Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom

Last updated

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom cover art.png
Developer(s) Game Atelier
Publisher(s) FDG Entertainment
Director(s) Fabien Demeulenaere
Producer(s)
  • Thomas Kern
  • Philipp Döschl
Designer(s) Ryuichi Nishizawa
Programmer(s) David Bellanco Lopez
Artist(s) Johan Lun
Writer(s) Miguel Vidaure
Composer(s)
Series Wonder Boy
Platform(s)
Release
  • Nintendo Switch, PS4
    • WW: December 4, 2018
    • JP: August 6, 2020
    Xbox One
  • December 4, 2018
  • Windows
  • July 25, 2019
  • Stadia
  • July 1, 2020
  • PlayStation 5
  • December 2, 2021
  • Xbox Series X/S
  • August 2, 2022
Genre(s) Metroidvania, platform
Mode(s) Single-player

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is a 2018 platform game developed by Game Atelier and published by FDG Entertainment. Part of the Wonder Boy series, it was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in December, for Windows in July 2019, for Stadia in July 2020, for PlayStation 5 in December 2021, and for Xbox Series X/S in August 2022. It was generally well received by critics.

Contents

Plot

A boy named Jin discovers his Uncle Nabu using magic to spread chaos across the kingdom, turning everyone, including his brother Zeke, into animals. While trying to stop Nabu, Jin gets turned into a pig. Learning from the king's court magician, Mysticat, about a way to return everyone to normal, Jin goes on a quest to recover five animal orbs from across the kingdom. Upon doing so, however, Mysticat takes the orbs from Jin and uses them to open the gateway to the Dark Realm for his master Lord Xaros, who had been manipulating Nabu to do his bidding. Venturing into the Dark Realm, Jin confronts Xaros and, with the help of his friends and the spirits of past Wonder Boys, manages to defeat him, restoring the kingdom to normal.

Gameplay

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is a side-scrolling adventure game in which players control Jin as he battles enemies and solves puzzles to progress through the story. Similar to the 1989 Master System game, Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap , Jin gains five different animal forms throughout the course of the game, which can be switched between at will once obtained. These include a pig who can sniff out hidden contraptions and clues; a snake who can spit venom, climb walls and enter small spaces; a frog who can swim, use his tongue to swing on hoops and carry items; a lion who can dash and break through blocks; and a dragon who can fly and spit fire projectiles. Jin's human form can warp and pass through obstacles. In addition to these forms, players can obtain weapons and armor from shops, many of which offer unique abilities and can be upgraded by finding gemstones. There are also various magic spells that can be used by Jin in either his human or pig forms. Defeated enemies may drop coins, hearts or magic resourcers. [1]

Exploration works similarly to "Metroidvania" titles, where the player goes through interconnected areas that require certain abilities in order to be accessed. Over the course of the game, the player gains access to fast travel teleporters that allows to quickly move from one area to the other. Exploration often rewards players with magic upgrades, health point increases and also pieces of the legendary golden armor, which upon collected can be forged by a blacksmith.

The game uses an auto-save system upon going through the save altars, which come in two variations: the normal save altar, and the angel save altar, which fully recovers Jin's health. Dying has no penalty, and the player will return to the last checkpoint without losing any progress; any items and coins obtained will be retained.

The game also features a map which provides information about various areas, and also shows places where the player is supposed to go at the current time. The map develops and adds new images as the player moves through the game.

Development

Monster Boy was originally created by Paris-based studio Game Atelier as a planned Kickstarter project titled Flying Hamster II: Knight of the Golden Seed, a sequel to the company's 2010 Flying Hamster. [2] The Kickstarter was canceled and a partnership with FDG Entertainment was announced. After a year of silence, Game Atelier revealed that they had partnered with LAT Corp to officially incorporate the title into the Wonder Boy series. Since the trademark was held separately from the rest of the IP, a new title was chosen, combining Monster World and Wonder Boy: Monster Boy and the Wizard of Booze. The game was later retitled to Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom due to criticisms towards the previous subtitle's reference to alcohol. [3]

The game was developed in collaboration with Wonder Boy series creator Ryuichi Nishizawa, who also supported Dotemu and Lizardcube's remake of Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap . The game's soundtrack was composed by Yuzo Koshiro, Motoi Sakuraba, Michiru Yamane, Keiki Kobayashi, and Takeshi Yanagawa, with the main theme performed by Haruka Shimotsuki. [4] [5] In addition to the original score, some rearranged music from past entries in the series by Shinichi Sakamoto was included. The soundtrack took two years to create, with over 40 pieces being included in the game. [6]

