PixlBit

A zelda clone that sticks to everything that makes the game great

Neutopia is an action adventure game released for the TurboGrafx-16 in 1990. It was developed and published by Hudson Soft. It's often referred to as a zelda clone because when you play it, you'll say, "My, this is just like The Legend of Zelda." This is intentional. The success of Zelda led to many imitators, and this is one of them. Granted, an imitation is never as good as the original, but Neutopia holds true to all the main Zelda staples, making it an enjoyable experience.

The story of Neutopia sounds awfully familiar: the evil demon Dirth has captured the eight medallions along with Princess Aurora (will he put her in a deep sleep?). The protagonist, a kid named Jazeta, must rescue them. There's no backstory on Jazeta at all, yet everyone praises him throughout the game, saying "Only you can save us" and stuff like that. Jazeta never says a word, of course. You'll have to go to eight different dungeons (called labyrinths in the game) in order to retrieve the medallions, spanning four different spheres (worlds).

You'll start out with a sword, shield, and armor. There are armor and weapon upgrades hidden in the dungeons, and they will change the color of Jazeta's outfit, which is neat. You'll definitely want to get the upgrades, otherwise enemy attacks will do a lot more damage.

Just like in Zelda, the overworld map is covered in enemies and you have to talk to people to find out where to go. You first must acquire the compass, which will always point towards the next labyrinth. You'll want to talk to as many people as possible to know what to do. However, everyone lives in caves or holes in the ground. Some caves you'll have to bomb with your boom bombs, others you'll have to push stones to find. Everyone seems to know what's going on except poor Jazeta. Old wise men will tell you about Dirth, certain items, where to go, or give you a hint about the upcoming dungeon.

The Shrine is where you'll return to after you beat each dungeon. The medallion you acquired (which looks more like a jewel) will be placed in one of the spots. After beating the first two dungeons, the way to the next sphere will open, a whole new overworld to explore. After beating those two dungeons another sphere will open up. There are four spheres in all: earth, fire, water, and sky.

The game can be painfully obvious in what to do and where to go. Inbetween the first and second dungeons, one old man told me, "I cannot allow you to go any further if you do not possess the fire wand. Go back to the island, cross the bridge and push the stones to find some needed help." Wow, could you be more specific? Old wise men can be so to-the-point. However, the game can also be confusing at times. In the water sphere, one man says that Orian is north of your location, but another man says north isn't always north. That's one way to confuse poor Jazeta! C'mon, guys, he's just a kid! So Neutopia can really be up and down when it comes to directions.

You will need certain objects to progress in the game, such as the lantern (which will light up dark rooms) and the Rainbow Drop (which makes short bridges for you to cross gaps). You won't acquire these items in a dungeon, but somewhere on the overworld (it's called exploring). And believe me, everyone will tell you that you need the item before getting to the dungeon. Remember that this game is imitating the original Zelda, not A Link to the Past, which would come out the following year, so you won't get any items in the dungeons.

The dungeons themselves are fine, although very simple. The only "puzzles" in the dungeons include pushing random stones to open doors and defeating all the enemies in a room. Sometimes a room will have about 15 stones, and you have to go to each one and push against it, trying to figure out which one moves. Simple stuff, but remember this is 1990. The first thing you want to do in every dungeon is find the crystal ball, which will give you the layout of the entire dungeon on your map. Next you'll want to acquire the "key to the crypt," which is the Boss Key. Sound familiar? The bosses are very simple, usually just moving and shooting something at you. No real strategy is required to beat them, just move out of the way and then hit them. The bosses range from a giant dragon to twin bat creatures to a giant crab, so the variety is good.

There's a good variety of enemies throughout the game. You'll recognize most of them as being rip-offs from Zelda, but some of them are unique. One sticking point here is that the hit detection can be off, which is frustrating. An enemy will be just above Jazeta and to the right and somehow will hit him; some projectiles will not quite touch Jazeta and yet will register as a hit. This annoyance will make you play very cautiously, especially if you're low on life. I ended up using the fire wand most the time as a precaution because it shoots out fire in front of you, but it's not as powerful as you sword. Oh, and there's a beeping noise when you're about to die (just like in Zelda).

The music in Neutopia is pretty good, vibrant and beaty, which is just the kind I like in games. However, the loop for the songs is pretty short, meaning you'll hear it a lot, especially the dungeon theme and the boss theme, but they're good nonetheless. Listen to a couple of my favorites below.

Neutopia also has very nice graphics, full of bright colors and detailed sprites. The enemy designs, while nothing amazing today, are interesting and distinct, and the bosses are very detailed. So Neutopia is enjoyable to hear and see.

Final Verdict--4 Stars: Recommended

Neutopia is a fun little game. It's not a difficult game or very long, but the overall experience is enjoyable. The minor problems it has can be overlooked when the game is looked at as a whole. Sure, it's just a zelda clone, an imitation of an amazing game, and an imitation is never as good as the original, but atleast it's a good imitation. It doesn't do anything new, but that's me speaking about it 24 years later; back in 1990, Neutopia must have very impressive. The colorful graphics and vibrant music far surpass The Legend of Zelda, although A Link to the Past would soon ape those features. If you enjoy action adventure games, Neutopia is worth your time.

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