Swords and Serpents
Reviewed by The Aardvark
Swords and Serpents is a 3-D RPG. You select a team of 4 characters to enter the
maze and find your way to "The Serpent", a horrible monster that lives on the lowest
floor of a 16-floor dungeon. You can hand-create a team, or select a pre-made one. To
get to "The Serpent", you must find the 10 Ruby Artifacts of the fabled Ruby Warrior.
You must also find clues, fight monsters, solve puzzles, find weapons and magic items,
and seek out the advice of wise men hidden in the maze. This RPG is unique for a
couple of reasons. First, you can play with one player controlling the whole team,
two players controlling two members each, or 4 players controlling one member
each. Second, during combat, you can direct your hits at the head, midsection, or
legs of an enemy (different foes have different vulnerable spots). All in all, Swords
and Serpents is a unique and enjoyable challenge.
Graphics 4 out of 5
The screen is divided into three windows. One displays the maze as you move through
it; the second displays an automap; the third displays your party's stats, and also
messages when you find something or take an action. During battle, the maze window
displays the enemy, and the automap displays the number of enemies and their
strength. The enemies in this game are animated, and move in an eerie fashion during
the fight. Some of them, such as the ghoul, are very real looking and spooky! My only
complaints about the graphics is the lack of visual effects from spell casting, and
the fact that you cannot see enemies or traps at a distance.
Music and Sound 2.5 out of 5
The sound track of this game is limited. The maze music is too "heavy" to really be
enjoyed; the battle music is whinny and over-dramatized. A larger musical score,
especially when confronting special enemies (like the ominous "Serpent"), would
have added to the game. The sound effects were limited, but adequate. It would have
been nice if different spells had different sound effects on casting, or if weapons
made different sounds when they struck. I often turned the music down when playing.
Game Challenge 5 out of 5
This game was very challenging. In order to solve it, you must assemble clues, the
meaning of which are not immediately apparent. Many of the puzzles in the game
require thought, magic items and clues to solve. Some require you to draw together
items from several different levels. The battles are tough and frequent, and there are
many traps in the maze. There are also teleports and zoom tubes, some of which you need
to use, others that will set you back. There's no way to find out but trial and error.
Game Play-Fun 4.5 out of 5
The challenge of this game was appealing. I really liked the automap feature, as it
made the game so much easier to navigate than most 3D games (consider Wizardry
or the dungeons in Ultima!!). Also, you could gain most of the weapons and armor
you need in the maze itself, especially after battles, so you did not have to worry
about saving up huge amounts of gold. Spells were also gained in the maze. There
was really no need to visit the stores for anything. All of these features made the
game very enjoyable, since you could "get on" with the quest!!
Frustration
1. Frequent monster attacks (like most RPGs!!), with only 3 places that you can
rest and regenerate!!
2. Limited character class selection (warrior, thief, magician only).
3. Long, long passwords needed to save the game - a battery would have been preferable!!
4. The game ending was chincey, compared to the magnitude of the quest.
Replayability 4.5 out of 5
The tough battles and intricacy of the puzzles make this game enjoyable to play
again and again. There are so many different items you can win in combat that you
will often find new things every time you play!!
Game Value 5 out of 5
I only paid $20.00 for this game, but it was worth it. I have played this game through
several times and I have not tired of it.
Control 3.5 out of 5
The lay-out of the controls was very simple and easy to access. The controls were
very slow though, and moving the cursor from item to item in a list could get tiring.
This is unfortunate because it made an otherwise decent game a bit trying to play at times.
Tips
1. It is better to create your own party, as you can roll better stats.
2.You will need at least one Magician, preferably two, to complete the game. The
Magicians have a spell that is necessary to get past certain obstacles. You'll also
depend on them for healing.
3. Write down ALL, repeat ALL, clues given to you by wise men or written on the
walls or floors. They may not make sense at first, but you will need them.
4. The only spells you should bother casting are Heal, Major Heal, Shield, Flight,
Strength, Deadeye and Regenerate. The "combat" spells are not really necessary
in battle, and just end up wasting valuable magic points. There are plenty of good
weapons for your magicians to use instead!
Overall 4.5 out of 5
Swords and Serpents is a challenging game with interesting graphics and a style
refreshingly distinct from other NES RPGs. I overwhelmingly recommend it to
anyone, regardless of weather you like RPGs or not. It is unfortunate that this
game did not become more popular.