Sword of Vermilion

About Sword of Vermilion

Sword of Vermilion (1989) is Sega AM2's first console-exclusive game, an early Genesis action RPG that switches between several play styles, from top-down exploration to side-on boss fights, as an exiled prince gathers the rings of good.

Sword of Vermilion in Depth

The game mixes four styles of play that change with what the player is doing and where they are in the world. Most of the time the prince is controlled from a top-down view, but boss fights switch to a side-on perspective, and battles also occur when meeting enemies in the overworld or inside dungeons, where the prince fights with a sword and magic spells. More powerful swords and magic can be found in towns by talking to shopkeepers and other characters. Much of the game is spent fighting and exploring.

King Erik V of Excalabria and his friend King Tsarkon sought the eight rings of good and evil to bring peace and balance, but the rings of evil corrupted Tsarkon, who invaded Excalabria and destroyed Erik's castle. Before dying, Erik entrusted his infant son and the Ring of Wisdom to his most faithful knight, Blade, while Tsarkon scattered the remaining rings of good and turned the prince's mother to stone. Blade raised the boy in the village of Wyclif, and eighteen years later, on his deathbed, reveals the prince's true identity, sending him to collect the rings and save the realm of Vermilion.

Making Sword of Vermilion

Sega's AM2 division developed Sword of Vermilion for the Genesis in 1989, its first game made exclusively for a console, and in North America it was promoted as the headline RPG of the "Genesis does what Nintendon't" campaign. Contemporary reviews were positive. Computer and Video Games called it an "excellent" and "highly compelling arcade/adventure RPG" offering "a vast, sprawling adventure", praising its engaging story, its music and sound, and its town graphics and detailed sprites, though it found the 3D screens "decidedly rough". MegaTech praised its "gripping plot" and user-friendly controls. Retrospective opinion has been more mixed: IGN's Lucas Thomas called it repetitive and formulaic, its play styles underdeveloped and held together like "a patchwork quilt". It was included in the Sega Genesis Collection for PlayStation 2 and PSP, on the Wii Virtual Console and on Nintendo Switch Online in 2021.