๐ Received: May 23rd, 2022 ๐ Written: November 9th-12th, 2022 ๐
Alternate Title: Kisuishล Densetsu Astal [ ⬤ ]
Year: 1995 | Developed and Published by: Sega
Hello, gamers and readers, welcome to my blog, and thank you for taking the time to tune in today, I really appreciate it. ๐ Let's review another Saturn game, I say. I'm very excited to talk about this one.
With Sonic the Hedgehog yet to make a formal 32-bit console appearance during its early lifespan, Sega had to fill in a gap until the day a Sonic game arrived.
Images from GameFAQs
Kisuishล Densetsu Astal would be released in Japan on April 28th, 1995 and would be localized in North America by Sega of America as simply Astal nearly five months later on September 27th of that year; the American version was produced by Erik Wahlberg and Bill Person, product managed by Lori Von Rueden, and translated to English by Osamu Shibamiya. Sadly, it never saw a European PAL release.
But unbeknownst to Astal he is unknowingly helping Jerado, for each time a guardian has been defeated their essence gets collected by Geist which makes Jerado regain some of his lost strength.
Left: The Journey Begins | Right: Stumbling across a caged bird, and a group of yellow gem enemies
In the 2D sidescrolling platformer Astal you take control of the eponymous human created by Antowas through the red gem, whom you can move left and right, double tap either direction to make him run, hold down to duck, jump up in the air with the C button with your gained altitude based on how hard you pressed it, pounce an enemy while airborne by pressing B in the air, press down and B simultaneously to punch the ground,
Left: "Get away from me, you stupid bird, quit following me!" | Right: Tossing a tree to level the enemies at once
exhale a huge gust of wind by holding up and then pressing the B button, and with the normal B button use you can grab an enemy or large obstacle within range and press it again to toss said enemy behind you or lug said obstacle above your head until you toss it across from you or towards the backdrop by pressing the B button once more. Once you free the bird she will act as your companion throughout the course of the game whom Astal can give a command with the A button,
Left: Charging ahead | Right: Grabbing the large purple gem enemy and proceeding to lunge it
of which you've got three options which you can select from with either shoulder button (provided that you've got enough of your gauge filled): the blue option to have the bird bring you a fruit which will replenish one or two bits of health (and on rare occasions, a free man), the red option to have the bird perform a special attack, and the yellow option which pops up any time there's an exclamation mark which can make the bird perform a special function depending on the situation.
Left: Occasionally must beware of the swarm of winged eyeballs that crowd the upper half of this cave | Right: Coming face to face with an Evil Eye
The bird companion has her own set of controls provided you've got a second controller on hand, but during one pivotal moment can be controlled with the first controller while Astal is briefly out of commission: A to land or take off, B to attack, or C to divebomb. Along the way, aside from contending with enemies (whether you dispose of them or hop on them) and overcoming specific obstacles, you will come across a red fruit which replenishes one bit of health or a green fruit which fills up all your health, and if you dispose of a glowing enemy your gauge will gradually fill itself up.
Left: Pouncing the Evil Eye | Right: Along comes Geist the essence collector
Astal has got an incredibly beautiful visual aesthetic, the art direction by Mika Okada (who also created the title design along with Hiroyuki Kawaguchi and also worked on the background with Naoko Hamada Higashi, Kawaguchi, Masahiro Sanpei, and Sarori Wada) is eyepopping and imaginatively creative with every area of Quartalia having their own distinct design, look, level of detail, and feel to them. There is not one area that looks the same, and they are all fascinating to look at.
Left: I can't, the way the bird preps itself like Astal at the start of certain areas is so cute! ๐ญ | Right: Advancing ahead
The first area, The Journey Begins, has got lush painterly strokes and has got a masterful use of parallax scrolling (including the trees in the foreground that appear fuzzy to give off a depth of field), The Deep Forest is visually mesmerizing with the background and water constantly shifting colors throughout, I love how Volcanic Valley has got an ominously infernal air about it with the sizzling mountainous backdrops due to the atmospherically incessant heat, conversely Glacial Rift is so frigid with a chilly atmospheric ambient with all the ice and snow abound, The Plains of Destiny has got an aptly arid quality given its desert setting, and The Destiny Unfolds where you fight against Geist starts off with the playing field encompassed by clouds.
