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The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Quantum Break

Castlevania: Bloodlines

2 likes

What a weird game. And that's not just referring to the presentation & general setup of both versions of the game, but what an utterly bizarre game in the context of the 16-bit era. See, it's a simple platformer. Nothing different there, but it's also got something strangely unique about it when you sew it's mangled limbs together. It shouldn't work. If I sit here and break down the individual aspects of the game, it's actually pretty meh. But....it does work. In fact it's one of the most absorbing and enveloping platformers on the system. The best way I can think to describe it, is a "holiday" platformer. See there's no major challenge to progress through levels. There are enemies, there are pits of lava which instantly kill etc. etc. but if you take your time you can avoid most obstacles quite easily. There's a ton of items to find, so much so that you'll easily have enough to see you through the game before the halfway point, and most items aren't much other than gimmicks either. Level design is probably it's biggest strength. The stages are usually quite large & designed with exploration in mind, and there's often various routes available to the exit. So the majority of the game is spent leisurely coasting along and finding a way out these levels fairly easily, but because of said design you can just sit back & enjoy them. Also every 3 or 4 levels you have to acquire an item to progress and thus it then becomes necessary to explore the levels more thoroughly, as opposed to exploration being optional. This is where the game is at it's best, as scouring each nook & cranny for that key token really makes you appreciate the stages. As mentioned earlier, the general items themselves, whilst handy, aren't particularly mind blowing either. So there's no real major incentive to keep exploring. But I found myself doing just that, because it just felt kinda steady & fun. Mind you, that music starts to get annoying around 2/3rds of the way in. There's some decent tunes, but there's not very many of them, and they get recycled very often. This is definitely a game to play with one of your fave albums playing in the background. But it's just fun. It just draws you in, and chills you out. I'd had my fill by around the 3/4s mark and only played on to see the ending, but between the laid back style; open, varied stages; funky bosses; and overall groovy game vibe I really enjoyed myself. Won't be everyone's cup of tea, but if you're looking for a more stoner type game to kick back to, you could do far worse than this. Personally I love it.

Decap Attack

2 likes

D&D:ToD is a curious mid-step between the 80's beat 'em ups of old, and the 90's refined Streets of Rage style ones. You can guard, dash, do a power attack, use various items, and some characters can use magic too. The combat basics themselves are executed nicely and, for the most part, are quite enjoyable. But the additional moves and use of items, whilst commendable, is also implemented quite awkwardly and they can often be tricky to use properly in context of the game itself. It doesn't ruin things as such, it's just frustrating that things don't flow better, and that all too often you find yourself reverting back to old school, button bashing beat-em-up tactics to get by. That said, it does also feel quite considered for a beat-em-up because of it's pacing, and the enemies not only look different, but are a game highlight for the fact that most offer a bit of a different challenge to each other, rather than just being a pointless palette swap. The bosses are groovy too, with a dragon, manticore & beholder in there amongst others. It's nice to see, and plays into that D&D vibe. The characters are your standard affair - Fighter, Cleric, Elf & Dwarf - but surprisingly there's no out & out spellcaster, which feels like a miss. I did also find the game better suited to the fighter types, with the Elf's magic really useful late game, but nowhere near as much so early game. Again, great ideas, but just not implemented all that well. And the lack of ranged characters and the fairly tightly packed fighting area, gave me a far less satisfying experience than playing something like King of The Dragons, where hitting & running at a faster pace generates a more exciting experience. The story is told very well throughout for a game of this ilk, with regular plot dumps and a choice of different stages to progress through. No major addition at all, but I'm always for games like these getting across that feeling of being on an adventure, and this certainly manages that to a good degree. It includes plenty of check-list tropes too, such as a tavern every so often, woods, caverns, castles etc. Even throwing in odd D&D nods, such as the fact that fire kills trolls. It's good stuff. So it's a ton of good ideas thrown into a cauldron, with the end result being edible and fairly enjoyable, but a bit undercooked in places. It's not got the quick hit & move style of old school fighters nailed, and hasn't fleshed out it's own ideas enough either, but it's by no means bad, and there is still fun to be found for fans of fantasy settings.

Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom

It's all over the shop this one. A strange assault on the senses, which bombards you with all kinds of weird & wonderful crazy elements, but forgets to include two key ingredients unfortunately - balance & fun. You control one of two characters who play very similarly, and engage in the usual action-platformer affair. However not only does PD go for an off-center approach to it's vibe, but it extends that approach to it's gameplay & levels. See, when all said and done there's just not much to it's gameplay core. Everything is very basic all round. There's no inventive enemy attack patterns to figure out, there's no intricate platforming sections to maneuver, you walk you attack, you walk you attack, and then you walk and you attack. Yes the odd environmental hazard appears, but most are really basic, and nothing changes things up much. All games are designed to prompt the player to employ a strategy in their gameplay, and the good games prompt the player to continue evolving that throughout the game. However you can play through PD employing pretty much the same strategies on the latter levels as you did on the first ones, especially if you play as a powered up Maria. In fact throughout the game you're either underpowered and have to tread uber-carefully, or vastly overpowered and waltzing through levels like a total breeze whoever you play as. The difference in either is one level's worth of power ups, and it again just feels off. To that end level design doesn't marry up with the player powers either, and the whole thing feels a bit of a mess. That said it is an imaginative mess, with some cool outlandish bosses & backdrop graphics. Thematically there can be no denying it's got an appeal & takes an approach which few other games do, so - even though it's not particularly fun - I'd still say it may be worth a blast or two to experience it's bizarreness. I like the ideas, but not the implementation, and the most enjoyment which I got out of it was by constantly holding the run button down, and sprinting through levels as fast as possible (treating it a bit like Atomic Runner)

