Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World was recently released for major platforms on May 28, 2021, which was developed by Monkey Craft and published by STUDIOARTDINK.  Even though I have the original on the Sega Genesis Mini and Mega Drive Mini, I didn’t spend much time playing the game there. Even with my limited experience with the original game, I went into this remake without any expectations.

Story

During the opening, you are greeted with a Star Wars style scroll.  I did like the presentation, but I would have preferred an English translation in the speech.  Because the game is a remake of a 16-bit era game, there is not much of a story. Basically, you are the hero and it is your job to fight again the antagonist. In order to best describe the story, I took the liberty of transcribing the aforementioned scroll:

“History repeats itself. People perish and kingdoms fall. While much is lost to the sands of time, the bits of tales that endure shall become legends.  As I reflect upon what transpired, it was told in ancient legend. They came from the very ends of the sky to plunder this land. When the spirits had lost their power and the darkness was about to consume us… I met a hero seemingly no more than a little girl. — Praprill XIII”

Upon starting the game, you are introduced to a cinematic that goes into a little more detail pertaining to the story. This first part is from the antagonist’s point of view. I have transcribed that here:

“Are the Spirits sealed? Yes, my lord. Now monsters throughout the land will run amok. Heh heh heh. And my minions? They have already slipped into the city. So far, so good. Heh heh heh…. Mwa ha ha ha ha ha!”

The following segment appears after the antagonist:

“Someone… Help us… Stop… cataclysm… Before it spreads…”

Gameplay

I started the game on “Normal.” The only other option was “Easy.”  The load times were minimal on a base PS4.  I don’t own a Pro, nor do I own a PS5.  I am using the original 500 GB console that I upgraded to a 2 TB 5400 RPM hard drive, so this is about as basic as it gets.  Even on a base PS4, the game performs well.

As for the controls; they kept it simple with just movement, jump, and attack. You can also perform upward and downward thrusts, something that reminded me of Link in Zelda II: The Adventures of Link. The controls are smooth and other than using my Pepelogoo as a mandatory means of “double-jumping,” I thought the control was great. What do I mean by using the Pepelogoo? Well, Asha can only do a single jump. If you call your Pepelogoo and grab it, you can do a “double-jump.”

Each boss has a life bar at the bottom of the screen. In most cases, you will simply dodge the enemy and counterattack when the opportunity is right. Plus, you can also get better weapons as the game progresses which will help you fight through the tougher enemies.

Audio and Video

I loved the musical stylings of the 8 and 16-bit era, so hearing this one sound like it was an enhanced version of something from that era was nice. It reminds me of the tunes from the days of the Super NES and Sega Genesis, but with a modern spin. The graphics are a nice, animated style, reminiscent of many CGI cartoons of today.  I like the 3D effects of the 2D side-scrolling game. The graphics are colorful and the animation was smooth. It reminding me of the smoothness of Aladdin on the Sega Genesis.

What Could Be Better?

The puzzles were not particularly difficult, but some were a tad annoying. Early in the game, I was getting frustrated trying to figure out how to go into the temple (more on that in a moment). The guy guarding it told me I needed better armor.

One other minor issue; why go through the trouble of translating the game’s text, and then using Japanese voice-actors regardless? I would have liked English voice-actors.

SPOILER AHEAD! SKIP TO THE NEXT SECTION TO AVOID! 

He lied, because all I had to do was to hatch a Pepelogoo, and I could easily walk right into the temple. An egg for this little animal was located in the palace vault. You take it to the shrine and it hatches. You can then walk over to the palace and the guard is gone.

End of spoiler

Replayability

There is not much to motivate a player to replay this game. You can replay the game, although, the game is fairly linear and I will probably not play it again.

Verdict

I went into Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World looking to play a remake with a modern presentation and that is exactly what I got. I am predominantly a retro-gamer.  I think younger kids are the target market for this game. As a grown man, I think it was a “cute” game but I wouldn’t say it was a great game. The question is; would I buy the game? I would consider the game if it was on sale. As a preference, I would only consider the physical options. Why physical? Well, it includes the original game, and I could share the cartridge/disc with my kids.