Willow (NES) Playthrough
497A playthrough of Capcom's 1989 license-based fantasy action-adventure game for the NES, Willow.
Capcom's Willow for the NES, not to be confused with the excellent arcade game (https://youtu.be/r7mN48tJLQQ ), is one of my favorite action-RPGs on the NES. It follows a lot of the trends set by the original The Legend of Zelda, but it feels closer to Crystalis with its added emphasis on magic and on plot.
The story is a bit different from the film's, but the goal is the same: Spirit messengers endowed with power of magic were sent to protect the people of the world. Queen Bavmorda becomes hungry for power and transforms Fin Raziel into an opossum in order to claim the world as her own. This doesn't sit well with a Nelwyn named Willow, who, with the aid of Fin Raziel’s magic and Elora Danan’s Crest of the Spirits, travels toward Nockmaar Castle as the world’s last remaining hope against the wicked queen.
The world is nicely fleshed out and filled with NPCs, but since Willow is an action-RPG, its exploration and dungeon crawling focuses on battling with hordes of monsters. Willow’s strength is based on his experience level and the sword that he is using, and many enemies are immune to specific weapon types, making it impossible to power through every situation with the strongest sword at hand. Willow also acquires several magic spells that'll allow him to heal himself, shoot fireballs at adversaries, transform into monsters, and more. You have to be careful, however, since without the correct spell and sufficient experience, Bavmorda cannot be beaten in the final showdown.
It's not a particularly difficult game, but there's enough here to keep you exploring for quite awhile. The battle system gives you a lot of options, and as long as you are keeping an eye on your health, you aren't going to die too often thanks to the useful healing spells. You aren't sent back very far when you die either, so the frustration level is usual pretty low. (I just wish we could save! Those passwords are too long!)
While Capcom's efforts saw an amazing amount of success on the NES, I can't help but feel that Willow is among the most impressive. It's beautiful for an NES game. I know I can't be the only one who is still sometimes taken aback by the battle scenes. When you wander into a clearing and the wind starts blowing around the trees, grass, and water as the dramatic battle theme begins - I thought it was the coolest effect as a kid, and I still find myself impressed by it. The music is just as good as the graphics, too - Harumi Fujita's soundtrack really knows how to set a mood. I swear I could go fifty years without touching the game and I'd still remember every song without difficulty.
For a perfect example, check out the cutscene at 1:47:52 and its follow-up at 1:54:20. It's crazy that an NES game could set a scene so effectively.
Willow for the NES is great. I'd have to say that I actually prefer it to the film that it was based on!
One last note - nothing has been edited out of this recording. All the grinding is shown, but most of it is consolidated to a single segment beginning at 1:01:38. If you want to skip it, the game continues on from 1:40:53.
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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