If you were to ask me which console has the most impressive library of great games, I'd
probably answer the original PlayStation.
It's just so full of classics that not only made Sony's first foray into gaming an unprecedented
and mostly unexpected success, but also raised the profile of the industry as a whole and
changed the way the general public would perceive the hobby forever.
With so many good games to choose from on the system, it's no surprise that there are
a lot of PS1 titles that many consider “hidden gems”—ooh, those are such buzzwords—fantastic
games that for whatever reason, never quite got their due and somewhere along the way
became lost in the broader gaming consciousness.
A great number of these “hidden gems” are found in Japan, where their obscurity
is often the result of not being published outside of the island nation.
One such example is London Seirei Tantei-dan, or London Spirit Detective Team, which was
the subject of episode 31 of Import Gaming FTW, a 1999 RPG starring a young detective
and set in an anime and steampunk inspired, Victorian era England.
While it was obviously a low-budget effort and mostly stuck to the conventions of the
genre, it featured charmingly simple gameplay, a fun cast of characters, nice and colorful
2D graphics, a decent soundtrack and an engaging story sprinkled with bits of comedic flair
all throughout.
The game's short length left me wanting to spend way more time solving mysteries in 19th
century London, but that desire would go unfulfilled since there was never a sequel or spin-off.
There is somewhat of a small consolation to that, however, as a game with some notably
similar themes and settings made its way to the PlayStation the following year, brought
to us by the makers of the fabled Atelier role-playing series.
Hey, move over Little Ralph and make way for The Adventures of Robin Lloyd.
Published by Gust on January 6th, 2000, The Adventures of Robin Lloyd is one of the company's
earliest efforts, coming out just a couple of years after their breakout hit, Atelier
Marie.
As mentioned earlier, it has quite a few things in common with London Spirit Detective Team.
The star of the game is a young detective, the setting is a historical period in England,
the roaring 20s in this case, and the overall look and feel of the game is very much anime-influenced,
with advanced technology, the supernatural and comedic elements thrown into the mix.
But the similarities between the two end here for the most part.
While Gust is known primarily for its extensive catalogue of role-playing games, they went
in a different direction for The Adventures of Robin Lloyd, which is a highly stylized,
fully 3D action adventure game with emphasis on the adventure part.
The protagonist of the game is the titular Robin Lloyd, a capable and spirited 18 year-old
man whose genius has given him the reputation of being the #1 private eye in London, despite
his youth.
Aiding him in his investigations are his trusty “Robin Gun” and “Robin Car,” devices
created by Elice Runbart, an assistant university professor with a knack for inventing, who
also happens to be Robin's landlady.
Our hero's support doesn't just come in the form of gadgets, however, as he's joined by
his loyal partner, Butler...Butler the dog.
Despite his underwhelming appearance, he is a valuable team member who has Robin's back
when the chips are down.
The adventure starts off at Robin's home, when his afternoon nap is abruptly cut short
by Elice and Butler, informing him that an affluent female client has come seeking his
services.
This woman turns out to be the young and beautiful Alicea Garfield, heiress to the well-known
and influential Garfield Foundation.
She tells Robin of her desire to finding a missing person—the archaeologist Ryile Rockwood,
someone who Robin and Elice are closely associated with.
They're surprised to hear of his disappearance, but perhaps more surprised to learn that Ms.
Garfield is his fiancee.
He was last seen a week ago heading toward a museum in search of a jewel called the “Rose
of Awakening,” a one-of-a-kind ruby from Egypt that adorns the crown of the queen of
a distant kingdom.
That crown is no longer kept within the borders of that kingdom, however, because the Garfield
Foundation has it stored in its underground vaults as collateral for its financial dealings
with the country, an arrangement that has lasted for over a hundred years.
The foundation does loan it out to the kingdom for coronation ceremonies though, and as a
new queen is about to ascend to the throne next month, preparations have begun to return
the crown.
This is when it was discovered that the Rose of Awakening had been stolen.
