History VideoGame / ZanZarahTheHiddenPortal

* JumpedAtTheCall: While alone at home, Ame investigates a strange noise from the attic, is transported to a parallel dimension, and told that she must save it from some vague evil, with zero directions at how to do so. She takes it all in stride and dives right into exploring this strange new world.

* CharacterTiers: Due to the way ElementalPaperRockScissors works in the game, Psi, Ice, Light, and Dark faeries are inherently the most powerful combatants, so at least three of them are more-or-less {{Required Party Member}}s by the endgame (most likely Light, as you'll mostly be fighting Dark and Chaos fairies).

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll faery training/duelling]], {{Metroidvania}} and RPGElements, and a simple plot in the footsteps of ''VideoGame/TheLongestJourney''. It also features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original faery designs, and [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a faery, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]).

* FemaleAngelMaleDemon: One cover art depicts clashing Dark and Nature faeries. The former is masculine and demonic, the latter is feminine and FairySexy.

* UtilityPartyMember: For the Elemental Cards to function, you must keep a faery of the corresponding element in your party's first slot, and since you can only swap out faeries in London, you may have to trade off some combat efficiency for the ability to clear environmental obstacles. This is particularly egregious in the case of Air faeries, which are needed ''every time'' you need to leap over some air eddies (unlike the boulders and prickly bushes, which disappear for good once a Stone or Nature faery works its magic on them).

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll faery training/duelling]], {{Metroidvania}} and RPGElements, and a simple plot following in the footsteps of ''VideoGame/TheLongestJourney''. It also features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original faery designs, and [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a faery, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]).

* UtilityPartyMember: For the Elemental Cards to function, you must keep a faery of the corresponding element in your party's first slot, and since you can only swap out faeries in London, you may have to trade off some combat efficiency for the ability to clear environmental obstacles. This is particularly egregious in the case of Air faeries, who bring little combat benefits that cannot be achieved by combining other faeries' strengths, yet they are needed ''every time'' you need to leap over some air eddies (unlike the boulders and prickly bushes, which disappear for good once a Stone or Nature faery works its magic on them).

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll faery training/duelling]], RPGElements, and a cookie cutter plot probably ripped off from ''VideoGame/TheLongestJourney''. Despite all that, it features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original faery designs, [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a faery, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]).

* JumpedAtTheCall: While alone at home, Ame investigates a strange noise from the attic, is transported to a parallel dimension, and told that she must save it from some vague evil, with zero directions at how to do so. She takes it all in stride and dives righto into exploring this strange new world.

* RecurringBoss: Shamus the elf sees Amy as his [[TheRival rival]] after his father picks her as his successor in pixie hunting rather than him. He keeps coming after her over the course of the game with more and more powerful faery sets.

* MookBouncer: The wild Psi faeries have a lot of nasty abilities that can bring about a TotalPartyKill faster than you can switch out your faeries. Luckily, they only live in a single cave up in the mountains.

[[OnlyOneName Amy]] is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent from London with a penchant for FantasyLiterature. One day, while left at home alone, she is surprised by a [[TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive sound coming from the attic]], where she finds a casket with a [[WarpWhistle stone tablet]] inside that suddenly transports her to a [[AnotherDimension colorful magical landscape]] populated by [[FairyCompanion faeries]], [[OurElvesAreBetter elves]], [[OurGoblinsAreDifferent goblins]], [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]], and [[FantasyKitchenSink the rest of the fantastic creatures]]. She is greeted by [[MrExposition a goblin named Rafi]], an adventurer extraordinaire, who managed to cross the barrier between his native [[TitleDrop ZanZarah]] ([[NotInKansasAnymore where Amy has just landed]]) and Amy's own [[RealLife Earth]]. He wasn't driven by scientific interest, though. [=ZanZarah=] is in grave peril: [[DarkIsEvil Dark Elves]] roam the landscape, wild faeries attack travelers, contact between settlements is lost due to unnatural obstructions, while the [[GuardianOfTheMultiverse White Druid]], who is supposed to protect the lands from evil, is helpless. But the legends also speak of a [[TheChosenOne saviour]] who will be [[SummonEverymanHero summoned from Earth]] to become the greatest Faery Duelist of all times and to SaveBothWorlds... for whatever is afflicting one world will inevitably echo in the other.

* AnotherDimension: [=ZanZarah=] to Earth. Earth to [=ZanZarah=]. The world of faeries to both. [[spoiler:All three were the same thing in the past.]]

