Douglas's game of the week: Magi Nation

Sim Kid · 07-26-2004, 03:30 PM

I'm sure none of you have heard of Magi Nation or even seen the cards until I posted images of some of the cards in "I've got Pictures of people from VGF again!" in the Misc. Forum. Magi Nation is not only a card game Yu-Gi-oh Fanboys bash for half-ass-reasons, but it is probably one of the most neglected Gameboy Games ever.

The graphics of Magi Nation are alright. They don't use much Light Colours, they instead use Medium-to-dark colours. The Character Models are more or less just a few pallette swaps of eachother (Mainly the townsfolk), the portraits when the people are talking all show some originality (Most of the special characters get their own, and there are alot of special characters here), and the Character models look alright too-I like how Eidon and Foney Bones-Err Tony Jones looks. Tony Jones even has Saggy Pants. The Backgrounds look alright, sure, some of the earlier Shadow Geyser backgrounds are just bleh, but the backgrounds in the Shadow Hold and 5th Shadow Geyser are probably one of the best ever on the gameboy Colour. And the Dream Creatures aren't just Pokemon ripoffs, where Pokemon are trying to be cute, the Dream Creature designs are more or less "Pokemon Grown up" in the words of one of the few INTELLIGENT gamefaqers who review there. (Suprisingly, almost all of the gamefaqers who reviewed Magi Nation or post at that message board ARE intelligent. O_O)

Magi Nation's plot starts out using some recycled elements, how Tony Jones falls into Magi Nation after getting a crystal from a cave (Or else some people will call him "Foney Bones" [img]tongue.gif[/img] ), he's trying to get home, they think he's the incarnation of a wizard named Magus Kyros, and then he summons dream creatures to defeat his enemies. Sure, in the beginning, it starts out a bit recycled, but when he reaches the Underneath, after Tony Jones says he's the great Magus Kyros and then everybody acts Shocked and then they tell him to leave after the Shadow Geyser. Then in the Cald, he is looked down upon at first. And after the fourth Shadow Geyser, it throws something out somewhat unexpected. The Storyline is trying to be serious, but it is trying to be funny sometimes. Korg and Zet are absolutley hillarious with Korg's stupidity and Zet's unknown genius. Other Magi are also just trying to be funny by saying a few memorable quotes like on the card game. (Gorgor= [img]graemlins/lol.gif[/img] )

The game is a bit on the hard side-This is not the kind of game where you can just breeze through with just one Dream Creature. The Bosses are all challenging and involve quite a bit of leveling up. The First official boss, Togoth, will NOT AT ALL go easy on you (Though if you have 3 Wasperines, then it'll be a cinch), the 2nd boss, Ogar, had an extremely annoying Shadow Geyser and her Chaos Jiles can literally take your party down in one hit, and Zet is probably one of the HARDEST bosses EVER. (Cunning Blow=

) Still, later on when facing bosses like Zet or Morag, Hyrens, the legendary Ormagon (Hidden Dream creature and limited edition card), a very high-level Leaf Chogo, and Chaos Jiles are your best friends. Heck, you even have the choice to skip the 4th shadow Geyser boss (Even though you'll have to fight her in the 5th shadow geyser if you do, but she's much easier if you level up in between those two areas).

The Music is more or less just a "Take it or leave it", like most other Gameboy Titles. The Boss music was really well done though, it didn't really sound like a regular boss. The Shadow Geyser music also gets annoying after awhile, and the final Battle music is repetetive but it really is catchy.

While some pokemon fanboys may be accusing Magi Nation of ripping off Pokemon, getting the Dream Creatures is very different. Not only do you have to kill them first to get the 100 EXP required for each level, but you have to get their animite too. The Animite is not only used as Currency, but you can use it to forge rings to summon the dream creatures. You can have up to four per battle, but that also means that the enemy can have up to four too, and if they're 4 Chaos Jiles (I hate Consume.

), then you'll need the strongest ones. Sometimes, you'll only need just 1 animite, but other times you'll need more than that, and sometimes, you even need quite a few other animites. Not quite a Pokemon ripoff, as you can see.

There is some mild replay value, like the Secret Start (Restart with all your current stats and dream creatures), the Ormagon side-quest (Which is very easy to miss), the core ringsmith (If you have a Chaos Jile and Core Hyren, then you'll be invincible), the Hyrens, and a few other stuff (Like the Lightning spell and the spell "updraft", Aderrial spells).

