Story of Thor

When SEGA wanted its own Zelda-like adventure, the result was Story of Thor, an action RPG in which you summon elemental spirits and use them to reshape the entire battlefield.

Story of Thor, known in some regions as Beyond Oasis, is an action RPG for the SEGA Mega Drive. You play a young hero who discovers a powerful artifact that lets him summon the spirits of four elements: fire, water, plants, and shadow. The gameplay blends real-time combat, exploration, puzzles, and the use of elemental spirits that appear in specific locations to help in battle and in overcoming obstacles.

It is precisely the spirit system that gives the game its distinctive identity. Each element is summoned in a particular setting — fire from a source of flames, for example — and each offers different abilities, whether offensive or supportive. The player is therefore constantly combining direct combat with a knife or other weapons with the tactical summoning of helpers, which makes the fights a dynamic and varied affair.

Visually, Story of Thor ranks among the most beautiful the genre produced on the Mega Drive. The characters have fluid, detailed animation, the environments are colorful and carefully rendered, and the overall impression is unusually polished. Its production shows just how sophisticated the titles the console could offer at the twilight of its era.

Thanks to its combination of attractive presentation, an inventive combat system, and an adventurous structure, Story of Thor earned a reputation as one of the best action RPGs on the console and a frequent recommendation for fans of the genre. It is a title that proved SEGA could also do slower, elaborate adventures, and one that remains to this day among the sought-after gems of the Mega Drive library.

Why play it: For a beautifully animated action RPG with an original system of summoning elemental spirits, one of the best of its kind on the Mega Drive.