Magic Knight Rayearth

Plot

Magic Knight Rayearth is based on the popular anime and manga series by CLAMP. The game follows the story arc of the first season of the anime.

The story follows the trials and tribulations of three Junior-High age girls who are on a field trip to the Tokyo Tower in modern day. The girls, Hikaru Shidou, Umi Ryuuzaki and Fuu Hououji, attend different schools but find themselves together after being teleported to a strange world named Cephiro. Upon arrival, they meet Master Mage Clef, who tells them that they were summoned there as the Legendary Magic Knights to save Cephiro from the High Priest Zagato, who has kidnapped and imprisoned Princess Emeraude.

Not long after arriving, the three girls find themselves on a quest to free Princess Emeraude by releasing the three Rune-Gods, and aided by a strange creature Mokona. Each Rune-God corresponds to an element that they girls eventually learn to wield: fire for Hikaru, water for Umi, and wind for Fuu.

Gameplay

Magic Knight Rayearth is an overhead 2D action RPG, similar in mechanics and theme to the Legend of Zelda series. Instead of controlling a single character, the player is in control of all three characters at once. The lead character is selected in real-time by the player, with the other two characters following behind.

Each of the three girls uses a different weapon and magic type, allowing the player to change strategies depending on the situation. Overworld exploration is done similarly to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, though each area/level is self contained, using a static image to show the player where in Cephiro the girls are currently questing.

The gameplay radically shifts for the final level of the game, eschewing all the game’s previous mechanics, instead switching to an overhead shooter mechanic akin to Capcom’s 194X series.

Release

Magic Knight Rayearth has the distinction of being the last game release for the Sega Saturn. Localization was handled by the now-defunct Working Designs, a company that specialized in game translations from Japan. Working Designs Founder and CEO Victor Ireland publicly used Magic Knight Rayearth as an example of his company’s commitment to its customers, posting on its website that they would finish and release the game as promised, despite the financial burden it would entail for the company. In the game's closing credits, the company explicitly thanks the fans for their patience. Only 15,000 copies of the game were made.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Magic Knight Rayearth was composed by Seirou Okamoto and Yayoi Wachi and released in Japan on August 25, 1995.

Track Listing

Name: Magic Knight Rayearth Original Soundtrack

Total Length: 57:42

1. "Tokyo Tower" - 1:46
2. "Chase" - 0:26
3. "Forest of Silence" - 2:27
4. "Ferio the Hurricane" - 1:13
5. "A Monster Appears!" - 1:11
6. "Heartbeat" - 2:13
7. "Fantastic Eterna" - 3:20
8. "The Magic Curtain of Polizu" - 2:10
9. "Tempting Cave" - 1:51
10. "A Strong Monster Appears!" - 1:16
11. "Taflon by the Sea" - 1:41
12. "Great Whirlpool" - 0:45
13. "Eternal Ice Cave" - 2:13
14. "Sadness" - 1:51
15. "The Legendary Mashin" - 2:18
16. "Mysterious Cefiro Lecture: - 1:46
17. "White Ice of Rosen" - 1:38
18. "Dancer" - 1:38
19. "Tranquility" - 1:33
20. "Special Training" - 1:05
21. "An Even Stronger Monster Appears!" - 1:20
22. "Whispering Woods" - 1:33
23. "Distant Lake by the Sea of Trees" - 1:05
24. "Old Man Rainbow's Shop" - 1:20
25. "Sneaking Around" - 1:33
26. "Sky Garden Aueria" - 1:18
27. "Heaven's Labyrinth" - 1:57
28. "Volcano Where the Truth Sleeps" - 2:07
29. "Zagato!" - 2:17
30. "Tragedy" - 2:07
31. "Final Decisive Battle" - 1:34
32. "Toward the Future..." - 2:11