If the idol remained outside of the ancient city, Heladin, and possibly Azalin, was doomed to mirror the twisted metropolis that spanned the vast underground caverns of the Land of Disaster. ![]() The idol was originally taken from the ruined depths of the Holy Land, now known as the Land of Disaster, and given to the unsuspecting king of Heladin. From within his cloak, the dark stranger produced the object of Heladin’s corruption: The Idol of Sorrow. Meanwhile, in the adjoining kingdom of Azalin, a shrouded figure appears at the doorstep of Prince Devian. The idol was presumed lost forever, but the decay of the nation continued. Alas, the party was neither seen nor heard from again. Fearing for the life of his king and home, the sword master Septiego took a battalion of his best men to return the idol which was believed to be the source of this tragedy. Ever since the idol was brought into the kingdom, the once prosperous nation fell into a state of corruption and decay. The country was enveloped with a strange sorrow, a certain darkness that stains the soul of man. Their king, smitten by a strange idol that was given to him as a gift, lies dying. In the land of Heladin, something is amiss. Does the return of this forgotten legacy mark a new era for RPG fans or is it doomed to fade into quiescence? King’s Field IV was released in Japan and quickly snatched up for localization by our friends at AGETEC and dubbed King’s Field: The Ancient City. Now, over 5 years later, the true successor to this long standing series makes a grand entrance on Sony’s PlayStation 2. The series that was seemingly left for dead had not been forgotten. To fans, it seemed that the legacy was over, but with the release of Eternal Ring for the PlayStation 2 in 2000, their spark of hope became a blazing conflagration: the 128-bit resurrection of the King’s Field engine was nigh. Over the next few years From Software seemingly abandoned the King’s Field saga, but not before taking one last stab at the PlayStation with Shadow Tower: a spiritual successor to the King’s Field line. Much to the delight of fans, the game was localized and released in late 1996 as King’s Field 2. It was inevitable that when King’s Field III was released in Japan, many wondered if AGETEC would take another chance in bringing this superior sequel to America. This sequel would be known to western audiences simply as King’s Field.ĭespite lukewarm media criticism, King’s Field (USA) was a small success, earning a modest though dedicated fan-following. King’s Field 2 would garner moderate recognition and would eventually be localized courtesy of ASCII Entertainment (now known as AGETEC) in early 1996. Persevering onward, the sequel to the original King’s Field was released, improving on many of the shortcomings of the maligned original. Not surprisingly, the game remained in Japan. ![]() ![]() Even by first generation PlayStation standards, the game was ugly, simplistic and cumbersome. While groundbreaking for the time, King’s Field was met with harsh reviews. In 1994, From Software released the first game in the King’s Field series: a saga that introduced action-oriented role-playing to the 3rd dimension using polygonal environments in a first person perspective. As I sit here in retrospect, glazing over the memories of the haunting quest I had endured, I realized that this journey was one few would embark upon and even fewer would survive. The long journey through the darkness had filled me with fear, doubt, regret and terror, but I had emerged alive and triumphant. I stood up, feeling the dry crack of bones too long accustomed to stasis. The saline that had beaded for so long on quivering brows finally relaxed, flowing in thin rivulets down clammy cheeks. Slowly, the Dual Shock 2 slid from my twitching grasp, landing with a dull thud on the shaggy carpet.
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