Do you spend much time reading our sister site, Tiny Cartridge? If so, you’ve probably been drowned in updates on Shiren the Wanderer. Eric Caoili is really passionate about this series!

Feeling clueless right now? Shiren the Wanderer is the latest title in a long-running series of rougelikes of the same name (the Japanese version had a subtitle, but Atlus has opted to drop it). In Japan, the series prefaces the title of each game with Fushigi no Dungeon, which translates to Mysterious Dungeon. Even if you’ve never played a Mysterious Dungeon game, you’re probably familiar with the title. It is more or less synonymous with “dungeon crawler.” That is - that wonderful, dive into challenging caverns full of deadly creatures armed only with the clothing on your back, type of gameplay.

Shamefully, I’ve never played a single Shiren game. Never! I don’t know what’s wrong with me, I do enjoy roguelikes. After seeing the near-finished English version last week, I intend to rectify my mistake.

Never played a roguelike? The concept is simple. You gather quests or chat up non-playable characters in some sort of central village, then you dive into a dungeon and fight enemies until you emerge from the other end or you die (the latter is far more likely). You move around on a grid, and despite the illusion of real-time, everything is turn-based. Each movement, item use, interaction, or attack takes one turn. In a way, Shiren is very Chess-like. You can plan ahead a bit and attempt to force enemies into a pattern of your devising. Planning and strategizing is crucial to succeeding, especially since you’ll be thrown into the thick of combat right off the bat.

Fortunately, you’ll always have a companion to help you get through each deadly cavern. This companion can either be controlled directly by you or you can let the computer take over (unfortunately, Shiren is single-player only). Don’t worry about the AI, it’s pretty customizable. You can access a massive menu of pre-programmed behaviors, which can be further customized. You can tweak your companion all the way down to what items they are allowed to use (prick always drinks all of my healing potions).

Of course, dungeon crawlers are all about the items, and Shiren looks like it won’t disappoint in that regard. You’ll be able to collect and customize dozens of items that are strewn about the floor of each dungeon. Some characters can dual-wield, while others can only use a sword and a shield. It’s up to you whether to sacrifice some defensive options for the higher attack power. You have thirty inventory slots for items, but you don’t have to worry about being too picky. You can collect jars to extend your inventory. Of course, that carries its own risks - you can get your hands stuck in a jar! Often, a weapon will be unidentified when you first grab it. You can either wait to find out exactly what it is, or you can throw caution to the wind and equip it right away. This gamble could result in a more powerful character, or you could end up stuck with a cursed item. Cursed items can’t be unequipped until you return to town, so you’d better hope for something good! If you like a weapon, you can start customizing it. Many weapons carry a certain number of sockets, which can be filled with upgrades for things like additional damage or ability buffs.

Did last year’s Shiren for the DS make you cry? It’s ok to admit it. I’ve heard some pretty great horror stories about death in that game. The guys at ChunSoft have decided to just slightly put aside their sadistic tendencies in an effort to get a few more people to fall in love with the dungeon crawler. In fact, Atlus is calling this “the most accessible game of its genre.” Before you go and burn your Fushigi no Dungeon cartridge in protest, Chunsoft hasn’t really made the game easier (though, there is an easy difficulty mode if you need it). Instead, they are making it more accessible through slight gameplay tweaks. For instance, when you died in the DS version, you essentially had to start over. Your character lost all progress, experience, and items. That’s kind of crushing, eh? On the Wii, you only lose your inventory and have to start the current dungeon over. If you’re playing on easy mode, you even get to keep your items. To help ease you into your first crawl, the game is also pretty generous with the healing and revival herbs through the first couple of dungeons.

Gameplay tweaks are great and all, but the developers are also trying to find a new audience by emphasizing the storyline. Roguelikes have a reputation for their lack of stories; Atlus seems dead-set on changing that. They’ve been hand-picking games lately that specifically have strong storylines. Shiren’s narrative is steeped in Japanese history and mythology, with a healthy dose of time travel thrown in for good effect. The titular wanderer is given the key to Karakuri Castle by his former mentor. Over the course of the game, you’ll travel to different stops spread out over a millenium of history in order to unravel the mystery of a princess who has slept in the castle for that entire period. You’ll delve into those mysteries by exploring the game’s dungeons and by chatting with the myriad of NPCs that dot the local village. To get you into the right mood, Chunsoft has even implemented a cinematic 3D viewpoint that takes over from the standard overhead view when you enter into a conversation.

Shiren’s graphics are fairly simple, but I think that makes it one of the most attractive games on the Wii. The world map that you use to travel between locations is this beautiful 2D scroll. The fixed top-down camera and some clever animation effects give the three-dimensional dungeons this charming feel. About the only thing that bugged me was how the dungeon map is overlaid on the center of the screen. Sure, it’s important not to get lost, but putting it right in the middle is a littler distracting. The visuals, combined with the user-interface and fonts, gives Shiren this style that pulls you into the mythological Japanese setting. I don’t know if immersive is quite the right word, but this game’s aesthetics certainly are enrapturing.

This is a game that is designed to be played over and over again. Each dungeon is randomly-generated, so you are guaranteed a fairly unique experience every time that you dive in. Your scores are tracked for each dungeon you complete, and you are ranked by your performance. As you complete certain tasks, you’ll unlock achievements. These achievements will require some creative thinking (and creative dying), they aren’t unlocked by simply finishing dungeons. Filling your travel log will take some work, but it isn’t required for completing the game, so you’ll have the freedom to play as much or as little as you want.

Shiren the Wanderer hits stores on February 9th, so grab your classic controller (or wiimote and nunchuck, or just a wiimote if you’re feeling lazy) and get ready for some dungeon crawling. The latest entry in the Shiren series looks like a fun, challenging romp with a charming aesthetic and an intriguing plot. Maybe I should have listened to the series’ fans earlier!

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