[SSFF] Faxanadu (NES) Review by Derek Alexander
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
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Finally Faxanadu gets some love! One of the MOST underrated games on the NES!
Faxanadu is fantastic. 😉
....probably my favorite NES game.
Hear hear! One of my childhood favorites, actually.
@@godislove102887 I would try playing it so many times and would never get anywhere because none of the mantras would ever work for the password. I finally ended just dedicating some time to play through it and I might have used a game genie to give me an advantage. I never actually finished the game which is something I would like to do.
This game is particularly unique... Its slight gothic undertones with earthly palette, its spellbinding music, its original setting... Derek managed to express why that game come to be among my all-time favorite action side scrollers. Xanadu aged not so well, but Faxanadu well defies the course of time.
As a kid, my mom would sometimes order refurbished NES games for me (it may have been a Nintendo service? I'm unsure). One time I asked for Castlevania, but they didn't have it, and the salesperson recommended Faxanadu instead as a similar game. I was not disappointed.
Last year I played through the game again and was again impressed for all the reasons you mentioned. I did think the final dungeon was memorable, if only for its looping pathways (I had to create a map). Definitely superior to the "gray hallway" final dungeon of Simon's Quest.
I'm 6 years late, but that sales person needs to have its hand shaken and get a raise! It probably got you into one of those experiences that changes a casual gamer into a hardcore one. 👌🏻
@@hernandovallejo Oh I dunno about that - I pretty much exclusively played games with Game Genie, guides, or other cheats until I started to hit my teens! But that salesperson definitely deserves some kudos!
@@PositronRobo Bah! Don’t be ashamed of that, vidya is often a tough ground that not everyone can be comfortable with. The important thing is that you were able to experience such an adventure that probably felt all kinds of right back then and maybe shaped some of your taste around games by then!
@@hernandovallejo Absolutely.
Faxanadu is one of my favorite games of all time. It's so under rated... It's also one of my earliest memories of actually sitting down with a game and playing the fuck out of it. It's amazing. The music is also incredible. I'd give it a solid 9.5/10
Wonga!
more like under KNOWN. I kept wanting to play it again to ssee how fast I can get to "lord"
When I first played this, I was just a kid, and quickly grew frustrated at it's difficulty. Now, as a 30 something adult, I have grown to appreciate it. Thank you for this great review!
SAME! I'm about to play it for my first time in over 20 years. AMAZING.
I've got to say that watching your videos really are a treat! I subscribe to many channels on UA-cam and mindlessly sit through many videos that aren't that well put together. Each of your videos are carefully crafted and it really shows that you care about every little detail from start to finish. :)
Coming back to this review in 2022. This game (although I didn’t realise it at the time) was the birth of my RPG fandom. The NES was my first console and there was never I game I loved more than this one.
Now, I will tout the great Nobuo Uematsu as my favourite video game composer of all time forever but Faxanadu has, in my opinion, the greatest 8-bit soundtrack ever. There are other standout single pieces, but this game’s music remains consistently awesome the entire way through and gets more out of the limited technology than anything else.
Shoutouts to the Bomberman Hero music playing in the background towards the end of the video. That might be another awesome Hudson game to consider for one of your videos
When referencing From Software's adventure game development heritage, you bring up the Souls games. However, From Software was making adventure titles long before that with games like Kingsfield I-IV. I would say that game series deserves a little love too.
Love that you used my favourite track from Bomberman Hero at the end :3
If it wasn't meant to be a horror game, it sure as hell felt like one. Those repeating music loops were very unsettling, yet oddly beautiful (especially in Mist) The enemies were very Giger-esque. Lovely world building considering the hardware limitations. And it was NOT an easy game. This gave it even more of a fear element. Good review mate
Nice, but Simons Quest was an excellent game; along with Zelda II. Remember there were no precedents for these titles except for their originals. Both games ventured to do something new and exciting. They had better visuals, good music, and a fun challenge. I agree the puzzles sucked in SQ, but armed with the knowledge of how to get through those puzzles it brings up the fun.
As far as the SQ boss, he's friggin Dracula. His castle is empty because he doesn't need anyone to protect him. Same goes for the town and bridge leading up; they are all dead. I loved this part as a kid. It was complete suspense waiting for something to jump out, that invisible floor trap, whatever. Now killing him withy the Golden Dagger, fire, or laurels was easy, but take the punk on whip only and see how you do. Loved it.
Makes you wonder if the developers of Faxanadu chose the color palette and art style by mistake (or out of haste!), and we are now analyzing it as something that was intended!
