Fantasy Zone: The Maze / Opa Opa - Sega Master System / Arcade / Playstation 2 (1987)

Sega Master System Cover

Fantasy Zone: The Maze (SMS)

Fantasy Zone: The Maze (SMS)

Someone, somewhere felt that it would be an interesting idea to mix Fantasy Zone with Pac Man, and here we have the unofficial third title in the series. As it turns out, it's not really a bad idea - although Opa Opa is initially defenseless, you gain money by grabbing coins, which can then be used to purchase items by flying over shops. Your arsenal includes speed-ups, guns and lasers, although there are also items similar to power pellets that make Opa Opa invulnerable for a limited amount of time. You can also prevent enemies from respawning by flying over a circle in the middle of the screen. There are plenty of boards, with graphics and music taken from the first game. While it's not quite as fun as the "real" games in the series - mostly because it's a bit too easy - it's an amusing diversion into innovative territory. The two player simultaneous mode is a welcome addition too, and it would've been nice to see multiplayer in the other games. Like Fantasy Zone 2, this was released in Japan for the Sega System-E arcade board under the title "Opa Opa". Other than some slightly enhanced graphics and music, and some altered stage layouts (the arcade version fits double the amount of coins in each level), they're otherwise the same.

Fantasy Zone: The Maze (SMS)

Screenshot Comparisons

Master System	Arcade

Galactic Protector - Sega Master System / Playstation 2 (1988)

Japanese Cover

Galactic Protector

Galactic Protector

Galactic Protector is another spin-off that has little to do with Fantasy Zone, but heralds Opa Opa in the starring role. This game was only released in Japan, and requires the use of the analog paddle controller, which barely saw any distribution in America or elsewhere. Your task is spin around the planet in the middle of the screen, firing at the bits of debris that come floating out across the screen. It's a tough job, but two players can play as once. Your ships can only take one hit before being destroyed, but you need to make sure to protect the planet too. It can only take so many hits before blowing up, which instantly ends the game. The most amusing part are the facial expressions on the planets, which express emotions ranging from "jolly" to "angry" to "extremely worried". It's a bit simplistic, as some kind of additional weapons would've greatly added to the variety. It's also pretty difficult, especially in single player mode. Other than hunting down the extremely rare paddle controller and buying a Mark III, the best way to play it is on the Fantasy Zone Complete Collection for the PS2, but the analog control is still pretty fidgety and not quite the same thing.

Galactic Protector

Fantasy Zone / Fantasy Zone Gear: Opa Opa Jr. no Bouken - Game Gear / Playstation 2 (1991)

American Cover

Fantasy Zone Gear

Fantasy Zone Gear

Unlike most Game Gear ports, Fantasy Zone Gear isn't just a miniaturized version of the arcade/SMS game. Rather, it's a completely new game that actually brings quite a bit table. It was actually created by outside developed SIMS, who collaborated with Sega on many other projects during the era. There are a handful of new weapons, like the homing shot. Boss battles have changed a bit - instead of auto-facing your opponent like the other games, you can still turn right and left freely. It results in fights that are more involved, albeit somewhat cumbersome. In order to take accommodate the Game Gear's small screen, the status bar has been removed, so the graphics fill up the whole screen. Unfortunately, the view still feels very cramped, and the game itself is somewhat hindered by some flicker and slowdown. The controls are also a bit floatier than the other games, so it's way too easy to accidentally stumble straight into an enemy. Still, it looks great. While not as full of pastel colors as its predecessors, the backgrounds are much more detailed than the Sega Master System games. The music is much better than Fantasy Zone II's, although there's not a whole lot you can do with the portable's sound chip.

Fantasy Zone Gear

Super Fantasy Zone - Mega Drive / Playstation 2 (1992)

