Duration: 10:59

3,786 views

0

Original Air Date: July 31st, 2009

This is the introduction for Traverse: Starlight & Prairie, a Japan-only RPG published by Banpresto made around the height of the SNES/SFC's abilities, meaning aound the time the system showcased some of its most impressive titles visually, aurally, etc. (though not to say that it was when the best games were released). It's a little known title made by an almost as little known group, Pandora Box (and Max), who typically make a lot of unusual games, most being RPGs or games with RPG elements. This was one of the first imports I ever bought online and holds a special place in my mind, as I didn't know what to expect from it since there was so little info on it at the time and there were no pictures for the game.

Traverse is without a doubt one of the deepest RPGs ever made for the system, but it's also slow in its progression and riddled with some hefty flaws. The good outweighs the bad in this case I suppose and considering it's one of the most expansive games on the system and developed by a "lesser" group like Pandora Box, the game keeps amazing me on numerous fronts. Still, this game is SLOOOOW in the beginning, as evidenced by how I had to break this video up.

You see, the whole introduction is automatic (unskippable) and over ten minutes long, mostly because of the slow text speed (which can be changed when you gain control of your character). You get to shape how your character, Gantt, will grow when he is born based on many different factors. Your astrological sign, choice of pet, even what you decide as your favorite color will alter your stats and abilities. You will also be given blessings while answering questions from twelve goddesses which will also radically determine the growth of your character. Last but certainly not least, you will be judged based on every major decision you make, which in turn will affect your "Karma", which will alter what you can do in some instances.

Anyway there is A LOT to talk about in the game and it's almost wonderfully weird, but I'll save it for the Game Sample; I'll describe what's happening here instead. You get to name two characters (Gantt and Sonia by default) and then choose Gantt's birthday, blood type, pet kind, pet name, and favorite color. Gantt's father and an elderly villager are watching over Gantt's mother, who is currently pregnant and expecting but also ill. Because this is a game on a Nintendo system, you're obviously not going to be shown the birth (and the others faint), so you instead get a series of divine entites who bless you with a series of questions until you are miraculously born. All of the goddesses mostly have the same response (laughing softly at the decisions you make) but they ask different questions.

When you're born, the two wake up and are shocked to see that she was capable of having the baby, but it was too much for her... Gantt's mother dies due to the complications of giving birth and her weak condition. From this point on, Gantt will have a hard life ahead of himself. As time goes by and the seasons come and go, you start the game as a teenager. Gantt's father has become a mean alcoholic and resents Gantt because he's the reason his wife died (that portion is shown during the game sample). Enjoy.