* CamelCase: The title of the game is properly spelled with capital Zs.

* GuardianOfTheMultiverse: The White Druid and also, the Guardian, though the latter's function is more like guarding [=ZanZarah=] from Earth's humans.

* MagicalUnderpinningsOfReality: Faeries power ''everything'' in [=ZanZarah=].

* TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler:The true perpetrator of most woes that befell [=ZanZarah=] is the White Druid himself.]]

* MrExposition: Rafi at first, but the [[TheOwlKnowingOne Owls]] are actually a much better example, as the sole purpose of them being scattered all across [=ZanZarah=] is to provide advice to Amy.

* OurElvesAreBetter: The Elves in [=ZanZarah=] are a peaceful, nature-loving homebirds who rarely venture outside Endeva and Tiralin. Their language sounds a bit like [[GratuitousFrench French]].
* OurGoblinsAreDifferent: The Goblins in [=ZanZarah=] are restless travelers, mainly residing in the swamp town of Dunmore. Their language is especially funny.

* TheProphecy: Rafi firmly believes in an ancient prophesy of TheChosenOne--a human girl, to be precise--who'd become the greatest Faery Duelist of all times and deliver [=ZanZarah=] from evil.
* RealLife: By contrast to the colorful world of [=ZanZarah=], Amy's apartment in London is DeliberatelyMonochrome, although the faeries (all captured faeries that are not on her primary strike team hang out in London) color it up a little. Given that London is completely irrelevant to the game's plot, you probably won't be using the Rune of Return a lot (except to change the faeries in your party).

* SaveBothWorlds: By completing the main quest [[spoiler:Amy not only rids [=ZanZarah=] of evil taint but also brings magic back into the real world, which is implied to save it from dullness]].

* SummonEverymanHero: Amy is not exactly summoned to, but rather lured into [=ZanZarah=] by Rafi.

* JumpedAtTheCall: While alone at home, she investigates a strange noise from the attic, is transported to a parallel dimension, and told that she must save it from some vague evil, with zero directions at how to do so. She takes it all in stride and dives into exploring the game world.

* MagicarpPower: Like the ''Pokemon'' trope namer, some faeries in the game are quite weak, but evolve into much more powerful forms at certain levels. Subverted by the starter Nature faery Sillia, however, whose "ultimate" third form is actually much weaker than her second one.

* TheProphesy: Rafi firmly believes in an ancient prophesy of TheChosenOne--a human girl, to be precise--who'd become the greatest Faery Duelist of all times and deliver [=ZanZarah=] from evil.

[[OnlyOneName Amy]] is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent from London with a penchant for FantasyLiterature. One day, while left at home alone, she is surprised by a [[TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive sound coming from the attic]], where she finds a casket with a [[WarpWhistle stone tablet]] inside that suddenly transports her to a [[AnotherDimension colorful magical landscape]] populated by [[FairyCompanion faeries]], [[OurElvesAreBetter elves]], [[OurGoblinsAreDifferent goblins]], [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]], and [[FantasyKitchenSink the rest of the fantastic creatures]]. She is greeted by [[MrExposition a goblin named Rafi]], an adventurer extraordinaire, who managed to cross the barrier between his native [[TitleDrop ZanZarah]] ([[NotInKansasAnymore where Amy has just landed]]) and Amy's own [[RealLife Earth]]. He wasn't driven by scientific interest, though. [=ZanZarah=] is in grave peril: [[DarkIsEvil Dark Elves]] roam the landscape, wild fairies attack travellers, contact between settlements is lost due to unnatural obstructions, while the [[GuardianOfTheMultiverse White Druid]], who is supposed to protect the lands from evil, is helpless. But the legends also speak of a [[TheChosenOne saviour]] who will be [[SummonEverymanHero summoned from Earth]] to become the greatest Fairy Duelist of all times and to SaveBothWorlds... for whatever is afflicting one world will inevitably echo in the other.

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll fairy training/duelling]], RPGElements, and a cookie cutter plot probably ripped off from ''VideoGame/TheLongestJourney''. Despite all that, it features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original fairy designs, [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a fairy, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]).