Mega Drive Cover

Super Fantasy Zone

Super Fantasy Zone

Fantasy Zone II and Fantasy Zone Gear weren't bad by any means, but they both ran on hardware quite inferior to the original arcade game. Super Fantasy Zone for the Genesis is the true sequel that not only matches, but surpasses its predecessor in aesthetics, with gorgeous graphics and an insanely catchy soundtrack. For the entire duration that you play, you forget about the Genesis' limited 64 color palette and marvel at the pastel glory. The music is some of the best composed for the Genesis, which is why you'll find nearly the entire OST for download. The opening cinematic story tells the traumatic story, as Opa Opa sets off to destroy the evil Menon empire to avenge his father's death. For the most part, the game is exactly the same as the original Fantasy Zone, just with new enemies and levels. There are a fair bit more weapons to buy this time around, including the incredibly useful four-way homing missiles. Also, special weapons (i.e. the classic 256 ton weight) now have their own button, so you can save them for the right moment. There are certain "gimmick" items you can purchase for certain stages - one level is completely cloaked in darkness, but you'll have a much easier time if you buy the headlights. Much like Fantasy Zone Gear, you no longer auto-face bosses, which is still slightly awkward. Since this was a home console release, the difficulty is tuned so it's challenging without being frustrating, and the rapid fire option is most definitely welcome. Even the scrolling has been fixed so it's easier to see what's in front of your ship. One of the coolest parts of the game is the tie-in with one of its Sega arcade brethren - similar to the hidden level in the X68000 game, the final stage has a checkerboard pattern on the floors and ceilings, which are both homages to Space Harrier. Unfortunately, the biggest travesty of Super Fantasy Zone is that it was never released in America. Yes, it came out in Japan and Europe, but some genius suit decided that the game simply wasn't good enough for the USA. Regardless, the game is relatively cheap and pretty easy to find in both territories, and the game defaults to English anyway if you're playing on an American Genesis. MP3s Download here Picnic Mango Good Evening Water Melody Vilily Fresh Melon Fancy Promenard Ya-Da-Ne

Super Fantasy Zone Super Fantasy Zone Super Fantasy Zone Super Fantasy Zone

Space Fantasy Zone - PC Engine Super CD (Unreleased)

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Space Fantasy Zone

Space Fantasy Zone

Space Harrier and Fantasy Zone were always kinda related - both had cracked out characters designs, both took place in the same world (the "Fantasy Zone", obviously), even the high score themes are similar. So someone took the natural step and combined them into one mega game, Space Fantasy Zone. All of the levels and bad guys are favorites taken from both games, and some of the Space Harrier baddies have been given cutesy makeovers. The gameplay is exactly like Space Harrier, although you have a shield meter and only one life. Shooting them will give you gold, while taking out whole waves of yields extra money. In between stages, you can buy tons of different power-ups at a store oddly named "Weaponalds", including several kinds of speed-ups, power shots, extra weapons, shields, bombs, options, and all kinds of stuff. The variety of weaponry is far larger than any of the Fantasy Zone games. You can also spend your time poking the chest of the store clerk, if you feel so inclined. The graphics capture the pastels of the original game, although since the PC Engine CD can't handle scaling, the movement isn't as smooth as it could be - it's about on par with Space Harrier II for the Genesis, The main theme is a combination of the famous songs from both games, although all of the music is disappointingly banal. It's fun, although somewhat short games (only 9 short stages, compared to the 18+ of the Space Harriers.) But the biggest tragedy? This game never saw an official release - it was mentioned on release lists, it was advertised (with designs by famous artist Satoshi Urushihara), but it was ultimately canned. No one knows why for sure - some people claimed legal disputes over the properties, although this is unlikely. The title screen even mentions the copyright by Sega, although the game was made by NEC Avenue. Thankfully, beta copies have been leaked to the Internet, and with a bit of scavenging, you should be able to find an ISO to run on emulators. MP3s Main Theme

Space Fantasy Zone Space Fantasy Zone Space Fantasy Zone

Mini-Game

Fantasy Zone was also a hidden game in Arnold Palmer's Tournament Golf. According to GameFAQs: "Hit the ball 100 times on the first hole without landing on the green. On the Game Over screen press Up, Up, Down, Down ,Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A". That's weird, that looks like the Konami code. Regardless, you'll get to play a level of Fantasy Zone. The screen is cramped and getting killed will end the game, but it's a nifty little diversion if you're bored of golf.

For a long time, Opa Opa was an official mascot for Sega. He showed up in the anime Zillion (along with his brother Upa Upa), and ended up in the Sega Master System game as a power-up item. He also makes an appearance in Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars as one of the treasured items you pursue. Most recently, he's shown up as mag in Phantasy Star Online, and the Fantasy Zone theme song, "Opa Opa", was featured in the Dreamcast version of Sega's maraca shaking rhythm game, Samba de Amigo, and as a cheer song in the soccer game Virtua Stiker 4. He even makes a small cameo appearance in Sonic Riders. So it's good that Sega hasn't completely forgotten him. Thanks to Brian Clark for the heads up about the Famicom Fantasy Zone, and JJDFunk for the info about Arnold Palmer's Tournament Golf. An extra huge thanks to ZellSF for the awesome screencaps of Fantasy Zone IIDX. Links SHMUPS - Fantasy Zone A nice look at the whole series. Sega 16 - Super Fantasy Zone A good review of this awesome game. Fantasy Zone Some Japanese page with screenshots from the original arcade game.