Patrick Gann writes "One of Quintet's earliest creations has, somehow, remained their most well-known, despite the greater depth and experience offered by later titles (i.e. the Soul Blazer trilogy). But there's something special about this genre-blender that captivated gamers worldwide. Is it the concept of a dethroned God as protagonist, having to fight his way back to top spot against demonic powers while winning back the hearts of the people? Is it the welcome reprieve from lengthy Sim-style gaming to do some mindless skull-bashing in the platformer mode? Maybe the visual qualities, or the awesome soundtrack that could go toe-to-toe with Castlevania any day of the week? Of course, it's a combination of all these things. Take any one away, and ActRaiser wouldn't be as special. This was certainly proven by ActRaiser 2, which cut the Sim element and suffered terribly for it."
