Babylonian Castle Saga
Encyclopedia
Babylonian Castle Saga is a series of video games created by Masanobu Endō and released by Namco
. Many characters are taken from the Babylonian mythology.
In the game's canon, the chronological order is The Quest of Ki, The Tower of Druaga, The Return of Ishtar, and The Blue Crystal Rod.
The series is referred to as BCS by fans.
Also, some side stories were made, including:
has stolen the Blue Crystal Rod and taken it to his tower. The goddess Ishtar
sends the priestess Ki
to the tower in order to retrieve it. The game then follows her doomed quest to the top of the tower, and leads directly into the story of the original game.
Nightmare was not made by Namco, but by two other companies called Arika
and ChunSoft
. It was far less successful than the prior games, and was even given a low rating in a video game magazine. This game is the fifth in the "Druaga series" (not counting "Drururuaga"), and the eighth in the aforementioned Mysterious Dungeon series.
cameos, such as Soul Calibur
' s Nightmare
, the sword Soul Edge, Valkyrie
, Pac-Man
, and even the enemies from Dig Dug
.
named Xeovalga. Players also earn gold from killing enemies that can be used to upgrade equipment.
developed as part of the Tower of Druaga "Animation x Online RPG" project which also includes the anime series The Tower of Druaga: the Aegis of Uruk
.
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
. Many characters are taken from the Babylonian mythology.
List of games
There are four games in the main series.- The Tower of Druaga (1984, Namco, arcadeVideo arcadeAn amusement arcade or video arcade is a venue where people play arcade games such as video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers , or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables...
) - The Return of IshtarThe Return of Ishtaris an action role-playing arcade game, released by Namco in 1986. It runs on Namco System 86 hardware and is the sequel to The Tower of Druaga, which was released three years earlier. It is the second game in the Babylonian Castle Saga series. It was ported to the MSX, FM7 and included in the Namco...
(1986, Namco, arcade) - The Quest of KiThe Quest of Kiis a video game developed by Game Studio and published by Namco for the Family Computer. It is the third game in Babylonian Castle Saga series which started with the arcade game, The Tower of Druaga.-Story:...
(1988, Namco, FamicomNintendo Entertainment SystemThe Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
) - The Blue Crystal Rod (1994, Namco, Super FamicomSuper Nintendo Entertainment SystemThe Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
)
In the game's canon, the chronological order is The Quest of Ki, The Tower of Druaga, The Return of Ishtar, and The Blue Crystal Rod.
The series is referred to as BCS by fans.
Also, some side stories were made, including:
- The Tower of Druaga Darkness Tower (1996) Namco Museum Vol. 3
- The Tower of Druaga Another Tower (1990's) Namco Museum Vol. 3, FamicomNintendo Entertainment SystemThe Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
, Game BoyGame BoyThe , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on... - Seme COM Dungeon: Drururuaga (2000): Game Boy ColorGame Boy ColorThe is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
- The Nightmare of Druaga: Fushigino DungeonThe Nightmare of Druaga: Fushigino DungeonThe Nightmare of Druaga: Fushigino Dungeon is a console role-playing game developed by Arika and Chunsoft and published by Namco in 2004 exclusively for the Sony PlayStation 2...
(2004): PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan... - Druaga Online: The Story of Aon (2006): ArcadeArcade gameAn arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
- The Tower of Druaga: The Recovery of BABYLIM (2007): PCPersonal computerA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
The Tower of Druaga
The player assumes the role of the hero Gilgamesh, whose goal is to rescue the maiden Ki (カイ, Kai) from the demon Druaga. In order to do this, he must traverse through 60 floors of an immense tower. Gilgamesh comes equipped with a sword, which he can use to defeat monsters, and a shield, which can be used to block magical attacks.The Return of Ishtar
It picks up where Tower of Druaga left off. The player controls two characters: Ki as well as Gilgamesh. It can also be noted in this game that Ki is a magician, not a damsel in distress like many people believe. The tower now has a few different ways to exit, and the aggregate total of levels is 128 (covering the 60-floor tower).The Quest of Ki
The story of The Quest of Ki is actually a prequel to the original Tower of Druaga. It occurs shortly after the demon DruagaDruaga
Druaga refers to a Babylonian/Sumerian deity, who was ruler of the underworld. Druaga is occasionally used as an alternative name for the evil Zoroastrian deity, Ahriman, enemy of the god Ahura Mazda.-Popular Media:...
has stolen the Blue Crystal Rod and taken it to his tower. The goddess Ishtar
Ishtar
Ishtar is the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, war, and sex. She is the counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate north-west Semitic goddess Astarte.-Characteristics:...
sends the priestess Ki
KI
Ki or KI may refer to:* .ki, the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code top level domain for Kiribati*Ki., an abbreviation for the Book of Kings in Judaeo-Christian religious texts* Ki * Ki , a Japanese syllabic character...
to the tower in order to retrieve it. The game then follows her doomed quest to the top of the tower, and leads directly into the story of the original game.
