Golden Sun (video game)
| Golden Sun | |
 | |
| Developer: | Camelot Software Planning |
| Publisher: | Nintendo |
| Release date: | 2001 |
| Genre: | RPG |
| Game modes: | Single player |
| ESRB rating: | Everyone (E) |
| Platform: | Game Boy Advance |
| Media: | Cartridge |
Golden Sun (or Ougon no Taiyo in Japan) is an RPG-series currently consisting of two games made by Camelot Software Planning for Nintendo's Game Boy Advance. The original Golden Sun was released in 2001 and the sequel which continues where the original ended, although with a different set of characters, Golden Sun: The Lost Age was released in early 2003. The series is generally more highly regarded than not by RPG fans.
Important parts of the game are psynergy (a catch-all term describing numerous psychic abilites) and the Pocket Monsters-inspired djinn, creatures that can summon ultimate weapons and improve characters' stats. There are 4 major types of psynergy and djinns, corresponding to the four different elements. There are also psynergy that defy classification or are a combination of more than one element.
Elements
The four elements play a crucial role in the series. They are named after planets and represent different elements, each with its own unique strengths and weaknesses. They are:
In Golden Sun, a character is not a water-type who is weak agaisnt a fire-type; instead one is a Mercury-type which is weak against Mars Mars-types. For characters, this can be changed by equipping a different set of djinn and thereby changing the class and elemental makeup of the character.
Also, not all characters in the world of Golden Sun can use psynergy. Those who can are called Adepts.
Influences
The elements in the games are identical to the four Greek classical elements (fire, water, wind and earth). However, like the five Chinese classical elements (fire, water, earth, metal and wood), they are named after the five major planets (or four of the five major planets since there are only four elements in the games). Due to this mix of influences the same planets may not necessarily represent the same element in the games as they do in Chinese Taoism.
| Jupiter | Mars | Mercury | Saturn | Venus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Sun | Wind | Fire | Water | N/A | Earth |
| Chinese Taoism | Wood | Fire | Water | Earth | Metal |
Story
Part I - Golden Sun
The protagonist, whose role the player assumes, is a Venus Adept named Isaac who goes on a quest to stop Saturos and Menardi, the villains, from lighting four lighthouses: Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Mercury. If the four lighthouses are lit, then his world will be in great danger.
The first character to join Isaac's party is Garet, a Mars Adept and Isaac's childhood friend, who comes from the same village. Next to join is a Jupiter Adept named Ivan from the city of Kalay, and later a Mercury Adept named Mia, who is the guardian of the Mercury Lighthouse.
Their antagonists are the aforementioned Saturos and Menardi, Adepts from the Mars tribe in the north, together with Alex, who is Mia's former apprentice, and Felix, a Venus Adept. Felix is the brother of Jenna, a girl who grew up with Isaac and Garet. Their village, Vale, went through a terrible storm three years ago, and Isaac's father and Jenna and Felix's parents lost their lives. Felix was also thought to be dead, but Saturos and Menardi saved his life, and Felix ended up joining them.
Golden Sun has a traditional save-the-world storyline that some consider to be rather cliché, but the game also goes deep into mythology and some philosophy, with many historical references along the storyline.
Part II - Golden Sun: The Lost Age
The continuation (and conclusion) of the story started in Golden Sun, The Lost Age features a different protagonist than the first game, this time allowing players to be Felix, one of the antagonists from the original. Although he and his party join forces with Isaac and friends near the conclusion of the game, most of the game is spent roaming the lower continent and the great sea as Felix, Jenna (a Mars Adept), Sheba (a Jupiter Adept), and a Lemurian, Piers (a Mercury Adept).
The protagonists of the first game, Issac and co., become antagonists in The Lost Age, since the protagonist is now Felix, who is attempting to do what the original party was trying to prevent: light the lighthouses. Isaac's party pursues Felix's party throughout the game, but the two groups do not actually meet each other until near the end of the game. Also, two other members from Saturos and Menardi's clan, Agatio and Karst, play a role in the story, but their roles were not as important as Saturos and Menardi's were in the first game. Also returning as an antagonist is Alex, who joins forces with Agatio and Karst. Agatio, Karst, and Alex wish to light the lighthouses as well, but also have other goals and are competing with Felix and company. Felix's party must fight Agatio and Karst on more than one occasion.
Along with the save-the-world premise of the first book, The Lost Age offers a deeper sub-plot. With the shift of goals brought from the change in playable characters, there is an added philosophical element to the plot. Along with the which truth is the real truth problem comes a more comprehensive look into the history of Weyard, the Golden Sun world. With the discovery of Lemuria and sea-based transportation, much is learned about alchemy and its different practices, including psynergy. With Gaia Falls eroding slowly and Lemuria in a state of severe decay, the characters find little help with their task. This brings about the discovery of the true motive behind lighting the Lighthouses.
Link feature
One can pass the data from Golden Sun to The Lost Age so one can get one's items and status of the original party from Golden Sun when those characters join Felix's party after the Jupiter Lighthouse. One can also use a password, or neither and start the game with already role-played characters. In addition, if you collected all the djinn from the first Golden Sun, and you transfer the completed data containing every djinn (7 of each element), you can find two ultra powerful summons, Charon (8 venus, 2 jupiter djinn), which does massive damage to each enemy and has a slight chance of felling them immediately. Iris (4 mercury, 9 mars), does huge damage, and fully restores the HP of every character, even the ones off the battle field. You must collect every djinn in both games for a grand total of 18 of each element. Go back to Contigo with the teleport lapis. That is your first clue. To be able to transfer data between the cartridges without using a password a player needs the following:
- Two [[|Game Boy Advance|Game Boy]]s
- One The Lost Age game and one completed Golden Sun game
- Link Cable