days of the 16-bit console wars and the arguments that would ensue over whether the Super Nintendo or the Sega Genesis was the better console and which had the better games. Often these "discussions" came down to software comparisons, some obligatory such as Super Mario World vs. Sonic The Hedgehog, and some not so, like Chrono Trigger vs. Phantasy Star IV. Whenever The Legend of Zelda a Link to the Past was mentioned though, there was one game that was almost always used as a counter.

Enter Beyond Oasis, otherwise known as The Story of Thor in other territories, and often regarded as a Zelda clone. It's a shame to me that this title lives in Zelda's shadow to many players of the 16-bit era. Yes, both titles sport a top down perspective, active combat, puzzle solving, and dungeon exploration. However, in my opinion, Beyond Oasis has enough differences for it to stand alone as its own unique title. 

That being said, I'll try my best not to make comparisons between the two. Both have great things going for them and in the end award very different experiences for the player. Instead, I would encourage you to read what I have to say and then give them both a try to decide for yourself if you so wish.

The story begins with the main character, prince Ali, doing a bit of treasure hunting, which you soon discover is one of his favorite hobbies. In a particular chest, he discovers a mysterious golden armlet and decides to try it on. Naturally the armlet becomes stuck and a mysterious spirit appears to warn you of a great evil descending upon the land. Suddenly a violent earthquake erupts and you narrowly escape the island cave before it's swallowed up by the ocean. After returning to town, a sudden monster attack sets the prophecy in motion. You soon find out from the King that it is your destiny to return the golden armlet to its full power and rid the world of this unknown evil. And so the adventure begins...

As stated above, combat is always live, meaning enemies will attack as soon as they notice you. Fortunately for you, Ali has a generous variety of attacks and special moves to deal with any mob you cross paths with.

The dagger, which is the default weapon, is also the most versatile. It cannot be broken or set down and has the longest list of special moves available. Tapping B makes you stab, but press it rapidly enough will make Ali kick rapidly. Holding B for a brief moment and releasing causes a powerful horizontal swipe that knocks enemies down. If you get surrounded, a quick 360 motion on the d-pad plus B gives you a quick spin slash that blows enemies back and grounds them. If you pressing B while running produces an even stronger swipe that launches enemies in a disorienting spin. The most powerful move, and my personal favorite, is the back flip, which is executed by pressing forward, back, forward and B. It hits multiple times and chunks some major damage.

On top of that, you can find extra weapons such as broadswords, crossbows and bombs, some of which have special extra effects. The downside to the alternate weapons is that they break and must be discarded after so many attacks. That is unless you're clever enough to find the rarest versions for your arsenal.

Joining Ali in battle are four elemental spirits you meet one by one by completing the game's dungeons. You can summon them into battle by shooting a ball of light from the golden armlet at their represented element. For example, hitting a flaming torch on a cave wall will summon the fire spirit, Efreet. Once the spirit is present, the A button allows you to issue commands. Pressing, tapping, or holding A will make the spirit unleash one of their special moves. Watch your magic meter!

Not only are they capable sidekicks in battle, but they also help you traverse the world around you and navigate dungeons. Unlike collecting equipment like in Zelda, the spirits act as your extra tools. Such as using Dytto, the water spirit, to extinguish a wall of flames, or Efreet to light torches. It's this spirit mechanic that gives the game a unique depth that's rare to the genre.

I was very impressed with the level of detail that went into summoning the spirits themselves. Most of the time there are obvious elemental sources to allow you to summon, but you can get creative as well. For example, you can toss a bomb and if you shoot a ball of light timed so it touches the flames of the explosion, you can summon Efreet. Every source of water makes it possible to summon Dytto, right down to the tiny droplets of water falling from the ceiling of a cave if timed correctly. The shadow spirit, Shade, can be summoned from the reflective surface of the great knight's armor. It really encourages you to explore the environment in detail. The only spirit that didn't seem to get this treatment is Bow, the plant/earth elemental. While plant life is in abundance in Oasis, you can only summon him from certain ones. I guess it would be too easy to summon him otherwise.

Overall the game is more focused on action than puzzle solving. While the dungeons are littered with puzzles, there's nothing that will leave you head scratching like in Zelda. Some of the more difficult segments of the game are actually platforming related, particularly later in the game when you're tasked with navigating small moving platforms. There's even a boss that takes place over a giant pit with a handful of flying platforms as your only means of staying alive. Thankfully falling down a pit doesn't kill you instantly but rather only takes a bit of damage. Regardless, the frustration is still there. The best method for surviving such trials is to be patient, time your jumps carefully and watch Ali's shadow as you fall.

Oasis is an open world and there's plenty to explore though it does become a bit linear once you sail to the northern region of the island. Thankfully once you meet Shade and gain access to the warp network (essentially fast travel) things open back up again, giving you the opportunity to visit past locals with your new spirits in tow.

Visually, Beyond Oasis is one of the nicest looking games on the Genesis. The backgrounds are colorful and full of detail and every sprite in the game is beautifully animated. The music was composed by famous Japanese composure Yuzo Koshiro and captures the feeling of grand adventure perfectly. The sound effects feel as though they were ripped right out of Streets of Rage, though they are slightly different. Ali actually sounds just like Axel.

If you're hungry for an action adventure, I highly recommend you give Beyond Oasis a try. Even if you decide Beyond Oasis is mere Zelda clone, I can safely guarantee the adventurer in you will have a blast seeing it through to the end.



Pros:

-Combat is fun and addictive.
-Beautiful graphics and animation.
-Sound track is grand and memorable.
-The spirit/summon system is unique and fun to utilize during gameplay.

Cons:

-Has some annoying platforming segments that can be difficult to traverse in this type of prospective.
-The journey becomes linear for a noticeable portion of the story.

Note:  The version I reviewed was my original Sega Genesis cartridge, but you can also find Beyond Oasis available on the Nintendo Wii e-shop and on the Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection disk for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.  I have all of these versions and find them all to be pretty much perfect ports of the original.