Left: Pouncing the blue gem enemy | Right: Hopping from flying enemy to flying enemy
The titular character Astal has got a solid, distinct design with his overlong red hair and equally colored eyes with an unwavering look of determination and has got a good set of animations with his walking and running animations, the way he prepares to blow a gust of wind and lets it out afterward with his hair momentarily being blown in the same direction. The bird that accompanies you is so adorably designed and endearing too with the way that she flies by your side and occasionally attacks enemies should you command her to, and it's absolutely cute how she preps her wings the way that Astal does during the beginning of certain areas. I like how they both have shadows or, when standing on an icy structure during Glacial Rift, their own reflection which is a great touch.
Left: Sailing on the River of Dreams | Right: POUND
I love how, like the protagonists, many of the recurring enemies you face are all gem-based: like the pointy-eared gem enemies who hop along and occasionally flip around, the bird-like gem enemies who've got one half of the gem protruding from both the front and the back (which allows certain ones to remain in tandem with one another), the pointy gem enemies who are sharp to the touch, et al, and how they hide in their gems upon the ground being punched or the way they shatter upon being pounced and/or blown away by Astal. Among the enemies who are not gem-based are these creepy-looking grabbers who'll attempt to steal the bird from you, fiery dragons emanating from the lava, and a grotesquely designed giant bug who is massively imposing in size and stature.
If you withhold from pressing Start after watching the prologue you will be greeted to an opening intro from the Tokyo Movie Shinsha (or TMS Entertainment* as it is currently known) animation company. Directed by Toshihiko Masuda with art direction by Toshiharu Mizutani, produced by Kลji Takeuchi, colored by Tomoko Sakai, and edited by Kawaguchi, Kamiko, Yoshio Inoue (who previously worked on the 3D cutscenes for Sega's Clockwork Knight), Okada, and Ryลซta Ueda,
* TMS Entertainment also worked on the animation for the anime series adaptations of Monkey Punch's Lupin the Third and Gosho Aoyama's Case Closed/Detective Conan, theatrically released anime films Katsuhiro Otomo's Akira as well as Masami Hata and William Hurtz's Nemo/Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland based on Winsor McCay's Little Nemo, and also worked on the animation for Western animated series like the Steven Spielberg-produced Tiny Toon Adventures and Animaniacs, Disney series DuckTales and Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers, and the '90s Animated Series based on DC Comics' Batman (RIP Kevin Conroy ๐ข) and Marvel Comics' Spider-Man
Left: Ducking down | Right: The Forest Fiend gained its strength from sucking the lifeforce of the flowers around it
The soundtrack to Astal was composed by Tatsuyuki Maeda and Tatsuya Kลzaki, with the music direction by Yukifumi Makino, and of the games I've played on the Sega Saturn it is arguably the most impressive soundtrack I've heard on Sega's 32-bit console, not only doing an impeccable job at crafting an appropriate level of atmospheric wonder for each area in Quartalia but also raising the bar for each and every upcoming track for the sound quality is unbelievably strong. I'm in love with Astal's music! ๐
Maeda did the music for Sega's Golden Axe III and was among a pantheon of composers over at Sonic Team who provided the music to Sega Technical Institute's Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles, after this game he would provide the music for J-Force and Sega's Dragon Force and
Left: Talk about uprooting oneself | Right: Feeling the power of the bird's special attack
From the get go the themes are an enthralling listen: The Journey Begins is such a riveting theme with epic grandiose instrumentation and composition starting Astal on a bang, Into the Darkness is such a breathtakingly beautiful soothing theme that it's become one of my favorites, The Deep Forest is very relaxing and meditative, Volcanic Valley is unrelentingly menacing which perfectly complements this area's red atmosphere and subsequent battle with the Guardian of Fire, Sea of Clouds is so epic with its surreal sense of wonder, Glacial Rift is incandescently beautiful to listen to with its occasionally psychedelic vibe (especially with the light guitar riff in the middle),
Left: Before dealing with that gem enemy, Astal must expunge its flames enveloping its body | Right: Snuffing out the fiery dragon-like obstacle
The Crystal Palace is an absolute banger with the piano melody and the rock guitar that it adds so much to this area's atmosphere that it is inspiring, and The Plains of Destiny is masterfully composed and is such a fitting ode to Astal's resolve to save Leda and restore Quartalia to its former glory. Destiny Unfolds is such a hectic and drum-heavy theme that adds to the fight against Geist and The Fight for the Future is as ominously foreboding and completely distorted as Jerado which is perfect given the do or die battle at hand.
