Line #92 VideoGame/Evolution


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/evol_ml_4.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Mag and Linear.]]
3
4	''Evolution'' (known as ''Shinkisekai Evolution'' in Japan) is a bipartite [[EasternRPG JRPG]] originally released for the Platform/SegaDreamcast in 1999. It was developed by Creator/StingEntertainment and published by {{Creator/Ubisoft}} in North America and Europe. In Japan it was published by ESP (Entertainment Software Publishers).
5
6	The story follows the adventures of Mag Launcher and his companions. Set in a fictitious [[BoldExplorer age of exploration]], most of the characters wield "Cyframes", i.e. {{lost technology}} discovered in [[RuinsForRuinsSake ancient ruins]]. These Cyframes are sought by adventurers who explore the ruins to find and sell them. Mag comes from a family of gentry fallen on hard times: The running gag is that Mag can never pay off the Launchers' debts [[PerpetualPoverty no matter what he does.]] He is most-often accompanied by a bean-counting BattleButler (Gre Nade) and a MysteriousWaif who is highly-sought by the villains of both games (Linear Cannon).
7
8	''Evolution'' is a {{roguelike}} which make use of TurnBasedCombat and PreexistingEncounters. The main gimmick is the Cyframes themselves: each has interchangeable parts (that cannot be unequipped) that offer different special attacks and stats. Not every character can utilize Cyframes, and the ones who can't have to level-up and learn set skills the old-fashioned way.
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10	The first game, ''The Quest for Sacred Device'', revolved around Mag's [[HubCity hub town]] (which linked to various dungeons via his family's biplane) and a seedy military leader with an interest in Linear. It also had a downscaled port for the Platform/NeoGeoPocket titled ''Evolution: Eternal Dungeons''.
11
12	The game had one sequel, ''Far Off Promise'', and a CompilationRerelease for the [[Platform/NintendoGameCube Gamecube]], ''Evolution Worlds'': this adventure saw Mag and company going on the road. It was set in a far-off town connected to dungeons via a new railroad network. An optional third-person view was added, unlike the original which was strictly [[TopDownView top-down]]. Once again, Linear found herself a target, this time of a [[WhiteHairDarkHeart white-haired villain]] with a shared lineage and a hatred of humanity. The ending wasn't exactly open-ended, but a few plot threads were left hanging (mainly to do with Linear's origin), and a follow-up seems unlikely.
13
14	A novelization of of the first game was also released... [[NoExportForYou in Japan.]] A series of [[GagSeries gag strips]] also ran in the Japanese Official Dreamcast Magazine, the first 36 of which were also released with the ''Evolution 2'' strategy guide (once again, in Japan). The initial three strips that ran in Sega Saturn Magazine were included in the first game's strategy guide.
15	----
16	!!This game contains examples of:
17	* ActionInitiative: Run into an enemy from behind, the music sounds happy and you get free turns to happily punch your enemies. Have an enemy run into YOU from behind, the music gets daunting and you stand still while the enemy beats your head off your shoulders.
18	* AdaptationDistillation: ''Evolution Worlds'' makes some major compromises to the first part.
19	** Pannam Town is cut down in that the bar and Chain's mobile home cannot be entered, meaning Chain and Pepper now wait outside their respective buildings.
20	** Two civilian buildings in Pannam Town are also locked and the characters within are [[AdaptedOut cut]].
21	** The Cyframe shop in both Pannam Town and Museville share the same layout.
22	** While the Society building still remains, it cannot be explored as Mag and Linear automatically talk to Nina and leave afterwards. This means the backroom showing the dungeon treasures cannot be accessed and means that items cannot be appraised, rendering Nop DemotedToExtra.
23	** The Pannam Port is cut, along with most of Mag and Linear's [[spoiler: first]] visit to the [=KronPrinz=]. The game simply skips from Mag and Linear leaving the Launcher residence to arriving in Eugene's throne room.
24	** The dungeons themselves are generic and seemingly based on the BonusDungeon from ''Far Off Promise'' rather than the distinct dungeons seen in the original. Even the music is taken from the Blaze Ruins in ''Far Off Promise'', rendering the dungeon theme from the original game unused. The exception is [[spoiler:the original final dungeon, which appears in a heavily cut down form.]]
25	* AdaptationExplanationExtrication: ''Worlds'' is bad at this, especially towards the end.
26	** Eugene's introduction is greatly trimmed down, including the scene where he initially believes Linear to be an offering to him, enraging Mag. Interestingly [[DummiedOut Voice clips for the scenes remain in the data of the game's data]].
27	** Inspecting the instruments in Eugene's command room will reveal that the reason the ship is exploding is because Mag kicked a grenade into the engine room, which was explicitly shown in the original game.
28	** Crossing into {{Adaptation Induced Plot Hole}}, the escape sequence was also severely trimmed. [[spoiler:The port removes the sequence where Mag and Linear are separated from the rest of the party, explaining how the others got back to the seaplane and why Mag and Linear needed to find a different escape route.]]
