Software:Okage: Shadow King

From HandWiki
Short description: 2001 video game


Okage: Shadow King
North American PlayStation 2 box art
Developer(s)Zener Works[lower-alpha 1]
Publisher(s)Sony Computer Entertainment
Director(s)Noriyuki Henmi
Producer(s)Tetsuji Yamamoto
Designer(s)Shigeru Goto
Programmer(s)Yasushi Takeda
Writer(s)Masahiko Yokomizo
Akira Nemoto
Composer(s)Jun-Ichi Doi
Takamitsu Kajikawa
Yoshikazu Kawatani
Toda Kazuhide
Toshiaki Murata
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • JP: March 15, 2001
  • NA: October 2, 2001[2]
Genre(s)Role-playing
Mode(s)Single player

Okage: Shadow King, known in Japan as Lua error in Module:Lang/utilities at line 332: attempt to call field '_transl' (a nil value)., is a 2001 role-playing video game developed by Zener Works and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2. It was never released in PAL regions until the PlayStation 2 classic lineup for PlayStation 4 was released on March 23, 2016.

Gameplay

In Okage: Shadow King, the player character Ari proceeds through the game by visiting towns, traveling across the overworld and exploring dungeons. The game contains warp pillars that can be used to quickly travel to other locations once they have been discovered.

The turn-based combat is similar to that of many role-playing games, with characters having health points (HP) and magic points (MP). Battles generally commence when the player touches an enemy on the overworld. In addition to party members engaging in combat, Ari's shadow Stan, although not playable, may use powerful magic attacks on the enemy. Each fight is turned based, and a character can opt to wait in order to perform a more powerful combo attack with other characters. Characters have innate elements that are visible to the player during battle. This determines the types of spells they learn and what spells are strong against which enemies (for instance, lightning magic is strong against ice characters). If Ari is defeated at any time during battle, the player suffers a "game over" and must return to their last save.

Plot

Story

The story stars a quiet, 16-year-old boy named Ari who lived a peaceful life in the town of Tenel. One day, his grandfather comes to his house with an ancient bottle, in order to save his sister from a curse inflicted upon her by a ghost. They perform a ritual summoning an ancient evil, Lord Stanley Hihat Trinidad XIV, or "Stan" for short, who merges with Ari's shadow. They then embark on a journey to defeat the fake Evil Kings who stole Stan's powers and take over the world.

Characters

  • Ari (ルカ, Ruka): The main protagonist of the game. A quiet, 16-year-old boy with an overshadowed destiny. His shadow is so thin that most people ignore him and it is what enables Stan to take him as his slave. Ari reluctantly takes on the responsibility of being enslaved by the Evil King Stan in order to save his sister from the ghost's curse—and once that's done, to save the world from the Fake Evil Kings and restore Stan's true power. In the beginning of the story, his weapon is a branch. He obtains a sword, which is upgradable, as he progresses through the game. In the Japanese version, his eyes are wide open. They were toned down in the US version.
  • Lord Stanley Hihat Trinidad XIV (スタンリーハイハットトリニダード14世, Sutanrī Haihatto Torinidādo Jūyonsei), better known as Evil King Stan, or just Stan, possesses Ari's shadow to appear in this world. He is short-tempered and has a childish personality, but has moments where he picks up on things that even the other group members miss. He has built his identity on being evil and desires to be feared by the world as the Great Evil King. He claims to be the reincarnation of, and therefore the heir to, the Great Evil King Gohma, who was defeated by the Great Hero Hopkins three hundred years prior to the story. Hopkins also sealed Stan away in a bottle, which is found by Ari's father.
  • James (ジェームス, Jēmusu) is the cheerful ghost butler to the Evil King Stan. He is seen quite a few times in the game, mostly with just info on things you should know about, but he is often too preoccupied with something (or someone) else to follow his "almighty" master's orders.
  • Rosalyn (ロザリー, Rozarī) is a 22-year-old heroine, a master of the rapier and the reluctant devotee of the parasol. She and Stan have a history of conflict which began upon releasing him from his bottle three years prior to the game's beginning; Stan took over her shadow for just long enough to insult her figure and her to threaten to kill herself (thus killing him) before he retreated back into the bottle.

Rosalyn used to be an elite hero and was at the top of her class, but ever since her shadow became pink she has been a laughing stock and forced to hide her shameful shadow under a parasol. She never forgave Stan for this mockery and has been hunting for him since. She feels she needs to prove her strength and skill as an expert swordswoman and caster of spells. She is also a magnet for ghosts.