Originally set to use motion-based sprite animation for the characters, the developers announced in October 2017 that they would be switching to hand-drawn animated sprites. [7]

Release

In February 2018, FDG Entertainment announced they partnered with Sega to release the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 versions of the game as physical retail copies in North America, and launch them alongside the digital release on all platforms. [8] [9] [10] It was originally scheduled to release on November 6, 2018, worldwide, [11] however, due to "unforeseen difficulties" regarding the production of the physical copies, FDG Entertainment rescheduled the game's release for December 4, 2018. [12] However, only console versions were released on that date due to the developers' distribution contract to finish those versions on time, with the Windows version being released on July 25, 2019. [13] [14]

The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom were announced in September 2020. They support free upgrade for existing owners of the game, and feature native 4K resolution at up to 120 frames per second. [15] The PlayStation 5 version was released on December 2, 2021, [16] and the Xbox Series X/S version followed on August 2, 2022. [17] [18]

Arc System Works released the game in Japan on August 6, 2020. [19]

Reception

The game sold 50,000 copies within a week of its console release. [27] In January 2019, FDG Entertainment announced that the Switch version sold eight times more copies than the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions combined. [28]

It was generally well received by critics who praised its retro style and hand-drawn artwork, [29] [30] and has a score of 86 on Metacritic. [31] NintendoLife noted the game's similarities to Wonder Boy, calling it a "sequel in all but name." [32] The publication later noted it as one of the best metroidvania games on the Nintendo Switch. [33]

Related Research Articles

<i>Wonder Boy III: The Dragons Trap</i> 1989 action-adventure video game

Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap, known as Monster World II in Japan, is a platforming action-adventure video game developed by Westone as part of Sega's Wonder Boy series. It was published by Sega and released for the Master System in 1989 and for the Game Gear in 1992 as Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap. It was ported by Hudson Soft and released in 1991 for the TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine under the name Dragon's Curse. It was also ported in 1993 by Brazilian company Tec Toy under the title Turma da Mônica em o Resgate, with the game retooled to include characters from Brazilian comic book series Monica's Gang. A remake developed by Lizardcube and published by DotEmu, titled Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap, was released in April 2017.

<i>Wonder Boy</i> Video game series

The Wonder Boy series, also known as the Monster World series, is a franchise of video games published by Sega and developed by Westone Bit Entertainment. Beginning with the original Wonder Boy arcade game released in April 21, 1986, the game has spawned several sequels released for arcade, Master System, and Sega Genesis, as well as three compilation titles and three remakes by other developers. Several titles have been ported to other consoles by different publishers under different names, most notably Hudson Soft's Adventure Island adaptation of the original game. The main character "Wonder Boy" was named Book by the developer and Tom-Tom by Sega for overseas editions.

<i>Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy</i> 2003 video game

Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy is a 2003 action-adventure video game developed by Eurocom and published by THQ for GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. A version for mobile phones was released in 2004. THQ Nordic published a high-definition remaster for personal computer systems in 2017, and Nintendo Switch in 2019.

<i>Dust: An Elysian Tail</i> 2012 action role-playing video game developed by Humble Hearts

Dust: An Elysian Tail is an action role-playing video game developed by American independent designer Dean Dodrill, published by Microsoft Studios. It was released for Xbox 360 through Xbox Live Arcade in August 2012, and subsequently for Microsoft Windows in May 2013, for Linux and OS X in December 2013, and for PlayStation 4 in October 2014. A version for the Nintendo Switch was announced at E3 2018 and was released in September 2018.

Just Dance is a rhythm game series developed and published by Ubisoft. The original Just Dance game was released on the Wii in 2009 in North America, Europe, and Australia.

<i>Unepic</i> 2011 video game

Unepic is a video game which was released on September 30, 2011. The game was developed in Barcelona, Spain by Francisco Téllez de Meneses and various collaborators.

Teslagrad is a 2013 side-scrolling puzzle-platform game developed and published by Rain Games.

<i>Ori and the Blind Forest</i> 2015 video game

Ori and the Blind Forest is a platform-adventure Metroidvania video game developed by Moon Studios and published by Microsoft Studios. The game was released for Windows and Xbox One in March 2015, and for Nintendo Switch in September 2019. Players assume control of Ori, a small white spirit, and Sein, the "light and eyes" of the Forest's Spirit Tree. Players are tasked to move between platforms and solve puzzles. The game features a save system called "Soul Links", which allows players to save their progress at will with limited resources, and an upgrade system that allows players to strengthen Ori's skills and abilities.

