Khaji (video game franchise)

Khaji
Genre(s)	RPG
Developer(s)	Hej La
Platform(s)	Dream Entertainment Dream 64 Super Dream Entertainment
First release	Khaji-Adventure of A Dragon 6 May, 1988
Latest release	Khaji-Return To The World 2 March, 2005

Khaji is a series of Role-playing game created solely by Jerkuan programmer Hej La. The name of the series references the name of the main character, "Khaji", who's a half dragon, half human that can shift his appearance based on his own current emotions.

Hej La began the series in 1988, with the release of Khaji-Adventure of A Dragon, which he developed all by himself ever since 1975. Hej La learned coding in his college years and got heavily influenced by Vitosian made video games, he developed the game all by himself in the first couple of years before getting a team of 5 members, including him, all formed by his old college friends and family members, which was all credited in each of his video games. Voice acting and animating was a huge problem he had, as he is not talented in drawing nor voice acting, which was quickly filled in by his wife, who is an artist, and his daughter, who played as the voice of Khaji since the start to part 3 of the series. He send the beta of the game to a local game shop in his town, then later a national fair held by Jerku, which made him famous.

Gameplay focuses on a small but open world where the player can complete puzzle in order to progress an overall story, as well as engage in various side activities. Most of the gameplay revolves around talking with NPC, task management and puzzle solving, with occasional role-playing and stealth elements. The games in the Khaji series are set in fictional worlds and dimensions, some include floating islands, caves world… The series centers on Khaji who attempt to solve his everyday situations, most ended up with him jumping to new worlds, making new friends and tying old ones. The antagonists are commonly characters who are old friends with the protagonist, or characters who have the most impact impeding the protagonist's progress that were shifted due to the world settings.

Titles

Main series

The Khaji series takes part in a fictional universe, which none of the players know except the name of it, until Khaji-Return To The World, where it specify each planets and dimensions fully. Each planets and dimensions is considered to be in the same universe.

Expansion packs

The series have its own expansion pack, made by Hej himself, the expansion pack were purposely made for extra content he couldn't put in and an additional sandbox where the players can explore all of the world without restrictions. The expansion aren't expensive, Hej said that it was meant to be free but since his family was going a rough time between the first two games, all of the players decided to spare another 5 to 10 Jerkuan Ling to help out his family, later he thanks the community and continue to make more expansion packs in latter games.

Others games

Outside of Khaji main story lines, Hej made other Khaji related games as well, even though short, he conveys a lot more lore to the Khaji universe, some of them may include "Leko-Lizard In Disguise", "Retsu-Journey Home", "Li Li-Flowers Season", "Kosu-Year of The Rat", "Byffi-Rice Paddies By Night", "Xi Cha-Home By Midnight",… most of them are artistic puzzles games based on story that Hej heard through his friends and colleagues.

Games elements

Gameplay

The gameplay is seen as artistic at the time, as Hej learned to both code and experience the outside world, many task in the game require the player to either sacrifice something small or taking in any huge blow from antagonist. The way the game convey the story is phenomenal as it tackle the mental state of the player, it is quite cheeky for a cliché storyline but Hej change up the elements to suit for the style of player decisions.

As off Khaji 3-Puzzle To The Word Why, it contains some of the most long lasting storyline in the series, as well as many voice acting by some of Iearth famous voice actors/actress. The voice acting was made mostly through volunteering as some of the actors and actress actually were hidden reference in the first two games, it was used as a way to talk to NPC to both progress the games and as well to get into an in depth information about the world surrounding Khaji.

Setting and story

Setting

Almost all of Hej games are connected to a universe he called "Chi", many characters and brands are recognizable when exploring the game, both in the Khaji main games and others Khaji projects. The universe contains anthropomorphic animals, as well as ordinary people, but there is a small community of hybrid between the two groups, which is heavily discriminated by the two original groups, called the "Gumi".

Landgros

Landgros is introduced in the first game, as well as the beta, and is the main world that Khaji lives in, it based on the landmass of Iearth, where lands creatures and human lives on. It is seen as the most advancing world in the universe due to its conditions and advantages. Most of the gameplay in the first game is based on Landgros, only occasional for the others world to appear, it introduced the player the basic of controls and history of Khaji life.

Where Khaji lives in Landgros is an unknown reference to the real life Iearth, many assume his home to be based on somewhere in Vitosium or Jerku but it's still unclarified by both Hej La and the game storyline.

Landgros have a very long history that was explained by Hej in an interview, it suffer 3 different world wars instead of one like on Iearth, it also progress past the needs to have borders as the creatures decided to lives in harmony, it's rarely to see crimes and wars in Landgros as it's seem that hatred no longer exists.

Qua Lo

Qua Lo is introduced in the mist of the gameplay in Khaji 2-Race To The Mystery, it's seem to be an "underwater level" by many due to its mechanics, it is the opposite of Landgros as it is underwater and quite undeveloped, the world was seen as spiritual and peaceful, the creatures that lives in Qua Lo identified technology as a threat to its peaceful lives so they were as developed as Landgros.

Qua Lo is based on the oceans of Iearth, as many underwater level are found to bare reassemblances of many gulfs and coasts, such as the Gulf of Ausiana, Toyana Ocean,…

Avio

Avio is introduced early in Khaji-Adventure of A Dragon, the space between the sky and the atmosphere were considered to be Avio, its inhabitants are mostly birds of all sorts, as well as some bugs. Its organization is quite anarchist as there is no restrictions in the sky.

Story

Khaji-Adventure of A Dragon

Khaji starts as a hybrid between his dragon mother and human father, he is considered as a "Gumi", a very hatred breed, whenever he go, he found himself being hated, at the age of 2, his father left him, letting his dragon mother alone to raise Khaji, not only that, at the age of 6, he found out that he can shift between his original human form into his new dragon form when he expressed negative emotions. He made it to middle school, studying at Berrystone Academy, he only have two friends, Voss, a lab rat, and Max, a golden retriever.

The first game let you explore the world surround Khaji, but when his father revealed himself to be a massive CEO of a famous food corporation, Khaji try to build up all his power and emotions to get passed through all the obstacles to meet his long lost father, but when Khaji try meeting him in his office after passing though multiple problems, his father was found missing, later finding out that it was a rumor, his father passed away long ago and the rumors his believed was an anniversary of his death, Khaji realised that happiness can't be find through the truth of his father, but it can receive through the hardship that he had to went through, like sitting down to talk with his mother about his father, sacrificing himself to help his friends in a side mission as well as getting through problems his friends support.