Product Description

Nintendo DS Tribute to classic western-style RPGs The Dark Spire is a first-person RPG of exploration and character development in the purest sense. Parties will be assembled, stats will be rolled, items, weapons and armor shall be equipped, and monsters will be slain. Some adventurers will choose to play using the "modern" interface, its bold, stylized textures and palettes delivering a fresh, up-to-date adventure. Others may opt for the "classic" mode, guaranteed to evoke overwhelming sensations of nostalgia as it perfectly recreates the style and simplicity of the fathers of the genre. Two different presentation modes, two different ways to experience The Dark Spire!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10760 in Video Games
• Brand: Atlus
• Model: DS-40028-7
• Published on: 2009-04
• Released on: 2009-04-14
• ESRB Rating: Everyone 10+
• Platform: Nintendo DS
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: .25 pounds

Features

• Take back the age of the great classic RPGs where you build your perfect party from the ground up
• Shrewd strategy is required to navigate tough dungeon floors with limited resources, earning experience by taking on 80 different enemies out to end you
• The traditional RPG experience is fully realized in Classic Mode, which offers a black-and-white wireframe dungeon environment reminiscent of the nostalgic PC RPGs
• Switch back to Modern Mode to update to the full 3-D atmosphere of the Dark Spire
• A second person narrative reaches out from the game to speak to you of codpieces and killer rabbits, enveloping the gamer in an unforgettable adventure that offers three possible endings

Amazon.com Product Description
The Dark Spire is a first-person RPG of exploration and character development in the purest sense. Parties will be assembled, stats will be rolled, items, weapons and armor shall be equipped, and monsters will be slain. Some adventurers will choose to play using the “modern” interface, its bold, stylized textures and palettes delivering a fresh, up-to-date adventure. Others may opt for the “classic” mode, guaranteed to evoke overwhelming sensations of nostalgia as it perfectly recreates the style and simplicity of the fathers of the genre. Two different presentation modes, two different ways to experience The Dark Spire!

Welcome to the Dark Spire View larger. 3D Dungeon View larger. Classic Enemies View larger. Synopsis Those who dare to enter the Dark Spire's endless labyrinth will encounter vicious monsters, diabolical traps, and mysterious devices. Walk carefully, be observant, and keep your wits about you. Investigate the dungeon carefully, using each of your party members' talents to their fullest. A broken sword that might appear meaningless could actually be an important clue to solving a puzzle... Key Game Features: Homage to classic RPGs — Take back the age of the great classic RPGs where you build your perfect party from the ground up. Shrewd strategy is required to navigate tough dungeon floors with limited resources, earning experience by taking on 80 different enemies out to end you. Dual dungeon modes — The traditional RPG experience is fully realized in Classic Mode, which offers a black-and-white wireframe dungeon environment reminiscent of the nostalgic PC RPGs. Switch back to Modern Mode to update to the full 3-D atmosphere of the Dark Spire. A captivating story of mist and shadow — A second person narrative reaches out from the game to speak to you of codpieces and killer rabbits, enveloping the gamer in an unforgettable adventure that offers three possible endings.

Customer Reviews

Playing Dark Spire
The other reviewers make a lot of good points, so I'll just say this game is freaking great and leave it at that.

I'd like take a moment, though, to point something out to people who never played and enjoyed (and loved?) Wizardry, and why it matters to this game:

Back in the day, exploration and general cluelessness about a game were the norm. It wasn't limited to Wizardry, of course. Starting with Zork and moving forward through the perfections of Sierra Online, the FREEDOM of the game was part of the enjoyment. Typing things like "throw shoe at door" were sometimes things you had to do in the game. But knowing that how or why this was the thing to do was sometimes really, really unclear.

This game allows you the enjoyment of vague expectations and objectives as a part of the design.

I would suggest AGAINST reading online guides if you intend to buy and enjoy this game. It is not so much about finishing as it is a puzzle of how the game actually works. I know this sounds like nonsense, but at least try it. Yes, you'll have to grind a bit more gold for stupid purchasing decisions, the numerous deaths that you face (especially early on) and subsequent healing and/or raising costs... Well. It's painful, but it's worth it. The atmosphere of a rather intense fear of videogame death and penalties is refreshing in these days of instagrat. As is being completely bewildered.

Back in the day, we didn't have the internets, and games like these are made and meant to hurt, sometimes.

TL;DR: Enjoy the hurt.

Just know what you are getting into before you buy
There some great reviews here that describe the game well. But I've got to give the game 3 stars and not 5 like many here are doing. Why? I like the old school graphics but the graphics repeat a lot. Really folks, you are looking at the same 2D graphics for hours. This is a long game and started to tire of the same level graphics.

Its not just the graphics though obviously: the gameplay requires enormous amounts of "XP grinding" where you fight lower level enemies to get to a certain point where you can get to the next level of the tower. This for me at least, got old really fast. Yes I know this is what old school RPG's are like and I'm sure this is fun for some gamers, but I got bored. I enjoyed the first 15 hours of gameplay but I really had no interest going another step. Your mileage may vary!

Also one nitpick -- would it have been so hard to have the battle text be red when you are taking damage and blue you are giving damage to your enemies? Some colored text would have made a world of difference and you are looking at this text all of the time, so why not font colors?

Another tasty DS treat for us older games (and younger gamers who appreciate the past)
This is yet another reason why those of us who grew up playing computer games in the 1980s really owe it to ourselves to buy a DS. First, the DS has a pretty good sized number of turn-based wargames, complete with hexes and counters, (does anybody remember Avalon Hill) an excellent remake of Populous with all the fun still intact,(something many remakes don't achieve so well)and a few excellent arcade collections that bring the 80s back to life. This game, however, is like Nirvana for those of us who grew up playing Wizardry on Apple II computers, early Ultima games on Apple, Commodore 64, or Atari computers, or the Bard's tale games that did not have "in-your-face" 3-d photorealistic, holographic graphics and fifty-seven channel super-duper sound, but required you to have an imagination and to not be afraid to start over many times. Back then, we used to play these games, help our friends with the puzzles, and feel a real sense of achievement on finishing. People then welcomed other players of their games, never used the words N00b or pwned against other gamers, (it was a tight and welcoming community) and cared more about helping each other solve puzzles. I remember in High School there was even a computer game club in which we would help each other with Zork, Ultima, Wizardry, and some of the lesser known games like Odyssey:The Complete Apventure. Trust me; if you lived through those times, you owe it to yourself to buy this game, and be sure to use "classic" mode for the full effect of playing a real RPG on an Apple II or a Commodore 64. There is a more artsy modern mode as well if you don't like the old graphics style, so everyone gets something. If you lived through the classic gaming era of the 80s and you don't have a DS, buy a DS then buy this game.
Enjoy!