Shining in the Darkness

Picture a labyrinth drawn in first person, where every step into the darkness could be your last. Shining in the Darkness casts you as a young hero whose father, a court knight, vanished while searching for a kidnapped princess. Only one thing awaits you: to descend into the vast underground maze of the Labyrinth and return with answers. And in that darkness lurks more than just monsters.

The game is a classic dungeon crawler in the spirit of Wizardry and Dungeon Master, where you move across a square grid from a first-person view and battles play out in a turn-based system. Mapping corridors, searching for hidden doors and secret passages, and managing the spells and equipment of a trio of characters — all of it forms the core of the experience. On the Mega Drive, a platform renowned more for action and speed, such a deliberate, methodical game felt like a rarity, and it stood out all the more for it.

Historically, the title is important as the very beginning of the Shining brand, later made famous by the tactical turn-based strategies of Shining Force. Yoshitaka Tamaki contributed to the artwork, and the series' characteristic anime style was founded here. The music was composed by Motoaki Takenouchi. The game came out in the early nineties and in Japan bore a title referencing the holy sword around which the story revolves.

Culturally, Shining in the Darkness is interesting precisely for its role as a forerunner. While later installments of the series turned toward strategic battles on a large map, this first piece maintains the intimate, claustrophobic atmosphere of the dungeon. For fans of Japanese RPGs on the sixteen-bit console, it is one of the few pure-blooded dungeon crawlers that made it to the Mega Drive at all, and thus a valuable piece for a collection.

The game does not spare the player. The maze is sprawling, the enemies know how to make life difficult, and death sends you back to town, to the temple, where you heal and replenish supplies. It is precisely that rhythm of cautious advance, returning to restore your strength, and descending again one level deeper that gives the game its distinctive tension, which today will be appreciated above all by lovers of the old school.

Why play it: If you want to experience the roots of the famous Shining series and have a soft spot for honest first-person dungeon crawlers, this dark expedition will draw you in.