29	* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: In the original ''World of Sacred Device'', Pepper Box is introduced on day 3, after the first dungeon (Day 2 is strictly Mag and Linear's visit to the Kronprinz). In ''Worlds'', the opening cutscene leads into her introduction, meaning that she meets Mag and Linear on day 1.
30	* AllInARow: In the first game, Mag always heads the line. In ''Far Off Promise'', the party's leading member can be rotated with the three characters moving around, doing so gives some kind of bonus for exploration (Mag can destroy boxes and stone pillars, Chain can make the party run faster, etc).
31	* AllThereInTheManual: Supplementary material gives off a few more details for the game, such as the characters' ages and zodiac signs.
32	* ArbitraryGunPower: [[spoiler:Every enemy in TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon. There are even TANKS you have to fight, yet they seem to do as much damage as a normal enemy.]]
33	* ActionInitiative: Run into an enemy from behind, the music sounds happy and you get free turns to happily punch your enemies. Have an enemy run into YOU from behind, the music gets daunting and you stand still while the enemy beats your head off your shoulders.
34	* AmericanKirbyIsHardcore: Both games suffer from this. [[http://www.gamefaqs.com/dreamcast/197249-evolution/images/box-13766 This is the first game's Japanese box art]], [[http://www.gamefaqs.com/dreamcast/197249-evolution/images/box-103617 this is the EU box art]], [[https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/dreamcast/197249-evolution/images/142100 and this is the US boxart]]. {{Downplayed}} with ''Worlds'' as even the [[https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/gamecube/536702-evolution-worlds/images/16007 Japanese boxart]] is serious.
35	* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: 3 people max on your team, 4 max on enemy teams, however most bosses come with only one enemy: the boss itself.
36	* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking:
37	** Carcano's men will follow his every word.
38	** Say what one will about Eugene, but he is a military prince and he will ''gladly'' remind you of that.
39	* AwesomeButImpractical: Two of Pepper's skills, Trigger Happy and Pepper Flash, can easily do 9,999 damage at high levels, but they both cost all of her FP to use, and their power is linked to her remaining FP.
40	* BattleButler: Gre is entirely capable of serving Mag at home and on the battlefield despite his age. [[BadassNormal He also fights without the use of a Cyframe and, unlike Linear, has no hidden powers]].
41	* BarbarianTribe: There are enemies based on this.
42	%%BagOfSharing
43	* BattleThemeMusic: In addition to a boss and final boss theme, the battle music changes depending on the situation of the battle (normal battle, Mag's party has the advantage or the enemy has the advantage). ''Evolution 2'' also gives Carcano [[spoiler:and Yurka]] unique boss themes.
44	* BattleshipRaid: The end of the first half of the games sees the party storm [[spoiler:The 8th Imperial Army's battleship to rescue Linear after Eugene kidnaps her.]]
45	* BigBad: In the first game, Eugene. In the second game, [[spoiler:Yurka fulfills this role]]
46	* BigCreepyCrawlies: Some of the enemies are Spiders are as big as the party. [[spoiler:And then there are huge robot spiders in the VeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon that take up all the enemy side. Killing these hard-hitters net you lots of EXP.]]
47	* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: In ''Far Off Promise'', Pepper makes her introduction saving Mag and Linear from the Storm Bird after it turns out to be NotQuiteDead.]] After that, she can be recruited for dungeon missions at the bar.
48	* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler:Prof. Whitehead]] tends to be really nice towards Mag and the rest of the characters, but he's secretly trying to obtain ultimate wisdom all for himself.[[spoiler:Whitehead ends up feeling guilty for using Mag and for trying to finish his plan. He feels so guilty for helping Yurka achieve his goals that he offers to help Mag and co. as much as he can.]]
49	* BlackMarket: [[spoiler:Mag can eventually buy goods from Carcano's cronies once he gains their boss's respect (even though Carcano himself seemed to show respect to Mag before their fight).]]
50	* BlowYouAway: One of [[spoiler:Carcano's]] attacks is called like this word for word. It blows enemies away.
51	* BonusDungeon:
52	** World of Sacred Device has one of the ruins blocked off by the military early into the game. In the post-game, the ruin that was blocked off becomes available.
53	** ''Far Off Promise'' has The Tower of Despair. It's unique in that enemies give little EXP but more TP than usual, making it ideal for grinding skills. The limit of how many floors one can go through changes each in-game day in sets of 10 (up to [[MarathonLevel 50]] [[note]]though each 10 marks a checkpoint that the player can start at next time[[/note]] and there is a unique prize at the end each time. [[spoiler: It also has an underside, accessible on a NewGamePlus, with the same amount of floors.]]
54	* BossRush: [[spoiler: The boss of floor B50 of the Tower of Despair is a boss rush starting with Izmail, going through the bosses of the main three dungeons (all [[BreatherBoss exactly the same level and difficulty as their first encounters]]) and ending with Navarin.]]
55	* {{Bowdlerize}}: ''Worlds'' cuts out some of the cruder jokes such as changing the anecdote about [[NoodleIncident Nina getting drunk and stripping]] to her doing the Macarena. While it's hard to make out during gameplay, the Pannam Bar also has a sign denoting it specifically as a milk bar.
