Evolution: The World of Sacred Device | January 21, 1999
Evolution: The World of Sacred Device is a role-playing video game for the Dreamcast and Neo Geo Pocket Color. It was developed and published by SNK under the title Evolution: Eternal Dungeons. The game was developed by Sting and published in Japan by Sega and Entertainment Software Publishing, while Ubi Soft handled the North American and European releases.
Evolution: The World of Sacred Device is a typical roguelike game where players lead a party of adventurers to explore procedurally generated dungeons, aiming to defeat the bosses at the end of each dungeon. Players can complete the dungeons in any order except for the final dungeon, and as players progress, the number of floors increases. For example, entering a specific dungeon for the first time will have 9 floors, but just before the last dungeon, it will have 21 floors. Stronger enemies appear between the 10th and 20th floors, and bosses have higher stats.
Each dungeon floor, except for the boss floor, consists of enemies, traps, and treasure chests containing items. Traps are hidden as floor panels, and stepping on them triggers various effects on the party. Some traps have positive effects, such as HP recovery or weakening enemies on that floor. Skilled players can spot faint outlines of these panels or use special items to reveal the types and locations of all traps.
The combat system in Evolution occurs when a character comes into contact with an enemy. If a character contacts an enemy from behind, the party gets a surprise attack, delaying the enemy’s actions. Conversely, if the enemy contacts a character from behind, the party’s actions are delayed, and their formation is reversed. The combat system is turn-based, with each combatant taking their turn. Each turn, a character can choose to perform a simple melee attack, use an item, defend, move to change the party formation, flee (only if all party members are in the back row), or use a skill. Each character has a unique set of skills that consume a specific number of skill points, allowing for various effects, including direct damage, healing, stat buffs, debuffs, and status ailments. Skills can only be used during combat; not using a skill during a turn will allow the character to recover a small amount of skill points.
Winning battles grants all surviving party members experience points, increasing their levels and stats significantly. Players also earn TP (Technique Points) to learn new skills. During combat, players can choose skills that have not yet been learned, using the required TP to immediately learn and use them. Learning skills outside of combat has no immediate benefit but may be a desirable option if players need to expand their skill trees.
After completing a dungeon, the party automatically returns to Pandam Village, where their HP and skill points are fully restored, and they receive rewards for the artifacts found at the end of the dungeon. Players can then explore Pandam Village, sell small artifacts, upgrade characters' Cyframes, buy and sell items, talk to acquaintances, move items in Mag's storage box, and prepare for the next dungeon.