Overall, Magi Nation is definatley one of the best Game Boy games period. If you think all monster catching RPGs involve the Yellow Rat or that shame-to-all known as Dokapon (Don't EVER waste time on that), then think again-There's Magi Nation, and Tony Jones CERTAINLY desereves to be on Neglected Characters (Hey, I'm like the only one here who even KNOWS who the hell he is unless Yuuki or Angelic from STF show up). Small annoyances occurr, like how annoying some Shadow Geysers and the godammed Shadow Hold, but that still can't stop Magi Nation from being one of the best and funniest games on the game boy. 9.45/10

Pros:
-=They successfully add humour to a semi-serious game=-
-=Some Dungeons are very extensive=-
-=Hyrens=-
-=A somewhat recycled plot becomes original later on.=-
-=Some of the themes are pretty catchy=-
-=A nice way to grab the dream creatures=-
-=The Ormagon is indeed in the game=-
-=Korg and Zet=-

Cons:
-=Some of the dungeons are VERY long and easy to get lost in=-
-=How freaking hard Zet is when you fight him=-
-=The bosses are hard=-
-=Some of the musics are "meh"=-
-=The Ormagon is easy to miss=-

Codiekitty · 07-31-2004, 01:45 PM

With what I've heard of the game from Flying Omelette, I doubt this game would be as good as Dragon Warrior Monsters.

FO described finding the ultimate monster as "When I was reading the FAQ, I thought the person was making this stuff up. I mean, "Circle this rock three times counter-clockwise?" And nobody in the game ever mentions anything like that. But I tried it, and it worked."

Where are these lemmings going? The Super Nintendo Super Shire! Hop in line and follow them there!

Mr.Hammermap · 07-31-2004, 10:54 PM

Magi Nation came before Yu-Gi-Oh. So Yu-Gi-Oh must be a clone. It seriously came a year later.

Woffums · 08-01-2004, 05:33 PM

Hello, I am a moron, my feet taste like corn dogs. Quack!

[ August 07, 2004, 10:45 PM: Message edited by: Digi ]

Sim Kid · 08-07-2004, 11:34 PM

I read Flying Omlette's review. She did bring up some really good points, but when she says it's so slow, she sorta magnifies that drawback, though my cartridge (And many others) weren't as slow as she describes it.

When she describes the storyline and says:

Quote:

It is one part Secret of Evermore (Tony gets lost in a fantasy world and has to find his way home), one part Secret of Mana (something bad happens, and all the townspeople blame it on you), and one part Working Designs-wannabe (lots and lots of dumb jokes.)

To me, that sorta sounds like she didn't even complete the game, or she did but didn't listen to the Dialogue. Because near the end...

Spoiler Below

...Tony Jones is revealed NOT to be the great Magus Kyros, and HE is the reason for all the Shadow Geysers to appear. The reason being was that because he appeared in Magi Nation, his very presence(sp) allowed Morag to create a Shadow Geyser in a realm he was in (In the Naroom Shadow Geyser, Tony had been there quite a while and then it appeared, in the Underneath, Tony had also been there awhile, in the Cald Shadow Geyser, Tony was RIGHT there when Morag created the Shadow Geyser, for the Orothe Shadow geyser...Well, it was probably created because the Shadow Hold was really close to Orote and same with Aderrial (Tony was at the Core Gate, which is RIGHT below the Aderrial realm). And as it turns out, the propechy was a WARNING, and that the Great Magus Kyros would mean the Destruction of Magi Nation, not saving it.

The only other bad thing with the review is that it seems like she's comparing it to lots of other games, mainly Square games. Plus, near the end (Mainly Orothe and Aderrial) they sorta skip most of the jokes (Though what Tony called Agram in Aderrial was actually quite funny) and went to finish the story.

Though she REALLY DID bring up some good points.

[ August 07, 2004, 11:36 PM: Message edited by: Digi ]

Codiekitty · 08-08-2004, 10:06 AM

FO occasionally talks about it around the forums once in a while.

In her Alundra 2 review topic...

Quote:

If I had to choose between mute protagonists that are done well like Flint or Ness, I'd gladly take them over characters like Tony in Magi-Nation who talk, but never have anything interesting to say.

And she did complete the game. She does her best to complete all games she reviews. Out of the ones she's reviewed that are actually completable (*cough*Overlord*cough*), she said the only one she never finished was Snake Rattle & Roll. I just don't think she was willing to put spoilers, even with the spoiler tags.

Although her Pokemon comment, I admit, was a little odd. Water isn't the only type that's strong against Rock. Fighting, Ground, and Grass are also strong against Rock. So's Steel, but I think we're just talking about in Red and Blue.

