Faxanadu (NES Game)

Faxanadu is an action RPG in the same vein as Battle of Olympus. You play an unnamed character who returns home to find his hometown nearly abandoned. You'll make your way to the king who'll give you the scoop on everything that has happened and will send you on your way to make everything right.

In standard RPG fashion, you'll start with a little gold and practically nothing else. A visit to a few key shops will have you holding slightly more than nothing. Obviously as the game progresses, you'll acquire better weapons, armor, and a few magic items. You'll explore the vast expanses of the world tree as you attempt to find who is killing the tree and poisoning the water supply.

You'll meet many odd foes along your way. As a matter of fact, I can't think of any other NES game offhand that rivals Faxanadu for weird enemies. Faxanadu has become something of a cult favorite over the years, but the reason for the cult status is not immediately apparent. The opening screen and first town are pretty bland looking (it's a dying world, after all) and you'll probably find yourself wondering what kind of subpar adventure you've signed on for. Once you get a weapon and find your way into the world and kill a few baddies, you'll probably find yourself nodding in approval.

One of the things I don't like about the game are the mantras. These are the passwords given to you by the priest in whichever town you find yourself in. Faxanadu doesn't have a battery save feature, so you'll find yourself writing down long passwords. If you make a mistake in either writing down or entering the password,  you'll be up a creek.

Aside from the mantras, Faxanadu is a highly enjoyable game. There's a lot to explore, and many monsters whose deaths are highly satisfying. The villagers don't weigh you down with much extraneous information, and you quickly learn which villagers are of no use whatsoever (they're the same ones in every village). Faxanadu is a very good action RPG. I'd rank it above Zelda II and slightly below Battle of Olympus.