Takeaki Kunimoto - Milon's Secret Castle (1986)

 

Composer: Takeaki Kunimoto
Console: NES, GB
Game Release Date: 1986-11-13
Bootleg Release Date: 2021-08-23
Ripper: Someone on KHInsider
Runtime: 15:40, 18 Tracks

As we edge ever close to post 52 my "schedule" of posting every week has completely fallen apart. Ah well. I have something big for next post so before then let's write a bit about a game I feel is extremely underrated. Possibly in part to the AVGN's criticisms of the game. A game which had a sequel which is one of the best SNES games ever made. I am writing about Milon's Secret Castle for the NES, sometimes called The Maze Suite: Milon's Great Adventure. Milon's Secret Castle was released for the NES though a version of this also exists on the original Game Boy. A remake of this game exists on I-Mode though it is almost assuredly lost media at this point (sans a walkthrough on YouTube). 

The game follows a child called Milon as he ventures into Castle Garland to speak with Queen Eliza. When he gets there he finds the castle overtaken by some Evil Warlord. Milon is the only person in the land of Hudson (were other Hudson IPs live) that has no ability to speak. He wishes to figure out why he can't speak and decides to travel throughout the world to find other people like him. That's when Milon decides to take it upon himself to save the queen. The castle is a labyrinth with hidden rooms all over the place, winding platforms and shortcuts all over. That's not to mention to the fake walls or all sorts of strange things the warlord has done to the castle. The game is a sidescroller wherein you explore the castle looking for the exit to the level to progress to the next floor of the castle. 

Milon's primary attack is a spamable bubble shot that can hit directly in front of him as well as slightly diagonally above him. Each level has tons of secrets in it from invisible doors, breakable walls, hidden objects and locked doors which can make things easier. Keys are hidden all over the place too. There are also "hazards" that can slightly change the gameplay such as a green boxing glove that can shrink Milon slightly. The game, although very cryptic isn't that difficult. At least, I didn't find it hard. The only truly difficult parts of the game are the bosses which can be beaten so long as the player as enough patience. 

I first had heard about the game when the AVGN review came out wherein he bashed the game calling it "Milon's Shitty Asshole". I found the game interesting and wished to look further into it. I found most of his criticisms unfounded and ended up liking the game a lot. Lol, I recall actually starting to watch AVGN less after that.  Alongside Street Fighter 2010 it actually became one of my favourite NES games, myself pouring hours into it. I also have found memories, those 2 games being among some of the first ones I ever emulated. I recalled I tried out the GB version of it at some point but found the NES version the definitive one (for now, I’ll explain later). A few years after that I found out that there was a sequel to the game. The AVGN video did not bring this fact to light. Nor did it mention that it was one of the best platformers on the SNES. 

The sequel called DoReMi Fantasy retcons a lot of stuff from the first game but it is featured in the same world. I'll probably give the game a post of itself at some point. It's way too overlooked in the SNES canon. 

Even though there are many that don't like the game, Milon's Secret Castle was successful enough to warrant a grand total of 7-10 games (depending on how you cut it) in the series. The most recent installment being 2006' NDS game Milon no Hoshizora Shabon: Puzzle Kumikyoku. Additionally Milon has made appearances in a plethora of other Hudson games from Bomberman to Star Soldier. He gets around. 

Milon's Secret Castle is a wayward game that does things it's way. It's not for everyone. The game makes its cryptic progression a central point of the game which is definitely going to be something really divisive for certain audiences. 

There exists a full 16-bit remake of the game on Japanese mobile phone services such as I-Mode and Yahoo Keitai though I am not aware of any dumps that exist of the games. It would be really nice if Hudson saw fit to re-release them as they do look quite good. If that version was dumped I may change my tone about the NES version being the definitive one. 

The games music was composed by Takeaki Kunimoto. He is mostly known for his work at Hudson composing for games such as Star Soldier and Mickey Mousecapade. He still works in music with his latest album "1" being released in 2014. He's still active, though I don't believe he does much VGM composing these days. A random tidbit but as I was researching Kunimoto's career I found he was a close friend of Ryu Umemoto, someone who I hold in a very high regard. He spearheaded several tribute albums and concerts to him. 

On the soundtrack there aren't many full songs here but the few we have are good. It's got a crazy and mindbending boss theme, and cool and relaxed themes for the castle and general exploration. Included in the rip are also some unused jingles and sound effects. It may not be much but most NES games didn't have huge soundtracks anyways. The rip below is a soup'd up KHInsider rip with appropriate tags and covers and everything. 

Enjoy!

Download: aHR0cHM6Ly9tZWdhLm56L2ZpbGUvREpKU0FUQ0ojWjdROXFVVzl4VHJLV1ZSTkNlQjdma1FxeTZ1a3FyMWRQUWpCSWg2NWNMNA==

p@ss: itsagoodgame