Released in Japan as Soul Blader, Soul Blazer is a 1992 Super Nintendo release from Enix and it takes the form of an overhead, Zelda-style adventure.

You are the hero, Blazer, sent on a mission to free a succession of towns from the grip of evil monsters. As you hack and slash away with your sword your experience grows, as does your level. And – when you free a town of its monsters – you also free the soul of one of its inhabitants, and they are reincarnated. As you reincarnate more people the town is reconstructed around them.

After defeating a certain number of monsters you get to fight a boss battle. Win that and you free the soul of the chief of each town, and clear the area, allowing progress to the next town. After clearing six towns you unlock the entrance to “World of Evil” where the boss villain awaits.

Compared to something like Zelda: A Link to the Past, Soul Blazer looks relatively plain. The graphics are nicely drawn and coloured, but are distinctly tile-based. The opening title sequence is impressive, with big, smooth letters zooming across the screen.

Soul Blazer does have a nice hook in the gameplay (the reincarnation), which makes it feel at least a bit unique, and is also quite cute, so definitely does have its admirers.

More: Soul Blazer on Wikipedia