This is such a well written review. Thank you. I'm so happy you dropped the hvgn persona. I really like all the other game references you through in. My favorite nes games are in this style. I've made a list I'd like to send your way.
It's nice to see the Faxanadu love! Great review/special/overview/whateverthehellyoucallthesethingsnow.
Love how this ends with that theme from Bomberman Hero!
That mist is a work of art.
Great observation on the SImon's Quest connection! And great video, too.
Rather happy you finally covered this game :)
One of my favorites, along with Guardian Legend and Crystalis.
Thanks for telling me about this game Derek
I think faxanadu was the last game I purchased for the NES and I loved it. I also picked up sorcerian in a bargain bin for $5 and thought it was strikingly similar... this, of course, was in the time before the internet. years ago when I looked it up on wikipedia I felt that a few pieces of my youth were finally put together. good vid. keep it up.
Just to add to the list at the end, we also has The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky in the US. Two months after this video came out we also got Trails in the Sky SC, one of the best games ever made and today we also have Trails in the Sky the 3rd, Trails of Cold Steel and Trails of Cold Steel 2, all masterpieces.
I appreciate your in-depth review of this and I am throwing you a subscribe due to how you presented it. Cheers!
I played Faxanadu when I was 8 or 9. My babysitter brought it over and I liked it so much he gave it to me. This is my favorite NES game ever.
Not sure this has been mentioned but we also got Sorcerian (AKA Dragon Slayer V) on the PC.
I sucked so hard at this game when I was a kid and yet I still rented it over and over because it just felt SO MUCH DIFFERENT from the other games I was playing back then.
I love this game
had no idea that nobody but me knew about this game. The sprites in this game are not topped by any other nes game
I loved faxanadu as a kid! Great video Derek!
Another great video thanks a lot for your time and effort.
Just got Legacy of the Wizard for like $2 the other day. Had no idea it was related to just game. Will have to go back and actually give it a better play through than what I initially did. Will also try to pick this game up if I ever see it was well.
Oh my god, I just realized that Faxanadu is related to the Trails in the Sky and Trails of Cold Steel games.
The character is not Nameless. In the FDS version, you could name him. In, I believe it was the French manual, his name is Fieg.
Metroid was inspired by the film Alien, which was Sci Fi Horror. So, Metroid creates that environment well with the music, and dark background. Makes you feel underground. Therefore, Metroid is Sci Fi Horror game.
I remember this game from my childhood. Friend of mine bought it and was too difficult so loaned it to me. We had a sleepover and finished the game.
A small call-out to Jun Chikuma and her amazing score.
I'm running through this again for the first time since 1992, and at 8:15 I yelled FUCK because I did that about a dozen times yesterday trying to get the Death spell.
I played through both games when they were new, Both great games but Faxanadu is the one I prefer.
I like Faxanadu a good game, I have it in my NES collection, but as a Castlevania fan I prefer Simon´s Quest. And I think Simon´s Quest is better game. Simon´s Quest is not that hard I beat it first time when I was 11, my friend got it brand new when it was released, and we played shit out of it.
I do agree Simon's Quest had its share of flaws: early castlevania golem jump syndrome in something requiring tight ass leaps, awful translation, botched boss battle design, pesky pop up messages... But it's a still a great side scroller with a thick Transyvanian atmosphere. On the other hand, Faxanadu is somewhat short. It lacks the depth SQ had by including more exploration and puzzle game aspects. Boss battle variety leaves to be desired, their difficulty isn't well dosed (or it's a cake walk with the right equipment, or it's bushido pain in your butt). It forces player to do what shouldn't exist on any RPG game: farming to afford the nice stuff. control is also a tad rough. Mantra password system is tedious and could have used more simplification. Had all these flaws corrected with some of qualities seen in SQ... Faxanadu would have been perhaps a prolific franchise, instead of a standalone underdog
:/
Simons Quest soundtrack is definitely more iconic, but I think I actually like the soundtrack of Faxanadu more. Although "Bloody Tears" from Simons Quest is probably above everything Faxanadu has to offer. It's all opinion anyway, but the Faxanadu soundtrack is really great.
Faxanadu and Legacy of the Wizard are my favorite games of all time. Legend of Heroes:Tears of Vermilion was great on PSP before I knew it was part of Dragon Slayer series. I have actually completed Castlevania 2. It was boring. Did how play the Castlevania 2 remake mod in Skyrim. It was buggy as hell and I had to clip through broken gates and avoid an unkillable boss in one of the manors I managed to beat it and it was fun. They even curse the player cutting his damage in half until you beat Dracula. Even with mods and op smithed equipment the mod was still really hard and nothing died in one hit let alone two.