56	* ButThouMust: There's no way to take Linear off the party to ask another member to join during ruins exploration [[spoiler:unless she's kidnapped]]. {{Justified\|Trope}} in that Mag promised his father to not leave Linear alone. [[spoiler: After finishing Euegene and escaping the Kronprinz in ''World of Sacred Device'', you can remove Linear and use any set of three teammates you want with Mag even able to go it solo in dungeons now]].
57	* CantDropTheHero:
58	** Mag is the main character, therefore he must always be in the party and controllable, so you cannot get rid of him whatsoever... Not like you would want to.
59	** Linear is like this during the main campaign, and must always be in your party no matter what until the postgame[[note]]In the first game.[[/note]]. Before the postgame during the TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon, you are required to have at least two other characters in your party at all times, and Mag must be one of them while Linear cannot be for story reasons.
60	%%* CharacterLevel
61	* ChainOfDeals: A brief case happens in the second game, kicked off by finding a secret item in the Blaze Ruins. Completing the chain nets you a dowsing stone, which is used to more easily detect hidden areas.
62	* ChasteHero: Mag can't really understand the theme of love, not even when Nina seems infatuated about Gre.
63	* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler:Yurka is this: his only purpose for helping Whitehead being to open the path to the ancient civilization by controlling Mag and his party to search the keys hidden in the ruins.]]
64	* ChestMonster: Overlapping with AmbushingEnemy. While the chest themselves don't contain enemies, dungeons in ''Far Off Promise'' contain scenery that Mag can smash to uncover hidden chests. Said scenery can ''also'' contain monsters and even both.
65	* ChickMagnet: A rumor in the Society explicitly says that Carcano is popular among girls.
66	* TheClan: Chain's family is a clan.
67	* ClimaxBoss: [[spoiler:Eugene, as a result of the games being combined, is demoted to this in ''Evolution Worlds''. His mech is even nerfed as a result.]]
68	* CombiningMecha: [[spoiler: The Ulticannon is an angel-like machine which needs both Yurka and Linear to work properly. However before you get the chance to fight it, Linear breaks out from the machine. Yurka, driven insane with jealousy, descends into madness, and the robot's loosely angelic-look turns into a gruesome devil-look, complete with a beating heart-like organ hanging to the right side.]]
69	* CoolHelmet: Mag is always wearing his headgear wherever he goes...and whenever he goes to sleep[[note]]In ''Worlds at least, as ''The World of Sacred Device'' has a separate model of Mag without his helmet[[/note]]. It doesn't really bother him at all.
70	* CoolShades: Pepper owns a good one.
71	* CostumeEvolution: Mag, Linear and Chain's outfits got overhauled in ''Far Off Promise'': Mag and Linear get matching jackets while Chain gets a blue shirt and some kind of pouch. ''Worlds'' keeps Chain and Mag's updated designs, but reverts Linear to her original design.
72	* CrazyJealousGuy:
73	** [[spoiler: After Linear is persuaded back into returning to Mag's side, Yurka, while still in the Ulticannon, starts to wonder why he's feeling jealous all of a sudden.]]
74	** A very young kid behind Chain's bus home has the hots for Linear, but he doesn't like the idea that Mag escorts her everywhere she goes.
75	* CriticalHit: Shown by the enemies having a different hurt animation.
76	* CurbStompBattle: Upon fighting Carcano the first time, he'll go down without much trouble. [[spoiler:However, he was letting his guard down to make time while his men were stealing appraisal items on the train.]] The next time Mag meets him face-to-face, he's tougher to beat.
77	* CuteMute: Linear starts out as this, somehow inverting the HeroicMime status for Mag. By the second game or the second half of Evolution Worlds, she becomes the ShrinkingViolet.
78	* DamselInDistress: This was obviously bound to happen to Linear judging Mag's father told him to keep her safe from everyone at all times. [[spoiler:The second time this happens is subverted since she's convinced to leave Mag to keep him safe instead.]]
79	* DefeatMeansFriendship: [[spoiler:Yurka gets this treatment, but he dies. It's speculated that he will return one day to be friends with Linear and everyone.]]
80	* DefendCommand: On top of reducing damage, it increases the amount of SP restored.
81	* DegradedBoss: A weird cross-game example (except in ''Worlds''): The original Evolution had Shadenischus as the boss of the Shades Ruin. [[spoiler: The top floors of the Tower of Despair have turrets as enemies that, when run into, trigger fights with "Shadenischus II".]]
82	* DemotedToExtra: The Society staff outside of Nina in the first half of ''Worlds'' due to the port stripping out the ability to explore it: Nop's only speaking appearance is during Pepper's introduction, meaning he cannot Appriase items, Leonardo only appears in the background and the backroom featuring the artifacts [[note]]along with the artifacts themselves[[/note]] cannot be accessed, meaning that the curator, Peab, is [[AdaptedOut cut completely]].