  • Princess Marlene (マルレイン, Marurein): As a spoiled princess, she is snobbish and pompous before truly getting to know Ari and his family. Later in the game, the player finds out that the Marlene they know is actually a doll, and that the real Marlene's body is trapped elsewhere in the world of her father's creation. She also seems to be Ari's love interest, as they are seen holding hands in the ending.
  • Gutten Kisling (グッテン･キスリング, Gutten Kisuringu): An extremely eccentric scientist who has devoted his life to ghost research while enjoying such hobbies as stalking pretty girls and collecting toenail clippings. Upon meeting the party, he is enticed by Rosalyn's ability to attract ghosts and joins the quest without a single party member's approval. Despite his behavior, the 45-year-old Kisling seems to be quite intelligent, and he wields powerful offensive magic.
  • Big Bull (ビッグブル, Biggu Buru): Formerly the "Big Bull Evil King", a fighter with great physical strength who loves exercise and battle. He excitedly joins Ari's party to help defeat the other evil kings after he, himself, is defeated. His dream is to someday open his own athletic gym. His idiotic and unwitting personality clashes with Rosalyn and Stan but he's too cheerful and loving of the party to notice or care. He has a crush on Linda.
  • Linda (リンダ, Rinda): She is an aspiring singer from Madril who unfortunately lacks talent so later uses Stan's stolen power to become the "Teen Idol Evil King" and loved by her brainwashed fans. Though she is somewhat subdued when Ari first meets her, after she joins the party, her truly cheery and very bubbly personality comes out. Initially, she seemed to have a crush on Ari, but it is later discovered that she actually had a crush on Stan who just happened to have the "dorky" "doll", Ari, attached to him. Further down the line, Linda's crush on Stan seems to fade in favor of one blossoming for the reluctant Epros. She attacks using her microphone as a weapon and supports the party with magical chants.
  • Epros (エプロス, Epurosu): Using Stan's power, he is known as the "Phantom Evil King" and throws playing cards and casts magic to attack his enemies. He is sophisticated and well-dressed, though his interests in magic and the "truth" of the world, as well as his ability to float about and his strange speech pattern, make him as peculiar as the rest of the cast. He always speaks in rhyme and with Shakespearean words, which confuses the team and annoys Stan to no end. Like the other "Evil King" party members, Epros joins the group after he is defeated, late in the game. Epros is the main love interest of Linda, but only after she gets over Stan.

Development and release

Okage: Shadow King was developed by Zener Works and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Programmer Yasushi Takeda, one of the founders of Zener Works, recalled that the company was producing a game for the Panasonic M2 prior to the system's cancellation.[3] Sony contacted them in June 1997 about making a game for the original PlayStation. Okage thus began development but the project was moved to the PlayStation 2 when Sony requested Zener Works do so the day before it announced its next-generation console on March 1, 1999.[3] All the graphics and coding was redone in order to be compatible with the newer console's Emotion Engine. Takeda stated that debugging was a challenge due to the company working with the console in an early state and the absence of such tools.[3]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic70/100[4]
Review scores
PublicationScore
EGM5.83/10[5]
Famitsu30/40[6]
Game Informer8/10[7]
GameProStarStarStarHalf star[8]
GameRevolutionC[9]
GameSpot7.8/10[10]
GameSpy79%[11]
GameZone7.8/10[12]
IGN7.2/10[13]
OPM (US)StarStarStar[14]

The PlayStation 2 version received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[4] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 30 out of 40.[6]

Notes

  1. ↑ Additional work by Sony Computer Entertainment Japan.[1]

References

  1. ↑ "JAPANスタジオ作品一覧 2002年～2001年" (in ja). Sony Interactive Entertainment. 2021. https://www.playstation.com/ja-jp/corporate/playstation-studios/japan-studio/history-2001-2002/. 
  2. ↑ "PlayStation - News". 2001-10-07. http://www.scea.com/news/press_example.asp?ReleaseID=9652. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Doda staff (March 18, 2014). "中学時代からゲームで稼ぎ、「君たち会社作ってよ」で起業 有限会社ツェナワークス 武田寧 氏" (in ja). Doda. http://doda.jp/engineer/it/guide/001/15a.html. Retrieved May 8, 2022. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Okage: Shadow King for PlayStation 2 Reviews". https://www.metacritic.com/game/okage-shadow-king/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-2. 
  5. ↑ EGM staff (December 2001). "Okage: Shadow King". Electronic Gaming Monthly: 244. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "プレイステーション2 - ボクと魔王". Famitsu 915: 87. June 30, 2006. 
  7. ↑ "Okage: Shadow King". Game Informer (103): 106. November 2001. 
  8. ↑ Star Dingo (October 2, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King Review for PS2 on GamePro.com". GamePro. http://gamepro.com/sony/ps2/games/reviews/17071.shtml. Retrieved December 27, 2016. 
  9. ↑ Dodson, Joe (October 19, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King Review". Game Revolution. http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/okage. 
  10. ↑ Fielder, Joe (October 1, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King Review". http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/okage-shadow-king-review/1900-2815702/. 
  11. ↑ D'Aprile, Jason (October 22, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King [date mislabeled as "January 22, 2001""]. GameSpy. http://archive.gamespy.com/reviews/october01/okage/. 
  12. ↑ The Badger (October 10, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King Review". GameZone. http://ps2.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r19007.htm. 
  13. ↑ Zdyrko, David (October 15, 2001). "Okage: Shadow King". http://www.ign.com/articles/2001/10/15/okage-shadow-king. 
  14. ↑ "Okage: Shadow King". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine: 170. December 2001. 
  • Official website
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  • No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.




Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Software:Okage:_Shadow_King&oldid=3954981"