* ActionAdventure: The Fairy Duels are definitely action. Amy's quest apart from that is a simple adventure. Guess that makes it...
* {{AFGNCAAP}}: Amy, despite being given a distinctive appearance and a nominal voice, expresses zero personality, thus being the classical stand-in for the player.
* AmplifierArtifact: Elemental cards are a case of this, pumping up the powers of your active fairy of the respective element. Stone fairies are given the ability to move boulders, fire fairies prevent you from getting roasted alive while strolling alongside flowing lava, etc.
* AnotherDimension: [=ZanZarah=] to Earth. Earth to [=ZanZarah=]. [[spoiler:They were the same thing in the past.]]
* BagOfHolding: The fairy bag you get at the beginning of the game is described as a useful invention capable of containing numerous items without any weight or size gain.
* BottomlessPits: Falling off a Fairy Duel arena results in the involved fairy's instant death. Also, falling off a cliff is one of the few ways to kill Amy herself (apart from [[QuicksandSucks sinking into the swamp]] and [[KillItWithFire roasting her alive]]). However, as long as there is a bottom, Amy doesn't [[NotTheFallThatKillsYou take any visible damage from falling down ridiculous heights]].

* BrokenBridge: Various natural obstacles keep the player from advancing to certain areas, probably most notably a boulder blocking the way that you come across in your very first location after leaving London. These can gradually be removed as the game progresses.
* TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive

* CardsOfPower: Over the course of the game, you discover elemental magic cards which grant the fairies of their respective element some additional and very useful powers.
* ConvectionSchmonvection: Averted, as Amy can't really walk near lava unless you got the Fire Card for your fire fairy.

* ElementalRockPaperScissors: There are 12 elements in the game that the fairies can belong to, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.
* EscapeBattleTechnique: The game had the garlic extract that scares away any attacking wild faeries but you have to buy it beforehand and it only works in the short time between being attacked and the FightWoosh. During a fairy duel, making your way to the miniature sun at the center of the area allows you to escape random encounters (but not boss battles). In a particular bit of cruelty, the wild fairies can use it, too, if they are losing badly, robbing you of the XP you earned in blood (that is, fairy hit points).

* FairyCompanion: The whole game revolves around training them. Additionally, one constantly accompanies Amy during her travels.
** Many of the female (humanoid looking) fairies are particularly FairySexy, especially the Nature Fairies.
* FantasyKitchenSink
* GottaCatchThemAll: There are 77 fairy species in the game, all with unique appearance, attributes, and spell preferences. Capturing or otherwise obtaining all of them without cheating is [[SelfImposedChallenge quite a feat, but not necessary to win the game]].

* HeroicMime: Amy talks ''very'' little (mainly in the opening video plus a few triumphant exclamations upon victory), even in dialogue.

* JumpedAtTheCall: Amy.

* LightIsNotGood: [[spoiler:The White Druid]]
* ALightInTheDistance: The fairy lights in the swamp level.
* MagicalUnderpinningsOfReality

* MookBouncer: The wild Psi fairies. Luckily, they only live in a single cave up in the mountains.

* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: Enough said. They are based in the [[BeneathTheEarth underground city]] of Monagham, and their language slightly resembles [[GratuitousGerman German]].

* OurGoblinsAreDifferent: The Goblins in [=ZanZarah=] are restless travellers, ''de jure'' based in the swamp town of Dunmore. They are not evil but the closest Amy has to TheRival is a goblin. Their language is especially funny.
* PhantomZone: The Fairy Duel Arenas are pocket dimensions with increasingly bizarre architectures. While the low-level arenas look like rather reasonable RuinsForRuinsSake, high-level arenas may look like a giant stone corkscrew or a number of random stone slabs just floating in the sea of nothing.
* RealLife: By contrast to the colorful world of [=ZanZarah=], Amy's apartment in London is DeliberatelyMonochrome, although the fairies (all captured fairies that are not on her primary strike team hang out in London) color it up a little. Given that London is completely irrelevant to the game's plot, you probably won't be using the Rune of Return a lot (except to change the faries in your party).
* RecurringBoss: The goblin who sees Amy as his [[TheRival rival]] and keeps coming after her over the course of the game with more and more powerful fairy sets.
* RPGElements: All fairies gain XP and level up through combat, can be equipped with increasingly powerful offensive/defensive spells, lose and gain mana/HP. There is also something like the PlayerParty, namely, Amy's five chosen fairies that follow her into battles (although only one can be fielded and directly controlled by the player at a time). For a cherry tapping, you can give your favorite fairies unique names.
* RuleOfFun: The gameplay is very simple and incredibly complex at the same time. You won't believe how fun the Fairy Duels are until you win a few.

