Developer: Taito Publisher: Taito Released: 1992 Genre: Action
In this day and age most arcade games consist of fighting odds, sit down cabinet racing games and the occasional rail shooter. Typically you’ll only find these in Dave & Busters or dedicated arcade as the days of the mom and pop store carrying arcade machines are long gone. But it wasn’t always like this. Prior to the Street Fighter explosion developers created games in nearly all genres for the arcade, including adventure games. Longer adventures weren’t necessarily conducive to this format as they shied away from any means of allowing you to save progress. This did not stop Taito from releasing Cadash in 1989, with 2 home ports following in 1991. The Genesis version is the one most are probably familiar with and while it is decent it could have used some polish in a few areas.
Centuries ago the demons were driven underground while humanity basked in the light. The memory of their time spent above has never diminished and one powerful demon named Balrog has rallied up an army to rule the world. His first move was kidnapping the princess of the kingdom of Dizir. With the king offering his kingdom to anyone brave enough to save his daughter 4 adventurers answer the call.
Cadash has all of the elements typical of a role playing game, such as experience points, shops to buy weapons, armor and items and stats. The 4 classes available, Fighter, Ninja, Mage, and Priestess all offer unique powers and abilities tailored to whatever play-style you prefer. While the game has five individual “stages” each is a massive world with at least one hub village to buy supplies. All of these elements were definitely not the norm for arcade games of the time and was more in line with action RPGs like Zelda or Crystalis.
Playing Cadash in the arcade was an interesting conundrum. It felt like a console release but also featured numerous quirks to force you to pump quarters into the machine. There is a time limit that can only be extended by buying hourglasses that increase in price after each purchase, rare (super rare) drops, or putting in more quarters. Due to its length I doubt anyone but the most dedicated fans had the patience to complete Cadash.
The Sega version is a looser adaptation. The Ninja and Priestess have been cut, leaving only the Fighter and Mage which is hugely disappointing. They took out the two best characters! Playing two-player coop feels really hollow without the expanded set of choices. This version is harder overall as the Fighter and Mage lagged behind the other classes in terms of their abilities. On the other hand items are less expensive and you can buy elixirs (extra lives) in this version. There is no time limit now, allowing you to explore and grind experience at your leisure. The localization is pretty bad as you’ll notice misspelled words and plenty of Engrish throughout.
While the two versions have their differences they still share the same flaws as the arcade game. The difficulty is very uneven; at times you’ll steamroll enemies and bosses alike only to encounter one that will demolish you in seconds, forcing you to grind to progress. There’s a decent amount of platforming but the controls are not ideal to handle it properly. The fighter can only jump so high and far and there are many segments that require the kind of finesse the game lacks. The Mage is worse off in this regard with his weaker jumping skills. It’s doable but not after some teeth gnashing.
Although the game seems like an action-RPG it isn’t and its length bears that out. Despite its five worlds Cadash is actually pretty short which makes sense considering its arcade roots. Reasonably skilled players will complete the game in a few hours outside of occasionally grinding for experience. There are less enemies and bosses seemed less aggressive but that could be my spotty memory. Being able to carry around a stock of elixirs of life also lessens the difficulty. While it may have been a hassle to play through in the arcade at home that isn’t an issue.
When comparing the graphics this version of Cadash is closer in look to the arcade. The TG-16 version had a noticeably brighter color palette, redesigned tile sets and slighter different layouts for each world. The graphics are noticeably darker in this version but at the same time are closer to the original. While the game has large sprites the overall look of the world is a bit drab and bit generic. I would comment on the music but to be completely honest none of it is memorable. And that goes for the sound effects as well.
In Closing
This version of Cadash turned out as well as can be expected but it smacks of a missed opportunity. The numerous missing elements smack of a rushed port. While I do find it short some kind of password feature would have been nice. Although Cadash isn’t a bad game I have a hard time recommending it over better action adventure titles like Beyond Oasis or Landstalker.
