> First, this game is really hard to understand because it's 95% Japanese, 4% German, and 1% English.  It's a simulation/RPG set in a world of fantasy alchemy.  The gameplay is similar to 2D adventure games like Yu-No (Saturn; see Sega Force).  You begin with a young fairy and your job is it raise it and teach it alchemy.  You can talk to the fairy and various characters, move around in still locations, buy items, make lots of menu selections, and set (what seems to be) various learning schedules.  The music is mellow instrumental piano, which fits well with the game.  The speech sounds great!  Unfortunately, it's all Japanese.

     > Much to my dismay, Mercurius Pretty is not a candidate for import fans.  The game is intriguing and I'd like to play it in English.  An American localization is unlikely though, since the premise isn't exactly on top of gamers' minds here.  Who knows, maybe UFO will bring it stateside anyway...

08.14.1998
     > As of this writing, Mercurius Pretty is about 30% complete and is expected to ship sometime this Fall in Japan.  It will be a hybrid simulation/RPG where you raise a fairy and teach it the ways of alchemy.  Not much else is known (to me) at this time, so expect some updates to this preview in the future.  For now, take a look at the pictures below and use your imagination.

     > This adds another title to the list of Dreamcast initial offerings that will likely be quite Japan-esque in nature (incidentally, many others are from NEC as well). That's to be expected since the system will be available in Japan first.  I don't know the likelihood of this one making it to the US.  If it's a great seller, however, anything can happen... 

09.13.1998
     > I've found out that this will actually be an enhanced version of a PC game which came out about 4 years ago (probably a Japanese exclusive).  You start the game with a seed of life and you must raise your fairy while learning the ways of alchemy.  Mercurius Pretty will be the first Dreamcast title to use the 2D graphics capabilities of the Uberconsole.  However, it's uncertain if it will showcase the full potential of the console's 2D prowess.  Finally, the game is said to run in 640x480 resolution with 16 million colors.