Dust: An Elysian Tail

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Dust: An Elysian Tail
DustAETbox.jpg
Developer(s)Humble Hearts
Publisher(s)Microsoft Studios
Designer(s)Dean Dodrill
Writer(s)Dean Dodrill
Alex Kain
Composer(s)HyperDuck Soundworks
Alexander Brandon
EngineXNA
Platform(s)Xbox Live Arcade
Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)XBLA
  • WW August 15, 2012[1]
Microsoft Windows
  • WW May 24, 2013[2]
Genre(s)Action role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player
Media/distributionDownload
Dust: An Elysian Tail is an action role-playing video game developed by independentdesigner Dean Dodrill and published by Microsoft Studios. It was released on the Xbox Live Arcade on August 15, 2012[1], and it was subsequently released for Microsoft Windows on Steam on May 24, 2013[2].

Contents

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Gameplay [edit]

Dust takes place in the world of Falana, inhabited by anthropomorphic animals. Gameplay is presented on a 2D side-scrolling plane. The player controls the titular main character, Dust, as he tries to remember his past. Dust wields a sentient sword, the Blade of Ahrah, as his main weapon. Fidget, the sword's guardian, acts as a companion for Dust and can shoot projectiles.
As the player travels the world, they can acquire power-ups that permanently alter gameplay, such as the ability to double jump or climb to previously unreachable areas. Incorporating elements of role-playing games, Dust can gain experience points by defeating enemies, and in turn may level up. These can be used to raise various attributes, such as health, strength or magic. Non-playable characters can be interacted with throughout the game's world to sell items or receive quests.[3]

Development [edit]

Aside from voice acting, soundtrack, and parts of the story, Dust was designed andprogrammed entirely by Dodrill. A self-taught illustrator, he had previously done artwork and cinematics on Epic Games' Jazz Jackrabbit 2, and was in the process of creating an independent animated film, Elysian Tail.[4] He assumed it would take three months to complete the game; it actually took over three-and-a-half years.[5] He originally envisioned an 8-bit-style platformer for the game, similar to earlier entries in theCastlevania series. Inspirations for the final game came from such titles as Metroid,Golden Axe, and Ys I & II, which Dodrill cites as his favorite games.[6]
The game was originally targeted for the Xbox 360 Indie Games channel,[7] but upon winning the 2009 Microsoft Dream.Build.Play Challenge, it was awarded a contract for an Xbox Live Arcade release.[8] Dust: An Elysian Tail was originally expected to be released in late 2011, but was later delayed until summer 2012.[9][10]

Voice actors [edit]

  • Lucien Dodge - Dust, Jin, Cassius
  • Kimlinh Tran - Fidget
  • Edward Bosco - Ahrah
  • Amber Lee Connors - Ginger
  • Mick Lauer - Elder Gray Eyes
  • River Kanoff - General Gaius
  • Edwyn Tiong - Fuse
  • Eileen Montgomery - Lady Tethys
  • Joshua Tomar - Baron Kane
  • Anna Kingsley - Haley
  • Steven Kelly - Mayor Bram
  • Mike Varker - Avgustin
  • Michael Johnston - Reed
  • Nathaniel Arnold - Shopkeeper Mordecai
  • Ty Konzak - Bean
  • John Mondelli - Calum
  • Karen Kahler - Oneida, FloHop
  • Kamran Nikhad - Geehan
  • Francine L. Farley - Cora
  • Stephen P. Lynch - Fale
  • Andy Dennis - Gianni
  • Amanda Gonzalez - Colleen
  • Erica Mendez - Corbin
  • Justin Briner - Moska
  • Miranda Gauvin - Sarahi
  • John Aponte - Matti
  • Elizabeth Freeman - Bopo
  • Kira Buckland - MaMop
  • David Dixon - Blop
  • Matthew Gafford - Old Gappy
  • Teresa Decher - SmoBop
  • Chris Guerrero - Commander
  • Curtis Arnott - Soldier
  • Xander Mobus - Merchant Sereth
  • Sean Chiplock - Sanjin
  • Chris Niosi - Moonblood Soldier A
  • Cody Coleman - Moonblood Soldier B
  • Zach Holzman - Moonblood Soldier C
  • Blake Swift - Moonblood Soldier D
  • Noah Scammon - Moonblood Soldier E

Soundtrack [edit]

The official soundtrack was released on October 1, 2012. It was created by HyperDuck SoundWorks and contains 37 tracks at a total length of 1.79 hours. Which can be purchased at their Loudr.fm page [11]

Reception and sales [edit]

Dust: An Elysian Tail garnered mostly positive reviews from critics. Aggregating review websites Metacritic and GameRankings gave the ratings 83/100[12] and 84.20%[13] respectively. Dust sold over 45,000 copies during the month of August based on leaderboard totals, and finished 2012 with nearly 83,000 sold.[14][15]
The Official Xbox Magazine gave the game 9.5 out of 10, praising the detailed environments and animations and also approving of the combat system.[16]
Vincent Ingenito of IGN gave the game a rating of 8.5 out of 10, saying " The RPG elements could have been stronger, and the boss battles are a bit of a letdown, but if those are the worst things about your game, you're in pretty good shape." He approved of the lively and varied backgrounds, gameplay and the amount of content in comparison to the price.[3]
Toonami gave it an 8 out of 10, while referring to it as a beat 'em up that feels like watching a cartoon (praising its hand drawn animation) and stating, "Loads of sidequests, plenty of secret areas to explore, and some really cool extras take Dust: An Elysian Taila step above the rest."[citation needed]
Tom McShea of GameSpot gave the game 7 out of 10, criticizing the combat, voice acting and story. However, some other aspects such as the diverse and vivid backgrounds, responsive controls and side content were complimented.[17]

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b Larry Hryb (June 19, 2012). "Summer of Arcade dates and prices". Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  2. ^ a b "Dust: An Elysian Tail". Retrieved 2013-05-24.
  3. ^ a b Vincent Ingenito (August 13, 2012). "Dust: An Elysian Tail Review". IGN. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  4. ^ Samit Sarkar (September 3, 2012). "Humble origins: The solo odyssey behind Dust: An Elysian Tail". Polygon.com. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  5. ^ Kyle Orland (August 23, 2012). "Dust: An Elysian Tail: One animator's 3.5 year quest to create his dream game". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  6. ^ "A Conversation: Ken Lobb And Dean Dodrill". Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  7. ^ Sterling, Jim (2009-08-06). "Dust: An Elysian Tail gets new, incredibly beautiful trailer". Destructoid. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
  8. ^ "Microsoft Announces Dream.Build.Play 2011 For Indies". GameDaily. 2011-03-01. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
  9. ^ Rose, Mike (2011-01-07). "In-Depth: 10 Indie Games To Watch Out For In 2011". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
  10. ^ "Dust: An Elysian Tail". IGN Entertainment. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
  11. ^ "Dust: An Elysian Tail HyperDuck SoundWorks". Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  12. ^ "Dust: An Elysian Tail for Xbox 360 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  13. ^ "Dust: An Elysian Tail for Xbox 360". GameRankings. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  14. ^ Ryan Langley (September 5, 2012). "Gamasutra - News - XBLA's annual 'Summer of Arcade' promotion may be losing its steam".Gamasutra. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  15. ^ Ryan Langley (January 17, 2013). "Xbox Live Arcade sales analysis, December 2012". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  16. ^ Reyes, Francesca (August 13, 2012). "Official XBOX Magazine". Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  17. ^ McShea, Tom (August 14, 2012). "Dust: An Elysian Tail Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 2012-12-04.

External links