Tsuki no megami no densetsu: Hyōi monogatari (月の女神の伝説：憑依物語) – PC-88, 1987

The first game in the Tsuki no megami or Tsukimeg series, released for the PC-88 home computer exclusively in Japan. The title roughly translates to “Legend of the Moon Goddess: Possession Story.” Uniquely, the game uses a text parser rather than a menu, and could therefore be considered interactive fiction or a text adventure. The parser does make combat rather awkward, though, since each attack command must be entered by hand; there is no ability to repeat the last command. Each location is illustrated with a still or lightly animated image, while conversations feature portraits of both the speaker and Selene. Combat is limited to certain times and certain areas, none of which can be revisited, meaning that unless a player deliberately grinds for experience and money when the opportunity presents itself, they may have difficulty in the late game.

Selene is summoned to look for a missing person in a remote Japanese village circa 1912, possessing the body of a young bride who had succumbed to tuberculosis on the eve of her wedding in response to a sincere wish upon the moon from the woman’s mother-in-law. The missing person is the young woman’s betrothed, Akito, and there are indications that he is not the only one. Selene’s success in uncovering the perpetrator (an oni-worshipping cult), rescuing Akito, and calling off or going through with the wedding influence the ending, which is rated on a scale from F to S. The S ending unlocks the ability to play as Akito, who in turn only has two endings, success and failure. In total, there are eight endings (S, A, B, C, D, F, Akito success, Akito failure); later games indicate that ending A is canon.

Despite the waning state of the PC-88 market in 1987, Tsuki no megami no densetsu: Hyōi monogatari was a huge success for Kyopro, with the entire first run of games selling out in a little more than a month. A Western localization was never considered; the game remains unavailable in any form other than its original release.

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