Monster World IV

Lore & Background

The story involves a young girl named Asha, who, upon hearing spirits whisper on the wind pleading for help, embarks on a journey to find and help them. Along the way she becomes the master of a genie and adopts a small monster known as Pepelogoo. Asha is a green-haired girl dressed in Arabian-influenced nomadic gear, sensitive to the presence of spirits. Pepelogoo belongs to a race of small, spherical monsters who flap their ears to fly; while most Pepelogoos are yellow, Asha's is blue. The game also features characters such as Purapril XIII, descendant of Purapril from previous Monster World games, the Sage of Save, the Lamp Spirit, and the four Elemental Spirits: Rotto, Shabo, Hotta, and Priscilla.

Reader's Guide

Monster World IV is a mix of action-adventure, platforming, and RPG genres, in which the player traverses a 2D landscape fighting monsters and interacting with non-playable characters. Asha can swing her sword upward, downward, and forward while in midair, and use her shield while standing. She can summon Pepelogoo to slow her descent, double-jump, protect her from falling rocks, serve as a platform over lava geysers, and blow out fires. Equipment upgrades are purchased in the hub town: armor increases Asha's life heart meter, shields increase defense and provide elemental resistances, and swords increase attack stats with critical effects. Some items must be found in temples and caverns, including healing medicine, gold bars, and 150 life drops. Items can be permanently missed once an area's boss is defeated. Monster World IV was the last Wonder Boy game to both be published by Sega and developed by Westone Bit Entertainment. It was later released for PlayStation 2 in 2007 as part of the Sega Ages 2500 series, and for Wii Virtual Console in Japan in 2008 and in North America and Europe in 2012. A remake by Artdink, titled Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World, was released in May 2021.

Did You Know?

• Monster World IV is the sixth game in the Wonder Boy series and the fourth in the Monster World subseries.
• The game was released for the Mega Drive in Japan in April 1994, and later for PlayStation 2 in 2007 as part of the Sega Ages 2500 series.
• Asha's pet Pepelogoo is blue, while most Pepelogoos in Monster World are yellow.
• A 3D remake titled Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World was released in May 2021 for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.