Where to get it

2005 · Action role-playing · Beat 'em up

Xanadu Next

Xanadu Next is an exploration-centric action RPG from Nihon Falcom, the acclaimed creators of the Ys and The Legend of Heroes RPG franchises. A late entry in their immensely popular Dragon Slayer series and a spiritual follow-up to the late ‘80s cult classic Faxanadu, Xanadu Next puts players in the shoes of a gravely injured knight given a new lease on life through ancient magic who must now seek a legendary sword called “Dragon Slayer” to ensure his survival.

Released: 20 June 2005
Platforms: N-Gage Windows
Genres: Action role-playing Beat 'em up Role-playing
Developers: —
Publishers: —
Modes: Multiplayer Single-player
Perspective: Third person Bird view / Isometric
Themes: Action Fantasy
Country: Japan
Age ratings: ESRB T ACB PG PEGI 7
Languages: English Japanese
Time to beat: 13hmain story26hcompletionist

About

Xanadu Next is a 2005 action role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom for Microsoft Windows. The game is a spin-off of the 1985 game Dragon Slayer II: Xanadu. Xanadu Next was released worldwide in English by Xseed Games in 2016. An N-Gage version was developed by ScriptArts and published by Nokia a few months prior to original Japanese release.

›Story

"Whenever mist hangs over the waters of Lake Orwell on Harlech Island, sailors catch sight of a phantom castle just out of reach. As they draw near, it fades into the fog like a mirage, leaving only questions for all who have borne witness to this "Castle Strangerock."

An up-and-coming scholar named Charlotte L. Wells has had her interest piqued by this local legend and desperately wishes to study it in person—but of course, Harlech Island is no place for an unescorted young lady. To aid her in her investigation, therefore, she enlists the help of an old childhood friend and fallen knight who agrees to accompany her on this adventure.

Arriving in Harlech and catching sight of Castle Strangerock almost immediately, Char dives into researching the mystery head-on, leaving her companion to explore the surrounding environs on his own in search of any artifacts that might help trace the origins of this ephemeral stronghold.

Sadly, this almost immediately leads to his death at the hands of a mysterious swordsman seemingly displaced in time...but death is to be only the beginning of his adventure."

Players say

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Story

The player character is a dishonored knight hired by a scholar named Charlotte L. Wells to investigate the ruins of Harlech Island on her behalf. Almost as soon as he begins, however, he is mortally wounded by a mysterious warrior named Dvorak and must undergo a life-saving process which binds him to Harlech. He will now die if he ever leaves – unless he can find the fabled Dragon Slayer sword, which is the only item capable of severing his ties with Harlech and giving him his life back.

In the N-Gage version, the player character is instead a hunter who has been hired by a small town named Marion Berck to find a missing girl named Momo who disappeared after King-Dragon attacked. Since King-Dragon's attack, the villagers have been plagued by mysterious deaths, dying crops, and monster attacks, and the players must guide the hunter in the journey to find Momo.