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  Master of the Monster Lair
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Rising star in the land of rising sunIt takes a lot for a game developer to build up a cult following in the gaming community. The key ingredients are lots of solid titles, a distinctive style, and (usually) some funky sort of name that gamers can associate themselves with. A prime example of this is Square, producers of such noteworthy franchises like Final Fantasy or Kingdom Hearts. However, companies like this are few and far between. Luckily, a Japanese developer is making a bid for entry into this exclusive club. Atlus, known mostly for their successful RPG titles, has now got a new game in the works, which should definitely bolster their status as cult developer. Let’s take a look at their newest creation, Master of the Monster Lair. Orphan Owen's shovelThe story of Master of the Monster Lair is quickly told. You play as a young orphan boy, Owen, who lives in a remote village. As it happens, the village is soon attacked by vicious monsters. No help can be expected from the government, so clearly, someone needs to step up and have a go at those foul beasts. And while a poor young orphan may not seem like the ideal choice in this situation, as luck has it, you discover a magical shovel. Granted, the shovel is rather cheeky at times, but it’s also dead useful for, say, digging traps, or excavating tunnels in search of the aforementioned monsters. So, you’re stuck with the (probably) rather unhappy job of hunting down and slaying big hairy things (who in turn want to kill you too). But how do you do that? Well, seeing how the game’s called Master of the Monster Lair, an educated guess would get you on the right tracks. Digging a home for interlopersYes, you have to dig a lair. Luckily, you’ve got that impertinent shovel. The gameplay of Master of the Monster Lair is fairly simple. You begin by digging the first room of your lair. From there, you will be able to dig tunnels, as well as add various different rooms to your lair. Each room will attract a different type of monster, so your goal will be to have at least one of each room. Luckily, you will have plenty of room to fulfill your excavating fantasies and create your dream lair. You will even be able to send your lair to a friend over WiFi, and in turn look at (and play in) his lair as well. As mentioned before, every room will attract some type of monster, and if you encounter one, your duty is naturally to kill it. All fights run over some simple commands, such as “attack”, “use item”, or “flee”. You will be able to pick up various weapons and items, so there should definitely be some entertainment value in the fights. If you succeed in killing a monster, you will usually be able to pick up some item or gold. Luckily, these can be used to obtain other things from local shops, including new weapons, and, presumably, furniture for your lair. There is also a magic shop, should you ever need something more advanced to overcome your adversaries. Should you lose your battle with the evil beast, you will simply be returned to the first room of your lair, with 1 hit point left. Crazy villagersAs mentioned above, you live in a remote village. Apparently, the place only has six houses. Luckily, the village does have the usual (at least, for a Japanese title) crazy assortment of characters. I’ve already mentioned Owen and his Magic Shovel. Beyond them , there’s the mayor, intent on turning Owen’s monster-hunting sprees into a tourist attraction, the various shopkeepers, some other minor characters, as well as Owen’s soon-to-be sidekick, aptly named Gloop. Gloop really is just a glob of green slime, which, in his case, is rather useful, because it lets him mimic other monsters. Yes, Owen and Gloop usually go into battle together, and Gloop does his part by copying the attacks of his adversaries and turning them against his foes. Apparently, Gloop will even be able to memorize the best attacks and use them at will. Get ready to... eat!Interestingly, Owen and his party won’t gain experience and health points by defeating monsters, but by eating at his house. Now, this may sound rather mundane, but the idea gets a bit spicier (pardon the pun) when you consider that the eaters will gain more points if they eat rarer foods. Naturally, these are found only in the deepest and darkest corners of the dungeon, so power-levelling is out of the question. All in all, I think Master of the Monster Lair will develop into a solid, entertaining title with lots of replay value. For fans of Japanese RPG games, this is definitely one to look out for. |
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| At a glance |
| With simple but unique gameplay, Master of the Monster Lair should be the perfect title for a quick RPG fix on the go. |