Elemental Master

n/a

NTSC-U
NTSC-J

Elemental Master

System(s): Sega Mega Drive

Publisher: Technosoft (Japan), Renovation Products (US)

Developer: Technosoft

Sound driver: T.S v1.21 (Technosoft)

Genre: Shooting^[1]^[2]

Number of players: 1

Release	Date	RRP	Code
JP	1990-12-14^[2]	¥6,800 (7,004)6,800e^[3]	T-18043
US	1993-03^[4]	$49.9949.99^[5]	T-49236

Elemental Master (エレメンタルマスター) is a 1990 shoot-'em-up by Technosoft for the Sega Mega Drive released exclusively in Japan before Renovation Products brought it to the US in 1993.

Story

Long ago in the fantasy kingdom of Lorelei, the followers of an evil being called Gyra were sealed underneath the city's castle. However, a seemingly heroic sorcerer known as Aryaag betrayed the king's trust and unleashed the power of Gyra on the kingdom with the intention of letting the evil influence spread. Laden, the strongest sorcerer in the kingdom, was ready to attack Aryaag, but was stopped in shock when Aryaag revealed himself to be Laden's brother Roki. Backed by Gyra's most dedicated followers, Roki banished Laden from the conquered kingdom. However, Laden vows to stop Gyra's influence from spreading and to stop Gyra's ambitions.

Gameplay

Stage selection

Cutscene

The game is an autoscrolling shooter. The screen scrolls vertically, and the player must navigate the terrain of each stage while destroying enemies and avoiding obstacles. Players control Laden and can move him in any direction using the D-Pad. He can shoot forwards with and backwards with . While the controls do not have rapid-fire, each button press fires a flurry of shots.

Laden starts the game with the power of Light. The first four stages can be played in any order, and completing each one imparts mastery of a new element to Laden: Fire, Water, Earth, or Air. The player can switch the element with , which changes Laden's weapon. The element can be changed when the game is paused. Each element can be charged by holding the fire button, which increases the power bar on the side of the screen. Releasing the fire button when the power bar is at maximum capacity performs a powerful special attack. Each element has its own unique special attack, but the Light attack is not initially available.

After completing the first stage, regardless of which stage is played first, Laden is joined by the fairy Neena. Neena follows Laden in subsequent stages and assists by attacking enemies automatically. After completing the first five stages, Neena transforms into a legendary ring, which grants Laden the special charged attack for the Light element.

Laden starts the game with four hit points and loses one each time he takes damage from an enemy or an environmental hazard. He can gain additional hit points, up to a maximum of eight, by finding the Mysterious Medicine item or restore missing hit points by collecting the Fruit of Life item. When he runs out of hit points, the game ends. The game can be continued if the player has credits remaining, though Laden loses any additional hit points he may have accrued and the player's score is reset. The game is continued from the beginning of the current stage (or from the stage select if the first four stages have not yet been completed).

There are three standard difficulty levels (Normal, Hard, and Expert). There is also a Practice mode where the player can play through one of the first four stages with all elemental powers unlocked, but the entire game cannot be completed this way. The Options menu is accessed by pressing + START at the title screen.

Elements

	Light
	The starting weapon. Shoots a narrow torrent of projectiles in front of Laden. This element initially has no charged attack, but after the first five stages are completed, Laden is able to unleash a powerful light beam attack that can destroy many bosses with only a couple of hits.
	Fire
	Gained after completing the Fire Zone stage. A spreadshot that fires in three directions. Its charged attack diffuses jets of flame in a spiral around Laden.
	Wind
	Gained after completing the Wind Zone stage. Shoots waves in a wide area of effect. Its charged attack hurls lightning balls around the screen.
	Earth
	Gained after completing the Earth Zone stage. Shoots a slow but powerful line of fireballs straight ahead. Its charged attack shoots large energy balls in a fan.
	Water
	Gained after completing the Water Zone stage. Shoots a stream of small projectiles directly in front of Laden as well as streams of larger projectiles to each side. The side streams roll up walls that they hit. The charged attack is two horizontal lines that sweep the screen.

Items

	Chest
	Shoot to reveal an item.
	Amethyst Crystal
	Surrounds Laden with a protective barrier that can withstand 3 hits before dissolving.
	Mirror
	Creates 3 mirror images that follow Laden for a duration and provide support fire.
	Mysterious Medicine
	Gives Laden another hit point, up to a maximum of 8.
	Fruit of Life
	Restores 2 hit points.

Stages

The first four stages can be played in any order. The remaining stages are played in sequence.

	Fire Zone
	Laden gains mastery over the element of Fire after completing this stage.
	Wind Zone
	Laden gains mastery over the element of Wind after completing this stage.
	Earth Zone
	Laden gains mastery over the element of Earth after completing this stage.
	Water Zone
	Laden gains mastery over the element of Water after completing this stage.
	Stage 5
	Laden fights Clauss, the Black Dragon King.
	Stage 6
	Laden fights the evil princess Salome.
	Stage 7
	Laden must fight all of the bosses from the previous stages before facing Roki.