Half-Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax

There are traditionally many reasons for me not to be interested in acclaimed video games - maybe I don't care for the genre, maybe it's too similar to games I've already played, maybe I think its developer is full of bullshit - but there were only two big ones for Half-Minute Hero. Although its premise (reducing RPG time-wasting tropes to the point of absurdity) sounded really interesting, I wasn't sure how it could stay interesting for more than a minute or so. And, I didn't/don't have a PSP. So now the game is on Xbox Live Arcade, and with a demo, which has deftly transformed my unsureness into anticipation.

My initial understanding of the game's formula wasn't entirely correct -- I thought it put a 30-second time limit on an entire RPG story, with time-pausing and -resets being a necessarily regular element. Rather, Half-Minute Hero splits the story into discrete levels, each one with its own beginning, ending, sidequests, and 30-second limitation. So instead of being a short game designed for replaying over and over, it's actually a very respectable amount of content, driven by the time limit of each level.

The creative design is really fun, too, which helps a lot. You've got to plan your moves carefully, and execute them quickly, to finish the level in time. To level up, you need to fight monsters, which since it auto-battles is more a matter of spending enough time in the wilderness to encounter them. But you also need to buy equipment to get your strength up, and even hit NPCs and other side-areas to push the level along. It really does have all the components of a typical RPG, but simplified and shortened so that they can be enjoyed at a high level in rapid fire.

It's a little tough to describe, but based on my experience in the demo, Half-Minute Hero really speaks to me without wasting my time. I want more.

Progress: Played the demo