Azure Dreams

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Azure Dreams

Developer(s)	Konami
Publisher(s)	Konami
Platform(s)	PlayStation
Release date	30 June 1998
Genre(s)	Role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everybody^[1]
Media	1 CD-ROM

Azure Dreams is a PlayStation video game developed by Konami and released on 30 June 1998. The game was ported onto the Game Boy Color as Other Life: Azure Dreams. The semi-sequel, Tao's Adventure: Curse of the Demon Seal, was released in the US on 21 March 2006 on the Nintendo DS.

1 Story
2 Gameplay
3 Soundtrack
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Story

The game involves a boy named Koh from the town of Monsbaiya, which is set at the foot of the gigantic Monster Tower, which houses a plethora of monsters and bizarre creatures. At the age of fifteen, Koh has come of age and is entitled to enter the tower to slay monsters and live up to his missing father's reputation, his father being the greatest monster hunter who ever lived.

[edit] Gameplay

The game offers a lot of choice in respect to how individual players wish to play. The main focus of the game is entering the tower and destroying its denizens, collecting treasure and monster eggs to hatch into familiars but an interesting side mission is the improvement of the town of Monsbaiya. With his acquired riches, Koh can finance the building of a theatre, hospital, racing track, casino, bowling alley and gym. Some buildings allow the appearance of specific love interests (such as the Hospital making way for Cherrl to appear, and the library making Mia available.), while others offer mini-games and the ability to acquire currency at a faster rate. Koh can also improve the furnishings and decorate his home.

You are also given the option of pursuing romantic ambitions in his life. There are seven characters which you may develop a relationship with, from tomboy Nico, to stuck-up selfish Selfi. Though it is a common misconception, the player is unable to marry any of the girls in the Japanese version. Also a common misconception, it is impossible to develop a romance with Ghosh, though the two exchange friendly words as the game progresses. The only difference that exists between the Japanese version and the American version are obviously the language differences, and the Japanese version has complete voiced dialog for all characters.

Every time Koh leaves the Tower he loses whatever level he reached, however any familiars hatched outside the Tower retain their current level. Thus progress through the higher levels relies on strengthening the familiars. Furthermore once in the Tower there are only three ways of exiting it. 1) If Koh 'dies' within the Tower he revives outside but loses all equipment he carried. 2) A familiar can be sacrificed using a specific item found within the Tower and Koh escapes retaining all other equipment. 3) Most preferably a Wind Crystal can be found in the Tower that allows escape from the Tower.

Another unique point of Azure Dreams is the random map generator: every time Koh enters the Monster Tower, the levels are randomly generated (similar to the "Ancient Dungeon" in Lufia II, or the dungeons in Diablo, or the dungeons in Chunsoft's Fushigi no Dungeon series), so as to make every monster-hunting experience different. Added to this is the sheer number of levels within the tower to create what can become very long and detailed gaming experiences.

In many ways, Azure Dreams is a graphical roguelike. Activity within the main dungeon is turn-based, with one move or attack corresponding to a turn (e.g. when the player takes a step, so do opposing monsters). Randomly generated dungeons and treasures are also features shared with the genre.