Review

“Six Stones with Unimaginable Power”

Publisher: Capcom + Great Gameplay
+ World Map
+ Colorful Visuals
Developer: Capcom
Genre: Action RPG
Released: 11/1994
ESRB: NA

- Long password entrys each time you play
- This one sold BAD. Not really a “Bad” though
–

Platform: SNES Only

What’s the story: Demon’s Crest stars the demon Firebrand, and is the third game in the Gargoyles Quest series. The fist game was released in “mono-chrome” for the original Game Boy in1990. The second game in the series, Gargoyle’s Quest II: The Demon Darkness was released late in the life of the NES, 1992.


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The story is obviously about Firebrand and his attempt to gain control of 6 Elemental Crests (Fire, Earth, Water, Air, Time, and Heaven). It is said when all crests are combined the crest of Infinity will appear giving Firebrand the ability to conquer all realms. In his attempt to gain the Crest of Heaven from the Demon Dragon, Firebrand is wounded giving his nemesis, Phalanx, the perfect opportunity to attack and steal the crests for himself. During Firebrand’s battle with Phalanx the Crest of Fire is broken into pieces – one of which is in his possession and is the reason the hero can still shoot fire. Firebrand falls to earth, awakens in the Colosseum, and the game begins.

retro_review_demonscrest_04 Whats to like: Demon’s Crest has just my kind of mix of action and exploration. After the opening battle you’ll find yourself in the games first stage, the Colosseum Graveyard. After completing this area you’ll initially have your choice on of four areas to explore (out of seven). As always with Capcom, each vastly different area looks and sounds great.

retro_review_demonscrest_09 With each major boss you defeat, Firbrand will gain a crest with a new ability attached to it. For instance, the first is the “Earth Crest”. When its equipped, Firebrand will be able knock stone fountains out of the way revealing entirely new areas to explore. This method gives the game a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night sort of feel, and makes “backtracking” fun.

retro_review_demonscrest_05 Collecting spells, bottles to put them in, heart containers, talismans, magic potions and other equipment during the journey should keep you busy for quite a while. You’ll swear you need just one more heart container to defeat whichever boss is giving you trouble. And bosses will be giving you trouble because Demon’s Crest is a tough game offering up quite a challenge for those embarking on Firebrand’s long quest.


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retro_review_demonscrest_14 Whats not to like: There are certainly more important aspects to a game then the method in which you enter a password, but what can I say, the password system in Demon’s Crest is a flat out pain in the ass. 26 letters to scroll through and enter into 16 slots makes firing up your saved game take much longer then it should.  The only good thing about this is that you’ll never have to worry about losing a saved game to a dead battery – a common problem now for carts from the 90′s. Other then this minor annoyance, DC is a solid action adventure game.

Check out some gameplay from Demon’s Crest in the video below.


Score
Overall

 

Demon’s Crest is an underrated gem that got lost in the awesome library of the SNES. Capcom was really hitting their stride on the system, releasing classic after classic. It’s unfortunate this one never got the attention it deserved. The gameplay reminds me of Duck Tales mixed with Mega Man X, but set in the world of Ghouls N Ghost. Wether or not that makes any sense to you isn’t important. What is important is that if you love 2D platformers or Action RPGs, you’ll love Demon’s Crest. It’s only available on the SNES, and the $25 “cartridge only”  price tag is well worth it.

 
User Score: [ratings]

 




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