Monkey Hero
Encyclopedia
Monkey Hero is an action role-playing game
developed by Blam! in San Francisco, California and published by Take-Two Interactive
for the Sony
PlayStation video game console
. A Windows
version of Monkey Hero was developed simultaneously, but never released.
Monkey Hero is a game similar to the likes of The Legend of Zelda
and Secret of Mana
and borrows many ideas from these games. Game play elements include large dungeons, fighting and puzzles. It had a whimsical manga
-inspired look that makes use of both 3D and 2D graphics.
In the game you play as Monkey, the goofy top-knotted main character. Monkey is sent to the Waking Realm to defeat the Nightmare King and under the guidance of Master Sage, must reclaim all of the pieces of the Magic Storybook. The various pieces of the Magic Storybook are displayed on an in game map. At the time of the game's creation the playable area was very large, especially if you take into account the various dungeons.
with your friend Tiger. He asks you to take a cart into the mine. You oblige and while in the mine there is an explosion which causes you fall to the lower levels. In the mine you find a treasure chest with a bamboo
staff in, which becomes your weapon
for the rest of the game
. After much wandering you find your way out and meet Master Sage, who gives you a headband
which he can use to communicate with you. He then sends you to the library
to stop the Nightmare King from stealing the Magic Storybook.
The main character, he has appeared from the dream
realm to restore the balance, he is friendly and easy to get on with, and is well known throughout the waking Realm.
Master Sage
Master
Sage is your teacher. He provides you with information from your headband and teaches you how to play. He also supplies you with new weapons and tells you about your past. He wears a blue cloak and has long grey hair.
Dream King
The Dream
King
is the leader of the Dream world and has a direct influence into the Waking realm. He may be related to Monkey but that is found out at the end of the game.
Nightmare King
The leader of the Nightmare World and the main villain in the game, he resembles a roach and is the first boss you fight, however in this fight he is just the head and is very simple to defeat. He leads all of the nightmares in the game.
Your health
is measured in peach
es. When you perform certain tasks whilst you are underground you acquire items called Big peaches, which increase your total health
. When you get them monkey speaks aloud saying "Wow, a big peach, I love these. Now I feel stronger than ever."
Boss Battles
At the end of dungeons, similar to the Zelda
series, there is what is known as a boss, the "leader" of the dungeon or the one you must defeat to complete it. One monkey hero, the main boss, is the Nightmare King, however throughout the game you face many more than just him.
Realms
In the game here are three realms, as underlined in the manual, the Dream Realm, the Nightmare
Realm, and the Waking Realm. During the course of the game, the player visits make locations, this including the Dream and Nightmare realms. The Nightmare King has invaded the Waking Realm and upset the balance, and it's up to Monkey to remove the Nightmares and restore the balance.
Action role-playing game
Action role-playing games form a loosely defined sub-genre of role-playing video games that incorporate elements of action or action-adventure games, emphasizing real-time action where the player has direct control over characters, instead of turn-based or menu-based combat...
developed by Blam! in San Francisco, California and published by Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a major American publisher, developer, and distributor of video games and video game peripherals. Take-Two wholly owns 2K Games and Rockstar Games. The company's headquarters are in New York City, with international headquarters in Windsor, United Kingdom...
for the Sony
Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. is a major video game company specializing in a variety of areas in the video game industry, and is a wholly owned subsidiary and part of the Consumer Products & Services Group of Sony...
PlayStation video game console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
. A Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
version of Monkey Hero was developed simultaneously, but never released.
Monkey Hero is a game similar to the likes of The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda, originally released as in Japan, is a video game developed and published by Nintendo, and designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka. Set in the fantasy land of Hyrule, the plot centers on a boy named Link, the playable protagonist, who aims to collect the eight fragments...
and Secret of Mana
Secret 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...
and borrows many ideas from these games. Game play elements include large dungeons, fighting and puzzles. It had a whimsical manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
-inspired look that makes use of both 3D and 2D graphics.
In the game you play as Monkey, the goofy top-knotted main character. Monkey is sent to the Waking Realm to defeat the Nightmare King and under the guidance of Master Sage, must reclaim all of the pieces of the Magic Storybook. The various pieces of the Magic Storybook are displayed on an in game map. At the time of the game's creation the playable area was very large, especially if you take into account the various dungeons.
Story
You start the game outside a mineMining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
with your friend Tiger. He asks you to take a cart into the mine. You oblige and while in the mine there is an explosion which causes you fall to the lower levels. In the mine you find a treasure chest with a bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
staff in, which becomes your weapon
Weapon
A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...
for the rest of the game
Game
A game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements...
. After much wandering you find your way out and meet Master Sage, who gives you a headband
Headband
A headband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plastic or metal...
which he can use to communicate with you. He then sends you to the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
to stop the Nightmare King from stealing the Magic Storybook.
Characters
MonkeyThe main character, he has appeared from the dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
realm to restore the balance, he is friendly and easy to get on with, and is well known throughout the waking Realm.
Master Sage
Master
Master (form of address)
Master is an archaic masculine title or form of address in English.- In English and Welsh society :Master was used in England for men of some rank, especially "free masters" of a trade guild and by any manual worker or servant employee to his employer , but also generally by those lower in status...
Sage is your teacher. He provides you with information from your headband and teaches you how to play. He also supplies you with new weapons and tells you about your past. He wears a blue cloak and has long grey hair.
Dream King
The Dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
is the leader of the Dream world and has a direct influence into the Waking realm. He may be related to Monkey but that is found out at the end of the game.
Nightmare King
The leader of the Nightmare World and the main villain in the game, he resembles a roach and is the first boss you fight, however in this fight he is just the head and is very simple to defeat. He leads all of the nightmares in the game.
Gameplay Information
HealthYour health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
is measured in peach
Peach
The peach tree is a deciduous tree growing to tall and 6 in. in diameter, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. It bears an edible juicy fruit called a peach...
es. When you perform certain tasks whilst you are underground you acquire items called Big peaches, which increase your total health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
. When you get them monkey speaks aloud saying "Wow, a big peach, I love these. Now I feel stronger than ever."
Boss Battles
At the end of dungeons, similar to the Zelda
The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda, originally released as in Japan, is a video game developed and published by Nintendo, and designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka. Set in the fantasy land of Hyrule, the plot centers on a boy named Link, the playable protagonist, who aims to collect the eight fragments...
series, there is what is known as a boss, the "leader" of the dungeon or the one you must defeat to complete it. One monkey hero, the main boss, is the Nightmare King, however throughout the game you face many more than just him.
Realms
In the game here are three realms, as underlined in the manual, the Dream Realm, the Nightmare
Nightmare
A nightmare is an unpleasant dream that can cause a strong negative emotional response from the mind, typically fear or horror, but also despair, anxiety and great sadness. The dream may contain situations of danger, discomfort, psychological or physical terror...
Realm, and the Waking Realm. During the course of the game, the player visits make locations, this including the Dream and Nightmare realms. The Nightmare King has invaded the Waking Realm and upset the balance, and it's up to Monkey to remove the Nightmares and restore the balance.