Lufia & the Fortress of Doom
Encyclopedia
Lufia & the Fortress of Doom, known as in Japan, is an RPG developed by Neverland and published by Taito
in 1993
, for the Super Nintendo
. It is the first title in the Lufia
series of video games and the only game from the series released under the Taito label in North America.
of the Lufia world, with a massive floating island with a large castle
located on it emerging into the sky one dark day. Dubbed the "Fortress of Doom", this castle served as the base of operations for a group of all-powerful beings known as the Sinistrals, who planned to use their strength to bring the world to its knees.
In response, the people sent four of their bravest warriors: Maxim, Selan (Serena in Estopolis Denki), Artea (Arty in Estopolis Denki), and Guy, to infiltrate the dark fortress and destroy the Sinistrals before they could do any harm. The game begins with the player controlling these characters as they prepare to engage the Sinistrals, and eventually defeat them. However, after the battle, the fortress begins to collapse, with Maxim and Selan becoming trapped on the other side of a deep chasm that formed when the Sinistral throne room split apart. Unable to teleport them to safety, Artea and Guy left the falling island alone, and their trapped allies apparently perished when it crashed into the earth below.
Peace reigns for ninety years after the heroes' encounter with the Sinistrals, and the actual game begins nine years after that. The story is told from the perspective of a red-haired boy the player is in charge of naming, and along the way he gets caught up in a struggle to save the world once again from the newly emerged Sinistral army.
s, encountering monster
s along the way. These battles occur randomly (every few steps or so) or in scripted situations, and winning them yields experience points that go towards leveling up the characters, giving them access to new abilities and making them stronger in the process. The battles themselves take place from a first-person
perspective, and require the player to use each character's strengths, such as physical attacks or magic
use, as in many other mainstream RPGs.
An interesting quirk in the battle system, reminiscent of older RPGs like the original Final Fantasy, makes it such that if you order two characters to attack a particular enemy, and the first character defeats the enemy, the second character's attack will still target the defeated enemy and thus miss. Thus foresight is required to make sure that no characters' battle moves are wasted, unlike other RPGs, where other enemies will be targeted if the intended enemy has already been defeated.
New equipment and restorative items are purchased from vendors in various town
s, or found in chests scattered throughout the world. The player's progress is saved in one of three available slots on the cartridge's built-in battery back-up system by speaking to a priest at a church found in most towns.
Lufia : The Hero's best friend whom he's known since childhood. She is bossy, but proficient in spellcasting. She has a romantic interest in The Hero and helps him in any way she can. She fights with wands and other lightweight weapons such as flails and even frying pans. Lufia utilizes Thunder, Water and Explosion magic as well numerous support spells.
Aguro : Leader of the army of the nation of Lorbenia, Aguro is a hardened warrior who is interested in the Hero's fighting ability. Having no skill in magic, he instead relies on his brute strength and skill with swords, axes and lances. He, like the Hero, can equip heavy armor to increase his defense.
Jerin : A half-elf who, because of her heritage, has an increased lifespan and actually appears younger than she is. Agile, and good with magic, Jerin prefers to fight at a distance, using either a bow and arrow or wands in combat. She is proficient with Fire and Ice magic and is a master of healing.
Maxim : The primary character in the prequel to Lufia Fortress of Doom (Lufia Rise of the Sinistrals). His past is much like "The Hero"'s present with certain variations.
Selan : Maxim's wife, Selan is a very powerful magic user but is very weak with melee attacks.
Guy : Guy is a long-term friend of Maxim who has no knowledge of magic himself but is very strong (Like Aguro).
Artea : An elf who does weaker attacks but attacks everyone and has a decent amount of magic. Artea lives through both comings of the Sinistrals due to the long lifespan of an elf.
; Erim, Mistress of Death, who can revive any of her brothers if they fall in combat; and Daos, Master of Terror, their leader, an incredibly powerful sorcerer. However due to a mistake, in the English version Daos and Amon have their titles reversed. Daos is the Master of Chaos (Infernos in the Dutch Version), while Amon is the Master of Terror. This is the only game in the series where this localization error occurs.
of Lufia & the Fortress of Doom to the Sega
Genesis/Mega Drive, but cancelled the project sometime in its development.
