Developer: Studio OpA Publisher: Studio OpA Release: 01/17/25 Genre: Action
Capcom has done an excellent job reviving many of their classic series as of late. Ghosts n’ Goblins had an excellent resurrection (pun intended) years ago, pretty much every game in the Phoenix Wright series is now available in English and both Onimusha and Okami are coming back. Yet outside of re-releases Mega Man languishes in purgatory. This is disappointing; the Blue Bomber is their mascot for Christ sake. But if Capcom will not give us more of that classic 2d action indie developers will with the likes of Gravity Circuit and 20XX. Dragon of Saiyu patterns itself after Capcom’s beloved series in many ways and goes beyond that. While it does not reach the same heights it is a solid endeavor nonetheless.
Dragon of Saiyu retells the Journey to the West as a 2d platformer. This is not the first platformer to do so; Whomp ‘Em in its original Japanese form did just that. That game was also like Mega Man, imagine that. As the monk Sanzang you are on a quest to obtain the Buddhist scrolls from the Buddha of the west. Usually adaptations of Journey to the West place you in the shoes of Son Goku so this is a nice change of pace.
Sanzang uses his cane like a mega buster but you cannot charge shots. You do have rapid fire for all the good it does but I will get to that. Like Capcom’s game you gain new powers and abilities as you defeat bosses. Aside from a new “form” you also gain abilities like a double jump and a dash. There is no stage select since the game only has five levels and there is no such thing as a boss weakness. While the powers sound cool in theory in practice they are near useless. The monkey clones drain special weapon energy fast and are not stronger than your default weapon. Hitting enemies with the bouncy bun feels like a happy accident more than skill. The sand shield is cool but I found few situations where it felt necessary. Good ideas, bad execution.
The Mega Man DNA is strong in this one and that is intentional. However there are differences as Dragon of Saiyu is a slightly slower paced game. Your shots are weak and enemies have invincibility frames when hit. Your jumps are floaty and less precise. While there is platforming it is not to the same level as Capcom’s classic series. Because this is a shorter game the levels are long with multiple generous checkpoints. The game is fond of its wave based arenas but it at least is fair about it. While Dragon of Saiyu does a good job aping the Blue Bomber I do wish it did more to differentiate itself. Everything here is competent and solid but will only remind you of the better games in that other series. It does have one unique element.
It is not all 2d platforming. Dragon of Saiyu alternates its levels between side-scrolling and bullet hell shooting action. The shooter levels in Dragon of Saiyu have a measured pacing that is slower than normal but no less action packed. The waves are predictable and drop scrolls that help restore your special weapon meter. Your special weapons are true life savers as they can erase bullets and restore health, two key abilities to manage the madness. While these stages are bullet hell this is bullet hell for babies. There are large gaps between bullet spawns and they are slow. Between these factors and your special abilities they make the boss battles less difficult than the traditional stages. Speaking of difficulty…..
In terms of its challenge Dragon of Saiyu differs wildly. On the easy setting you can barrel through the game quickly. You take very little damage and the game is overly generous with life restoring rice balls. I would urge trying on easy at first to get familiar with the mechanic s and level design as the normal setting is brutal. Here the game leans closer to the Mega Man Zero series than the classic entries. The damage ratio is extreme; you can take five or six hits at most before death. Despite the frequency of checkpoints you will fight for every inch of progress on the way to each boss. The boss battles are truly a test of skill as they are damage sponges. The patterns are easily discernible but the length of each encounter requires patience and near perfect execution. They are still the game’s highlight though.
In my opinion normal difficulty is tuned a little too high. A good challenge tests your skill while leaving a little room for mistakes. The boss battles here are so rough that it is entirely possible you will die in seconds the first few times. It feels rewarding to see progress as they cycle through their different phases and you survive a little longer with each attempt. But that process should be less frustrating. I was able to adapt relatively quickly. But I owe that more to my experience playing Mega Man style platformers for nigh on forty years. A few balance updates would make this a lot more palatable. Especially that final boss fight.
In Closing
Dragon of Saiyu is an enjoyable action platformer in the classic mold despite its high difficulty. This one came out of left field for me and I had no expectations. Yet it surprised me with its platforming and action. The combo of side scrolling and bullet hell shoot em up offers the right combination of variety despite the game’s brevity to keep you from getting bored. While I feel the balancing could be better do not let that stop you from reliving Mega Man style action in a new form. Lord knows Capcom does not seem interested in doing so right now.