This was also one of her earlier works.

Where are these lemmings going? The Super Nintendo Super Shire! Hop in line and follow them there!

Sim Kid · 08-08-2004, 03:16 PM

Well, It sounded like she didn't complete it or didn't pay attention to the dialogue near the end-Because when she says it's one part Secret of Evermore and one part Secret of Mana, she's only describing the events around the beginning and Naroom and the start of the Cald.

But still, her more recent reviews were MUCH better. (Of course, my earlier reviews were alot worse, and my gamefaqer reviews were more or less some of my earlier reviews)

***Heroine of the Dragon*** · 08-12-2004, 03:25 AM

I have this game!!!! I'm trying to remember why I didn't finish it... bah... anyways, nice review!! *gives Douglas marshmallows*

Gumby, dammit · 08-13-2004, 06:23 PM

Great review. Phony Bones... heh heh...

Wasn't Mr.Woffums banned already? Did he make a new account?

07-26-2004, 03:30 PM	#1
Sim Kid Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The state of Denial Gender: Posts: 8,884 Thanks: 80 Thanked 198 Times in 122 Posts	I'm sure none of you have heard of Magi Nation or even seen the cards until I posted images of some of the cards in "I've got Pictures of people from VGF again!" in the Misc. Forum. Magi Nation is not only a card game Yu-Gi-oh Fanboys bash for half-ass-reasons, but it is probably one of the most neglected Gameboy Games ever. The graphics of Magi Nation are alright. They don't use much Light Colours, they instead use Medium-to-dark colours. The Character Models are more or less just a few pallette swaps of eachother (Mainly the townsfolk), the portraits when the people are talking all show some originality (Most of the special characters get their own, and there are alot of special characters here), and the Character models look alright too-I like how Eidon and Foney Bones-Err Tony Jones looks. Tony Jones even has Saggy Pants. The Backgrounds look alright, sure, some of the earlier Shadow Geyser backgrounds are just bleh, but the backgrounds in the Shadow Hold and 5th Shadow Geyser are probably one of the best ever on the gameboy Colour. And the Dream Creatures aren't just Pokemon ripoffs, where Pokemon are trying to be cute, the Dream Creature designs are more or less "Pokemon Grown up" in the words of one of the few INTELLIGENT gamefaqers who review there. (Suprisingly, almost all of the gamefaqers who reviewed Magi Nation or post at that message board ARE intelligent. O_O) Magi Nation's plot starts out using some recycled elements, how Tony Jones falls into Magi Nation after getting a crystal from a cave (Or else some people will call him "Foney Bones" [img]tongue.gif[/img] ), he's trying to get home, they think he's the incarnation of a wizard named Magus Kyros, and then he summons dream creatures to defeat his enemies. Sure, in the beginning, it starts out a bit recycled, but when he reaches the Underneath, after Tony Jones says he's the great Magus Kyros and then everybody acts Shocked and then they tell him to leave after the Shadow Geyser. Then in the Cald, he is looked down upon at first. And after the fourth Shadow Geyser, it throws something out somewhat unexpected. The Storyline is trying to be serious, but it is trying to be funny sometimes. Korg and Zet are absolutley hillarious with Korg's stupidity and Zet's unknown genius. Other Magi are also just trying to be funny by saying a few memorable quotes like on the card game. (Gorgor= [img]graemlins/lol.gif[/img] ) The game is a bit on the hard side-This is not the kind of game where you can just breeze through with just one Dream Creature. The Bosses are all challenging and involve quite a bit of leveling up. The First official boss, Togoth, will NOT AT ALL go easy on you (Though if you have 3 Wasperines, then it'll be a cinch), the 2nd boss, Ogar, had an extremely annoying Shadow Geyser and her Chaos Jiles can literally take your party down in one hit, and Zet is probably one of the HARDEST bosses EVER. (Cunning Blow= ) Still, later on when facing bosses like Zet or Morag, Hyrens, the legendary Ormagon (Hidden Dream creature and limited edition card), a very high-level Leaf Chogo, and Chaos Jiles are your best friends. Heck, you even have the choice to skip the 4th shadow Geyser boss (Even though you'll have to fight her in the 5th shadow geyser if you do, but she's much easier if you level up in between those two areas). The Music is more or less just a "Take it or leave it", like most other Gameboy Titles. The Boss music was really well done though, it didn't really sound like a regular boss. The Shadow Geyser music also gets annoying after awhile, and the final Battle music is repetetive but it really is catchy. While some pokemon fanboys may be accusing Magi Nation of ripping off Pokemon, getting the Dream Creatures is very different. Not only do you have to kill them first to get the 100 EXP required for each level, but you have to get their animite too. The Animite is not only used as Currency, but you can use it to forge rings to summon the dream creatures. You can have up to four per battle, but that also means that the enemy can have up to four too, and if they're 4 Chaos Jiles (I hate Consume. ), then you'll need the strongest ones. Sometimes, you'll only need just 1 animite, but other times you'll need more than that, and sometimes, you even need quite a few other animites. Not quite a Pokemon ripoff, as you can see. There is some mild replay value, like the Secret Start (Restart with all your current stats and dream creatures), the Ormagon side-quest (Which is very easy to miss), the core ringsmith (If you have a Chaos Jile and Core Hyren, then you'll be invincible), the Hyrens, and a few other stuff (Like the Lightning spell and the spell "updraft", Aderrial spells). Overall, Magi Nation is definatley one of the best Game Boy games period. If you think all monster catching RPGs involve the Yellow Rat or that shame-to-all known as Dokapon (Don't EVER waste time on that), then think again-There's Magi Nation, and Tony Jones CERTAINLY desereves to be on Neglected Characters (Hey, I'm like the only one here who even KNOWS who the hell he is unless Yuuki or Angelic from STF show up). Small annoyances occurr, like how annoying some Shadow Geysers and the godammed Shadow Hold, but that still can't stop Magi Nation from being one of the best and funniest games on the game boy. 9.45/10 Pros: -=They successfully add humour to a semi-serious game=- -=Some Dungeons are very extensive=- -=Hyrens=- -=A somewhat recycled plot becomes original later on.=- -=Some of the themes are pretty catchy=- -=A nice way to grab the dream creatures=- -=The Ormagon is indeed in the game=- -=Korg and Zet=- Cons: -=Some of the dungeons are VERY long and easy to get lost in=- -=How freaking hard Zet is when you fight him=- -=The bosses are hard=- -=Some of the musics are "meh"=- -=The Ormagon is easy to miss=-

