Elemental Gimmick Gear

About

Elemental Gimmick Gear mashes sci-fi and fantasy into a turn-based RPG with quirky visuals. You play as the Sleeper, a man frozen for millennia, as he investigates ancient ruins and tentacle monsters ravaging the world. Gameplay blends 2D hand-drawn exploration with sudden 3D boss fights, creating a jarring but memorable aesthetic. Combat revolves around elemental weaknesses and gear-based mechanics, letting you mix weapons and abilities to counter the mysterious Fogna spreading from the ruins. The game’s standout trait is its visual clash between cel-shaded characters and polygonal enemies, a bold choice for 1999. Its story weaves ancient mysteries with sci-fi mecha concepts, though dated voice acting and clunky dialogue hold it back. A small cult following praises its ambition, but hardware limitations and niche mechanics keep it from broader appeal. Still, the contrast between its lush art and chaotic plot makes for a weirdly compelling experience.

Storyline

In the world of Tokion, a dome-shaped ancient ruin was discovered inside a thick jungle. During excavation, an egg-shaped mecha was found inside the ruins containing a sleeping man. No matter how hard scientists tried, he would not wake up. He was taken to a laboratory along with the machine to be further studied. Upon analyzing the machine, they learned that it was over 5000 years old. They also could not find any form of power source. In time, the machine became known as "Elemental Gimmick Gear", or EGG for short. After extensive scientific analysis over a number of years, copies of the EGG were produced and used as vehicles. 100 years later, the ruin suddenly became active, extending a multitude of tentacles into the ground. They spread all across the land, destroying anything in their way. With the tentacles came a thick layer of fog that surrounded the ruins, and people gave them the name Fogna. At the same time, the Sleeper who was discovered a century prior finally awoke. He had not aged a day since his discovery and had no memory of his past or his own name. Selen, who was with him as he woke, set him free without notifying the other scientists in the lab. She sent him to Fogna to begin searching for clues of what happened 5100 years ago, and to stop the tentacles' breeding.