Brave Fencer Musashi

I’ll make this quick because I’ve really got to pee.

After recently cleaning out my garage while home a month ago, I unearthed an old classic for the PS1: Brave Fencer Musashi. I can’t remember if I actually own this game or if this was just ripped-off from Sweeney (seeing how he would rave about this game in the past). Regardless, it's mine now and I’ve finally completed the game that has eluded me for years.

You start playing the reincarnated form of the legendary hero Musashi who has been summoned by Princess Fillet to help her save her kingdom - Allucaneet Palace - before pulling a Peach and being kidnapped. (By-the-way, all the game’s names for people and places are based on either food or beverages. Food for those who are good, and beverages for the evil-ones, aka The Thirstquencher Empire. Ah... what delightful puns.) To save the Princess and the kingdom you must find a bunch of scrolls and kill a few bosses all the while leveling up your stats (typical). Although repetitive and seemingly unoriginal, I think the game actually made great strides in advancing gaming strategies when it was first released in 1998. I believe this was one of the first games to utilize the time of day in the gameplay. For instance: you might only be able to find that item/unlock this door at midnight - or something to that effect. However, there were some definite hang-ups I had with this game.

Maybe it’s just because it’s dated software, but the controls were so damn glitchy. All of the stages that bothered me the most involved jumping across platforms. Every time I would land on the desired ground, I found myself skidding off the edge. To correct this, I started using the D-Pad (instead of the analog stick) which seemed to restrain Musashi from falling to his grave. However, running with the D-Pad always seemed to go slower. So I was forced to switch back and forth between the D-Pad and analog stick depending on what type of terrain I encountered. I can’t tell you how much frustration this caused me on some levels.

Also, the game’s difficulty seems unfairly balanced. Throughout most of the game, I had a fairly easy time advancing. Bad guys were sparse and easy to destroy. Then came the final chapter. After stocking up on potions, I was prepared to venture to Soda Fountain to defeat The Thirstquencher Empire and save Princess Fillet... never again to return to the village to heal myself. After some terribly frustrating mazes (I eventually copped out and used an online guide) you come to a series of strong bad guys. In fact, Musashi is flooded with enemies. There is very little room to strategize and maneuver around them, and they take a hell of a lot of damage before going down. Eventually I did get through it, and, in retrospect, it wasn’t that terrible. But it was a huge contrast to the threat their predecessors presented.

I know it seems like I’m taking a shit all over the game, but, in all honesty, it was fun. However dated, BFM is a classic and definite must-play.

...off to the bathroom.