Today is a good day, because Retro-Bit Publishing just announced that they are going to be releasing a brand-new, limited-edition version of one of my favorite Genesis games of all time. I'm talking about Arcus Odyssey, the Wolf Team-developed action game from 1991 that mixes dungeon crawling with shoot ‘em up questing to create a truly addictive multi-player adventure. Pre-orders are currently available for the Genesis and Mega Drive versions of Arcus Odyssey, as well as the first-ever cartridge release of Psycho Dream outside of Japan. We've already covered Psycho Dream a couple of times, but what did the critics think of Arcus Odyssey? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, ACE, GamePro and more classic magazines that reviewed Arcus Odyssey back when it first came out. It's time to battle the Dark Sorceress of Castomira in this truly epic episode of Retro-Bit Review Crew.


Arcus Odyssey isn't an easy game to classify. One look at the cover and you'll think that it's yet another fantasy role-playing game, yet once you start playing the game, you'll discover that it's actually more of a shoot ‘em up. In a lot of ways, it feels like a more focused version of the arcade classic Gauntlet. Where that game emphasized non-stop hack ‘n slash action, Arcus Odyssey is more about exploration. The maze is more deliberate, often forcing you to complete quests and talk to the right person in order open up the right exit or treasure chest. Either single-player or with a friend, Arcus Odyssey skirted that line of being a dungeon crawler and an action game, something that feels a lot more common in 2026 than it did 35 years ago. Sadly, this Genesis release was completely overshadowed by not only the launch of the Super NES, but also Sega's insanely strong 1991 line-up, which included Sonic the Hedgehog, Streets of Rage and another two-player co-op favorite, ToeJam & Earl. Let's see if the critics are picking up what Arcus Odyssey is putting down.

One thing I can tell you right up front is that the critics were divided on this one. Some critics absolutely loved it, while others were left wondering what all the fuss was about. Unfortunately, Electronic Gaming Monthly was one of those magazines left cold by Arcus Odyssey, giving the game a 6.75 out of 10. As is so often the case, there was a big disagreement amongst the critics. Two of the critics gave the game an 8, while the others went much lower. Steve gave it a 5: “Take the animation routines from Final Zone and throw in some RPG overtones and you get this new entry from Reno. While they've mastered the control problems that plagued the earlier effort, the seek and find theme and lack of real confrontation left me cold. Will appeal to some, however.” Martin strongly disagreed: “This game is cool!!! It has 8 levels of 8 meg power and the graphics are great. You have a choice of four different characters to play from and I love the two-player simultaneous mode.”

For what it's worth, Games-X agreed with EGM's low scores, giving the game a 3 out of 5. However, they were the outliers, as basically every other magazine either enjoyed Arcus Odyssey or enthusiastically recommended it. Video Games & Computer Entertainment gave the adventure game a 7 out of 10, while GameZone went with a 5 out of 6. MegaTech went all the way to an 86%, but ACE has that topped. Using their ridiculous one-thousand-point scale, they gave it a score of 863 and concluded that “the best thing about Arcus Odyssey is that it keeps getting better and better the deeper you get into it, evolving from a basic smash ‘n grab treasure hunt into a fine piece of arcade adventuring, with the accent on the arcade. To put it simply, Arcus Odyssey is one of the finest example of the arcade adventure genre to appear on the Mega Drive.”

Sega Pro ended up liking the game even more, going all the way up to a 92%. That made it one of their best reviewed games of that year. They loved the “unbelievably colorful and varied graphics,” the “terrific” tunes that accompany each stage, the two-player mode and how “easy to enter” the game is. The only negative they had was that it wasn't tough enough for two-players. “Grab a friend and enjoy the latest spectacular arcade adventure for the Mega Drive.”

When it comes to the highest score, that honor belongs to GamePro, who gave the game a 5 out of 5. Or did they? If you look around the internet, including usually trustworthy sites, like Moby Games, you'll see that GamePro gave the game a 3 out of 5. But this is not the case. Here's what happened: Moby Games and other sites are looking at GamePro's February 1994 issue, where they gave the Genesis version a 3 out of 5. You can see it right there, plain as day – Arcus Odyssey on the Genesis. But look at the review, it literally starts by saying: “If you played Arcus Odyssey on the Genesis, then you've seen it before.” Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this is clearly a review of the Super NES version of Arcus Odyssey that Renovations almost released in 1993.

If you want to see the real Genesis review, you have to go back to the September 1991 issue, where they clearly give the game a perfect 5 out of 5. “A quick glance might lead sword and sorcery vets to compare Arcus Odyssey to Gauntlet. Wrong! No contest! The different quests in each Act will keep you glued to the tube from start to finish. The graphics in this Genesis masterpiece are both highly detailed and beautifully painted, in the tradition of Japanese fantasy adventures. The characters are nicely animated, too. If you enjoy three-quarter angle action games, Arcus Odyssey is the best so far!”