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When reading this review keep in mind that I have not finished the game and my Japanese ability is very limited.

Azel Panzer Dragoon is one of the most anticipated games for the Saturn. Does it live up to the hype? Somewhat.

The game comes in four compact discs with a pretty big instruction book. When the game first starts, the player is treated to a CG opening. The CG of the game is as perfect as can be with good detail and quality. The only bad part here is sometimes the lips are not synched to the voices.

The entire game is polygons and for the Saturn, they're pretty good. However this is the reason why 3D games tend to look better on the Playstation. The backgrounds are done very well but the objects lack. The polygons on monsters and sitting objects may be detailed, but if you fly closer to them they will look very flat. One good example is the wings of the dragon. They look flat, just flat.

The movement of the main character is similar to Tomb Raider. You see the back of the character and walk around. However, this is only for exploring towns. The main part of the game is played atop the dragon.

The dragon moves by holding the B button. he goes up, down, and side to side. Being accustomed to flight sims, it was awkward when the up direction made the dragon go up instead of down. "Treasures", or whatever they are, are acquired by pressing C, directing the cursor to where it is, and pressing C again. The dragon will fire and the item will float back. You can see where there are items by looking at the radar once in a while. This is also how you save and enter areas.

The fighting mode is unique and fun. When you encouter an enemy there are three guages that fill up one by one. Normal shots use one gauge but magic and special moves may require more filled gauges. You are able to manuever your character in front, behind, or to the sides of the enemy. Some enemies may have weak spots accessible to only one side. In some areas the enemy is not able to attack you. The enemy moves too so you can't just sit in one area and fire away. Your normal arsenal is the dragon breath (laser) and the gun your character has.

After completeing the first area, there will be an overhead map. You will not be able to advance further until the current area is cleared.

Due to my limited Japanese I do not know how good the story is, but from the cinematic sequences it looks pretty good.

I've spent quite a lot of time playing this game because it is just a lot of fun. The battle scenes require a bit of planning before confronting. Where to move, when to shoot, how much to charge. I recommend this to anyone who likes RPG's.

Graphics - 8.5/10
+CG animation
+backgrounds and 3D environment
-flat polygons
-clipping

Sound 9/10
+very good music
+music fits situation

SFX - 8/10
+good FX for attacks
-fuzzy sometimes

Overall 9/10
+unique gameplay
+good RPG format
-could have improved the polygons