Just bought this game CIB for £9.90, exited to play it, great review!
Faxanadu kicked fucking ASS. What a game. Ill always remember my brother smashed his NES down to the metal frame after trying to enter his massive password from Faxanadu. It was easy to fuck up zeros with the letter o etc. I had many problems too finding out how I fucked up the password.
The funny thing was that when he turned the power on to the NES it still worked lol
Erm, Derek, there have been a few more than just those 4 that have been released, as far as I can tell. Song of the Ocean and the first chapter of Trails in the Sky have also been released as well.
Just finished replaying this as a grown up. It was amazing, and I found myself lamenting the lack of super Nintendo sequel.
And the town of fog used to scare the hell out of me when I was a kid I used to hate going to that level but now I look back at it and it still scares me lol
Tary Ravenholm.
Thats my first nes game i got with my first nes in like 89-90...Hard as hell.
So....can I expect a Bomberman Hero review or something? I love that game!
Great review! I just picked up a NES again and have a copy of Faxanadu on the way. wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooot
This may be an unpopular opinion but other than Bloody Tears the Faxanadu sountrack kicks the arse of Castlevania's soundtrack. I also prefer the game but that's just me.
Faxanadu was a decent Nintendo product of its time, but Simon's Quest is a classic that can be picked up and played at any time. The soundtrack ALONE makes it a better game, never mind the superior graphics, gameplay, and interesting storyline. I had fun with both games, but Castlevania II stands the test of time. NOTHING beats that music in the area right before you reassemble and fight Dracula. I remember I got to that area, and I was intimidated, yet I was bobbing my head. Such good build-up music for, admittedly, a pretty below-average final boss fight.
Faxanadu needs to be revisited.
Used to love Faxanadu! I went to check out the other games in the dragon slayer line, and they looked completely different from this one. Honestly, they don't look nearly as fun as this was.
god I love this game, one of my first nes games
You're Captain D? I love your seafood restaurant. No I'm kidding, I wouldn't eat Captain D's if my life depended on it.
There is a sequel on Steam called Xanadu Next.. and Tokyo Xanadu.
Used to have this game in my NES collection as a kid before they all got ruined. I still remember beating that final boss, and not even realizing he was the final boss because he was so easy. lol.
+Kuljin20 How did they get ruined?
megamarsonic We had them out in boxes on the back porch or w/e in my apartments for a little bit, I can't even remember why anymore, maybe to have them out of the way for cleaning or something.
Sometime throughout that day a freak rainshower hit. It was bright and sunny, like 90 degrees out, no thunder, and it didn't rain hard enough to hear on the windows or anything that it was raining, and by the time we noticed it was, they were already long drenched. Fried all the chips inside the cartridges. I spent hours trying to dry them off and fix them, but they were done. :'/ The only game that survived was my Dragon Warrior 4, and only because it was still in my NES haha.
8:20 no mention of Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap aka Monster World 2? Fer shame.
+Alianger and forgetting all of the XSEED published games.
+Alianger Monster World is the Wonder Boy game I grew up with so it got in the video.
I meant the master system one, MW is the name of the series in japan actually, so not WBIMW/MW3.
Some of what is described in the vid is why I prefer older games (older media everything, really). There was more understanding and vision in story telling and making of media.
Today, everything seems like it's floating in less-deeply-connected, nonsense land. There are few cogently laid out, nuanced narratives of perspective relayed in context anymore. Only very superficial expositions are explored (usually based in superficial, petulant emotional reasoning as protagonist impetus). This isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's just that there is less grounded or rounded out wisdom involved.
I'l give a very small, direct example of a tiny thing that illustrates what I mean: When you're hit by the enemy in original Metroid, what does it sound like? To me, it sounds like something hitting up against an actual space suit. Today, it's some detailed, over-amped crash sound with a pretty, mario-star-style flashing suit... Which transports you, as a player, more into the environment?
Oh and Derek. Can you PLEEEEEEEEASE review The Magic of Scheherazade for the NES AND Phantom Figther for the NES?? Not many reviews of those anywhere.
I love this game. I always have. I thought the ending was great. I felt extremely accomplished as a kid conquering it!
Hey man, you missed Dragon Slayer V: Sorcerian! It was ported and translated to MS-DOS by Sierra in 1988!
random fact: I watched this vid exactly a year from its release! xD
oh wow, that means this and the metal storm video were released on the same day! just realized that now!
+Stop Skeletons From Fighting Lol! It's been a minute since that vid!