83	* DenserAndWackier: The ''Dreamcast Magazine'' comic in spades. Outside of the occasional BlackComedyBurst or MoodWhiplash [[spoiler:and the comic depicting Linear arriving at the Launcher residence]], the comic in general is much weirder and humor-based than the actual games.
84	* DisappearedDad:
85	** Mag's father, Asroc Launcher. The last communication Mag ever had with him was a note telling Mag to watch over Linear.
86	** Chain's father is never seen in-game and she's instead watched over by Easter and Kashim. Her comments in the Dreamcast version, however, suggest that Chain's parents merely live abroad rather than actually being missing. The Dreamcast magazine comics subvert it with Chain's father making occasional appearances.
87	* DiscOneNuke: Mag's hand parts, which you have at the start. By gaining TP you can learn two really strong attacks pretty early: Dive Punch, which hits every enemy doing lots of damage) and Magna Rave, which hits one enemy but is the strongest attack in the game.
88	* DiscOneFinalDungeon: [[spoiler: [[MeaningfulName The Kronprinz]] in ''Worlds'', due to it no longer being the final dungeon. Outside of a few enemy waves, there is nothing but a BossRush with three bosses one after another (with breaks in-between all of them).]] It's entirely jarring if you didn't store many healing items and didn't do some LevelGrinding beforehand. And yes, to add insult to the injury, it's a temporary PointOfNoReturn till you [[spoiler:save Linear]].
89	* DiscOneFinalBoss: [[spoiler: Eugune's Mech during the rescue attempt, but only in ''Worlds''; In ''World Of Sacred Device'', he's the FinalBoss.]]
90	* DishingOutDirt: Linear's Ocarina offensive spells practically has boulders fall on the enemies.
91	* DistressedDamsel: [[spoiler: Poor Linear will never have a chance to fight the final boss on both parts.]]
92	* DrunkOnMilk: On a little note, Pepper comments how she and [[spoiler:Nina of all people]] went to drink milk one night and the latter got so drunk that [[spoiler:she]] started dancing the Macarena.
93	* DudeWheresMyRespect: The Launcher family (Mag included) is respected among other adventurers...[[WorkOffTheDebt but for the wrong reasons.]] The only people who respect them are Nina, who starts respecting Mag after he completes story missions without problems; Gre by default, and Prof. Whitehead. [[spoiler:Carcano really warms up to Mag, giving him some well-deserved respect even before he's fought.]] Prof. Whitehead thinks very highly of Mag and appreciates the work he's done so far till the point they meet [[spoiler:except he's really using him for his own selfish goals]].
94	* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler:Mag (somehow) convinces Whitehead from arresting Carcano despite all the trouble he's been causing to the Society for a long time ago with the idea that he'll repent for his actions soon.]]
95	* AnEconomyIsYou:
96	** Where are people supposed to buy food in Pannam Town?
97	** This is averted for Museville, but then you'd say everyone eats three kinds of fruit and gets DrunkOnMilk at the local bar.
98	* EnemySummoner: The Lynx monster type can howl to call more of its friends to battle.
99	* EnergyWeapon: Pepper's Moranna Solnier can fire energy weapons in addition to what is implied to be more traditional rounds.
100	* EvenEvilHasStandards: [[spoiler:Carcano's lot]] refuses to kill people while on the job, but [[spoiler:they only steal appraisal items]].
101	* FaceOfAThug: For some weird reason, both the item and equipment vendors in Museville are rocker dudes.
102	* FeudingFamilies: The Launchers have been long rivals with the Gun Clan.
103	* FinalDungeonPreview: In ''World of Sacred Device'', Mag and Linear are summoned by the 8th Imperial Army, prompting them to visit their warship on day 2. [[spoiler: Later, Mag's party [[BattleshipRaid raids it]] to rescue Linear.]] ''Worlds'' [[DownplayedTrope downplays]] it; The scene instantly cuts to the ship's throne room, not allowing the player to explore it and the cruiser itself is heavily cut down anyway.
104	* FlavorText: A surprisingly robust amount. In the first game, Mag comments on whatever he's looking at. In the sequel, the flavor text and conversations with the townsfolk are instead for whoever is in front of the party. There's even even cases where certain characters will have drastically different reactions to certain object or even react differently to objects that you'd think would share the same text as something else. [[spoiler: In both games, most of the flavor text changes towards the end of the game [[ContinueYourMissionDammit where the party tells themselves to focus on finding Linear]].]] ''Worlds'' varies it depending on what part the player is in.
105	* ForScience: [[spoiler:Whitehead's whole motivation to uncover the ancient civilization behind everyone's backs.]]
106	* GlobalAirship: Mag's Sea Otter Seaplane can get him to anywhere in the first portion. {{Averted}} in the second portion, which simply has the party leave town.
107	* GoodScarsEvilScars: During [[spoiler:his boss fight]], you can see Yurka has one over his right eye.
