Anachronox

Moby ID: 4499
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Description official descriptions

Sly Boots is a private investigator who is in a bit of trouble - money trouble that is. So his first priority is to earn some money; when a mysterious rich man unexpectedly turns up with a tempting offer, Sly begins to think that his troubles are a thing of the past. Naturally, he couldn't have been more wrong, as he soon slides into something much, much bigger: he will discover a great mystery which may cause the destruction of the universe.

Anachronox is a sci-fi role-playing game that predominantly follows the Japanese template, though also incorporating elements from Western-style RPGs. Though its plot is serious in nature, the game features humorous dialogue and many bizarre situations.

The combat system has many similarities to the Final Fantasy series: it is turn-based in principle, but every character has an action bar. After every action it is depleted, and when it is filled again the next action can be started - no matter if the enemy has attacked or not. Important differences are the ability to move around on the battlefield in restricted ways and the non-random battles. Another similarity is the character development which automatically increases the character's stats.

However, the game is less combat-oriented than most Japanese-style RPGs. Most of the time is spent exploring the hub areas, solving (side) quests and conversing with people.

At first Sly is alone, save for his electronic secretary Fatima, but during the course of the game he recruits six party members to help him out, some of which are rather eccentric. Every party member has a special ability, played out in action-based mini-games, which are needed to solve quests, e.g. Sly can lockpick doors. There are also other mini-games to be found, partly needed to solve quests and partly optional. Sometimes there are traditional logic puzzles to solve.

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Credits (Windows version)

157 People (141 developers, 16 thanks) · View all

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Reviews

Critics

Average score: 80% (based on 48 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.1 out of 5 (based on 100 ratings with 13 reviews)

Final Fantasy fans will love this game...great RPG

The Good
Final Fantasy fans will be right at home when playing Anachronox. The game has an interesting, involving storyline, great character development and is overall a lot of fun to play. You team up with seven quirky characters each with their own past (A couple of them are old friends of the main character Sly Boots, and you'll learn his past as you play the game as well), you get to know the characters well and there's great character development despite the shortness of the game. The game's humor is great and pretty refreshing to see in an RPG. You'll find yourself feeding a puss stained sock to a guy in exchange for information, teaming up with a retired superhero, getting bossed around by your mouse pointer (Who is actually a character in the game) and doing many other strange but amusing things.
There are only a few worlds to explore but they jam-packed with mini-games and sub-quests which keep the game interesting. I've read many complaints about the graphics and I must admit they were a tad dated, but the cartoonyness and vibrant colors really added to the atmosphere and humor of the game. I really liked them.

The Bad
The music in this game was a little too cheesy for me. On some worlds it was too techno-ish and and others it was slow and boring. The battle music was the worst, slow and just plain annoying. The game world was originally supposed to be much bigger, but was slashed down to rush the game out into stores after an already long production delay. That's too bad. The game is quite good, but with a few more worlds thrown in and a longer playing time, it could have been even better. In fact the short length of the game was a bit of a letdown. Anachronox isn't supposed to be one of those long open ended RPGs that has over 100 hours of gameplay but I would have liked to see at least 40 or 50. If you plan on playing the game, expect to experience a few bugs along the way. This was a major problem when Anachronox was released, there's a patch out now, but there is still some minor problems. The game wasn't designed to run on any OS newer than windows 98, so XP users may experience even more problems.

The Bottom Line
As you can see from other reviews, Anachronox has quite a fan following. For good reason to, it's a lot of fun. While I wouldn't recommend it for everyone, it's a great game for any RPG fan who's looking for something a little different but that's still a lot of fun.

Windows · by devils102 (18) · 2004

Great, great game, but call the Orkin man before playing

The Good
My original title for this one was going to be 'Not much of an RPG, but a great adventure game'. I guess I've grown up on the Black Isle RPGs and was a little put off by any game where leveling up didn't include adjusting your strength, wisdom and what-not. Luckily, Anachronox has taught me different.

I have not had such a good time playing a game in years. Everything about Anachronox has so much humor and style. The game has so many unique little incidents that aren't part of the main story, but manage to build on the atmosphere.

The writing is smart and funny. Humor is always an iffy thing in PC games. For the most part designers don't spend much time on the scripts for these things and the 'jokes' are usually groan-inducing or downright painful. Not so here. If you enjoy humorous sci-fi like Red Dwarf or The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, you owe it to yourself to try Anachronox.

The story turns out to be pretty serious but for the first third of the game or so you're really just running on the good vibes the writers are able to supply through character interaction. Even though I've heard the beginning of the game is slow, I was having such a good time playing that I never considered dropping the game for something else.

All of the characters are unique and will elicit different responses from the NPCs you talk to. (Make sure to have Rho talk to the artistic door man! It's a hoot!) Even the in-game cursor/quest log is a character with it's own personality.

The graphics are fairly blocky since they used the Quake II engine, but the art design is great. Every area has such a unique look. Once you've played, if you look at a screen shot you can tell not only what planet they are on, but what subsection of what planet. Any game that can make corridors look unique has accomplished something.

