The main elemental crests include Earth (allows you to break down barriers), Air (allows you unlimited flight), Water (swim and explore water areas), Time (increases damage you do to enemies) and Heaven (pretty much makes you all powerful). These naturally allow him to explore further in the game, as well as uncover secrets from past areas that he couldn't travel to before. Whenever Firebrand finds a new crest, he gains its elemental power, which gives him new abilities and skills. He can also fly and hover for short periods.

You get your first crest (naturally fire) pretty much right at the start of the game, which allows our antihero to breathe fire, which will be his primary attack throughout the game. So, the goal of the game is to regain all six of the elemental crests, and to regain your lost power.

Top it off with a beautiful soundtrack that I rank among the Top 10 SNES soundtracks of all time (and considering some of the great competition on the system, that's saying something), and you have one of the most atmospheric games of the 16 Bit generation. From deep caverns, to water-filled ruins, right down to the dark forests and ancient alters, no two areas look the same, and they all show off the talented skills of the artists who obviously reveled in creating this world. That being said, thanks to the dark and highly detailed artstyle, every area in the game looks downright beautiful. Just keep in mind, this is a mid-90s adventure game, so a lot of times, there's no real explanation about what you should do. This is definitely a game that rewards exploration. Much like Super Metroid (which had been released earlier that year), the Ghoul Realm is made up of multiple areas with tons of hidden items, secrets and routes off the beaten path that lead to powerful items or abilities.

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