Top Down View Games: 1998 (LoZ: Ocarina of Time, Baldur's Gate, Goemon's Great Adventure, Banjo-Kazooie, RE 2, Medievil and Half-Life are released)
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Metal Gear Solid (PS1, 1998/PC, 2000)
Subgenre: 3D-ish Stealth/Action Adventure
Perspective: TP/TD/FP View (Looking around/using binoculars) Hybrid w/ automatic camera outside of FP view (mostly TD)
Other: Can't attack while in first person mode, Can shoot while moving by pressing the crawl button while shooting
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review (Integral)
Bomberman Quest (GBC, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D ARPG/Action Adventure
Perspective: TD View
Tool gating (wings - limited flight, jump shoes, power glove for picking up and throwing bombs lets you hit switches, dash shoes, rubber bomb that bounces, power bracelet - move rocks, shovel and hammer - see Zelda 3, yo-yo for moving bombs)
Warp back to town by using the flute
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
The Legend Of Valkyrie/Valkyrie no Bouken (Namco Anthology Vol. 2)(PS1, 1998)(NES Remake/Remix?)
Subgenre: 2D ARPG (four char classes based on the zodiac signs - melee/balanced/mage/mage w/ +1 HP and -1 MP, exp point leveling)
Perspective: TD view
Other: Pick blood type before starting - affects your leveling table up until level 20, Overworld and dungeons
Minor tool/ability gating (Hatchet for cutting down trees, Ship/Whale for sea travel, Lantern to see in the dark)
Short?
James Bond 007 (GB, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D Action Adventure, Level-based, Similar to Metal Gear 1-2
Perspective: TD View
Some tool gating (grappling hook for reaching higher, machete - cut through grass, light a dark cave with the lamp or use night vision goggles to see in the dark without alerting enemies)
Map feature (need to find a satellite link to see your location)
Receive tips from NPCs via a walkie-talkie
Pixel hunting for hidden items
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Dink Smallwood (PC, 1998)
Subgenre: Diablo-like ARPG?
Perspective: TD view
Playthrough w/ commentary (HD ver.) - Video Review - Mini Review
Hexplore (PC, 1998)?
Subgenre: Diablo-like ARPG
Perspective: High angle TP view (can rotate the camera)
Other: Party-based
Vangers: One for the Road (PC, 1998)?
Subgenre: Action Adventure
Perspective: TD view
Other: Car-based
Sorvice (SAT, 1998)
Subgenre: 2.5D ARPG
Perspective: TD view
Brave Fencer Musashi (PS1, 1998)
Subgenre: 3D ARPG (Exp point/action-based hybrid leveling system)
Perspective: TP view (mostly high angles, some SV segments)
Other: Platforming, Some mini-games (speed and collection challenges, rhythm segment), Trolley ride, Climb walls, Double jump (learn it midway through)
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Brave Prove (PS1, 1998) - 2D ARPG, TD View
Some tool/ability gating (grappling hook to cross gaps, bombs to blow up hollow trees/walls/floors, arrows?)
Save points
Quest for Camelot (GBC, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D Action Adventure
Perspective: TD view
Other: Overworld and dungeons
Some tool/ability gating (grappling hook, scale for jumping between rocks, snorkel for underwater swimming)
Compass
Star Ocean: The Second Story (PS1, 1998)
Subgenre: JRPG/ARPG hybrid
Perspective: Mixed perspective 2.5D exploration (pre-rendered backgrounds)/3D-ish battles (TP view, 2D sprites)
Other: Separate battle encounters and overworld?
Key gating only? (some detection items)
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Outliers:
Gauntlet Legends (ARC, 1998) - 3D ARPG/Maze Action, TD/Bird's Eye View w/ some camera control?, Level-based?, Shops
Metal Gear Solid (PS1, 1998/PC, 2000)
Subgenre: 3D-ish Stealth/Action Adventure
Perspective: TP/TD/FP View (Looking around/using binoculars) Hybrid w/ automatic camera outside of FP view (mostly TD)
Other: Can't attack while in first person mode, Can shoot while moving by pressing the crawl button while shooting
- Can now see enemies' field of vision
- More advanced binocular use (the game switches to first person view and you can zoom in and out)
- Throw and strangle moves (you can also use an enemy as a human shield by using the latter move)
- Good voice acting overall and there's a lot of it (Snatcher)
- Keycards/ID cards now stack
- 360 degree movement and attacks
- Ranking system (your rank is only shown after beating the whole game though so you can't see how you're doing over the course of the game)
- Guards can now react to footsteps in the snow
- New tricks to make you feel more vulnerable (can't use your weapons in one area (near the warheads), the radar jams when getting close to Cyber Ninja)
- Alternate round unlockable (new enemy placements and patrol patterns, new camera angles in some cutscenes), new outfits for snake and meryl on your third playthrough (tuxedo/sneaking suit), unlockable "1P View Mode" (lets you move and shoot in FP mode - a few parts are still limited to top down though)
- One gameplay choice that affects the story (a side character's survival, affects the ending)
- Some interesting gameplay (fight alongside meryl in the cell escape segment, some fourth wall breaking stuff (psycho mantis's comments - not on PC though?, back of the cd case=back of the physical game's cd case), torture/cell escape segment (alternate solutions?), the hind chopper fight, the fist fight with liquid)
- Can speed up dialogue on a per sentence/paragraph basis (but not without silencing the rest of the dialogue for that scene)
- PC ver. includes the VR missions (there's 300 of them though they're very short) on a separate disc and has better textures
- Can wall hug move under cameras (like in MG1 NES) as well as jam them with a special grenade - makes these parts a bit faster
- Some new gear (camera, sniper rifle, night vision goggles), some unexpected plot twists (finale and ending)
- Auto-use of rations when you're about to die (need to have them equipped though)
- While you can save at any time the game really only saves at the beginning of the current area (and collected items are lost)
- The radar is more zoomed in than in MG2 and there's still no map feature
- It's much harder to survive after detection than in MG2 (mainly due to shots being faster and landing your shots being a bit trickier)
- Ammo and health items replenish after leaving the area
- No longer need to punch the enemies to death to get loot from them
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review (Integral)
Bomberman Quest (GBC, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D ARPG/Action Adventure
Perspective: TD View
Tool gating (wings - limited flight, jump shoes, power glove for picking up and throwing bombs lets you hit switches, dash shoes, rubber bomb that bounces, power bracelet - move rocks, shovel and hammer - see Zelda 3, yo-yo for moving bombs)
Warp back to town by using the flute
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
The Legend Of Valkyrie/Valkyrie no Bouken (Namco Anthology Vol. 2)(PS1, 1998)(NES Remake/Remix?)