Left: The fire dragon will always revive itself so long as it's got fire in its element ๐ฅ | Right: Lugging a giant rock doubling as a shield for the volcanic rocks hurtling your way
Maeda also composed and arranged the opening and ending songs "Let Me Try Again" and "Shining World", both directed by Shimizu and produced by Makoto Oshitani, and they are both incredible. The two songs in the original Japanese version Kisuishล Densetsu Astal had vocals, but in the American version Astal only the instrumentation was left intact as the vocals have been removed from the game proper.
Left: What a glorious boss entrance! ๐ The camera zooms out immediately as the bird signals the impending danger, the Guardian of Fire flies onscreen at the foreground, | Right: ... then makes a turn and slowly creeps towards your playing field, breathing fire towards you as it soars closer and closer
The sound effects are all solid, from the whoosh of Astal jumping in the air, to the tweets of your bird companion, to the sounds of Astal running to the sound of a horse trot, to the pottery shattering sound of the poor enemy who fell prey to the frigid snow that fell on it, to the authenticity of the finger snapping sound by Geist, to the dragon wail any time a dragon sprouts from the lava or when the Guardian of Fire flies towards you, et al,
Left: Tossing the Guardian of Fire's skeleton around | Right: Preparing for takeoff
The Japanese version had a voice cast comprising of Ai Orikasa (Astal), Yuri Shiratori (Leda), Aya Hisakawa (Antowas and the Narrator), Ryo Horikawa (Geist), and Daisuke Gลri (Jerado), but for the American release they would all be voiced by the same voice acting talent and impressionist Lani Minella who has got an excellent vocal range. Minella got her start providing voices and impressions for the LaserDisc release of Bill Kroyer's animated film FernGully: The Last Rainforest in 1992 and founded her own voice acting agency AudioGodz the same year. Some years later she was a voice casting director for 3D Realms' Duke Nukem 3D and helped cast Jon St. John as the voice actor of the title character.
Left: The venture continues in a Sea of Clouds | Right: Be mindful of the gravitational pull so long as you're here, though, for you'll be given additional airtime
During the large chunk of her thirty year career, following Astal, she would lend her voice acting and/or voiceover talents for many video games such as Eidetic's Bubsy 3D, Racdym's Snowboard Kids games, HeR Interactive's Nancy Drew franchise in her first major voice role, Sonic Team's Sonic franchise, CyberConnect's Tail Concerto, Eurocom's 40 Winks, Level-5's Professor Layton franchise, Bandai Namco's Soulcalibur series, HAL Laboratory's Super Smash Bros. series, Nintendo's Super Mario series, and Naughty Dog's The Last of Us games, just to name several. At 72 years old, Lani Minella is still in the business to this day.
Left: Punch out that creepy grabber | Right: Commanding the bird to momentarily render that moving platform as a stationary one
Due to the general brevity of each area in Quartalia, there are no checkpoints in the event that you lose a life as you'll be brought back to the beginning of the present area you were in the moment you lose your last health. In the options screen you have a choice to start the game off with anywhere from one to five lives. Sega of America, in their typical manner of making games harder for the American audience at the time, reduced the health capacity from five to three when it came to localizing Astal and whereas the original Japanese version had unlimited continues, the American version only had one solitary continue which I do think is harsh no matter the quality. Fortunately it is manageable to play through, for the most part.
Collage image from the Sonic Fandom website
This would be the only game to feature Astal in it, but after the game came out he would make a number of appearances in Archie's Sonic comics including one appearance by his bird companion in one commemorative issue.