<i>Lego Worlds</i> 2017 Lego-themed sandbox game

Lego Worlds is a Lego-themed sandbox game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game allows players to build constructions in a 3D procedurally generated world. A beta version of the game was released on 1 June 2015 on Steam Early Access. It was released on 7 March 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. A version for Nintendo Switch was released on 5 September 2017 in North America and 8 September 2017 in Europe.

<i>Everspace</i> 2017 video game

Everspace is a 3D space shooter with roguelike elements developed and published by German studio Rockfish Games. It was released in 2017. A sequel, Everspace 2 was released in 2023.

<i>Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight</i> 2016 video game

Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight is an indie Metroidvania video game developed by rdein and published by Playism. The game was originally released on March 4, 2016, for Microsoft Windows. It is the fourth installment of the Momodora series that began in 2010 with Momodora I.

<i>Wonder Boy: The Dragons Trap</i> 2017 video game

Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap is a platform action-adventure game developed by Lizardcube and published by Dotemu. The game is a remake of the 1989 game Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap, which was originally developed by Westone Bit Entertainment and published by Sega for the Master System as part of the Wonder Boy series. The game was released on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in April 2017, later releasing for Microsoft Windows in June 2017, macOS and Linux in July 2017, iOS and Android in May 2019, and Amazon Luna in October 2020. The game takes place after the ending of Wonder Boy in Monster Land, in which Wonder Boy has been cursed by the Mecha Dragon and must go on a quest to return to human form. In the game, players find items and clues needed to access different parts of Monster Land, and they can transform into other forms and gain different abilities.

<i>Hollow Knight</i> 2017 video game

Hollow Knight is a 2017 Metroidvania video game developed and published by independent developer Team Cherry. This is the first and only game by Team Cherry. The player controls the Knight, an insectoid warrior exploring Hallownest, a fallen kingdom plagued by a supernatural disease. The game is set in diverse subterranean locations, featuring friendly and hostile insectoid characters and numerous bosses. Players have the opportunity to unlock abilities as they explore, along with pieces of lore and flavour text that are spread throughout the kingdom.

<i>The Mummy Demastered</i> 2017 Metroidvania video game by WayForward

The Mummy Demastered is a Metroidvania video game developed by WayForward Technologies and based on the 2017 film The Mummy. It takes place concurrently with the events of the film, with players playing as an unnamed Prodigium soldier under the command of Dr. Henry Jekyll who must fight the evil forces of Princess Ahmanet. The game was released for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in October 2017. The Nintendo Switch version was released in Japan on July 30, 2020, while a version for Amazon Luna was released on October 20 of the same year.

<i>Narita Boy</i> 2021 indie video game

Narita Boy is a 2021 action-adventure video game developed by Spanish team Studio Koba and published by Team17. The game is an action platformer that follows the titular Narita Boy as he tries to save the Digital Kingdom from the Stallions. The game was released on March 30, 2021 for Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and for Amazon Luna on April 29, 2021.

<i>Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth</i> 2021 video game

Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth is a 2021 action role-playing video game developed by Team Ladybug and co-published by Playism and Why so serious? for Microsoft Windows. Versions for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and Series S were also released. It is based on Ryo Mizuno's Record of Lodoss War series, taking place before the events of The Crown of the Covenant. Controlling the high elf Deedlit, who finds herself in a strange interconnected labyrinth filled with her past foes and companions, the game focuses on exploration and searching for items and power-ups in the vein of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, fighting bosses and minibosses. During gameplay, the player also locates two elemental spirits and swaps between each one.

<i>Aeterna Noctis</i> 2021 video game

Aeterna Noctis is a 2021 Metroidvania video game developed in Spain by Aeternum Game Studios. It was released in December 2021 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

<i>Moonscars</i> Platform video game

Moonscars is a 2022 platform game developed by Black Mermaid and published by Humble Games. The game was released on September 27, 2022 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One. In the game, players control a warrior named Grey Irma, who searches for her maker, the Sculptor. The game received generally positive reviews on release.

