BIONICLE: Heroes of Mata Nui

BIONICLE: Heroes of Mata Nui was the first RPG of any LEGO product and the first RPG for Bionicle. It was developed by Imaginix and was planned to be released through ATOMco. The game follows a game play similar to that of Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic in both fighting sequences and interaction between characters. The game allowed the player to collect party members as they journeyed the Island of Mata Nui.

The game followed the adventure of a young Matoran who was destined to help the Toa seek and discover the great Kanohi masks. The Matoran journeyed from Kini to Kini, Wahi to Wahi, helping the Toa find the six hidden Kanohi masks, while accomplishing tasks of their own. They confronted Rahi of various kinds. Eight other Matoran joined with the young Matoran, creating the Traveling Party of the Masks.

The young Matoran discovered that they were Ripuri, the dream keeper. An urban legend told that a spirit, Ripuri, would venture to the Island and take on a Matoran’s body, depicting future events through dreams. Once the Matoran discovered this, they were held in high esteem amongst the Turaga.

Ripuri continued to help the Toa search out the masks and ultimately discovered the entrance to Makuta’s lair. Once under in the Dark Tunnels, Ripuri discovered a small cylindrical rock with the carving of a Kanohi mask on the front. Ripuri hid the mask from others, in the volcanic region of Ta-Wahi, on one of the Lava Rivers, hoping that one day, someone would discover it.

Selecting A Matoran
In BIONICLE: Heroes of Mata Nui, the player had the ability to custom create their own Matoran which they would use in the game. To custom create the Matoran, the player had to:
 * 1) Type in name of Character
 * 2) Select from six Wahi’s to place the characters setting (Ta-Wahi, Le-Wahi, Ga-Wahi, Ko-Wahi, Po-Wahi, Onu-Wahi) (By selecting the Wahi, that chooses which color scheme the Matoran will be)
 * 3) Select from six bodies, each body giving a different ability (worker, storyteller, sailor/aviator/driver, librarian, guard, engineer) (Each Ability has its own benefits)
 * 4) Select from twelve different masks, each mask giving the character an attribute (dexterity, optics, healer, fear, strength, alacrity, persuasion, constitution, wisdom, knowlegde, emotional acuity, leadership)

Once the player had created the Matoran they preferred, they could start the game. The screen would fade into a movie clip, explaining what the problem was.

Opening Clip
''The night sky was foggy, difficult to see through. The scenic view lowered to reveal an angry ocean, tossing the waves like feathers. On the rocky shore of the Island, a small cylindrical container washed up onto shore. The clouds broke and the first rays of sun shone through on the canister. A sharp clicking and wheezing was heard and the canisters lid spun open, revealing a dark core and glowing red spots.''

The Matoran, Ripuri, woke up at the sudden shout of voices outside his home. Ripuri heard footsteps rush towards his door and a familiar face popped in. Takima, close friend of Ripuri, entered the room and pulled Ripuri out of bed. Takima shouted, "They’re here! They’re here! They’re finally here!"

Ripuri gave into to his friend’s intensions and crawled out of bed. Ripuri looked up at the able-bodied Matoran and mumbled, "Who’s here?"

"The Toa! They came in this morning without any warning." Takima shouted. Ripuri sat up and walked over to Takima, who was insisting that Ripuri leave the house and go see the Toa.

"I can’t believe that they’re here to free Mata Nui. Finally, we’ll have peace." Takima ranted on.

"I wouldn’t be too sure about these guys." Ripuri retorted and walked out of the door.

Ripuri caught his first glimpse at the heroes that arrived. Takima pushed Ripuri forward, so that they could both get a good shot of the Toa. Ripuri turned to Takima to tell him his dream the previous night, but Takima is too busy admiring the Toa. Behind the two, the Turaga of the Koro listened in on Ripuri’s story. When he finished his story, the Turaga rushed in and whisked Ripuri off to the front and announced that Ripuri had a vision of the coming of the Toa, just as it happened. The Turaga stated that Ripuri had a special ability that no other Matoran, nor Turaga, had experienced. The Turaga persisted that the Toa take Ripuri on their journey to find the six great Kanohi masks of power, seeing Ripuri as a valuable asset to tale. Ripuri reluctantly gave in and agreed to go on the journey with the Toa and was thrown off the stage by Takima who insisted on Ripuri taking him. They journeyed back to the home where Takima made sure Ripuri packed right.