Linkle Liver Story[a] is a 1996 Japanese video game developed by Nextech and published by Sega for the Sega Saturn video game system. The game is an action-RPG where the player takes control of a fox girl named Kitsch.
| Linkle Liver Story | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Nextech |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Director(s) | Osamu Satou |
| Producer(s) | Katsuji Aoyama Tatsuo Yamada |
| Designer(s) | Eiichi Kitano Yuji Tamaya |
| Programmer(s) | Eiki Aizawa Manabu Takahashi Toshio Toyota |
| Artist(s) | Masayuki Matsushima Kazuhiro Nagata Kōichirō Kobayashi |
| Writer(s) | Yayoi Onda |
| Composer(s) | Fumito Tamayama Hidehiko Enomoto Masato Takahashi |
| Platform(s) | Sega Saturn |
| Release |
|
| Genre(s) | Action role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Gameplay
edit
Linkle Liver Story is an action adventure game which uses an isometric perspective.[1]
Finding and planting seeds will give the player new weapons, for a total of eight possible.[1]
The game's graphics are 2D and make extensive use of the CD-ROM format to have higher quality graphics, sound and music, as well as greater length than would be possible in cartridge format.[2]
Plot
editLinkle Liver Story is set in the fairy tale world of Mamuna, which is inhabited by demi-humans. Mamuna is ruled by a figure named Muma, a user of dark magic who has ruled the planet as an authoritarian. However, his power is beginning to wane, and he may vanish if he can't find a new source of power.[2]
Trying to prevent this, his evil forces have conquered the land of Four Seasons.[3] Kitsch, a fox girl,[1] joins forces with small woodland animals to fight back.
Kitsch is accompanied in her adventure by a squirrel, Balel, and a rabbit, Lalala. Her third partner, Puchimuku, is a seed that grows throughout the game.[2]
Development
editThe game was developed by Nextech, who had previously made the games Crusader of Centy and Ranger X for the Sega Genesis.[4]According to Sega developer Masato Nishimura, the game was originally called Ragnacenty 2 and was therefore supposed to be the sequel to Ragnacenty / Crusader of Centy / Soleil.[5]
Release
editLinkle Liver Story was released on March 15, 1996 for the Sega Saturn video game console, and was published by Sega.[6][7][8][9][10] The game was released only in Japan. In 2019 however, the game was translated into English through a fan translation. In addition to the game, the translation team also translated the game's manual.[11]
Reception
edit| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Famitsu | 26 / 40[7] |
| GameFan | 73 / 100[4] |
| Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) | 6.66 / 10[12] |
According to Famitsu, Linkle Liver Story sold over 4,950 copies in its first week on the market.[13] Famitsu gave the game a score of 26 out of 40.[7]
Three reviewers for GameFan gave it scores of 65, 85, and 70, of an average of 73.[4]
Three reviewers for the Japanese Sega Saturn Magazine gave it a score of 7, 7, and 6.[12]
Several gaming publications found the game's title to be strange.[3] Several publications, including Next Gen, Official Sega Saturn Magazine, Mega Console, previewed the game calling it "Wrinkle River Story". GameFan reviewed the game calling it "Wrinkle River Story", however they pointed out that the game's title screen says Linkle Liver Story.[4]
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Hara, Tetsuhiko (May 1996). "Saturn-News: Linkle Liver Story". Video Games (in German). No. 54. Magna Media. p. 64.
- ^ a b c "NG Alphas - Wrinkle River Story". Next Generation. No. 18. Imagine Media. June 1996. p. 80.
- ^ a b Ogasawara, Nob; Mike, Major (May 1996). "Overseas ProSpects: Linkle Liver Story". GamePro. No. 92. IDG. p. 36.
- ^ a b c d Des Barres, Nicholas; Loe, Casey; Halverson, Dave (May 1996). "Viewpoint - Gen 32 Japan Soft: Wrinkle River Story". GameFan. Vol. 4, no. 5. Metropolis Media. pp. 13, 66, 67.
- ^ https://twitter.com/Mazin__/status/1080834494439911425.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "リンクル・リバー・ストーリー (セガサターン) - ファミ通.com". www.famitsu.com. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
- ^ a b c "New Game Cross Review". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 379. ASCII. 22 March 1996. p. 31.
- ^ "リンクル•リバー•ストーリー". Sega Saturn Soft Information (in Japanese). Vol. 6. Sega. 1996. p. 4.
- ^ "Japan News - L'actu Façon Sushi - Wrinkle River Story". CD Consoles (in French). No. 19. Pressimage. August 1996. p. 30.
- ^ "Saturn Scoop Fan - Scoop 18 - Linkle Liver Story". Saturn Fan (in Japanese). No. 14. Tokuma Shoten. February 1996. p. 126.
- ^ Peeples, Jeremy (3 January 2019). "Saturn Action-RPG Linkle Liver Story Gets English Fan Translation". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- ^ a b "Sega Saturn Soft Review - New Release Title Check! - リンクル•リバー•ストーリー". Sega Saturn Magazine (in Japanese). No. 18. SoftBank Creative. 8 March 1996. p. 225.
- ^ "Game Search". Game Data Library. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
