Legendary Axe

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Legendary Axe
Legendary Axe
Developer(s) Victor Interactive Software
Publisher(s) NEC
Platform(s) TurboGrafx 16
Release date Flag of Japan September 23, 1988
Flag of the United States 1989
Genre(s) Platform
Mode(s) Single player
Input methods 8-way joystick, 2 buttons

Legendary Axe (Makyō Densetsu in Japan) is a horizontal platform video game for the PC Engine/TurboGrafx console, developed by Red/Atlus and published by Victor in 1988. The Japanese name is loosely translated to "Legend of the Demon World". In late 1987, the game was first announced by Hudson Soft under the title Jungle Ō ("Jungle King").

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[edit] Story

The game is about the warrior Gogan which was ruled by the half-beast evil cult ruler Jagu. Your friend Flare has been kidnapped by the leader of the group, and you must rescue her. The town's elder provide Gogan with the ancient and spiritually powerful Legendary Axe.

[edit] Gameplay

There are 6 levels in the game, at the end of each level is a boss. The character essential collects powerups and 4 separate types of gems that enhance the axe, which remains the only weapon in the game. The levels are action oriented based and straight forward.

[edit] Reaction

The title received the honor of "Game of the Year" in 1989 by reputable video game publication Electronic Gaming Monthly. The style is influenced by games like Rastan, and fans did accept the fact that the ideas and concepts were not unique. Though it was well put together, featuring arcade sized enemies that were extremely well drawn in 2D and caused no graphics overloading. It was as close to an arcade game without deriving as an arcade port. The game also captured the TurboGrafx 16 fans attention due to its timely release alongside some of the more memorable games at the system's popularity peak. A sequel was made in Legendary Axe II, though not originally titled as such.

[edit] Trivia

The arcade game The Astyanax by Jaleco, released in 1989, bears some surprisingly strong similarities with Legendary Axe. Apart from its superior graphics and linear level design, its gameplay and enemy patterns are almost identical to Victor's game. It is not clear whether Jaleco's coin-op was an endorsed clone or a blatant rip-off.

[edit] Screenshots