The Famicom Disk System may have famously been the only way to play the first two Zelda games in Japan for many years, but it had few other attempts at open world adventure RPGs to its name; mostly because the lack of space on your average disk largely restricted developers to relatively simple action-adventure or puzzle oriented games. Silvana was one such attempt, though. Developed by Pack-in Video (who also brought us games like Rambo, Die Hard and Knight Rider for the NES), you notice right away the similarities to the oft-maligned Hydlide. The bump combat, having a dual save system (quick saves at any time, hard saves only in town) and the overall visuals and tinny music are quite similar. It is a little more sophisticated than Hydlide at least - you earn gold by defeating enemies which can be traded for stronger weapons and armor in towns, there is a bit of NPC dialog (minimal, but it's there) and can find hearts to upgrade your maximum health. At one point you also enter a"darker" world of the overworld, which mirrors the map and changes it to a darker color palette - slightly reminiscent of Link to the Past's dark world, though in a much more primitive form. Not much about Silviana really stands out otherwise - it's a take on Hydlide, a game that was already dated at the time of its release, and while its improvements are welcome, there's just little reason to play it when the Zelda games (and Castlevania 2) are readily available on the same platform.
Developer: Pack-in Video
Publisher: Pack-in Video
Released: 1988
Platform: Famicom Disk System