The patriarch of the Garfield family promised to give his blessing to his daughter's marriage
if Ryile could bring back the gem safe and sound, which prompted his hasty departure.
With her fiancee's whereabouts unknown and her future marriage hanging by a thread, Alicea
begs Robin to help her, to which he naturally agrees!
As you would expect from a game about a detective, The Adventures of Robin Lloyd is big on investigation
and puzzle-solving.
A bulk of the gameplay consists of collecting clues and items as well as speaking with NPCs
to solve your case, but this game takes things a step further by implementing a clever investigation
feature which allows the young sleuth to carefully examine objects and people up close and personal...sometimes
a little bit too personal.
The four shoulder buttons rotate the person or object forward, backward, left and right,
the square button zooms in, X resets things back to the starting position, the d-pad moves
a small magnifying glass cursor around, and pressing circle investigates the area where
the magnifying glass is placed over.
Not every person or object you run across in the game can be searched this way, but
those that can will often hide some secret switch, lever or item.
Pressing triangle while in investigation mode will take you to your inventory, where you
can use items on whatever it is you're examining, allowing you to perform common tasks like
using keys to unlock doors, or the odd swinging of an axe to remove coral deposits preventing
you from opening up a chest.
The controls in the field are pretty standard for a 3D game on the PlayStation, and thankfully
you won't have to fight with the camera, since it's always fixed at an angle and provides
a good view of Robin and the environment.
There's no analog stick support in this game, so movement is handled with the d-pad, and
Robin runs by default.
Holding down X allows him to walk, but there's no point in the game where it's necessary
to do so.
The triangle button brings up your inventory when out exploring the game world as well,
but you won't be using any of your items this way, just examining whatever is in your possession.
Every so often Robin will be confronted by hostiles and forced to engage in battle, and
the controls change to allow him to perform actions such as firing his weapon and rolling
around while on foot, or shooting, accelerating and backing up if he's in the Robin Car.
Pressing the square button enters the configuration screen, where the player can adjust the difficulty
of battle sections, turn controller vibration on and off, cycle between stereo and mono
sound, and save and load the game.
The Adventures of Robin Lloyd is one of those unusual titles for the PS1 that lets the player
save at any point when in the field, which is very much welcome.
One more thing the player can toggle in the configuration screen is character voices,
which are set to on by default, but can be switched off if desired.
I don't know why you would want to do that, though, because the voice work here is very
well done.
Gust enlisted the services of some talented voice actors and actresses from the anime
and gaming scene, with the most well-known of these performers being Akio Otsuka, who
brings the Metal Gear series' protagonist Snake to life...well, in Japan, anyway.
SNAKE! SNAAAKE!
The voice acting in The Adventures of Robin Lloyd really elevates the story and dialogue,
and while character voices are only heard during cutscenes and story segments, it adds
greatly to the anime aesthetic and production quality of the game.
But it's not just the voice work, because just about every element of the game has high
production values—great art direction with the character designs, objects and locations,
and the graphics are colorful and pretty good for the 32-bit era, comparable to Capcom's
Rockman Dash/Megaman Legends games or Atlus' Tail Concerto...but maybe a bit less handsome.
The game's music and sound design is top notch as well, no surprise really since they were
handled by people who worked on Terranigma and multiple entries in the Atelier series.
Character designs were done by a man named Yuu Kaneshige, whose only other video game
credits are comprised of seemingly minor roles working on art and graphics in a handful of
RPGs.
It's a shame, because his work in The Adventures of Robin Lloyd really shines, and he created
a really interesting and likable cast of heroes and villains with this project.
I would have loved to have seen what else his imagination could have come up with beyond
Robin and company.
The first chapter of the game, or the first case if you will, is called Breath from the
Ancient Times, and picks up right where Robin and Alicea's consultation ended.
Robin and Butler arrive at the museum, and the investigation begins immediately.
There are so many exhibitions and decorations to examine ranging from paintings, statues,
and even dinosaur bones.
