The Black Onyx

The Black Onyx is a Japanese RPG developed by Bullet-Proof Software, originally released in 1984 for the NEC-PC 8801. It was the first role-playing game developed in Japan, inspired by big Western RPG hits such as Wizardry and Ultima.

In the game, you can create a party of up to five members and explore dungeons in a pseudo-3D view, killing monsters with turn-based mechanics.

The game was designed and programmed by Henk Rogers, a Dutchman who moved to Japan, with no prior experience in video game development but a passion for Dungeons & Dragons.

Black Onyx was a huge success, becoming the best-selling computer game in Japan in 1984. The Famicon/NES version was released in 1988, featuring redesigned graphics and improved gameplay. It was also renamed Super Black Onyx. It is so good to be considered one of the Top 20 NES Games ever created.

Before this game, the role-playing genre was almost unknown in Japan, but the success of Black Onyx inspired the creation of many series of Japanese RPGs, like Final Fantasy or Phantasy Star, establishing a new genre.