At least two full-page advertisements were made in US magazines, the second one announcing a delay to spring 1995, with the tagline "It´s worth the wait".
or the Final Fantasy titles. Game Rankings
gives it a score of 71 out of a possible 100 by averaging the ratings of several online sources.
Lufia was reviewed in 1994 in Dragon
#206 by Sandy Petersen
in the "Eye of the Monitor" column. Petersen gave the game 3 out of 5 stars.
Taito Corporation
The is a Japanese publisher of video game software and arcade hardware wholly owned by publisher Square Enix. Taito has their headquarters in the Shinjuku Bunka Quint Building in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo, sharing the facility with its parent company....
in 1993
1993 in video gaming
-Events:*March — In Sweden, the Swedish video game magazine Super PLAY starts. The original name is Super Power.*Midway Games embroiled in controversy for its game Mortal Kombat from 1992 when the game is launched for video game consoles in 1993....
, for the Super Nintendo
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The 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...
. It is the first title in the Lufia
Lufia
Lufia, known as in Japan, is a series of console role-playing games developed by Neverland . In Japan, the games were originally published by Taito and later Square Enix , and after the closing of Taito's American branch after the release of the first game, Natsume Inc...
series of video games and the only game from the series released under the Taito label in North America.
Story
The story of Lufia & the Fortress of Doom begins, in accordance with an ancient prophecyProphecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
of the Lufia world, with a massive floating island with a large castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
located on it emerging into the sky one dark day. Dubbed the "Fortress of Doom", this castle served as the base of operations for a group of all-powerful beings known as the Sinistrals, who planned to use their strength to bring the world to its knees.
In response, the people sent four of their bravest warriors: Maxim, Selan (Serena in Estopolis Denki), Artea (Arty in Estopolis Denki), and Guy, to infiltrate the dark fortress and destroy the Sinistrals before they could do any harm. The game begins with the player controlling these characters as they prepare to engage the Sinistrals, and eventually defeat them. However, after the battle, the fortress begins to collapse, with Maxim and Selan becoming trapped on the other side of a deep chasm that formed when the Sinistral throne room split apart. Unable to teleport them to safety, Artea and Guy left the falling island alone, and their trapped allies apparently perished when it crashed into the earth below.
Peace reigns for ninety years after the heroes' encounter with the Sinistrals, and the actual game begins nine years after that. The story is told from the perspective of a red-haired boy the player is in charge of naming, and along the way he gets caught up in a struggle to save the world once again from the newly emerged Sinistral army.
Gameplay
Lufia & the Fortress of Doom plays much like a traditional RPG and features 2D character sprites and environments. The player advances the story by travelling through several harsh dungeonDungeon crawl
A dungeon crawl is a type of scenario in fantasy role-playing games in which heroes navigate a labyrinthine environment, battling various monsters, and looting any treasure they may find...
s, encountering monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
s along the way. These battles occur randomly (every few steps or so) or in scripted situations, and winning them yields experience points that go towards leveling up the characters, giving them access to new abilities and making them stronger in the process. The battles themselves take place from a first-person
First person (video games)
In video games, first person refers to a graphical perspective rendered from the viewpoint of the player character. In many cases, this may be the viewpoint from the cockpit of a vehicle. Many different genres have made use of first-person perspectives, ranging from adventure games to flight...
perspective, and require the player to use each character's strengths, such as physical attacks or magic
Magic (gaming)
Some role-playing games or game systems can include a set of rules that are used to portray magic in the paranormal sense. These rules simulate the effects that magic would have within the game context, according to how the game designer intended the magic to be portrayed...
use, as in many other mainstream RPGs.
An interesting quirk in the battle system, reminiscent of older RPGs like the original Final Fantasy, makes it such that if you order two characters to attack a particular enemy, and the first character defeats the enemy, the second character's attack will still target the defeated enemy and thus miss. Thus foresight is required to make sure that no characters' battle moves are wasted, unlike other RPGs, where other enemies will be targeted if the intended enemy has already been defeated.
