Romancia: Dragon Slayer Jr., NES/Famicom

The Nintendo Famicom version of Romancia – aka Dragon Slayer Jr. – was developed by Compile and published by Tokyo Shoseki, in Japan only, in 1987. A fan translation makes the game playable in English (and Spanish), which is good because this version of the game is considerably better than the MSX version.

The Famicom version of Romancia is also different to the MSX version in some places. There’s a completely different opening level (complete with surprise boss battle), before you reach the first town.

One of the problems that players have with Romancia is that there are very few clues as to what your aims are. In the first town, for example, there are a number of tasks to complete, and only one of them is obvious. That is: a number of people in the town are ill with a disease and must be cured by taking medicine to them. Every time (or: almost every time) you cure someone, you’re given a ring for your good deeds. These rings are extremely important and must be retained in order to complete the game. The problem is, when you leave town and start walking over the bridge (at the far right of the level), there is another problem that will often scupper players unless they already know about it, and that is: if you kill any monsters after this point in the game, you’ll lose those hard-earned rings and will not be able to complete the game! Nowhere does it say this, so unless you have a quicksave made before this point, and somehow notice that you’re losing rings, then you’re very unlikely to notice that this is a problem. The only way to know this, and not ruin the game for yourself, is to read a walkthrough as you play. Honestly: Romancia is a brutal game when it comes to fairness, so it’s not cheating to play with a guide, in fact: it’s the only way to counter the game’s unfairness.

When I played the MSX version of Romancia, I didn’t have a guide and grew frustrated with it very quickly. I also thought that the presentation (and the jerky scrolling) in the MSX version was off-putting. The Famicom version has much better presentation (and smooth scrolling!), and guides are available to warn you of the game’s unfairness, so that’s the version I’d recommend playing if you want to experience it.

That said, Romancia is one of my least favourite entries in the Dragon Slayer series, so it’s a hard game to recommend. The fan-translated Famicom version is arguably the best version of the game available, though.

Dragon Slayer series on The King of Grabs:
Dragon Slayer (MSX), Dragon Slayer (Game Boy), Xanadu: Dragon Slayer II (MSX), Faxanadu (NES/Famicom), Romancia: Dragon Slayer Jr. (MSX), Romancia: Dragon Slayer Jr. (NES/Famicom), Dragon Slayer IV: Draslay Family (MSX), Legacy of the Wizard (NES/Famicom), Sorcerian: Dragon Slayer V (PC), Sorcerian: Dragon Slayer V (MSX), Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes (PC Engine), Xanadu Next (PC).