Combat and spell effects are impressive. Whenever you upgrade your weapon or find a new 'spell' you can't wait to find a bad guy to try it out on.

I was a little worried about the turn-based combat as I prefer real-time. The game describes combat as 'turn-based real-time' which really sounded like some sort of middle ground that wouldn't please anybody. Anachronox manages to walk a middle line between turn-based and real-time and for the most part succeeds. I haven't enjoyed a turn-based game this much since Fallout.

Voice acting is never bad and is usually very good. Weapon sounds and spaceships blasting off are all cool to listen to. Even the incidental music when you pick up an item is neat. The background music is always appropriate to the setting and very nice to listen to. It was nice to play a game where there wasn't one cheesy heavy metal track.

Level design is also great. For the most part, you will know where to go next and can run straight through if you like. But there are so many little nooks and crannies to explore and you will usually wind up with a new item or sub-quest for your troubles.

The story manages to be interesting all the way through and none of your characters will ever become useless as you add new ones to your party.

The Bad
Bugs! Bugs, bugs, bugs! Before you play, make sure to download the second 'unofficial' patch put together by the development team working with a bunch of fans.

Even afterwards, not everything will be smooth. Random freezes still occur every so often. There are a few sub-quests that involve taking pictures of, say, Red Biparti that are scattered across the planets you visit. Unfortunately, Boots' camera would periodically wipe out all the pics stored in memory. After a while, this caused me to just give up on that quest.

Speaking of sub-quests, while Fatima is great at storing your main quests, remembering sub-quests like which monk to speak to or who needs the miner's bracelet are up to you. This seems like such a basic thing to forget. In practice it leads to a lot more running around or you forgetting that quest all together even though you have everything you need to complete it.

Also, even after patching (and patching and patching) the load times still take a while. Since many quests require you to cross several load zones, each taking twenty seconds or so to load, what would be a little annoying became frustrating enough for me to quit playing for the day.

Lastly, towards the end of the game you go from one boss fight to a cinematic showing the characters resting and then straight into the final boss fight. This may not sound that bad, but it gives you no chance to reconfigure your items. When I was playing this part I actually had to go back to an old save game, equip my party then and fight the first boss all over again. How did such an obvious goof slip through quality control?

The Bottom Line
Overall, Anachronox is one of the best games I ever played. The bugs got on my nerves, but never enough for me to chuck the game.

It manages to make the ho-hum task of saving the universe fun again and it does it all with real panache.

That this game isn't already a collector's item is a crime. I would advise any PC gamer to pick this one up. You'll be glad you did.

Windows · by Atomic Punch! (186) · 2006

Anachronox, Anachrorocks!

The Good
I first heard of Anachronox when saw the ad, on the Deus Ex box. When the game eventually came out I downloaded the demo, and seeing as if was quite a fun and funny game, I resolved to purchase the full game. Having failed to secure a copy, time went on and the game went to the back of my mind. Some time later I was at my local software store, and they had a few copies of the game. I purchased it for about $15 US.

In Anachronox, you assume the role of Sylvester Buceli, aka, Sly Boots. Sly is down on his luck. He has not worked in months, and to make matters worse he owes the mobster Detta, some serious cash. After his latest working over, Sly resolves to get a job any job. He falls into a body guard gig, for a geezer named Grumpos. Before long Boots will travel the galaxy recruit new members to the party, some he already knows.

PC’s range from Boots’ little bot PAL, Dr. Ryo and scientist trying to unlock the secrets of Mystech, to a disenfranchised, super hero, Paco. And many other colorful characters. This is one of the games many strengths, each and every character is useful and unique, no duds here. Not only does each PC have there +/- side in battle but outside battle as well. Boots for instance can pick locks. Each special skill can be upgraded by finding the “master” of a particular skill.

The meat of gameplay is not combat, it is actually exploration and talking to NPCS. You assemble a party of three, and explore the planet that you are currently on, getting clues from the locals, using your skills etc. Not that are not RPG staples like shopping, and combat.

In Anachronox, the combat is turn based, and very similar to combat found in many Asian RPGS, with many Western ideas thrown in as well. In battle you must wait for a gauge to fill, at which time you can attack, defend, use a battle skill, which are found during the game not learned by level, you can also move PCS out of the way, unlike in many JRPGS, use items, and later in the game you can use Mystech, which is the equivalent of magic. In battle you have a health gauge, one for skills and one for Mystech, each corresponding to you abilities.

Battles are actually not all that common. Like in PCRPG Return To Krondor. Anachronox is like Septerra Core a pretty good mix of Eastern/Western RPGS. So saying it is like Final Fantasy as some here on Moby insist in doing is misleading. It is perfect for those that like both different styles of RPGS.

The Mystech system, is quite interesting. There are various effects of Mystech. And power levels. Later in the game you can even make your own Mystech. This is a very deep system, and takes some time to master, but well worth the effort, or you could simply just use the most powerful ones that the game offers.