There are also quite a few visitors and employees in the museum that need to be questioned and
searched, making this first case seem like a daunting task initially, but soon you'll
find some notes left by Ryile to help point you in the right direction.
Tracing the missing archaeologist's footsteps eventually uncovers some of the museum's darkest
secrets—all of the art and artifacts on display are actually fakes produced in a workshop
on the premises, and the director of the museum runs a blackmarket auction where he sells
the originals.
It also seems the director is the one responsible for stealing the Rose of Awakening.
Upon discovering this, Robin waits until nightfall to infiltrate the auction house and confront
the director about Ryile and the stone.
He makes it to the auction, but before he has a chance to interrogate the director,
a giant drill suddenly smashes through a wall and a sinister-looking man enters the scene—the
nefarious Colonel Doil, who has crossed paths with Robin on many occasions in the past,
and never on friendly terms.
He, too, is in pursuit of the jewel but for his own selfish gains, and after a short search
of the area, his men find not one, but three gems, all fakes.
During this altercation, Robin stays out of sight to eavesdrop and learns that the real
gem is hidden somewhere below the museum, so he rushes off to find a way underground
before Doil and his men can claim the Rose of Awakening.
To get to the lower levels, Robin must acquire a stone cross that serves as a key to the
secret entryway.
This cross is hidden in a compartment behind one of the museum's paintings, but can be
retrieved only after solving one of the game's odder puzzles that has more than one solution.
The secret compartment is opened by a loud, prolonged sound, and to produce such a noise,
you can either smash a gong and amplify the soundwaves with a tuning fork,
or place a music box nearby that blasts music at an obnoxiously high volume.
As soon you enter the murky underbelly of the museum, you'll encounter the first action
scenario of the game, where Robin must survive the attacks of no less than
18 alligators blocking his path.
They're easily taken care of with the Robin Gun, and when the smoke has cleared, Robin
is finally reunited with Ryile...well, after finding the key to his prison cell in the
body of a nearby gator.
Since he's not the fighting type, Ryile leaves the task of taking on Doil and finding the
gem to Robin, and returns to the surface.
Raw deal, for sure, but at least he promises to introduce Robin to some of Alicea's rich
and cute friends.
Beyond the gator-infested waters lies a giant sphinx and pyramid with all means of dangerous
traps, secrets and puzzles to solve, but even deeper within lies another kind of surprise—Doil's
men, ready to shoot it out with the young detective.
The Robin Gun combined with some slick maneuvering make this a short fight.
The goons flee, allowing Robin to search the storage area, where he finds what looks like
the real Rose of Awakening—finally!
But it's not case closed just yet, because Doil is parked right outside in a massive
tank, ready to pry the jewel from Robin's hands.
It looks like our hero's efforts may have all been in vain, however it's times like
these when having a partner is most beneficial, even if he happens to be a dog.
Butler comes to the rescue, rolling in with the Robin Car to even the odds.
Before the battle commences, you have the option of two different perspectives for the
camera to fit your playstyle better.
Doil's tank is pretty slow, and he's not exactly a top marksman, but halfway through the battle,
his tank will transform into a faster, deadlier form, and the real challenge begins.
Don't worry if he gets the better of you though, because if you lose all of your health you
are allowed retry without having to reset or reload, same as other fights in the game.
Once Robin emerges the victor in vehicular combat, Doil exits in shame in his damaged
tank, vowing revenge like a Saturday morning cartoon villain, because of course he does,
and Robin and Ryile regroup in order to get more information from the museum director
about what has transpired up until now.
Back at the house, Robin tells Elice about the previous day's events.
It's a long story, but it turns out that the jewel that the Garfield Foundation had been
holding onto all this time was also a fake, and the real stone appears to have been stolen
about 120 years ago, before it ever made its way to England.
All evidence suggests the gem is still aboard the wreckage of a pirate ship in the Mediterranean
Sea, so you know what that means—time for the next chapter, To the Blue Valley!
