Developer: Dynamix Publisher: Dynamix Released: 1993 Genre: Adventure
I owe the Sega CD and its small library of adventure games for my interest in the genre. Back in the day when point and click adventure games were at their peak they were solely the province of expensive PCs. As a poor kid growing up I had to make do with the occasional console ports like Shadowgate or Déjà vu. The advent of CD add-ons meant these games could be brought over with few compromises. While the Sega CD had a relative few they were all pretty high quality. To this day everyone still wants to play Snatcher. Rise of the Dragon was one of the last games I bought for the system and what a way to go. Moody and mature it draws you into its world and keeps you entertained for the brief few hours it lasts.
On a lone evening a young woman scores a hit of a new designer drug. Her high goes horribly wrong as the drug mutates her into a creature before killing her. Unfortunately she happens to be the mayor’s daughter. The mayor hires private investigator Blade Hunter to solver her murder and keep it under wraps to spare him the embarrassment. Blade’s quest for the truth will take him on a wild ride involving ancient prophecies, drugs, and plenty of shady characters. And you only have four days to wrap it all up. No pressure, eh?
Rise of the Dragon uses an incredibly simple interface although the controls can be cumbersome at times. Mostly it comes down to the game’s attention to realism. Forgetting to put your clothes on will land you in jail. You’ll have to remember to take your ID card out every time you enter your apartment or use the computer. But while it is annoying once you “get it” you can enjoy the game’s world. What starts out as a simple murder mystery becomes something bigger. A Chinese gangster is attempting to revive an ancient dragon and you are prophesied to save the world. Although the cast of characters is small they are all memorable. Silly accents aside.
The cyberpunk atmosphere is pretty heavy but there are a few concessions you’ll have to live with on the Sega CD. Because of the system’s low color palette everything is dithered even worse than the PC original. For the most part it is fine but there are plenty of details that are lost as a result. The worst of all however is the green tint that surrounds the entire game. You can grow used to it over time but that still doesn’t mean it isn’t distracting.
In exchange for the lesser presentation the Sega CD version adds voice acting for every character in the game. The voice acting as a whole is excellent, with special mention of Cam Clarke as Blade Hunter. He adds just the right amount of cynicism and wise cracking to make Blade a memorable character. There is a lot of spoken dialogue; kudos to the developers for going the extra mile in this regard. Those really bad Chinese accents are the only blemish on the game’s sound.
Rise of the Dragon differs from most adventure games in that there is a strict time limit. You have four days before Bahamut returns and must move accordingly. Almost every action you take uses up some time; traveling to a new location takes 8 minutes while moving between rooms uses 3. Certain events occur at specific times as well. Blade needs to sleep every day, and will consummately plop down anywhere when the time comes. Time advances 8 hours after. If need be you can advance the clock by minutes or hours. Once you know what you are doing this comes in handy. While it sounds restrictive generally there is plenty of time to accomplish all of your goals.
Possibly as a result of the timer Rise of the Dragon is shorter than your average adventure game. That makes it no less frustrating however. As with most Sierra adventure games it is easy to end your progress and have to start over. There are many conversations that can end with the NPC permanently pissed off depending on your dialogue choices. Most puzzles are easy to discern but when they are obtuse, man. Do yourself a favor and watch a youtube video when it comes to the wiretap in the sewer. I can see what they were going for with the action sequences but the game would be better off without them.
In Closing
Rise of the Dragon is a great game and an excellent addition to the Sega CD library. It can be frustrating at times but its world and atmosphere more than make up for it. An excellent game that can be found dirt cheap these days, making it highly recommended.