Left: Suplex | Right: Glacial Rift
I forget how I first learned about Astal, but I do vaguely recall seeing a screenshot of it online several years ago on a random website and finding his character design interesting and the color palette looking appealing. I had honestly forgotten about this game's existence until I stumbled across Saturn Memories' longplay video of it on YouTube during the first month of owning a Saturn console back in May of this year:
I've shared my brief thoughts and experiences on my first four Saturn games back in June on my first Random Saturnday, and covered Clockwork Knight in full back in August
Sega's Clockwork Knight, which I got the day after I got the console on a perpetually rainy day, I found to be an enjoyably good game as well as an ideal entry point to the Saturn, which got me excited to try more games for the system (but within reason due to their price tags), and within the span of a month I got to play my second, third, and fourth Saturn venues Crystal Dynamics' Solar Eclipse, Core Design's Tomb Raider, and Astal. Being curious, I watched the Saturn Memories gameplay video only up to the first few areas which piqued my interest and made me want to play the game, but due to it being rare I was cautious when I decided to browse it on eBay, and luckily I found a copy within a repro case which was in the $60 range, and from the day the game arrived I've enjoyed it ever since. ๐
Left: That see-through icicle foreground adds so much atmospheric depth | Right: Awww, look how cute the bird is perching on Astal's shoulder! ๐ค
Astal is a highly enjoyable platformer, the premise behind it is lightheartedly endearing, and above all, it is absolutely gorgeous to boot. There are a couple instances that aesthetically remind me of Ludimedia's French-produced Rayman*, but I love the unique presentation of each area in Quartalia. Even though it is exclusively 2D there are areas and/or boss fights when the camera zooms out or back in to expand on the scale of the given area (if it hasn't been zoomed out already at the start): like during the fight against the Forest Fiend and the Guardian of Fire, shortly after starting The Crystal Palace the camera pulls out to reveal its vast size and scope, and during random portions of Volcanic Valley and The Plains of Destiny, et al.
* A game I grew up playing on the PlayStation One, this despite Rayman not making its debut until over four months after this game's Japanese release
Left: Tipping while standing on the edge | Right: That poor floor gem enemy got snowed on so hard that it's become an ice sculpture ๐ฅถ
In terms of scaling effects, Astal does a pretty good job at it and has got a polished look and feel throughout when it comes to the occasional camera zooms and whenever you have the bird retrieve a replenishing fruit as it flies offscreen and then returns to you. I found the story charming and liked how after defeating a boss the story progressed through a gem-adorned reel transfixed in front of a translucent backdrop of the constellations in the background with effective music box renditions of themes from areas you've been in (or have yet to visit).
Maybe it's me, but I couldn't help but notice that the bird looks like she's flapping her wings backwards in-game
I love Astal and the bird together, they make a great dynamic duo and are absolutely adorable together. ๐ฅฐ The bird especially, who proves to be a helpful ally right from the get go, as she will alert you of anything requiring special attention, like freezing a platform in place momentarily or striking through a couple stalactites which will cause them to fall down on the lava that way in the short amount of time that they're not melted Astal can jump on them like makeshift platforms to cross the wide gap, and can perform strong attacks against enemies and bosses should you command her to do so. She is also a very cute video game bird, but that's the icing on the cake, and it's funny how Astal freezes in position in midair for a brief second the moment he pounces an enemy in the air.
Left: Those spiky and pointy gem enemies will dive straight down the moment you move underneath them | Right: Blow them away
I like the different ways this game tries to challenge you: Into the Darkness is atmospheric in the way that it fluctuates between pitch black (with Astal and the bird's eyes glowing in the dark) and light with the occasional swarm of winged eyeball gem enemies fluttering in the upper half of the screen, The River of Dreams as you ride on a seaborne gem creature and must overcome certain obstacles and/or put up with winged gem enemies that whizz by, after bypassing the fire dragon enemies in Volcanic Valley you must evade the rocks sprouting from the volcano in the distance which splits into pieces upon crashing on the ground if not the rock you're carrying,
Left: Frostbite!! | Right: Bird to the rescue!!!
because you're above the clouds in Sea of Clouds you're given additional airtime due to the gravity boost which is something to take into account as you jump from platform to platform, in a latter portion of Glacial Rift you must run across a bridge that will start to crumble the moment you begin moving on it and contend with winged gem enemies on the way, and in The Plains of Destiny there's a giant bug who you must walk underneath as you wisely time your movement so as to not be stepped on by its legs that will eventually come to pursue you, to name several examples. Special shout out to the pointy-eared gem enemies that attempt to ambush you in The Journey Begins and The Plains of Destiny from the backdrop and even the foreground.
