Avalon Code

The plot, as well as the gameplay, revolves around the Book of Prophecy situated on the touch-sensitive lower screen of the Nintendo DS. In order to record a person, monster, plant, or weapon in its pages, the player performs a "Code Scan", which is done by striking the target to be recorded with the Book itself (mapped to the B button at all times). Locations are filed under the Book's Map section and are added automatically when the player enters the screen for the first time.

Each page reveals its subject's essential information such as attack strength for weapons; health points for enemies; local lore for maps; and personal tastes and goals for people. In addition, every object or character capable of being scanned has a Code. This page Code is in turn composed of many Codes, which are exactly what they sound like: pieces of seven different shapes that fit into the Mental Map like pentominoes into a box and radically alter the target's properties.

The plot centers on a young peasant who has been plagued with apocalyptic and prophetic nightmares for weeks prior to the beginning of the story. The latest dream, shown in the opening cinematic, features a mysterious voice. The voice reveals that the protagonist's world has undergone countless reincarnations in the past and is fated to a cycle of correction, destruction, and rebirth until "true enlightenment" is achieved and that the main character has been chosen by the Powers-That-Be to deem the people, places, and things of the current world worthy (or "unworthy") of being carried over into the next.

This voice is that of a magical sentient record book called the Book of Prophecy. Taking this tome, the newly appointed Chosen One sets out to find and befriend four guiding elemental Book Spirits who take residence in the Book. Throughout the journey, the Chosen One learns more about a hidden plot to hasten the imminent apocalypse playing out beneath a shallow political feud with the neighbouring kingdom and the decisions of the previous Chosen One.

In May 2008, Famitsu featured Avalon Code in their Nintendo DS spotlight. The game gained attention early on for its high quality 3D engine. Marvelous Entertainment USA and XSEED Games showcased the game as part of their game portfolio at that year's Electronic Entertainment Expo, with plans to release the U.S. version of the game in the first fiscal quarter of 2009. Less than a month before its release in Japan, the game was showcased at the Tokyo Game Show at Marvelous Entertainment Japan's booth.

Originally, the game's Book of Prophecy was intended to be a virtual book that could be written in using the touch pad on the Nintendo DS. In an interview with Siliconera, producer and scenario writer Yoshifumi Hashimoto said "in the beginning of the planning stages I thought about the players actually writing "become weaker" into the book, but realized that this will take too long from the time the user thinks about it to the time it'll actually change. Plus I wanted players from other countries to all play the game the same way, so I decided to go with moving codes (icons) around".

Avalon Code received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. com called it "the kind of game that's bursting with creativity and ambition, but constantly trips over its own good intentions". IGN called the game's core component, the Book of Prophecy, "a compelling mechanic you won't find anywhere else". Nintendo Life praised the game for its "stunning" visuals, but criticized the Book of Prophecy for being "ridiculously annoying [to browse] through to find the data you need".

GameSpot referred to the Book as "the game's most unique and fascinating feature", but said that overall "Avalon Code is a thoroughly mundane adventure despite some interesting, but poorly implemented, concepts". In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of one seven, one eight, one seven, and one eight for a total of 30 out of 40.