Gemfire

The Good
When this game originally came out, I wasn't that much of a fan of Koei (Nobunaga's Ambition and Romance of the 3 Kingdoms weren't very involving to me), but lately, I've taken a liking to strategy RPGs (Fire Emblem and Ogre Battle for GBA). While Gemfire isn't strictly an RPG (no leveling up characters), it does remind of one of my favorite games for the Amiga--Cinemaware's Defender of the Crown. What differences there are (Gemfire's use of magic, crop-raising and selling, vassal system, strategic battle system, monster system, etc) are generally improvements over DotC and the other Koei games I've played.

The Bad
The graphics are good for a Genesis game of the time, but it's nothing flashy, either--and doesn't hold a candle to Defender of the Crown's visuals. Not much emotion or characterization, and no nude silhouetted make-out scenes by the fire. Plundering and sabotage take part in both games, but it's not as involving in Gemfire. No tournaments for land or glory that I've seen.

The Bottom Line
A strategy/war simulation game set in a land similar to Medieval England (even the province names are familiar sounding and evoke Robin Hood and the Norman invasion), except with magic. You are to prevent the Gemfire--a crown with an unholy jewel with the power to call a powerful fire dragon--from being used to destroy the world.

The Good
Koei is probably best known for its Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, depicting warfare among feuding lords in ancient China. Therefore, Gemfire is a bit of a departure from that back drop as it depicts a battle for control of the magical island of Ishmeria. Personally, I really enjoyed that fact. While there are definitely reasons why RotTK is as popular as it is, I found the change to a more familiar (if fictional) setting a welcome change. The names of the provinces and various lords and vassals were much easier for me to remember and navigate as they were the sorts of names that one would come across in European history or a fantasy novel.

I also like the magical flavor that hung over the game. I felt like I was entangled in a fairy tale of some sort as I battled monsters, laid siege to castles, and sent my wizards to war all in an effort to unite Ishmeria and free Princess Robyn from her tower. The various random events that happen during the passing of the months helps reinforce this feeling as well as pixies bless your crops, unicorns bestow charms upon you, and banshees warn of the imminent death of your characters.

The control interface of Gemfire is simple and easy to learn. All commands are issued via selecting a large icon that opens into a menu of four more icons apiece. 16 possible commands in total many of which you may never use at all. For a Koei game that is about as simple as it gets!

The Bad
In a word: AI. The computer opponents in this game are idiots. There is almost no way that you can lose unless you mismanage things so badly that you deserve to be conquered. You can sit next to an enemy province for months on end with a huge army waiting at the border and the computer won't even increase it's own forces in response. In battle, they are even worse. I have seen their units stand next to each other, with one building barriers and the other tearing them down while I rampage across the battlefield. There is an option to 'Entrust' provinces you control to the computer to manage but why would you ever want to?

The Bottom Line
This game is like RotTK for beginners. It incorporates the various tasks of conquering enemy provinces, managing resources, and building armies but in a much more forgiving and streamlined manner. The touch of magic and fantasy elements is a nice change from the usual offering as well. All in all, I think that this game will be enjoyable for easy going players of strategy games but serious number crunchers will find the game lacking in that department.