07-31-2004, 01:45 PM	#2
Codiekitty Just Another Face in Red Jumpsuit Join Date: May 2001 Location: Lemmingland Gender: Posts: 19,142 Thanks: 121 Thanked 176 Times in 121 Posts	With what I've heard of the game from Flying Omelette, I doubt this game would be as good as Dragon Warrior Monsters. FO described finding the ultimate monster as "When I was reading the FAQ, I thought the person was making this stuff up. I mean, "Circle this rock three times counter-clockwise?" And nobody in the game ever mentions anything like that. But I tried it, and it worked." Where are these lemmings going? The Super Nintendo Super Shire! Hop in line and follow them there!

07-31-2004, 10:54 PM	#3
Mr.Hammermap Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: POUNDS OF BEER Posts: 479 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Magi Nation came before Yu-Gi-Oh. So Yu-Gi-Oh must be a clone. It seriously came a year later.

08-01-2004, 05:33 PM	#4
Woffums Banned Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: The Penis jar Posts: 12 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Hello, I am a moron, my feet taste like corn dogs. Quack! [ August 07, 2004, 10:45 PM: Message edited by: Digi ]

08-08-2004, 03:16 PM	#7
Sim Kid Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The state of Denial Gender: Posts: 8,884 Thanks: 80 Thanked 198 Times in 122 Posts	Well, It sounded like she didn't complete it or didn't pay attention to the dialogue near the end-Because when she says it's one part Secret of Evermore and one part Secret of Mana, she's only describing the events around the beginning and Naroom and the start of the Cald. But still, her more recent reviews were MUCH better. (Of course, my earlier reviews were alot worse, and my gamefaqer reviews were more or less some of my earlier reviews)

08-12-2004, 03:25 AM	#8
*Heroine of the Dragon* The Grinnie Fool! ♥♥♥ VGFCodes Staff Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Twinklebutton Wintersprout Gender: Posts: 31,454 Thanks: 864 Thanked 851 Times in 632 Posts Blog Entries: 1	I have this game!!!! I'm trying to remember why I didn't finish it... bah... anyways, nice review!! gives Douglas marshmallows

08-13-2004, 06:23 PM	#9
Gumby, dammit Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Rats th01 Gender: Posts: 1,240 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Great review. Phony Bones... heh heh... Wasn't Mr.Woffums banned already? Did he make a new account?