Play ActRaiser (Europe) Online

You slash through monsters in tight platforming sections, then zoom out to rebuild villages as a god—somehow this mashup of action and strategy just works. The sword swings feel weighty, and guiding those little villagers from disaster is oddly satisfying.

Developer: Quintet

Genre: Action, Simulation

Released: 1993

File size: 670 bytes

Game Overview

ActRaiser came out for the Super Nintendo in 1993, developed by Quintet and published by Enix. It was one of those early SNES titles that felt different from the usual platformers or RPGs, mixing genres in a way that was still pretty uncommon at the time.

You control a divine being who descends to a world overrun by monsters. In the action stages, you move through side scrolling levels, fighting enemies with a sword and magic. Between these stages, you oversee the growth of human settlements from a top down perspective, using miracles to clear land and protect your people. The game shifts between fast combat and slower, thoughtful simulation. It has a moderate difficulty, with some challenging boss fights. Guiding civilization back from ruin while personally battling evil gives the whole experience a satisfying sense of purpose.