108	* GrapplingHookPistol: This is one of Carcano's skills that he can use with his Cyframe. [[spoiler:Outside of battles, he uses this to sneak into the Society Museum to steal artifacts.]] [[spoiler:Moreover, he uses this to enter the building after Linear is persuaded to leave Mag behind. Since Carcano revealed his secret, he won't be able to use it to plan surprise thefts anymore. But then again, he ''did'' say he was going to turn into a better person.]]
109	* HumansAreFlawed: [[spoiler:Yurka]] doesn't really like humans because of this reasoning [[spoiler:since he and Linear are Evolutia]]. He comments on this [[spoiler:when getting rid of Whitehead for his fascination with the ancient civilization]].
110	* IHaveNoSon: A kid selling fruits in Museville will go through this if Mag and the party don't buy anything from him.
111	* ImprobableWeaponUser: Mag's Cyframe is essentially a PowerFist that can be upgraded to wield hammers, bowling balls, and bug spray. Chain's Cyframe is a jet pack with a giant blade sticking out at the back. Linear uses a FryingPanOfDoom. Unequip Gre's and Linear's weapons, and they punch their enemies with their bare hands.
112	* InexplicableTreasureChests: There's a large number of chests containing healing items, the same artifacts over and over, and an inexplicably large number of Cyframe parts that your friends can easily use.
113	* ItemCrafting:
114	** The first game has a somewhat rudimentary one. The sequel improves it, but it's still more useful for clearing up inventory space than actually combining items.
115	** The second games also has certain appraisal items that can be combined; Sometimes they create items, other times they create new appraisal items that are more valuable than the parts seperately.
116	* KidHero: Mag. Chain somewhat is one.
117	* KillerYoyo: Yet another weapon for Mag's Cyframe.
118	* LadyLooksLikeADude: How is anyone going to tell at first glance Chain is a girl? It helps that she's got a voice and female pronouns used on her. Mag [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this during the opening sequence.
119	* LeftHanging: Downplayed: While ''Far Off Promise'' did go into the nature of Evolutia (and by extension, [[spoiler:Linear]]) and answered some of the questions regarding the ancient civilization, there are still a few lingering questions. The biggest is the fate of Asroc and his wife, with their disappearance and lack of communication remaining unexplained.
120	* LethalChef: Gre uses food to damage enemies and lower their stats or cause status effects.
121	* LethalLavaLand: The Sheol ruins is located inside of a volcano, complete with lava in the upper floors.
122	* LevelScaling:
123	** This can be the games biggest helping point or massive flaw depending on how you look at it. The bosses scale much faster than the player, and the final boss, Eugene's battle mech, is the biggest threat, the higher level you are the more impossible he is to beat, and he will always be above your level. This is no longer an issue in the remake.
124	** ''Evolution 2'' does away with level scaling for the most part (they no longer scale above you, but they do increase a little below you to be somewhat of a fight), but uses it in the [[NostalgiaLevel Tower of Despair]].
125	* LightningBruiser: Mag is easily the swiss army knife of your party. He dishes out great damage, gets very good skills and cyframe parts (more than any other character), can even gain healing parts, and easily makes up the best part of your team no matter what. It's ironic considering he's required to be in the team at all times.
126	* LivesInAVan: Chain, Easter, and Kashim all live in a bus they park in town. It's a crowded place with a couch functioning as a pull-out bed, a single bathtub in the back with a curtain drawn, and clothes hanging above it. The whole place is incredibly cramped, and it is implied that Chain takes the "bed", while Easter and Kashim sleep on the lawn furniture outside the bus.
127	* LostTechnology: The Cyframes used by the cast are remnants of the ancient civilization. Every adventurer's dream goal is to find Evolutia, a legendary cyframe with godlike power. [[spoiler: While Evolutia itself is a machine, its two main components are more [[ArtificialHuman biological]] in nature.]]
128	* LostSuperweapon: Evolutia, a legendary cyframe said to have the power to elevate humanity to the status of gods. [[spoiler: What nobody realizes is that Evolutia is a literal superweapon, designed to carry out a cycle of destruction and regeneration after the ancient civilization believed that they reached the end of their evolutionary path.]]
129	* MagicalFlutist: Linear uses an ocarina to use [[MagicMusic magic on the party or the enemies]].
130	* MagicalGirl: Linear by default, being the only party member who can use healing spells. [[spoiler:Though this becomes even more apparent once she grows wings to save Mag from exploding with Eugene's ship]].
131	* MarathonLevel: The levels in Evolution get exponentially longer as the game progresses[[note]]The exception to this is the Bandit's Trap in ''Far Off Promise'', which has a more complex way of getting through it as a result[[/note]]. This culminates in [[spoiler: the Society Dungeon/Mystery Dungeon at the end of ''Far Off Promise'', which has ''24'' floors[[note]]for comparison's sake, that's just shy of half of the [[BonusDungeon Tower of Despair's]] floors.[[/note]], not including the boss floor. Mercifully, the 16th floor adds to allow you to leave after defeating [[ClimaxBoss Yurka]], but it's telling that the aesthetic and enemies within the dungeon change from the 16th floor onwards when none of the other dungeons in ''Far off Promise'' do.]]