Left: The Plains of Destiny | Right: Giant mutated monstrosity of a bug
I love the buildup of the bosses prior to engaging in battle with them. In The Evil Eye the swarm of winged eyeball gem enemies collectively soar toward the top and when the camera pans upward there's a giant yellow orb that looks like a moon, right? But actually, it is a giant eyeball with an imposing stare. The Forest Fiend forms itself upon sucking the energy from the flowers and appears on the spot the moment the screen fades from black. The Guardian of Fire has the best set up for the boss fight as it executes its first move towards you with a breath of fire. Lastly Jerado is incredibly ominous as he slowly rises up from the crevice in The Fight for the Future.
Left: Walking under the mutant bug's legs | Right: Incoming pointy-eared gem enemy
The gameplay is fun and engaging, too, I like the different number of abilities that Astal uses to stun and/or dispose of his enemies along the way. It's unfortunate how Sega handled the American release, from what I read they neglected to put the game's title in the jewel case's spine which is what attributed to Astal's rare status (just one of a number of ways Sega of America let the Saturn down). That's too bad, really, because it is a really great game that fell under the radar, and one that can stand on its own two legs. With the way the story wraps itself up neatly and concisely, it's a game that I feel does not need to lend itself to a sequel.
If any Sega property that isn't Sonic is in demand of a sequel, it is their own MegaDrive/Genesis platformer Ristar, another underrated game which came out the same year as their Saturn-based Astal in early 1995. Sadly, it doesn't appear that it will happen at any point (which designer Akira Nishino confirmed in a 2006 interview, but has expressed he would love for that to happen and appreciated the feedback from fans), due to it failing to generate sales and exposure in its heyday
Left: Run away! | Right: Confronting Geist
If I do have any qualms with Astal is that its areas are very short, which makes it a bit of a short game (for Sega Saturn standards) at roughly fifty to sixty minutes at best. A lot of the time you're coming to grips with the gameplay in these areas with a pretty much straightforward layout, and before you know it the area is over just like that. There is a decent amount of challenge that makes up for that, but I still find it fun to play regardless even if the difficulty is manageable for a good chunk of it.
Left: Blowing at Geist like in the opening animation | Right: Counterattack
Where it becomes a bit less manageable, at least for me, is during the fights against Geist and Jerado at the end; mostly Geist, though, due to the fact that I can never accurately predict which side of the platform he's going to send his attack from a distance which causes damage should you get caught in it in the event that he's preparing to launch his missile-like attack. There is an invulnerability code which will last until the end of the current area (which is easy to remember: pause, then press up, Y, left, A, down, B, right, C, if you did it right you should hear the bird's tweet to let you know it worked), which I feel is the only way I can get through it. I'm sure it's possible to defeat Geist without the code with enough time and practice but having only a health of three and one continue at your disposal (if you didn't use it up by that point) doesn't really help matters. ๐
Left: It's all come down to this, the big battle against the big bad Jerado | Right: Hand pull!
But in the end, when all is said and done, I'm very pleased and satisfied with what Sega accomplished with Astal. ๐ It's a fun romp to play every once in a while, still has my favorite Saturn soundtrack (even after playing more games in the system I still feel this way), is the strongest of the Sonic stand-ins over Sega's Clockwork Knight games, and it quickly became one of my favorite action titles on Sega's 32-bit system. If you own a Saturn console, and if you can afford it, I recommend playing this game, though if you're searching for something with a bit more longevity to it you might want to look elsewhere; but otherwise if you're just looking for a fun platformer to play then this is a good one to look into if you get the chance. One of many good Sega alternatives to Sonic, Astal is a real hidden gem. ๐
My Personal Score: 8.5/10
Thank you for reading my review, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think (neither spam nor NSFW allowed); hope you have a great day, be a kind human, and take care! ๐
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