The Dark Spire

Rating Everyone 10+ Genre role-playing Publisher Atlus External Links

When Atlus' The Dark Spire arrived at my doorstep on a warm day in early May, one word came to mind over and over again as I worked through each onion-like layer of this game: impressive. The packaging in which it came was dark, ominous, almost a sinister throwback. It reminded me of going to Toys R' Us as a child and selecting a game based entirely on the cover art. An absolute joy to say the least, but what would lurk inside?

In the case of The Dark Spire, Atlus has brought the tools to the DS for a fantastic RPG with it's roots in the days of old. This is dungeon crawling at the highest level; simple setup, steep learning curve, and unapologetic in form and function. This isn't a game for little kids or someone that wants to casually enjoy the genre. This is a full tilt immersion into a lost genre. Many choices will lead to death and the limitless frustration on deciding when to save. It's probably the closest thing to a real Dungeons and Dragons board game experience as I've ever played on the DS. The artwork is fantastic as well. It uses an old-school cartoon look that could have been pulled from old action comic books. The animations are very minimal, but the game is not about eye-popping tricks. The Dark Spire is 110% about the game play and how an RPG should be; difficult and immerse. . 

The premise of the game is simple; a jewel was stolen from off the Queen's neck and the wizard that stole it ran off to create this dark tower (or spire). You are a group of adventurers who have decided  to brave the foreboding tower, kill the wizard, and take the jewel back. Sounds simple enough, but Atlus did not create a game for the faint of heart or weak of spirit. For those familiar with the Final Fantasy games as their only experience with RPG's will certainly find The Dark Spire to be a significantly different flavor with a higher degree of challenge. Where the FF titles are typically third person, The Dark Spire played from a first person perspective. The effect is that you are viewing each hallway, door frame, and stairwell at eye level. You have to been constantly aware of the surroundings, the map, and the twists and turns in each hallway. If you miss it, the game isn't going to give you any hints about what you're doing wrong. 

There in lies both the real strength and weakness of The Dark Spire. The game is a challenge, through and through. The tutorial for battle is so brief that 15 minutes after starting the game, you will actually be in The Dark Spire, the only battle location within the game. You will be made to equip your party the best you can, set your formations, figure out how to teach your spell casters magic, and it's off to your inevitable doom. You will die a couple of times when you first start. You may die so many times that the game loses it's appeal. If you are not into farming for experience, you will want to stay away. If you like a clear, defined role of each character as they develop through the story, stay away. But if customization is the name of the game, look no further. 

As you level up, the experience points do not automatically get assigned to certain elements or characteristics. You need to go back into town to assign points for new spells, abilities, and levels. Fans of the genre will jump for joy that they are in total control of where they want to put the points and grow their character's abilities. Initially, the problem is just how long it takes to earn this experience without dying. Enemies in the spire can be difficult and come in large groups. I've had to fight through ten or more enemies with my party of four. With your magic users doing double duty as healer's and offensive spell caster's, it takes some time to strike a balance to be successful. 

Gearing your team up also takes some trial and error. Everything costs gold and the game starts you with very little of it. If a character dies, it takes gold to bring them back. If your party needs to rest, that takes gold. When you are getting outmatched by the next level of villains in the tower, you'll need gold for those weapons. You also need to be pious, either to the justice or chaos so you are able to pray in the temples. The tip of the iceberg is the first ten hours, the rest of the iceberg could take a lot more time than that. 

Creating a game that will not appeal to most people is a bold call. The DS is built for mass consumption and the fortitude of Atlus not to compromise could be what separates The Dark Tower away from the multitude of games available for the DS. The game includes a CD with the original 24 song soundtrack. Surprisingly, this is a charming addition to the complete package The Dark Spire offers. Anyone that wants to get there hands a little dirty will find The Dark Spire well worth your time. If you're afraid, you should be.