132	* MarshmallowHell: This is what Pepper ''seemingly'' does to Mag to heal his HP. He seems happy about it, though.
133	* MarketBasedTitle: ''Evolutia'' became ''Evolution Worlds'' in the west.
134	* MissingMom: Mag's mother is never shown. Same with Chain, although Chain's comments suggest that she's fine.
135	* MsFanservice: Pepper. Half ripped jeans, curled blond hair, jacket ripped open showing a black bra, and her theme music which is saxophone music.
136	** Another girl in town is implied to be naked. Though no skin is seen every dialogue with her speaks directly about the fact that she's wearing nothing but a leopard print fur coat until her luggage arrives. Makes you wonder why she was only wearing the coat by itself in the first place.
137	* MurderTheHypotenuse: [[spoiler:After Linear reunites with Mag at the end of the Society Dungeon, Yurka [[AxeCrazy turns insane with jealousy and attempts to murder the party.]]]]
138	* MysteriousWaif: Linear. You never get a full explanation as to what exactly happened to her or why she's mute in the game, but she certainly has a lot of mysterious air about her. Mysteriously shows up one day, is timid and quiet, [[spoiler:turns out to be Evolutia...]]
139	* NewGamePlus: ''Evolution 2'' has a New Game+ rather than the first game's ExtendedGameplay. The primary differences are that [[spoiler: the [[BonusDungeon Tower of Despair]] now has an underground section, which follows similar rules to the top half, and the Launcher family debt returning as a mechanic after its absence in the first playthrough.]]
140	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:Mag's SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome gets screwed over by a tank bullet exploding on him and Linear that he accidentally caused.]]
141	* NostalgiaLevel: The Tower of Despair in ''Far Off Promise'' is modeled after the dungeons from ''World of Sacred Device'', bringing back the rougelike random floor layouts and only having checkpoints at specific floors. It also brings back enemies from the first game rather than using ones from the second game's dungeons.
142	* NothingUpMySleeve: Yurka's sleeves are so long they are a few inches away from touching the ground. He can, however, use magic with them.
143	* ObviouslyEvil: If Eugene's {{Leitmotif}} and [[SlouchOfVillainy entrance]] didn't give it away, then asking for the pretty shy Linear to become one of his maids while disregarding everything about Mag's exploits probably will.
144	* OlderThanTheyLook: Mag, Linear, and Chain are 16, 17, and 15 respectively. None of them look even close to their age. Lampshaded in various places, such as a pipe in Mag's front yard that was used to track his height: Looking at it reveals that he hasn't grown any taller since ''age 10''.
145	* OneManParty: Mag is easily the strongest character. The other characters levels will appropriate to what level you are, but Mag always seems to have the edge in strength.
146	* OnlyInItForTheMoney: If you do a mission with just Mag and Linear, your entire win bonus goes straight into your pocket. If Gre is in your party, he'll make you use 30% of your bonus to pay towards your debt (which you should do anyway so you're not losing anything) and after it's paid off, he'll never make you do anything with your money again. Chain, on the other hand, takes 30% of your bonus for herself, and Pepper takes 60%. The worst part, you never get this money back, so it's basically losing massive chunks of change for having people in your party. If you were to net an incredible 100,000 in the game and had Pepper in your party, you lose 60,000. The worst part: bonuses are a one time thing, going back and beating the dungeon again means nothing, the money is gone. You'd think they'd have it at least available for item purchase but nope, Mag's gotta spend his cash on Naolin's and Red Viper. It pretty much makes it not worth taking them at all for any stage, or swapping them out just at the boss fight for either Gre, or just Mag and Linear. It doesn't matter anyways, they scale to your level and gain TP for fights despite being back home.
147	* OutlawTown: Pine Village, Carcano's hideout, is just a big town over the water fully inhabited by thieves.
148	* OverlyLongFightingAnimation: Magna Rave and Sledge Hammer have very long animations.
149	* PaletteSwap: Enemies in a particular dungeon tend to get recolors further in. At the very least, they tend to get different skills than their originals.
150	* PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: A variation with the Tower of Despair: It's a terrible place to gain levels as the enemies in there give little EXP, but it is a great place to learn skills as the TP earned there is far more plentiful. The game itself even encourages this.
151	* PerpetualPoverty: {{Downplayed}}. The Launcher Family is popular among other hunters in that they have an horrendous debt to pay to the Society, so Mag has to WorkOffTheDebt to keep his BigFancyHouse.
152	* PlayableEpilogue:
153	** The original game gives you one bonus dungeon (which is one of the five you didn't pick during the game), the ability to freely choose dungeons and the ability to take Linear out of your party.
154	** ''Far Off Promise'' uses a NewGamePlus system instead, but has a final section after the FinalBoss where Mag can explore Museville and talk to the various characters on the way to meeting Linear at the hotel.
155	* PointBuildSystem: You can gain TP in the game, which can be used to learn new skills.
156	* PowerGivesYouWings: [[spoiler: Linear suddenly creates a phoenix-like form to fly away with Mag to save him from being killed. Sure enough, as the destructive counterpart to Linear, Yurka pulls his long blue wings out when he's fought. And true to the trope, he ''really'' is a deadly boss.]]
