I’ve tried my hand a few roguelikes over the years and while I’m not particularly great at them I find the challenges that they offer to be one of their most endearing qualities. One particular category of the roguelike market is the Mystery Dungeon series that is comprised mainly of titles made by Spike Chunsoft. This series of games sadly are not really widely known here in North America due to their largely Japan only releases. The very few exceptions that we do get include the Shiren the Wanderer series which I’ll be covering with the release of Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate for the PlayStation Vita.
I’ll give you a moment to process that name before I shorten that right down to Tower of Fortune as this is the fifth title in the Shiren series. You play as series lead and namesake Shiren who travels the land to find his next adventure with his faithful ferret Koppa. Did I mention he can talk and lay down the occasional smack amidst giving helpful incite. After doing the diligent RPG staple of talking to everyone in the beginning town you come across a dying girl and a boy that won’t take her fate of dying so young as truth.
This lays down the basis of the story that you will embark upon though fate may other plans for your attempts to get to the end of this tale. They say that if you can climb the tower and face the god of Destiny, Reeva, you can change your fate. As I found out that journey to the top is a frustrating yet enjoyable one once you learn the ropes. Starting with a trip to the aptly named Beginner House, you can complete several training quests to learn all the things you can use to survive each of dungeons.
The looming theme of the game, fate, is bound determined though to give you more than a moment’s pause to ponder if such a feat is possible. Each of the dungeons many floors are randomly generated in their layout and the enemies and even NPCs that you will find there. At first glance, especially if you head straight into action or completely ignore the brief tutorial; you would think Tower of Fortune’s combat was a simple affair in the likes of Zelda. In all reality, Tower of Fortune is instead a turned based RPG where ever action made by the player causes the enemies on the map make moves of their own.
Players must carefully plan out their moves as they move through each floor of things could turn bad in a blink of an eye. Not only are enemies found on each floor but there are traps that you will stumble upon as well. Some will hit the player with a status effect while others may transport the player to another part of the level. The former could prove particularly fatal if you end up in an area filled with monsters. How you navigate through each floor is a key way to stop some unfortunate deaths from occurring. One feature to aid players is the ability to move or attack diagonally instead of setting yourself up to taking more damage by making extra moves to hit them from a square adjacent. On the upside Shiren does regain health by moving around the level or by moving in place with a quick button combo.
The unfortunate truth about fate is that you won’t escape the icy cold fingers of death as you meet your demise by some often times the cheapest of attacks or fatal wrong move more than once. This is where the real roguelike nature of the title comes into play. Every time you die in a dungeon you lose everything your carrying. That sword that you’ve been leveling up and destroying foes with can be lost forever, as well as all the items and gold you’re carrying. You can even loose it if you don’t leave the game properly. Yeah Tower of Fortune doesn’t play around. To make things tougher, if you do manage to survive a dungeon your gear retains its levels but you do not as you reset to level one at the start of each dungeon.
There is one real way to safeguard items and gear outside of not dying and that is to deposit your items and gold into storage and only carry what you absolutely need into battle. I only avoided losing a lot of gear having scoured ever corner of the Nekomaneki Village before really heading out into the dungeons. The village also acts as the main hub for much of your adventures. Much like the Beginning House in the starting town, Nekomaneki features a few building worth frequenting like the Dungeon Center and Hotel Nekomaneki. The first is a way to experience different dungeons and play mini-games for prizes. Those prizes can be either sold for Gildan (money) or stored in storage for later use. The more you progress in the game you will unlock new shops of things do as well.
Among the things that then shop offers is the ability to aid or rescue friends or other random people that have collapsed in their own games if you carry the required items such as a Revive Leaf. I managed one save by pure chance during my play run with a random stranger so your experience with this feature may vary greatly. If you have a friend nearby with the game you can enjoy either special Co-Op or Versus Mode dungeons that cannot be found in the main story to compete or work together in as an added means of play.
Everything you do in Tower of Fortune is presented in a colorful palette that looks great on the Vita’s screen considering it was originally released on the Nintendo DS. The developers made full use of the Vita’s wider screen to offer players a clean presentation with nicely created character sprites and animations. The menus are customizable in both style and color for those seeking a bit of personal style among other options. The sound effects like the roar of fire lit chalices and the score sound great and really fit with this old school style adventure.
I have to say that Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate was not the RPG that I was expecting going in but it grew on me. I’ve always liked a challenge with RPGs even growing up and this one doesn’t disappoint. Newcomers to the Mystery Dungeon genre of roguelikes may find Tower of Fortune pretty daunting as it seems that this title is geared more towards veteran players. That said, if you take the time to complete the tutorials and get a good feel for the game then, you might just find that is in your fate to enjoy Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate for the PlayStation Vita.