Yep!! i was right, Faxanadu + Zanadu + DragonSlayer + YS from Falcom, and yes they changed the name of it to get a better recognizable name and it worked, now a days many have played Ys without even noticing that Ys was once Faxanadu.....a onetime long ago......mysterious and yet?! crazy but fun :D
This is a good game with a great soundtrack. We did an LP of this game on our channel.
Oh boy is that end info outdated...Steam has a whole cavalcade of Legend of Heroes games as well as Xanadu Next and Tokyo Xanadu. Falcom's taking us seriously.
Difference is, Faxanadu wasn't memorable while Simons Quest was and is a total classic.
Faxanadu has some of the best music of the entire NES library.
There’s only 2 flaws with it. It’s too short and the password system.
derek please check out bonk on the gamecube. I think its something your into.
Wait, Hudson? Wasn't Falcom that made Xanadu games? Or was Falcom by Hudson at the time?
Falcom made the original Xanadu for the PC-88 and PC-98.
Hudson made the Famicom port.
yes! this game has an amazing soundtrack
someone suggested this game to me, think ill try now!
I'm 44 now, me and my brother got stuck, if you didn't play it in a certain way, you have to start over
This review is on point - and so is the game.
Faxzanadoo is rad but why should we Stop skeletons from frighting.
Just because i have been told off by people so many times about my pronounciation of Giger. Apparently it’s Gee-ger. Like hard E. Lol but great video none the less!
One of my absolute favorites. As a kid I never finished. *found it to confusing, but as an adult the joy I feel.
Music is also incredible
Great video, but just FYI, there has actually been one other game in the Dragon Slayer series released in the west: Sorcerian, which is Dragon Slayer 5 (I think?), saw an official release for MS-DOS from Sierra. And it, too, is an absolutely fantastic game.
Technically, it should also be noted that while Dragon Slayer 1 and Xanadu were never released in the west, both games are ENTIRELY IN ENGLISH, and can thus be enjoyed by western gamers who are hardcore enough to enjoy them and willing to learn the ropes (because neither game -- especially Xanadu -- is in any way intuitive, though Xanadu is VERY MUCH worth playing if you want to have your mind blown that it came out in 1985, since it's more ahead of its time than almost any game I've ever seen.
Also, Lord Monarch -- which is Dragon Slayer 7, I think? -- saw a free English release for Windows from Falcom themselves, though the translation is incomplete.
And finally, we at XSEED released one of the later Legend of Heroes games on PSP and PC, Legend of Heroes VI: Trails in the Sky, which is the start of a whole new subseries that we're continuing to support, with its sequels "Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky Second Chapter" and "Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel" slated for release later this year.
*****
Oh, I totally agree. Sorcerian is similarly revolutionary, too, with its character aging mechanic, its four-party platforming RPG elements, its quest system, and the introduction of expansion packs before expansion packs were even a thing.
Falcom was a real innovator back in the day, creating masterpiece after masterpiece after masterpiece. And they're still making incredible games today -- in fact, Faxanadu found a spiritual sequel from Falcom in 2005's Xanadu Next for PC, which is technically a sequel to the original Xanadu but feels more like a spiritual sequel to Faxanadu.
Falcom is awesome. And Hudson was also awesome, representing one of the few third-party developers who really "got" what made Falcom games so special, and was able to produce games using Falcom licenses that were every bit as good as Falcom's own titles. It's a shame they're more or less defunct now, as they really were one of the best companies of their day IMHO.
Gryffin DarkBreed
We'd love to, but we're dependent on Falcom to prepare such a patch for us, like they did for their own Japanese version of the game. And sadly, they seem a little too busy to get it done right now. We keep asking them about it, but to no avail. We have no idea when they'll actually be able to get to it.
But we will keep at them!
+Velesk Outside of Japan, Drasle Family is called Legacy of the Wizard. I've never played it, but I hear it's a decent game.
Mr_Beezlebub
It is a fantastic game, yeah, and the NES version is a very solid port (though part of the map is different, and one of the songs was replaced with an entirely different song for some reason). It's an insanely hard and confusing game, though, so if you do play it, prepare to NOT beat it without immense effort. ;)
+Wyrdwad Ugh, researching that segment was such a pain because I was getting mixed info about which games were actually part of the Dragon Slayer lineage or their own spin off. Like the Legend of Heroes games apparently became their own series after that first one? And which were remakes or their own games? I probably should've just left it at "man, there's so fucking many and it's just crazy wow wow wow wow!"
Just finished this game a few weeks ago, and I have to say: you're spot on with your analysis. Really enjoyable NES game and highly recommended.