157	* PunnyName[=/=]ThemeNaming: Mag Launcher, Linear Cannon, Gre Nade, Chain Gun and Pepper Box. Eugene Leopold is less obvious, but may be a reference to warships which have used those names.
158	** Several of the Cyframes are named after historic aircraft, such as Mag's Airacomet, which is named after the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_P-59_Airacomet Bell P-59 Airacomet]] and Pepper's Moranna Solnier, after the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_N Morane-Saulnier N]].
159	* RankUp: For the second part of the game, Mag's achievements are recognized by the head of the Society, prompting him to take more quests around the main HQ. At certain points, Mag also gains the ability to carry more items.
160	* ReadingsAreOffTheScale: The 8th Empire becomes interested in some strange energy patterns coming from Pannam Town, suspecting that Evolutia is hiding somewhere.
161	* RecycledSoundtrack: [[ZigZaggedTrope It varies]]. ''Far Off Promise'' reuses some tracks from the original, primarily the general battle themes. Other reused tracks such as leitmotifs retain the same style as the originals, but are subtly touched up or refined (compare Linear, Chain or Pepper's themes from the first game to the ones in the second, for example).
162	* RedEyesTakeWarning: Yurka has red eyes [[spoiler:and is a very hard boss.]]
163	* RequiredPartyMember: Linear. She cannot be dropped from the party until the final dungeon, when she's forced out. After the final boss, she's no longer required.
164	* TheReveal: [[spoiler:Linear? Yeah, she's the Evolutia. Nobody could find the legendary Cyframe since everyone thought it was a relic or a machine, but not a sentient human(?) being. Eugene manages to find this out by using a hi-tech radar.]]
165	** [[spoiler: The second part ups the ante by not only revealing that the mysterious Yurka is also Evolutia and Linear's destructive counterpart, but by having him reveal [[ThePlague the circumstances]] which led ancient civilization to create Evolutia and wipe themselves out.]]
166	* TheRival: Chain during the first five minutes of the game. After that, it doesn't really sound like she's being a rival at all if she demands Mag to take her to dungeons all the time.
167	* {{Roguelike}}: Elements of this are in dungeons, though the battles are turn-based. The first game even randomizes the dungeon layouts, although ''2'' and ''Worlds'' do not.
168	* RunDontWalk: Though they had a button to walk, it isn't needed and doesn't do anything.
169	* SavePoint: In the first game, they're located in certain spots in town and on the final floor of a dungeon. In the second game, the changes to the save system mean that they now only appear on the boss floor.
170	* ShipperOnDeck: Kashim literally admits Linear is better off with Mag than with Chain. It helps (or not) that he really doesn't like Chain.
171	* ShockinglyExpensiveBill: [[spoiler: TheStinger of the second game reveals that The Society failed to pay for the Launcher Family's lodgings at the Museville hotel, the bill totaling a staggering ''300,000 dinale''. Guess what you get to pay off in the NewGamePlus?]]
172	* ShopFodder: Appraisal items are items specifically designed to be turned into the Society for money (or potentially an item). The second game has a list keeping track of what items have been found and allowing the player to read the item's FlavorText even after handing it in.
173	* SlasherSmile: Eugene does this whenever speaking to Linear or whenever he slowly descends into insanity.
174	* SlippySlideyIceWorld: The Crypt Maze is an UndergroundLevel that introduces slippery floor. Thankfully, the ice floor is not made of FrictionlessIce.
175	* SmugSnake: Prince Eugene ''oozes'' smugness in his introduction.
176	* SpaceZone: The Descent Ruins, on the latter floors, have a cosmic theme, with stars in a void.
177	* StatusQuoIsGod: The Launcher Family's debt is implied to have been a constant, at least since Mag's grandfather. [[spoiler:Even if Mag pays off his debt prior to the showdown with the 8th Empire, the Sea Otter will break down afterwards off-screen, prompting the Society to bail the Launchers out and plunge them into debt again. Mag can then subvert it by paying off the debt yet again... only for the ending of ''Far Off Promise'' to double-subvert it... only for the NewGamePlus to allow the player avert it.]]
178	* SuccessionCrisis: [[HeirClubForMen The Gun Clan has been known for having male heirs as the ones turned into adventurers.]] But then they came to a full stop with Chain. To remedy this issue, the clan had no choice but to give Chain special education so that she could continue their legacy.
179	* {{Superboss}}: The Tower of Despair has Izmail, the boss of the 50th floor. [[spoiler: The basement floor has Navarin, a stronger variation of Izmail, at the end of a BossRush.]]
180	* SurferDude: The Cyframe mechanist in Museville looks like this.
181	* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: No, Carcano isn't [[spoiler:going to help Mag and the others get into the Society Museum to rescue Linear]]. It just happened.
