This
Berserk Game was released for Dreamcast System. The storyline
is, I believe, a continuation from the manga series at around
the Millennium Falcon Arc and revolving around parasitic plants
named Mandragora.Game play is quite simple, mostly just button
mashing, but the true gems of this game of course are the fluid
3-D animation and the story telling magic. The story goes like
this...Gutts, Caska, and Puck enter a town and encountered a
group of performers being attacked by bandits. Gutts helped
out the young female performer name Rita. The performing group
consists of Rita, An older man, a large quiet man, and a dog.
Gutts sensed and suspected that the large man maybe a demon...though
he didn't act upon his instinct.
Rita
invited Gutts to go see her performance... Convinced by Puck,
Gutts headed toward the town. In town, they saw Rita's performance.
Then the large man name "Job" was a part of the show
as a strongman. While swinging a huge weapon, he tripped....the
villagers then realized that Job's possessed by a monster known
as the Mandragora and started throwing stones at him. Job then
transformed into a mandragora monster and killed several town
people. The monster headed toward Caska and Gutts place where
the monster fought with Gutts to his death.
Rita
got angry at Gutts for killing her buddy. At that moment a chariot
arrived. A baron Balzac was introduced. He's there to inspect
the Mandragora monster. Balzac explained about the Mandragora
and the symptoms of those who got infected. He claimed he might
be able to cure Caska and offered Gutts to come to his castle.
Rita, however, was taken by the soliders....
Balzac
asked Gutts to come alone to his secret lab while Caska and
Puck was wandering about the Castle where they found a painting
of a beautiful lady. Balzac told Gutts how the Mandragora disease
got spreader. He explained that at the edge of town lives a
nun name Eriza who is the mandragora main supporter. He also
told Gutts how Caskca can be cured by using the Mandragora's
heart extract. He said he has the partial heart but that's not
enough to cure Caska. He then told Gutts that the full heart
can be retrieved from that nun.
Balzac
offered a proposition to Gutts that he'll cure Caska once Gutts
gave him the Mandragora's heart. Though suspicious, Gutts agreed
to get the heart for the sake of his love, Caska. Rita was brought
to the castle to be slain. Caska and Puck came and saw what
was about to happen. At that time the castle was attacked by
a group of resistant. The resistant killed the soldiers who
were harming Rita and continued raiding the castle.
A
foot solider went on to report to Baron Balzac. Balzac then
excused himself to attend the emergency. Puck flew in and reported
what just happened to Caska. They hurried out and found Rita's
dog that led a way to the resisting group. A man name Dunteth
introduced himself with Rita and told Gutts that Rita almost
got killed by Balzac's underlings. Dunteth explained his motive
why he attacked the castle. The reason of the raid was to release
his comrades from Balzac human-mandragora experiment.
Dunteth
also said that Balzac once was a good leader who did not oppress
town people....but everything changed ever since the disease
starting to spread. Gutts asked for Caska...and Dunteth showed
the way down to meet Caska. Gutts told them he will go get Mandragora's
heart as promised to Balzac. Dunteth joined in with Gutts to
go to that town to retrieve the heart. Leaving Caskca, Puck,
and Rita behind....Gutts and Dunteth went on to the Mandragora
town. While Gutts was out, Balzac advisor attacked the hideout
place and captured Caskca. Rita was able to escape.
At
the Mandragora town, one solider picked up Mandragora tree which
made other Mandragora monsters angry. Dunteth was killed by
one single swiped. A nun came out and clam the fight down. She
introduced herself as Eriza....At the same time; Rita ran out
and told Gutts what had just happened to Caska. Gutts rushed
to the nun and asked for heart of the Mandragora. The nun then
told a story of an innocent boy name Niko and his death. (The
picture of Niko's death depicts Niko holding on to a Behelit)
She asked why the boy has to die. She said the Mandragoras are
happier since they don't have to face with Pride, sadness, anger,
and ambition. Gutts didn't care...and said he's here for the
heart no matter what. Then the nun fled from Gutts.
