Many of the first wave or two of micom action-RPGs drew heavy inspiration from T&ESoft's Hydlide, and more than a couple also drew from Namco's vaguely RPG-ish arcade side-scroller Dragon Buster, but 1985's "a real-time role-playing" Tritorn defied expectations by drawing from both at the same time: the core side-view action, including that distinctive arced sword swing, are clearly derived from Dragon Buster, but the light RPG elements, the gating of upgrades and progression items behind simple "puzzles" (killing everything on a given screen, usually) and even the HUD come straight out of Hydlide. It's also shockingly easy, inasmuch as the majority of the game's screens contain safe spots that'll let you take out whatever's on screen without having to risk taking damage, up to and including the final boss; I wouldn't describe it as "accommodating" so much as "untested".
If developer Xainsoft ever had a signature game, Tritorn might be it, but they ended up being equally notorious for changing the spelling of their company name every other year for no clear reason—this game's a SEIN・SOFT joint.
(also worth noting: EGG's replaced their list of upcoming games with a generic "10+ games in the works, stay tuned!" message...)
*utterly broken 80s Japanese microcomputer kuso
