Half-Minute Hero is a Japanese RPG, a geographical/alphabetical combination that's been responsible for many indecipherable gaming experiences. On first appearance, Half-Minute Hero is yet another in that mould.
It starts – but of course – with a portentous back-story about how the benevolent Goddess of Time defeated the Ultimate Evil Lord but destroyed the Ruby, the source of her power, in the process. With the world now safe, humans flourished – but all the time, the Ultimate Evil Lord was merely licking his wounds, waiting for his chance. Now he's back, and it's your turn to save the world. And, as the title suggests, do it half-a-minute at a time. That's the big "twist": complete the standard RPG challenges – find this, rescue that, defeat him, save her, etc – before the big evil destroys the world in 30 seconds' time.
It sounds positively migraine-inducing and initial appearances – a garish interface and, er, 8-bit graphics – don't help. Give it a couple of minutes though, and there's a considerable transformation. Part of it is, undoubtedly, the nostalgia over the 8-bit style – wonderfully ironic in the same month that brought us Heavy Rain – but mostly it's because Half-Minute Hero is just a novel, challenging and frequently hilarious game. No, really. Cut scenes are full of amusing asides and silly and sarcastic jokes. The realisation that, actually, the challenges can't be completed within 30 seconds heralds the appearance of the Goddess of Time. She can help you slow the clock but, as she explains with gleeful cynicism, she's done with benevolence and worship and is now all about the gold, baby. By the time the girly princess gets all Rambo-esque with her crossbow – "I don't need no ******* tutorial!" is her response if you decline a lesson on how to shoot – you'll be hooked.
Gameplay has four basic modes: high speed RPG; a (surprisingly tough) real-time strategy game; the Princess's shooter; and some straightforward action. All are against the clock and latter stages require as much time management as enjoyably frantic button mashing. That doesn't sound like fun – what next? Double Entry Accounting on the Wii? – but it generally works.
The game is not without its flaws, however. There is, almost inevitably, a disappointing amount of repetition, some weird enemy AI and, even allowing for the 8-bit limitations, some dodgy animation. But the positives and value – the main games alone will take 15+ hours to complete – make them easier to overlook. For the most part, Half-Minute Hero is a quirky delight.
