Jewel Master

[Melf]

Action games are a dime a dozen, but sometimes a few come up with an interesting idea. Sega's Jewel Master tries something new by putting the weapons system into two handfuls of rings, each with its own power. These magical rings can be combined for all sorts of neat power, and though the game didn't fufill its potential as hoped, it was still a fun little romp that deserves to be checked out. Read our full review for more details.

[Rodger]

good review, sounds like a fun action game. I saw a used copy of this game the other week, perhaps I should go pick it up haha!

The game's box art is truly something. I don't know if I should laugh or cry when I see it, heh.

[Demonic Weasel]

Heh, I loved Jewel Master. Too bad it was so obscure.

[redrum666]

i have not played the game in over 15 years it was a great game from what i remeber but the one thing i did not like was you get 1 life and no continues or you get only 3 lives and no continues i forget its one of the 2

[Zebbe]

Great review. This game would be awsome as an action-RPG a la Wonder Boy, I think.

[David J.]

This game is different than the norm, and is pretty good, yet when I play it, I feel like I'm back in 1991 for some reason.

[108 Stars]

Just from the look of it I always thought it resembled Castlevania.

[Alianger]

Some nice artwork is available at SegaFans
http://saturn.classicgaming.gamespy....wel_master.htm

[Kollision]

About 2 months ago I got a CIB copy of this game, but it would by no means work on my Japanese Mega Drive. I tried everything with my adapter (Mega Key 2), which has never failed on me since I bought it.
Well, everyday after cleaning the cart again I would try again several times, but I never got it to work.

Today I decided to give it a try on a Model 1 Genesis and voilá ---- it worked right away.

Has anybody ever noticed this problem about this game? I never had any case of complete game incompatibility with a different MD/Genesis model.

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BTW 1 - I had forgotten how amazing the music in Jewel Master is!
BTW 2 - The link to the review in this thread is broken.

[PHANTOM2040]

Am I the only one that sucks at this game?

[Phexar]

Am I the only one that sucks at this game?

It can get a bit tough in parts, though using Barrier3(Water Ring 3) in some parts(ESPECIALLY whenever the final boss shifts forms to a skull) lessens the damage you take from things so you can survive for longer. Also as soon as you beat the Dragon King boss you'll have all four level 3 Rings and can use the lethal Blade power(Fire3/Water3 + Earth3/Air3) to blitz through everything from then onwards. Making good use of the various Wind Rings is important too.

[goldenband]

Just beat this on Hard, after beating Normal and Easy. What a great game!

The review is pretty much spot-on, though I didn't think it was that difficult. It's the sort of game where, each time you play, you get just a little bit further, and once you get the hang of things you can run through it pretty easily. I'm not sure how many attempts it took me to beat Easy, but with that under my belt, Normal and Hard took just one playthrough each (and were only slightly more difficult than Easy). I was almost able to 1CC/1LC the whole thing on Hard, but didn't quite finish off the final boss on my first attempt.

Jewel Master also has also some of the best tunes I've heard on the Genesis. The instrument choices and orchestration aren't as sophisticated as in some later games, but the compositions themselves are the best kind of chiptune prog-rock -- I can totally imagine Camel or Happy the Man playing some of them. I vastly prefer this kind of music to the FM guitar Poochie power chords that other titles favor.

I do wish there were a few more secrets, especially in the last stage (which is a bit less inspired than the rest of the game). Combining the Double Jump and High Jump powers allows you to reach tremendous heights, but it's never really exploited. Speaking of the final stage, it's annoying that you get sent back to the beginning if you die (when playing Normal/Hard), since there's basically no challenge before the final boss rush.

Anyway, a game like this makes you realize how mediocre a lot of 16-bit action-platformers really are. 8/10, pushing 9/10.