Robin, Ryile and Alicea pinpoint the probable location of this ship and without a minute
to spare, they head out to try and discover it before Doil.
Sailing on Alicea's personal boat, the three of them indeed discover the the ghost ship.
Robin and Ryle split up to search it while Alicea awaits aboard her vessel.
From here on out, you'll explore larger, spookier grounds than the museum and run into the spirits
of the ship's former crew and passengers, even helping some of them find peace along
the way.
And of course, even more challenging and complex puzzles await the genius detective than the
previous case...
So up until now, you might be thinking The Adventures of Robin Lloyd sounds like a pretty
cool game with well-thought out and implemented gameplay mechanics, a fun story and cast of
characters, great production values, and all the makings of what you'd call a “hidden
gem” on the PlayStation.
So why isn't it more talked about or held in higher esteem?
Well, it's probably because at this point, I've already provided an abridged playthrough
of roughly half of the game.
Yes, this is an extremely short game and unfortunately, Robin's adventures end much too soon, as this
second chapter is also the last.
After foiling Doil's attempts to claim the Rose of Awakening once again, the ending plays,
the credits roll, and that's pretty much it.
You're left with an ending that is neither conclusive nor satisfying, and it's a big
letdown.
But it is what it is, and I won't spoil the details of the second part of the game for
those who want to play it after watching this video.
Beating the game does unlock an omake mode that lets you listen to all of the game's
excellent music tracks, but that in no way makes up for its pitiful length.
My first attempt at The Adventures of Robin Lloyd took me a little over three hours to
finish, which makes it great for speed runs, I guess, but the cliffhanger ending left me
wanting so much more...at the very least, two or three more cases would have made the
game feel like a complete experience.
Anyone who purchased this when it was a new release for the MSRP of 5,800 yen, or about
sixty U.S. dollars, must have been extremely disappointed.
But these days, used copies are so cheap they're practically given away, and while they may
be brief, Robin's exploits are more than worth the low cost of admission.
This game has such personality and polish that if it was even just twice as long, I'm
sure it would be one of those PS1 titles everyone talks about today.
Gust did give it a decent advertising push, and I own a few of the collectibles and materials
associated with it.
Here's a package sent out to retailers that includes four promotional posters and 20 custom
Robin Lloyd bags stuffed with pamphlets.
Pre-order bonuses came in the form of a mini drama CD and a sticker sheet, and a fan book
was published that includes a guide, some great artwork and concept sketches as well
as a short story that takes place before the game's events.
There's also a CD soundtrack, which is very hard to find, but hey, at least Amazon Japan
sells the MP3s.
With those prices, though, I'll keep looking for the CD.
The Adventures of Robin Lloyd is a fantastic game that should have been a PlayStation classic,
as well as the first entry in a long series of games...but of course, it was buried in
obscurity, most likely because of it feels like an incomplete experience and severely
lacks replayability.
Much like London Spirit Detective Team, this game's conclusion sets things up perfectly
for a sequel, one that never came around.
But the future isn't completely bleak for London's greatest detective not named Sherlock
Holmes, as he was included in a DLC pack for Atelier Lydie & Suelle in March of 2019.
I know that doesn't mean much, but it shows that the character and his old adventures
are still at least a small blip in Gust's radar.
A re-release, remake or sequel would probably do well in today's market, as this style of
game caters perfectly to handheld and mobile gaming.
Just a thought, but maybe The Adventures of Robin Lloyd was a bit too ahead of its time,
because I have a feeling it would have been a real hit on the DS.
Well whatever the case, I hope it's not case closed on Robin and friends, and I highly
recommend looking into this PS1 title for your Japanese game collection.
You'll need a decent handle on the Japanese language to get the maximum amount of enjoyment
from The Adventures of Robin Lloyd, but you can still have fun with it regardless.
Anyway, thanks for watching, and damn, somehow we made it to 40 episodes of Import Gaming
FTW.
My how time flies.
This is Jimmy Hapa—take care.