Manual Stimulation: Dungeon Explorer (PC Engine)

Dungeon Explorer is one of those PC Engine (or TurboGrafx-16, if that's how you swing) games I've always wanted to own, always thought I should own, but only recently picked up.

Why the long wait? The main reason, I guess, is that I've long thought of this Hudson-made Gauntlet clone as one that's only enjoyable when multiple people are playing it at the same time. (Dungeon Explorer famously allows five people to play through it together--assuming they have a multi-tap accessory and five PC Engine or TG-16 controllers.)



I still feel that way, actually, but a month or so ago I plopped down a few dollars on a used complete-in-box copy of Dungeon Explorer anyway because I went on a bit of an eBay binge and couldn't resist this game's top-tier cover art (see above) when I came across it.



It has to be said, by the way, that I didn't realize the content of Dungeon Explorer's instruction manual was on par with--or even better than--its cover illustration.

I especially like the grittiness of the art sprinkled throughout this HuCard's manual. Most manuals from this era featured art that was decidedly cute. Here, though, it's almost gruesome--or at least it's not as polished as what's on offer in the manuals that accompanied similar titles.



That the imagery showcased in Dungeon Explorer's instruction booklet is in black and white adds to its appeal, in my mind. That's not to say I would've minded if its designers had added a bit of color here and there, but I'm also not about to complain about its current look.



If you're looking for my favorite of this manual's many drawings, by the way, check out the squished, chibi-esque character illustrations seen in the spread below.



That said, I find the following illustrations of some of the game's enemies pretty thrilling, too.

Will all of this prompt me to get off my lazy butt and finally spend some real quality time with Dungeon Explorer? That's the current plan.



Of course, I have quite a few other games begging for my attention right now--like the 3DS remake of Dragon Quest VII, the just-released 3DS eShop title Chase: Cold Case Investigations, the Pokémon Sun/Moon demo and even Great Greed for GameBoy--so fitting it in this week or weekend may be tough. Still, I'll do my best to play at least a bit of it in the next seven days or so.

In the meantime, have any of you played either the Japanese or North American version of Dungeon Explorer? If so, what do you think about it?

See also: previous 'Manual Stimulation' posts

Nice Package! (Dungeon Explorer, PC Engine)

If you're one of the many millions of non-Japanese gamers who ignored the PC Engine or TurboGrafx-16 back in the late 1980s and early 1990s--or, you know, you're young enough that this is the first you're hearing of either of those NEC-made consoles--you may not know much, if anything, about Dungeon Explorer.

The best way to describe it, I think, is to say it's a clone of Atari's Gauntlet, itself a product of the 1980s. That's not an entirely accurate comparison, mind you, as Dungeon Explorer takes that classic quarter-mucher's overhead hack-and-slash gameplay and builds on it greatly. Still, there's little doubt the team behind Dungeon Explorer looked toward Gauntlet while developing their title, so I'm comfortable leaving my description as is.



Gameplay isn't the only area in which Dungeon Explorer bests Gauntlet, by the way. It also beats it in the graphics department.

Now, that's not to say the PC Engine title's the looker of the 16-bit generation, but it's definitely atmospheric. To see what I mean, check out the screenshots found in videogameden.com's and thebrothersduomazov.com's write-ups on this five-player game.

Of course, you expect an atmospheric experience when you play at Atlus-developed game, right? Wait, you didn't know the company behind Shin Megami Tensei and Persona made Dungeon Explorer? Well, it did.

And then Hudson Soft--the now-defunct company that brought the world the Adventure Island, Bomberman and a number of other series--published it. (In 1989, to be exact.)

As for Dungeon Explorer's lovely packaging, which is supposed to be the focus of this post, I've got to say its cover (and HuCard) illustration is my favorite part of the whole she-bang. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it's among the best the PC Engine has to offer when it comes to box art.



That's not to say other components aren't ogle-worthy, too. For instance, Dungeon Explorer's instruction manual is filled to the brim with fabulous illustrations like the ones--of the game's cast of characters--showcased in the photo above. (For scans of the entire Dungeon Explorer manual, check out my latest "Manual Stimulation" post.)

With all that said, have any of you played Dungeon Explorer--or even Gauntlet? If so, share your thoughts on those titles in the comments section that follows. (Fair warning: I could talk about the latter for hours.)

See also: 'five PC Engine games you've overlooked and need to play ASAP'