YES! THIS is why you make a game gritty; not just for the hell of it! I love Faxanadu; it's one of my favorite NES titles! Legacy of the Wizard is actually my second-favorite on the system. I loved the numerous references to other similar games in this video; it's packed full of gamer cred. I don't know how into the hacking scene you are, but I'm wondering if you've played Faxanadu Facelift and what you think of it.
I remember this game being hard as hell at the start, but then once you get the good equipment and spells it's pretty easy. I still have this cartridge in my closet somewhere - I might have to break it out sometime! Thanks for the video. It's cool to take a trip down memory lane like this!
Luke James aww man. Such a good game. You should definitely break it out agsin
once you get the spiked shield the game is easy. I use to grind in the beginning just to get it
@@vegaslowblower8781 5 months later..
Cinemassacre's Mike actually ended up playing this game from start to finish. Shoving his way through it blind and crazy.
You always produce exquisite videos filled with well spoken, well thought dialogue, interesting points, unorthodox topics, and beautiful clips. It may take a month or two for you to make one, but it's like a masterpiece when it comes out!
The faxanadu soundtrack is forever drilled into my brain. One of the best games I've played on the NES.
Remember your mantra.
I dunno HOW I missed this review. Faxanadu is probably my favorite game ever. I dunno why. It just reminds me of being little. I play through it every now and again. Man. I would kill to see it re-done. Pretty much leave the game the same and add HD textures/models. That's all. The soundtrack is the BEST
Until now, I forgot about this game... and I used to own it.
Thanks Derek
You should do Shadow of the Ninja and Vice: Project Doom.
www.hardcoregaming101.net/xanadu/xanadu.htm
Don't know if this is allowed or not, but someone will tell me. Anyways, here's an article about the series that Faxanadu is from. It's a really cool read if you wanna see the rest games in the series. Enjoy.
Yeah, Dragon Slayer has a weird pedigree.
Nice to see the connection to some Turbografx-16 games but it's a Hudson Soft title so I shouldn't be surprised. I always recommend this game to fans of the NES, it's fun and still cheap.... for now.
I played that game ages ago! It was a lot of fun. It really did deserve more fame than it got.
Derek I gotta say, you are a king at this youtube shit.
Way too quick are we to criticize, and for some reason we forget to mention all the good shit that happens. And what you are doing is good shit.
You have been producing quality top notch videos for quite some time. I love how you dropped the HVGN gimmick, and just have an honest and objective (mostly) view on a video game. These videos are quality because they're YOUR thoughts and YOUR creations that you obviously put a lot of effort in. In essence, these videos aren't about a character like HVGN, but they're videos about YOU, and I love to see it.
I'm done dick riding, but honestly keep up the amazing work.
I will never forget that song at 4:15 Land of Mist!
I loved this game back in the day! It was dark and gloomy, and downright spooky at times. The beasties in the game look ghoulish. The music in the game is really, really great. The Land of Mist music is absolutly bonechillingly eerie! And the game is hard as heck as well, I remember it took ages to complete it. Great game!
One of my Favorite games of all time. It will always be special
I absolutely loved this game growing up (and the music...wow!). The review is spot on! I was the only one among my friends that had Faxanadu, and nobody else liked it (well, maybe one friend did like it...). But who cares, right?
When you meet a great smile everythings becomes brighter. Keep on smiling, Derek! Continue the great reviews, and if i had money I would become a patreon. Good luck!
I have always loved this game, the music is still always echoing in my head. Loved the visuals and the darker tone. Also the sense of adventure was high with this one, you didn't know what to expect next. Exploration was key with this game and the monster design was great. I beat this game multiple times and now pass the experiences down to my children.
Your videos just go up in quality every time.
Man, I eventually got super stuck w this game. After the fountain I think. There was no internet to help and after trying days of trying, gave up. Looking forward to seeing how it all ends.
Loved the music
You couldn't resist could you? Anyway I'm pretty sure that Faxanadu could make it to the Wii U VC, as long as Konami and Nintendo get their heads out of their asses before they implode that way. Love that Bomberman Hero music at the end, another underrated Hudson game that's stuck on the Wii VC but not yet the Wii U.
it's on Wii VC already so...
When I played this game, I had my first lessons in English, and so I came to the believe, back then, that the English word for demon must be dwarf.
One of the best things about Faxanadu was the way it shirked the common Japanese Anime art style. You wouldn't even know it was a japanese game, to look at it.
I also love how much Faxanadu made you excited to get a new piece of equipment. Everything feels immediately useful and immediately powerful.
God, it's about time. Been wanting this one since it first showed up in the intro.