New equipment and restorative items are purchased from vendors in various town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
s, or found in chests scattered throughout the world. The player's progress is saved in one of three available slots on the cartridge's built-in battery back-up system by speaking to a priest at a church found in most towns.
Playable characters
"The Hero" : The primary character of the story that the player gets to name. He grew up in a small town of Alekia and was raised by a man named Roman, a friend of his father who had died in a battle long ago. Very skilled in swordplay, The Hero prefers to fight in close quarters, and wears heavy armor, though he does have some degree of magical skill, usually healing and defense spells. He is said to be a descendant of the great hero Maxim who vanquished the Sinistrals and saved the world.Lufia : The Hero's best friend whom he's known since childhood. She is bossy, but proficient in spellcasting. She has a romantic interest in The Hero and helps him in any way she can. She fights with wands and other lightweight weapons such as flails and even frying pans. Lufia utilizes Thunder, Water and Explosion magic as well numerous support spells.
Aguro : Leader of the army of the nation of Lorbenia, Aguro is a hardened warrior who is interested in the Hero's fighting ability. Having no skill in magic, he instead relies on his brute strength and skill with swords, axes and lances. He, like the Hero, can equip heavy armor to increase his defense.
Jerin : A half-elf who, because of her heritage, has an increased lifespan and actually appears younger than she is. Agile, and good with magic, Jerin prefers to fight at a distance, using either a bow and arrow or wands in combat. She is proficient with Fire and Ice magic and is a master of healing.
Starting characters
At the start of the game (introduction):Maxim : The primary character in the prequel to Lufia Fortress of Doom (Lufia Rise of the Sinistrals). His past is much like "The Hero"'s present with certain variations.
Selan : Maxim's wife, Selan is a very powerful magic user but is very weak with melee attacks.
Guy : Guy is a long-term friend of Maxim who has no knowledge of magic himself but is very strong (Like Aguro).
Artea : An elf who does weaker attacks but attacks everyone and has a decent amount of magic. Artea lives through both comings of the Sinistrals due to the long lifespan of an elf.
Non-playable characters
The Sinistrals : A group of four powerful, god-like warriors who plan on taking over the world. From their floating Fortress of Doom, they gathered their strength, only to be defeated by Maxim and his friends years ago. Their ranks include Gades, Master of Destruction, an over-bearing and proud warrior clad in dark armor; Amon, Master of Chaos, a resourceful man who wears gold armor and wields a tridentTrident
A trident , also called a trishul or leister or gig, is a three-pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and was also a military weapon. Tridents are featured widely in mythical, historical and modern culture. The major Hindu god, Shiva the Destroyer and the sea god Poseidon or Neptune are...
; Erim, Mistress of Death, who can revive any of her brothers if they fall in combat; and Daos, Master of Terror, their leader, an incredibly powerful sorcerer. However due to a mistake, in the English version Daos and Amon have their titles reversed. Daos is the Master of Chaos (Infernos in the Dutch Version), while Amon is the Master of Terror. This is the only game in the series where this localization error occurs.
Development
Taito originally planned to release a portPorting
In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
of Lufia & the Fortress of Doom to the Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
Genesis/Mega Drive, but cancelled the project sometime in its development.
At least two full-page advertisements were made in US magazines, the second one announcing a delay to spring 1995, with the tagline "It´s worth the wait".
Reception
The game has received mixed reviews since its initial release. Some people reflect on it fondly for its story and characters, others criticize it as being inferior to other console RPGs of that era such as Secret of ManaSecret of Mana
Secret of Mana is an action role-playing game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed and published by Square in 1993. The game was re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console in 2008, and was ported to Japanese mobile phones in 2009...
or the Final Fantasy titles. Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
gives it a score of 71 out of a possible 100 by averaging the ratings of several online sources.
Lufia was reviewed in 1994 in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#206 by Sandy Petersen
Sandy Petersen
Carl Sanford Joslyn Petersen is a game designer.Petersen was born in St. Louis, Missouri and attended University of California, Berkeley, majoring in zoology....
in the "Eye of the Monitor" column. Petersen gave the game 3 out of 5 stars.