Hyakki Castle

Hyakki Castle is an old school role-playing dungeon crawler game released on PC. It is the debut title of the Japanese studio Asakusa.

Plot

The game takes place during the Edo period in Japan. The historical traits are enriched with fantasy plots based on local myths and beliefs.

The titular castle Hyakki is a stronghold located on a secret island. It is used as a prison for the most dangerous enemies of the shogunate. Among these prisoners is a wizard named Doman Kigata. Somehow, he manages to take control over the island. He sends the mutilated heads of three guardians of the castle to Edo, the central point of the shogun’s power. Such act cannot be left forgiven. A group of four warriors receives a task to kill Kigata.

Mechanics

The PC version of Hyakki Castle is a dungeon crawler role-playing game inspired by the titles from the eighties and nineties. The player controls a four-person team of warriors. The action is presented in a first-person perspective, the movement is jump-based and the rotation is limited to ninety degrees. The game features many classic genre mechanics and are presented in a modern formula – with three-dimensional graphics and comfortable interface.

Among the potential members of the team there are human warriors, including samurais and Ninja warriors, and fantasy creatures from Japanese folklore. Among the latter there are, for example, Oni, Tengu and Nekomata. The battle takes place in real time and each character type features unique special skills that can be developed by using experience points.

The setting isn’t the only thing that makes Hyakki Castle unique among other dungeon crawlers. The game enables the player to split the team into two groups. The player can decide whether both teams will feature two members or one of the teams will consist of a single member. When the split is done, the screen is divided into two parts, enabling the player to control both groups. This can be used for gaining advantage in combat or for solving various riddles.

Last updated on 10 August 2018