Shining in the Darkness

Shining in the Darkness
Developer(s)	Climax Entertainment Sonic! Software Planning
Publisher(s)	Sega
Platform(s)	Sega Mega Drive, Virtual Console
Release date(s)	Mega Drive JP March 29, 1991[1] NA August 6, 1991[2] PAL 1991 Virtual Console JP June 12, 2007 NA August 13, 2007 PAL September 7, 2007[3]
Genre(s)	Role-Playing Game
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	CERO: All Ages ESRB: Everyone OFLC: Parental Guidance PEGI: 7+
Media/distribution	8 megabit cartridge

Shining in the Darkness, released as Shining and the Darkness (シャイニング&ザ・ダクネス^?) in Japan, is a 1991 RPG for the Mega Drive/Genesis video game console. It was one of the first RPGs released for the system, and began the Shining RPG series that would span four Sega video game consoles as well as the Game Boy Advance and PlayStation 2.

On August 13, 2007, the game was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console in North America and on September 7, 2007 the game was re-released in Europe.

The game appears in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.^[4]

Gameplay

Shining in the Darkness is a "dungeon-crawler" RPG. The game puts the player in control of the main character as he and two friends (Pyra and Milo) explore 3-dimensionally rendered dungeon mazes.

The game consists of story line interaction, dungeon exploration, random monster fights, and predetermined 'boss' fights. The combat in this game operates similarly to certain RPG games of the same era (e.g. Dragon Quest). Monster encounters happen randomly during dungeon exploration at which point turn-based combat proceeds.

Additionally, the dungeon contains three characters in need of rescue. Rescuing any or all of the three is optional, and the story changes depending on whether or not the player locates and returns each of these characters to safety.

Story

Shining in the Darkness is set in the kingdom of Thornwood. The king's daughter and the main character's father have vanished, while the evil sorcerer Dark Sol has appeared to threaten the kingdom. The main character is charged to find the Arms of Light, rescue the princess and his father, and stop Dark Sol.

Shining Series continuity

In Shining Force Gaiden: Final Conflict, it is revealed that the villain of Shining in the Darkness, Mephisto (called Dark Sol in the English versions), is the son of Darksol and his chief follower, the sorceress Mishaela (the villains of Shining Force I). After the final defeat of Darksol, the child was whisked away by Oddeye, the foremost Greater Devil of Darksol's archenemy, Zeon.

Mephisto's role in Shining in the Darkness places its entry in the timeline sometime following the events of Shining Force II. Since Shining Wisdom takes place but a few years later, it almost certainly takes place after Shining Wisdom as well.

Development

Sega allocated the bare minimum budget offered to out-of-house developers for the creation of Shining in the Darkness. In a 2009 interview, Hiroyuki Takahashi (credited for "writing" and producing the game) recalled:

Because we were on such a tight budget, apart from the programming and graphics, I did nearly all of the work on Shining in the Darkness. I suppose the basic concept behind Darkness was 'realism'. I thought it would be exciting if the player could actually travel to a fantasy world and walk around, exploring old houses, dungeons and other places. It was in essence a continuation of the sense of excitement you'd get from moving through the dungeons in older games such as Wizardry. By 'reality' I'm not talking about true realism - I mean the feeling that you really are progressing through actual houses and dungeons, and the same thing applied to the battles.^[5]

Translation issues

The English versions of Shining in the Darkness mistranslate Mephisto's name as "Dark Sol", which has led to much confusion amongst gamers, since this is virtually identical to the name of Mephisto's father, Darksol. Several other characters also have altered names, and the nation in which the game is set, Stormsong, is renamed as Thornwood.

Reception

The game was reviewed in 1992 in Dragon #178 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.^[6]

Legacy

Shining in the Darkness is considered by many gaming historians to be a pioneer of Japanese console RPGs, especially in Europe, which would not see a Final Fantasy game until more than six years after Shining in the Darkness made its mark in the region.^[7] The game also marked the beginning of the successful Shining series, which has since produced more than 20 video games and an animated TV series.

The second game in the Shining series, Shining Force: Legacy of Great Intention, diverged greatly in game-play mechanic; however, many stylistic parts are reminiscent of Shining in the Darkness, including music and art. Other features such as the distinctive menu system, the use of priests for saving games and resurrecting characters, and several magic spells would continue to be used in every game in the series up to and including Shining Force III, with the notable exception of Shining Wisdom.

The game Shining the Holy Ark gave the series a fleeting return to the dungeon crawler game-play mechanic, and uses a remix of the dungeon theme from Shining in the Darkness in its soundtrack.

References

1. ^ Release data, GameFAQs.com.
2. ^ Game data, IGN.com
3. ^ Virtual Console release data, GameFAQs.com.
4. ^ Review for Xbox 360 version of Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection, IGN.
5. ^ (November 2009). "Behind the Scenes: Shining Force", GamesTM (90): 136-41.
6. ^ Lesser, Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk (February 1992). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (178): 57–64. 
7. ^ Day, A (2008). "The History of Shining Force", Retro Gamer (58): 66-73.

External links

• Shining in the Darkness on the Shining Wiki
• Shining in the Darkness at Shining Force Central
• Shining in the Darkness at MobyGames