The Monster Rancher game (Tecmo; $49.95) is the missing link between virtual pets and your Sony PlayStation.
Monster Rancher uses brand new technology that lets you take a CD and breed a new monster. The monster you come up with is based on how the data is arranged on the CD. If you’re using a music CD, it usually depends on how long the tracks are or the total length of the CD overall. Here’s how the game works:
First, you go to “town.” Once there, you can get new monsters from the “market.” (You’ll later go to town to freeze or revive monsters.) You can get one of three basic types of monsters: a regular dino, a tiger or a suezo (a giant floating eyeball). Those three types are the building blocks on which you’ll breed new monsters.
Then you go to the “shrine” and put your CD in. When the data is read, you’ll get a new monster. We tried No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom and got an awesome looking dinosaur/golem combination called Anki. From Puff Daddy and the Family’s No Way Out, we got a colorful lizardlike creature called a Liper.
Then you can take your monster to the “ranch.” There, you’ll train it to compete in tournaments. Training is tedious. As with a virtual pet, you’ll have to decide when and when not to punish your monster and what exactly to feed it.
Monster Rancher is so involving and fun, we forgot to tell you how great these new monsters and the tournament fights look way cooler than virtual pets. Thanks to the PlayStation’s graphics and great music, Monster Rancher rules.