* TakingYouWithMe: One of the best ways to deal with multiple attacking Nature fairies is to field your Psi StoneWall with ''lots'' of hit points and full damage reflection spell. The Psi are weak against Nature, so he gets killed pretty quickly... but since he has massive health and Nature fairies usually don't, he takes from two to four with him via damage reflection. He doesn't get XP (unless you are agile enough to withdraw him just in the nick of time) but hey, it's a cruel world.
* ThirdPersonSeductress: Averted with Amy, who, despite being a female controlled from third-person view, wears a conservative (or rather, practical for long travel) clothing and leaves all the ass-kicking to her fairies (who are controlled from first-person perspective, anyway).

* WideOpenSandbox: The game world is basically this, though you have to advance the main plot to access more areas. However, there is not time limit and you can wholeheartedly devote yourself to exploration, fairy gathering, and training the moment you leave Endeva for the first time.

* {{AFGNCAAP}}: Amy, despite being given a distinctive appearance and a nominal voice, expresses zero personality, thus being the [[{{AFGNCAAP}} classical stand-in for the player]].

[[OnlyOneName Amy]] is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent from London with a penchant for FantasyLiterature. One day, while left at home alone, she is surprised by a [[TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive sound coming from the attic]], where she finds a casket with a [[WarpWhistle stone tablet]] inside that suddenly transports her to a [[AnotherDimension colorful magical landscape]] populated by [[FairyCompanion faeries]], [[OurElvesAreBetter elves]], [[OurGoblinsAreDifferent goblins]], [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]], and [[FantasyKitchenSink the rest of the fantastic creatures]]. She is greeted by [[MrExposition a goblin named Rafi]], an adventurer extraordinaire, who managed to cross the barrier between his native [[TitleDrop ZanZarah]] ([[CaptainObvious where Amy has just landed]]) and Amy's own [[RealLife Earth]]. He wasn't driven by scientific interest, though. [=ZanZarah=] is in grave peril: [[DarkIsEvil Dark Elves]] roam the landscape, wild fairies attack travellers, contact between settlements is lost due to unnatural obstructions, while the [[GuardianOfTheMultiverse White Druid]], who is supposed to protect the lands from evil, is helpless. But the legends also speak of a [[TheChosenOne saviour]] who will be [[SummonEverymanHero summoned from Earth]] to become the greatest Fairy Duelist of all times and to SaveBothWorlds... for whatever is afflicting one world will inevitably echo in the other.

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll fairy training/duelling]], RPGElements, and a cookie cutter plot probably ripped off from ''VideoGame/TheLongestJourney''. Despite all that, it features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original fairy designs, [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a fairy, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]). In short, it NeedsMoreLove.

* AmplifierArtifact: elemental cards are a case of this, pumping up the powers of your active fairy of the respective element. Stone fairies are given the ability to move boulders, fire fairies prevent you from getting roasted alive while strolling alongside flowing lava etc.

* BrokenBridge: Various natural obstacles keep the player from advancing to certain areas, probably most notably a boulder blocking the way that you come across in your very first location outside London. Those can gradually be removed as the game progresses.

* CardsOfPower: Over the course of the game you discover elemental magic cards which grant the fairies of their respective element some additional and very useful powers.
* ConvectionSchmonvection: Subverted as Amy can't really walk near lava unless you got the Fire Card for your fire fairy.

* HyperspaceArsenal: the fairy bag you get at the beginning of the game is this. Justified by its very description as a useful invention capable of containing innumerous items without any weight or size gain.

''[=ZanZarah=]: The Hidden Portal'' is an ActionAdventure game with ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''-style [[GottaCatchThemAll fairy training/duelling]], RPGElements, and a cookie cutter plot probably ripped off from ''TheLongestJourney''. Despite all that, it features [[SceneryPorn beautiful visuals]], Awesome/{{music}}, funny pseudo-languages, original fairy designs, [[RuleOfFun solid and entertaining gameplay]] (once you [[GuideDangIt figure out how]] to ''shoot''[[note]]To shoot a spell while controlling a fairy, you need to hold down the left mouse button for it to accumulate some charge. Don't hold it for too long, though. It backfires.[[/note]]). In short, it NeedsMoreLove.

* XMeetsY: ''TheLongestJourney'' meets ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''.