There are save points in Anachronox, that can be turned off and the game can be saved any where, like in most PC games. The quest is not to long, but is satisfying, with lots of secrets and side quests to find, and complete. The game clocks in about 25-30 hours. The Graphics are very good, it is hard to believe but the whole game is powered by the Quake II engine. And it never looked better, this also shows how long the game was in development. Nice use of Polygons, the people and aliens that inhabit the worlds of Anachronox look great, as do the worlds themselves. Nice lighting effects abound as well.

The music in the game is very good, very memorable, and since it is all in MP3 format you can open the game files and listen to it. The voice overs are excellent, and fit the game very well. Sound Effects also are up to par.

The Bad
This game is riddled with bugs, and you will likely need a patch to run it properly, I needed two such patches.

It is unfortunate how few played this great game. And know that Ion Storm has folded there is slim to no chance of a sequel.

The Bottom Line
A very fun and funny game. One the most hilarious moments has to be when Boots becomes a male stripper, during a mini-game, that offers great prizes as well. Furthermore this is truly an excellent mix of the best parts of Console/PC RPGS. And deserves a bigger audience.

Windows · by MasterMegid (723) · 2006

[ View all 13 player reviews ]

Discussion

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Bipidri collectables reward Klaster_1 (57612) Jun 3, 2011

Trivia

Arcade

When you land on Hephaestus, try the arcade. You'll find Bugaboo, a Galaga clone. The artwork is even in the same green style of the original coin eaters.

You'll also find Pooper, a quasi Pac-Man clone. Both games were developed with the APE, built in to the game engine.

Credits

In the ending-credits, which are longer than the regular ones, there are some hilarious texts and greetings from the developers.

Development

In the development process of Anachronox, nearly half of the game had to be cut off to reduce production time. The half that was cut off was going to be put together as a sequel, but with Ion Storm shut down, and lukewarm sales, it never happened.

Development Tools

Ion Storm did a couple neat tricks for Anachronox. * APE stands for Anachronox Programing Environment. Its a programing language that was used to create all the interaction and gameplay. It was also used to create the minigames that you could play. * Magpie: Magpie was a program designed to process MP3s and create .lip files that the game engine could use to lip-sync dialogue. The lip files were simple text files that would load with the MP3s during cut scenes.

Engine

Ion Storm heavily modified the Quake II engine for this game. They added several features, including a refined particle effect, a mini game scripting language, and facial animation modification that allows lip syncing to dialogue.

The developers used the facial animation to good effect, letting the characters express their emotions with facial expressions.

Influence

Anachronox was influenced by the popular Japanese RPG Chrono Trigger, one of Tom Hall's favorite games. The game's title also alludes to that.

Machinima

Jake Hughes, the cutscene director of the fabulous Anachronox cutscenes, published a very special goody on Machinima.com.

It's a 1 Gigabyte collection of all cutscenes, edited to a 2 1/2 hour Anachronox movie.

References: Dopefish

id software's famed Dopefish makes a cameo in Anachronox. You can find him in ones of the water tanks in the lair of the Orange Roughies, located on Rictus's ship. Just follow the burping noise. The Dopefish can also be seen in a tank in Rho's lab and (allegedly) at the Moon Burger restaurant on Hephaestus.

References: Games

  • In the Red Lights District of the Sender Station, you can order a special treatment called "Deus Sex"... The object of this pun is, of course, Deus Ex, also developed by Ion Storm.

  • Many references to Tom Hall's past games can be found throughout the game. One of the more obvious ones is in the Tenement Area; if you look at the other names for the directory, you can see "B. Blaze" in a room, a clear reference to Commander Keen games.

References

  • Located in Sender Station is Jawnn, Pawl, Jorj and Ree'ngo, who form the teen rock sensation, The Meatles! Talk to them and they'll recite lyrics from popular Beatles songs.

  • One of the customers in the bar at the beginning of the game is Dim Jose. Swap the front letters and you'll get Jim Dose. Jim Dose used to work on the sound engine on previous Apogee games along with Tom Hall.

  • Two guys you can talk to on Democrates are discussing an opera written by the Czech composer Leoš Janáček (1854-1928).

Secrets

If you wait and press nothing at the start screen the Anachronox symbol will eventually fall down and two repair bots will appear to put it back in it's place. Wait a little more and PAL-18 will also appear and start looking at you through the monitor. This rotating logo can also be viewed as another Deus Ex reference/parody.

Awards

  • Computer Gaming World
    • April 2002 (Issue #213) – Best Use of Humor of the Year

Information also contributed by hydra9, Karthik KANE, kbmb, Scott Monster, tarion, Unicorn Lynx, xofdre and Zovni

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Unicorn Lynx.

Additional contributors: xroox, Yeah No, Jeanne, Chentzilla, AdminBB, Patrick Bregger.

Game added July 27, 2001. Last modified March 16, 2024.