What to Play While in Quarantine: SNES Edition

Quarantine is the order of the day. And for good reason: COVID-19 is wreaking havoc across the world. Right now there’s not too many little corners of the world that are safe right now. In Saint Louis, we now have a Shelter in Place order out. Our hearts and controllers go out to those with COVID-19 and their families and loved ones. Remember, stay healthy in these times!

In the meantime, we’d like to share some fun games with you that will help pass the time. There’s plenty of new, awesome games out. There’s also plenty of older games that either stand the test of time or were so good that they etched special places in our hearts.

We’re going to start this series of blog posts out with one of our all-time faves, Soul Blazer.

Soul Blazer (1992)

Arguably the best part of the 90’s, aside from Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, were early RPGs. They all had a different spin on the classic trope of a Heavenly creator sending down a Hero to defeat Evil. Soul Blazer was no different.

Dungeon crawl, magical sidekick, and upgraded swords are the Central Nervous System of Soul Blazer. There’s 6 levels, and you get about a new sword per level. Creative, right?

Actually – Soul Blazer did do something pretty cool though that other games hadn’t really done yet. You see, there were enemies in the first few levels, the first one in particular, who you can’t kill. Like Thwomps. BUT later on in level 4, you get the Zantetsu Sword that in fact does kill them. So you get the sword, then go back to the first level, and blammo – you kill the baddies. A few new portals pop up, and you get more secret items. Rinse and repeat with levels 2-5 as you progress, and it’s fun to go back much stronger than the first time around. It’s cathartic.

That said, my favorite part of the game was the music in the villages. Each one was slightly different, and it ranged from folky-organ to ethereal electronic. Just play the vid below and you get the gist.

Give it a whirl! You may just feel better after you defeat all that evil.