Monster Rancher

The Good
Hey, this is also an RPG by the way...well, technically speaking. Hmm...perspective also seems to be incorrect. Simulation? Nevermind. Remind me to submit a game correction...or someone do it for me, eh?

Well, ever since the Tamagochi rush, those Japanese developers have been head over heels trying to create similar "pet" games in, over, around, and under various platforms. Some suck, others suck big time, more others aren't even worth mentioning. But, whoever came up with Monster Rancher was totally an RPG gamer at heart.

Aaah...the wonder of breeding monsters. Build them big and tough and make'em win tournaments for cash, honor or just plain old fashion fun! This was probably the next best thing since Dragon Breath on PC - Breeding dragons...but that was decades ago.

Everything else about the game is much to be expected...standard issue really. But there is one thing that striked me as pure genius! Using CD's as a source for monsters. By gum...now whoever came up with THAT idea SHOULD be engraved in the legendary halls of gaming history! That was remarkably ingenius...plus in may (or may not) have infected a sudden increase in CD purchases. Imagine the delight of all those kids, grown-ups but still a kids at heart (moi) spending hours rummaging through all those CD's they never thought existed before just to see what kind of monsters pop-up and making a list of it all. Talk about a waste of time, but sure hell was it ALL fun! This game is probably the closest thing that describes "endless possibilities"...or a hell of a time trying.

Another thing I like about this game is that it doesn't end. At least, it seems that way to me. There isn't a time limit, you can play as loooooooong as you want to. I really dig games with a purpose but with no time limit. Your monsters however, die. They average around 6-10 years tops. But the good side is, they can be virtually immortal by combining the old monster into a new one. Combining them, creates them into a totally new monster...well, not totally new, just a little different. Yep, gotta give'em an A for innovation and creativity.

The Bad
I really wish that they had better graphics to support the game. The game is a little too "cute" as anime games usually are. But this game is so much better than that.

The Bottom Line
(Sing along) Old McDonald had a farm. Eya eya ooo! And on that farm he had a (quickly) Stone Golem with a 900 power rating! Eya eya ooo!