In the castle jail where Caskca's imprisoned, Puck came and
tried to rescue her...The night has arrived, and spirits started
to appear around Caska. Then!...The ceiling of the prison was
broken and appeared Nosferatu Zodd. Zodd simply said "You're
that branded swordsman's woman…..Ha ha. Then he must be
nearby…Interesting! Something else fun to do! I'll eat
you later little girl…".and just flew off. Puck and
Caska were able to escape from the prison. They met up with
a girl they thought to be Balzac's daughter. The girl has similar
symptoms with Caska.....mindless and insane. Caskca and Puck
then went into a secret room where the partial Mandragora's
heart was stored. While Balzac came into the room, she picked
up the heart and the heart began to regenerate on her.
At
the Mandragora village, Gutts and Rita went into the church
where the nun had fled into and found an underground passage
that leads to the heart of the Great Tree...this time Gutts
went down alone. There he met Eriza as a Mandragora monster
and the heart of the Mandragora tree(Niko). Gutts fought with
the two monsters and cut down the Mandragora tree. But the nun
Eriza was able to get a hold of the heart and started running
to the surface where she found her town (Mandragora) people
were killed by Balzac advisor, Gyove, who led a band of foot
soldiers and a Mandragora monster solider. She was sad...and
decided to commit suicide by running herself and the heart into
the burning church. There she dropped a little pendent.....the
blue Behelit that Rita picked up later.
Right
before Gyove could command anything, Zodd dropped down from
the sky and killed the Mandragora-solider and Gyove's men. Gyove
and the rest fled Zodd with fear. Zodd and Gutts then engaged
in a conversation about Griffith and his motive to raise an
army of monsters. Then they fought ferociously but could not
determine the winner. Zodd excused himself and took off.
After the Mandragora's tree was destroyed, the villagers turned
to normal. But not with sorrow, they blame on Gutts that he
murdered their sons/daughters/relatives. Gutts left the scene
without a word......While Rita simply thought to herself...."They
were so happy. Before...before we came…."
Back
in town, Puck reported the Caskca incident with the Mandragora's
heart to Gutts. They hurried in, they met with the other insane
lady and took her along. Baron Balzac was in the room, Balzac
asked wondering how the girl got there....Rita asked why the
baron turned bad, Balzac replied at the time when he was younger
he had people to protect, someone to love.....but those became
his burden... He said he had a dying wife who couldn't recover......
Rita asked back that isn't a daughter enough to make him happy.
Balzac then said...the girl is not his daughter but was the
dying wife whom he kept alive by using the Mandragora's heart
extract. He also said that though she'd remain like this for
the rest of her life, his wife would never be able to remember
past things with him... With that, he took the Mandragora's
heart extract for him to be strong enough to fight with Gutts.
Gutts defeated Balzac and hurried out and continued to look
for Caska. At this hurry moment, Rita unknowingly dropped the
Behelit pendant to the floor where Balzac was dying.
He
found Caska who was swallowed up in a giant Mandragora tree.
He fought ferociously with eh giant tree and was able to save
Caska from it. While the Mandragora possession power still active,
Caska was able to recognize Gutts....but soon.....she went back
to her crazy self. Puck just quietly explained...."She
went back to normal because she was possessed by the Mandragora.
It makes sane people crazy, but crazy people sane."
The
Behelit got activated by the baron ho had chosen his new fate
by sacrificing his wife. He turned into a huge beast weilding
2 large battel axes. Gutts had the final fight with this newly
anointed Behelit Apostle. After the defeat of this fiend, the
town went back to normal.........but not without sorrow.
In the final scene, Gutts and Puck bid farewell to Rita........and
continued on his journey with Caska and Puck.
The
ending of the Game also show Skullknight came to the Castle
scene, took and swallowed the blue Behelit, and took off into
the air. Pretty classic ending (^_^)