The Blue Crystal Rod
Also known as "The Destiny of Gilgamesh", it is the least well-known of the sequels. This game picks up where Return of Ishtar left off and is the final game in the Tower of Druaga series, according to Namco.The Nightmare of Druaga
This game is set three years after the original Tower of Druaga tetralogy. In it, Ki and Gilgamesh are about to be married, however, Ki is kidnapped by an evil sorceress, Skulld. The game is known for its unforgiving difficulty, as death in the game results in losing all your items and half your gold, and its harsh penalty for resetting. Should a player reset the game, they will be greeted by Ishtar, who will scold them for "meddling with the flow of time".Nightmare was not made by Namco, but by two other companies called Arika
Arika
is a Japanese video game developer. It was formed in 1995 by former Capcom employees. The name of the company itself is the reverse of the name of the company's founder, Akira Nishitani, who created Street Fighter II. Arika's first arcade game was Street Fighter EX...
and ChunSoft
Chunsoft
is a Japanese video game developer specializing in console RPGs and visual novels. It was founded by Koichi Nakamura, a video game designer from Enix...
. It was far less successful than the prior games, and was even given a low rating in a video game magazine. This game is the fifth in the "Druaga series" (not counting "Drururuaga"), and the eighth in the aforementioned Mysterious Dungeon series.
Seme COM Dungeon: Drururuaga
This game is placed about 100 years after the original Druaga timeline and stars Gilsh, a descendant of Gilgamesh. Gameplay is best described as a dungeon-building capture the flag with collectible cards. Use cards to equip your character with weapons and spells, and to populate your dungeon with monsters. Then battle against an opponent and his dungeon (AI or link cable). Enter the opponent's dungeon via linked teleporters, find the three keys to unlock the crystal, and return it to your home base before he does the same. Success yields additional cards. Each item or monster is highly specialized, allowing for different strategic combos. Features many NamcoNamco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
cameos, such as Soul Calibur
Soul Calibur
is a 3D, weapons-based fighting game developed by Project Soul and produced by Namco. It is the second game in the Soul series, preceeded by Soul Edge. It was released in arcades in 1998, and it ran on the Namco System 12 hardware. In 1999 it was ported to the Dreamcast with improved graphics and...
Nightmare (Soul Calibur)
is a character in the Soul series of fighting games. The evil alter-ego of , he later becomes an entity separated from Siegfried in Soulcalibur III. Nightmare first appeared in one of the possible endings for the Siegfried character in the game Soul Edge. In the sequel Soulcalibur, he was given a...
, the sword Soul Edge, Valkyrie
Valkyrie No Densetsu
was released by Namco in 1989 in Arcades and in 1990 on the PC Engine only in Japan. It is a sequel to a Japan-only 1986 Nintendo Family Computer game entitled Valkyrie no Bōken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu. For the first time, Valkyrie no Densetsu was translated into English and released in the Namco...
, Pac-Man
Pac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
, and even the enemies from Dig Dug
Dig Dug
is an arcade game developed and published by Namco in Japan in 1982 for Namco Galaga hardware. It was later published outside of Japan by Atari. A popular game based on a simple concept, it was also released as a video game on many consoles.-Objective:...
.
Druaga Online: The Story of Aon
This game is set outside the main chronology of the series, and borrows characters from Namco's Valkyrie series. Gameplay is similar to The Return of Ishtar, only four players may play at the same time; each controlling one of the four available characters: Gil, a young version of Ki, Valkyrie, or an ancient golemGolem
In Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being, created entirely from inanimate matter. The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing....
named Xeovalga. Players also earn gold from killing enemies that can be used to upgrade equipment.
The Tower of Druaga: the Recovery of BABYLIM
This game is an MMORPGMMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
developed as part of the Tower of Druaga "Animation x Online RPG" project which also includes the anime series The Tower of Druaga: the Aegis of Uruk
The Tower of Druaga: the Aegis of Uruk
and its sequel, is an anime TV series, created by Gonzo and is an animated continuation of Namco's The Tower of Druaga franchise which began as an arcade game originally released in 1984...
.