Subgenre: 2D ARPG (four char classes based on the zodiac signs - melee/balanced/mage/mage w/ +1 HP and -1 MP, exp point leveling)
Perspective: TD view
Other: Pick blood type before starting - affects your leveling table up until level 20, Overworld and dungeons
Minor tool/ability gating (Hatchet for cutting down trees, Ship/Whale for sea travel, Lantern to see in the dark)
Short?
James Bond 007 (GB, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D Action Adventure, Level-based, Similar to Metal Gear 1-2
Perspective: TD View
Some tool gating (grappling hook for reaching higher, machete - cut through grass, light a dark cave with the lamp or use night vision goggles to see in the dark without alerting enemies)
Map feature (need to find a satellite link to see your location)
Receive tips from NPCs via a walkie-talkie
Pixel hunting for hidden items
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Dink Smallwood (PC, 1998)
Subgenre: Diablo-like ARPG?
Perspective: TD view
Playthrough w/ commentary (HD ver.) - Video Review - Mini Review
Hexplore (PC, 1998)?
Subgenre: Diablo-like ARPG
Perspective: High angle TP view (can rotate the camera)
Other: Party-based
Vangers: One for the Road (PC, 1998)?
Subgenre: Action Adventure
Perspective: TD view
Other: Car-based
Sorvice (SAT, 1998)
Subgenre: 2.5D ARPG
Perspective: TD view
Brave Fencer Musashi (PS1, 1998)
Subgenre: 3D ARPG (Exp point/action-based hybrid leveling system)
Perspective: TP view (mostly high angles, some SV segments)
Other: Platforming, Some mini-games (speed and collection challenges, rhythm segment), Trolley ride, Climb walls, Double jump (learn it midway through)
- Good variation overall (platforming, pole climbing, minor puzzles, hidden items and one optional boss)
- Learn sword combos and throws (can also carry enemies around, pretty basic stuff otherwise compared to fighting or beat 'em up games)
- Day/night cycle which affects gameplay (interesting in theory at least - Musashi gets less agile when tired and eventually can't run and a bit later falls asleep on the spot)
- Save feature (in town or inside dungeons, save points are somewhat far between in dungeons but they did put one before bosses), Infinite retries at the trolley ride and first part of the final boss
- No world or town map (makes navigating in town a bit of a chore and the zoomed in view doesn't help)
- Lots of people to save which can then be talked to in the castle (to receive new combos and other minor bonuses)
- Steal enemy abilities (often used for minor puzzles similar to Zelda or Metroid (some cool ones like bouncing, shrinking, explodable clone, machine gun), sometimes they're nonsensical like the map ability from flower enemies)
- Block move (need to be fully charged)
- Musashi reminds you of where to go or what you were doing when pausing (sometimes it's too vague to be helpful though)
- Elemental magic abilities (fire beam (melt ice, attack or light torches), water shield (walk on water), etc.)
- You can speed up text messages
- Fairly interactive environments (use elemental magic to alter the environment, swing on poles, climb certain trees and walls etc.)
- Some good puzzles (finding the last area, forest maze before the frozen palace)
- Some interesting quests (follow a dog through a forest)
- Auto-run (need to be over 70% or so on the 'tired' gauge, lower than that and it takes a while, lower than 50% or so and you can't run)
- Very forgiving about falling into pits (lose about 10 HP and respawn on the platform you were jumping from - Zelda 3)
- Infinite retries at the trolley ride and first part of the final boss
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Brave Prove (PS1, 1998) - 2D ARPG, TD View
Some tool/ability gating (grappling hook to cross gaps, bombs to blow up hollow trees/walls/floors, arrows?)
Save points
Quest for Camelot (GBC, 1998)
Subgenre: 2D Action Adventure
Perspective: TD view
Other: Overworld and dungeons
Some tool/ability gating (grappling hook, scale for jumping between rocks, snorkel for underwater swimming)
Compass
Star Ocean: The Second Story (PS1, 1998)
Subgenre: JRPG/ARPG hybrid
Perspective: Mixed perspective 2.5D exploration (pre-rendered backgrounds)/3D-ish battles (TP view, 2D sprites)
Other: Separate battle encounters and overworld?
Key gating only? (some detection items)
Playthrough - Video Review - Mini Review
Outliers:
Gauntlet Legends (ARC, 1998) - 3D ARPG/Maze Action, TD/Bird's Eye View w/ some camera control?, Level-based?, Shops