Lady Sia, recently released by
TDK Mediactive, is one of the newest platformer titles on the market for the GBA
system. And be forewarned: Don’t be fooled by the lead character and her
bouncy blonde hair. This is no cakewalk game meant to just give little girls
something to do with their GameBoy other than play Barbie games. Lady Sia is a
scrolling platfomer for the GBA, featuring many of the same types of obstacles,
rewards, and goals that you’ve come to expect from this particular genre of
game – but adding some unique little tricks and features that make it a step
above the average.
Lady Sia, a headstrong and
quite capable princess, has watched her people and her land fall under the rule
of the evil T’Soas and his hordes of beastmen. While many of the advisors
spend their time trying to practice diplomacy with the enemy, the impatient Sia
sets off on her own to bring down the rule of T’Soas and to free as many
prisoners as she can along the way.
Overall there are 36 maps and
32 different enemies. The basic premise: progress through each level to attain
items,.additional attacks, magic, and complete quests. For the more thorough
gamers, there are prisoners to free and jewels to collect in order to improve
your play “rating.” Not only will you earn a higher rating by collecting
jewels and freeing prisoners, but you will also be rewarded points for the
amount of magic and life you have remaining at the conclusion of the field.
Level design is fairly
demanding and sometimes tricky, forcing you to adapt if you really want to
excel. Many times you will need to manipulate levers and other landscape
features to progress – so get your puzzle solving abilities ready. The levels
are also fairly extensive, and are helpfully divided up by “waypoints” so to
speak where Sia’s progress can be marked so that when she dies she doesn’t
have to go all the way back to the beginning of the field.
Lady Sia will eventually be
capable of a substantial number of physical, magical, and, well “gargantuan”
attacks. What is mean is, she can use sword techniques, magic spells, and of
course, transform herself into a Sasquatch (now there’s something you don’t
see every day and it’s a nice touch). Basically, instead of having all of
these abilities from the get-go, you will need to acquire them as you go along
during the game. This is where the tutorial feature (easily turned on or off at
any point during the game) comes in handy. You can fumble around and try to
figure out your new abilities for yourself, or the game will automatically give
you instructions when a new spell is learned. As far as stomping your enemies as
a Sasquatch (and other magical abilities), magic does take mana. Both mana
levels and life levels can be replenished along the way much in the same way you
collect jewels.
Jump and fight – jump and
fight. The staples of platforming at it’s heart, from there it’s the icing.
Most of the time, Sia’s controls are incredibly easy and have really cool
little extras like having her totter to warn you you’re getting closer to the
edge or having her use her sword as a sort of grappling hook to hoist her to the
next platform. However, there’s sort of a weird momentum that propels you into
enemies as you fight and you could suffer quite a bit of damage if you think
you’re just going to hack and slash your way through your enemies. Once you
get used to it though, it’s alright and it should only set you back for a bit.
The graphics are amongst the
better I have seen for the GBA so far. The colors and shadings are bright and
well animated, lending to the game an atmosphere both serious and somewhat
lighthearted at the same time. Once again, you are reminded to take Sia
seriously and not expect it to run like a Saturday morning cartoon.
Overall,
Lady Sia is more than a worthwhile experience on the GBA. It offers breadth,
scope, and a quality graphical presentation and level design. The game offers
plenty of challenges, tempting the more avid gamer into raising their ratings
even after completing the fields to fulfill their quests. So get your best
battle cry ready and head on out as the feistiest warrior princess to hit the
handheld world.
Gameplay: 8.5
Lady Sia performs well as a platformer , giving
enough challenge for the average gamer, and even more for the perfectionist at
heart. There’s a great tutorial for beginners that is almost essential for
knowing which new abilities you’ve acquired and how to use them. There are
some minor control eccentricities which can sometimes throw off the experienced
gamer and sometimes frustrate.
Graphics: 8.5
Graphics are amongst the better I’ve seen so
far for the system.
Sound: 7
Music
is original and appropriate for the GBA system.
Difficulty: 8.5
The tutorial section is really well documented and can easily be turned on
or off depending on the gamer’s preference. Some controls can feel awkward at
first but are ultimately manageable.
Concept: 9
Lady
Sia satisfies on many different levels. It’s a great platformer, a long
in-depth game, pretty nice to look at, and of course offers a bit of
“girl-power” for the up and coming lethal ladies out there. Lady Sia backs
up the original concept with great gameplay and it makes for a truly unique
experience.
Overall: 8.5
Lady
Sia is a magnificent platformer for the GBA system and is bound to be a hit with
fans of the genre, as well as warrior princesses everywhere.