182	* SuspiciousVideoGameGenerosity: Usually boss floors always lack any monsters besides the boss itself and contain both a save point and a warp point to exit the dungeon, usually across from each other. While less so in the first game (due to Mag's comment upon arriving at the last floor which clues in the player), this is moreso in the second game which hides an Upgrade Kit close by for good measure. [[spoiler: The Society Dungeon breaks this rule a bit, with the bosses being a floor above the safe points and the first warp point [[CheckpointStarvation appearing after the boss]]]].
183	* TankGoodness:
184	** [[spoiler:Mag and Linear face a big one as a boss and then run away from an army made entirely of smaller ones. Later Mag and his rescue party face another big one as a boss while trying to get to Linear]].
185	** Weirdly enough, both Forest Depths and Crypt Maze have tank-like bosses that are not related to the dungeon element-wise. The latter does employ an ice attack though, but that's it. [[spoiler: The Society Dungeon's first half also has small tank enemies.]]
186	* TechPoints: The characters all have a wide movepool to which they can unlock by gathering TP in battles. Since Linear and Gre don't have the same benefits to upgrade/change their weapons like the other Cyframe users of the party, they instead have more areas they can choose from the beginning. In ''Evolution 2'', there's a dungeon specifically made so that the party gains more TP than EXP from the enemies in there.
187	* ThisIsADrill: Carcano's Cyframe other skill.
188	* ThrivingGhostTown: There's only about 10 NPC's and the majority are useless. Except for the shop owner, upgrade shop, missions, and appraisal, everyone else does nothing whatsoever except talk about totally irrelevant things or mention stuff you already know.
189	* TimeSkip: The sequel takes place six months after the events of the first.
190	* TinyGuyHugeGirl: Mag and Linear are this trope, with Linear being OneHeadTaller than Mag.
191	* TooAwesomeToUse: Cosmo Fruit.
192	* TopDownView: The primary camera angle in the game. ''Far Off Promise'' adds a behind-the-back camera but also leaves the original.
193	* TrainJob: On the way to Museville, the train you're taking is robbed by Carcano.
194	* {{Tsundere}}: Chain. This is even mocked at the beginning of the game when she begins making fun of Mag until Mag embarrasses her with the word cute, at which point she tries to defend herself but just takes off flustered.
195	* UndergroundLevel: Crypt Maze and [[spoiler:Carcano's Thieves' Trap]].
196	* UndergroundMonkey: Most enemies in later dungeons go through this (sometimes in the ''same dungeon''), but they do have different abilities to compensate.
197	* TheUnfavourite: Easter and Kashim ''really'' doesn't like Chain. They even implore Mag to take her to dungeons just so that she's not around the house.
198	* UnwittingPawn: [[spoiler: Mag, Linear and the rest of the party are this, with the Launchers having been invited to Museville under the claim of the Society recognizing Mag's skills when in actuality they're being used by Prof. Whitehead and Yurka to get the keys to the Society Dungeon. Whitehead himself ends up being one to Yurka as he helped Yurka in order to be the first to learn the secrets of the ancient civilization and was unaware of Yurka's [[OmnicidalManiac true intentions]] until it was too late.]]
199	* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Carcano just so happens to have a legion of fans.
200	* TheWarSequence: [[spoiler:A really over-the-top cutscene happens when Mag and Linear run away from Eugene's tank army. What's really shocking is that Mag's PowerFist actually manages to fend them off with an earthquake...[[NiceJobBreakingItHero except a tank falls back in a hole while firing a bullet up to the air that screws his moment by falling on both of them]].]]
201	* WhatTheHellPlayer: Some of the FlavorText chastises the player for looking too heavily through other people's stuff. This is especially true if one exploits dismissing party members. Normally, as an example, Mag will chastise himself for trying to look through Linear's things, however if one dismisses Linear from the party while in her room, she doesn't reappear until reentering the room, giving different dialogue when interacting with her bed, closet, dresser, etc, and some of it admonishes the player for trying to look through her things without permission.
202	* WhiteMage: Linear is this, having a large amount of spells and even a special move that may allow her to convince an enemy to flee the battle. {{Downplayed}} with Gre who is more combat-oriented and has support skills.
203	* WorkOffTheDebt:
204	** Both Mag and Chain were left with a huge debt after their parents disappeared. Chain paid it off by selling her house, while Mag is playing this trope. [[spoiler:By the end of the second half, it turns out the Society didn't actually pay for the lodging in the Museville Hotel, so the hotel owners added 30,000 to the Society's bill, adding it all up.]]
205	** In ''World of Sacred Device'', this is a [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration gameplay mechanic]]: Mag can go to the Society and put money towards clearing the debt. ''Far Off Promise'' drops this mechanic [[spoiler: until the NewGamePlus]].
206	* WorldOfPun: Most of the main cast are named after weapons[[note]]Mag Launcher and Linear Cannon are terms used in the anime ''Anime/FangOfTheSunDougram'' for various types of MagneticWeapons[[/note]]. And Prof. Whitehead for his white head.
207	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: [[spoiler: With no need to find the keys with the unconditional help of Mag's actions, Yurka knocks out Whitehead.]]

Context VideoGame / Evolution