<i>Kingdom: New Lands</i> 2016 video game

Kingdom: New Lands is a 2016 strategy game developed by Noio and Liquorice and published by Raw Fury. It was released on 9 August 2016 for Windows, macOS, and Xbox One. A follow-up of the 2015 video game Kingdom, players take control of a mounted monarch as they build and defend their kingdom from monsters called the Greed. The monarch can recruit subjects such as builders and archers to fortify their base, while progressing towards their goal of ruling over five islands. New Lands was a free update for owners of the original version. Versions for iOS and Android were released in March 2017, and for Nintendo Switch in September 2017, followed by PlayStation 4 on 16 January 2018. The game received mixed to generally positive reviews on release.

References

  1. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom video showcases six whimsical characters". PC Gamer. August 16, 2016. Archived from the original on September 21, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Flying Hamster II (Canceled)". Kickstarter. Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Monster Boy arrives 2016, new subtitle, new screen!". monsterboy.com. Archived from the original on July 24, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  4. ↑ "All OST Talents revealed". monsterboy.com. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Two Developers Are Bringing Wonder Boy Back With Two Entirely Different Games". Kotaku. Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  6. ↑ @FDG_Games (May 20, 2018). "Fun facts: Monster Boy soundtrack production took 2 years! After 4 years of working on the game and play-testing it, we still love every of the 40+ music pieces that have been created for the game" (Tweet). Retrieved December 15, 2018– via Twitter.
  7. ↑ "Monster Boy Development Blog". Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  8. ↑ "We've teamed up with @Sega to release Monster Boy on physical cartridge & disc for #NintendoSwitch & #PS4 later This Summer". FDG Entertainment's official Twitter. February 9, 2018. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  9. ↑ Whitehead, Thomas (October 24, 2016). "Monster Boy is Coming to Nintendo Switch, With Oceanhorn Also a Good Bet". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
  10. ↑ "No problem, unfortunately no physical release in Europe, only USA. Please consider to import it (it will run on EU consoles)". FDG Entertainment's official Twitter. July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  11. ↑ FDG Entertainment. "Monster Boy finally arrives on November 6th, 2018". monsterboy.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  12. ↑ FDG Entertainment (October 4, 2018). "Monster Boy Release Date delayed to December 4". monsterboy.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Steam General Discussions - reason why PC version isn't out yet" . Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  14. ↑ Romano, Sal (June 3, 2019). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for PC launches July 25". Gematsu. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
  15. ↑ Romano, Sal (September 8, 2020). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom coming to PS5, Xbox Series". Gematsu. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
  16. ↑ Moyse, Chris (December 2, 2021). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom journeys onto PS5 today". Destructoid . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  17. ↑ Albigés, Luke (August 1, 2022). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom Xbox Series X|S upgrade "imminent"". TrueAchievements . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  18. ↑ @FDG_Games (August 2, 2022). "Go, get it! #MonsterBoyGame #XboxSeriesX The free "Smart Delivery" upgrade is now available". Twitter . Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  19. ↑ "伝説の2Dアクションゲーム「ワンダーボーイ」シリーズ最新作！『モンスターボーイ 呪われた王国』パッケージ版発売決定！". Arc System Works . Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  21. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  22. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for PC Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  24. ↑ Pan, Alexander (December 11, 2018). "Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom Review - Fit For A King". GameSpot . Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  25. ↑ Scullion, Chris (December 5, 2018). "Review: Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom - The Best Wonder Boy Game Yet, Even If It Lacks The Name". Nintendo Life . Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  26. ↑ Ronaghan, Neal (December 3, 2018). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom Review". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  27. ↑ @FDG_Games (December 12, 2018). "A huge THANK YOU for 50.000 units sold! We're deeply grateful and it's a big deal for us to see such an awesome support for premium and quality gaming 🤗❤️This also goes out to press members and reviewers who played and recommended" (Tweet). Retrieved December 15, 2018– via Twitter.
  28. ↑ Grubb, Jeff (January 9, 2019). "Monster Boy sells 8 times more on Switch than PS4 and Xbox One combined". VentureBeat . Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  29. ↑ Bryant, Paul (January 24, 2019). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom review for Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC". Gaming Age. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  30. ↑ Biggs, Tim (January 4, 2019). "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom review: a land of wonder". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  31. ↑ "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom". Metacritic. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  32. ↑ "Review: Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom - The Best Wonder Boy Game Yet, Even If It Lacks The Name". Nintendo Life. December 5, 2018. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  33. ↑ "Best Nintendo Switch Metroidvania Games". Nintendo Life. December 16, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.