For better or worse, Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore aimed to be a spiritual successor to a pair of CD-i games. Long before they were YouTube fodder, the younger Trev was playing both Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, on actual CD-i material, no less. These games are arguably more interesting for the vague speculations about how they ended up outside of Nintendo hardware rather than the actual game itself. However, I can report that they are nowhere near the parodies that many voice critics claim. Did someone at Seedy Eye Software (big pun) do you think the same? Arzette looks to celebrate the best of these ’90s CDs while polishing their rougher edges into a new adventure.

One area where they missed the boat, however, is the plot. None of these CD-i predecessors could lay claim to brilliant stories, but the Arzette doesn’t even seem to be trying. Too long a narrative would be utter rubbish, except it is a deliberate forgery. But the characters you meet as the titular princess searching for the eponymous jewel shards elevate it. There are certain touches of “it’s so bad it’s good.”

From the animation, the design, and the voice acting (including some original voice actors in new roles), it’s clear that Arzette is a feast of cheese. This random jumble of the kingdom’s inhabitants will leave an impression with their over-the-top movements, over-the-top voice work, and just plain weird problems that serve as side quests. It’s a try to see who you’ll run into next, even more so if you’re familiar with the source material.

Of course, the bread and butter is the actual game, which does enough to keep you invested as the initial novelty starts to wear off. The pair of original Zelda games inspired by Arzette were more in the style of The Adventure of Link on the NES. So your action adventure will take place from a side-scrolling perspective. The variety of enemies will require dispatching in different ways. Also, many secrets, some visible though initially inaccessible behind dark wallpapers, others well hidden, are waiting to be found.

The gameplay evolves in a good, albeit unusual, way. I found it had places where the direction was lacking, where I had to retread areas looking for how to trigger what came next. Part of that might be playing the game while dealing with COVID-19 when my brain was foggier than usual.

Proceedings get a boost from the nod crowd, ones that those who only know these games from YT might miss, but those of us who have played the real deal will smile. Of course, being able to play with a proper controller helps. The CD-i paddle (of which publisher Limited Run has one retro inspired variant for sale) was never up to snuff.

Beyond the odd character movement, there’s also the desire to see what areas you’ll unlock next. The hand-painted backgrounds of the CD-i games stood out positively, and the same goes for Arzette. They even brought in someone who did background art and paintings for the prototypes. Increasing the visuals is a nice music. While the vocals may be getting much of the press, the soundtrack is strong. It made returning to familiar pavements less jarring and I found some of the songs stuck in my head. Again, Arzette looked at an aesthetic distinct from the games that inspired it (CD-quality music) and emulated it. If anything, the tunes fit better here, without the Hyrulian themes.

Even with all these positives, I find myself struggling with the question, “If I didn’t love CD-i games, how much would I love Arzette?” After some time, I can say that I would still have some definite enjoyment, albeit less. The (occasionally pointless) gameplay didn’t go far enough to really grab me where I could say, “this is great,” but it also didn’t go wrong enough to discourage (though the thoughtless existence of a single save file came close) . These results are probably the best I could hope for given the source material. Arzette isn’t an homage to Hotel Mario, after all (although that game does have a small reference).

Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore parodies a pair of unusual Zelda games while ensuring that its experience is more than just a joke. The realization of these efforts makes for a good game, but one whose appeal may be limited. However, the attention to detail here commands respect. How about following that release by mocking the CD-i top-down, Zelda’s Adventure, next?