Psycho Dream

It's just not that good IMO unfortunately. It's not bad, there's some really well crafted portions & there's some fun to be had, but for every bit I enjoyed there was another bit which I got annoyed or bored with. First thing that hit me was the change of vibe from previous entries with the early tunes. There's the odd good tune in there later on, but far too many jazzy, placid tracks for my liking overall. Music is of course a personal preference, but the more laid back vibe of some of the tracks just doesn't suit a game of this ilk IMO. They should feel more exciting & intense from the off. Later in the game things do ramp up, but it's a bit like sitting down to watch an Arnie flick, and having the first 2/3rds of the movie centered around a family drama before the violence & action kicks in. And that extends to the levels themselves & game as a whole. TF4's first level is a bit tricky, but then the next few are a cakewalk, and fairly characterless too. I think Stage 6 was when the game really started to kick in for me and the level design got interesting, but by then it's almost over. When you do finally get to some enjoyable action for the last 3-4 stages it is pretty good, but again it's all too little too late, and even then it's more "good" than "amazing". Some of the boss fights can't half drag out too. There's some well designed ones, with some clever patterns, but some seem to take an absolute age to kill off, even when fully powered. Something else which irked me is how reliant you are on power ups as well. The main weapon seems too weak to me, yet once you've acquired a power up or two you're a bit too overpowered for certain sections, so it feels imbalanced in this respect (which again is a departure from far better balanced third entry) But it does have some great graphics, the odd cracking tune, and a few welcome additions to the previous games. These include the screen scrolling vertically when you move your ship up/down to match, thus giving you more of a playing field to fight in. It doesn't make a huge difference, but it adds a bit of something at least. And whilst the balance of weapon strength is off, the power ups themselves are also fun, with each one feeling different and useful. You can't always rely on the same power up either - it's very situational - so they definitely have a much better balance there than with other parts of the game, as you are constantly having to chop & change as appropriate to match said situation. Yes you rely on them too much as stated earlier, but when you do have them it does work well. Filler is a killer, and that's the case here. T4 isn't a bad game at all. It's OK, and can be quite enjoyable at times. But it just didn't grab or excite me anywhere near as much as TF3, it felt bland, padded out & saggy in parts, and I doubt I'll return to it again. After finishing it, I popped the previous entry on for a quick blast, and couldn't put it down until I finished it. TF4 didn't really grab me at all, but I would say that if you're a SHMUP fan still give it a go, because a fair few of my complaints such as music are down to personal taste, and if it grabs you from the off there are a lot of decent elements in there, so it's at least worth trying.

Thunder Force IV

This game is pure bubblegum-popcorn brain-off fun. To say it was released a year after Streets of Rage 2, it feels lacking in the move department, and harkens back to the earlier titles which relied on a more limited moveset such as Final Fight. The reason why that doesn't hold this game back though, is that it has an absolutely mega blend of hand to hand combat & weapon based combat. One minute you're punching away, the next you've an uzi, the next a grenade etc. This not only keeps things continuously varied, but it allows you to setup some sweet tactical moves (e.g. lobbing some dynamite, to then punch enemies onto it). Nothing feels overpowered, but everything feels like it gives you an edge. The characters themselves all feel quite unique too, even though they have a pretty identical moveset. Over several playthroughs I kept cycling between the 3 of the available characters, and still can't make my mind up which I prefer. That again is some good balancing. There's also the option to have 3 players, which makes for some really chaotic fun. There's a few good tunes in there, but the overall soundtrack isn't anywhere near as memorable as many other beat 'em ups of that era, and whilst there is some gimmicks that give you a bit of stage variety, it's mostly level after level of the same shizzle. It's fun & I enjoyed it, but for all the good elements, it just lacks that certain something to make it a classic. The enemies, whilst fine, do lack a bit of character, and the stages & scenery isn't particularly memorable either. A well rounded, well balanced good game which just doesn't have that X factor to take it to the next level.

Cadillacs and Dinosaurs

4 likes

So 2020. The future! Robots! Robots playing sports! No Covid 19, no world focused on SJW bollocks, just the glory days of everyone watching baseball & having futuristic fun. If only eh? I'm a Brit, so don't have any connection with the the game, but it seems simple enough to grasp, so I gave this a blast. And it's not bad. Nothing stunning, but is nice, straightforward, arcade fun that's easy to pick up and play, and challenging enough too. The presentation is it's real strength. Everything moves at that cartoon-panel pace, where you have a snapshot of one style to play for a minute or two, then a few seconds of another, then it switches round to yet another etc. It's quick and keeps it fresh & lively. Batting I enjoyed the most but also found the hardest. Connecting with the ball is an achievement in itself, but actually hitting it so you can make a decent run or, miracle of miracles a home run, is a tough ask. I've still no idea how to really guide the ball, but in the context of a cheap 10 min arcade blast it doesn't really matter. Fielding is still fun though, pitching n particular. There's a lot you can do with the ball, and that's pretty nifty. That said, it does something feel as if the CPU will hit it, no matter what you attempt. The general controls overall are sharp & intuitive, and before long you're flowing with the game no probs. There is actually a fairly decent layer of depth to the game, added by the ability to upgrade players, and various obstacles & boons spread around the fielding pitch. It's nothing to write home about, but it does at least prompt you to think a bit. But there really isn't much more to it either. After 10-15 min you've seen done it all, and then it just becomes a case of how much you enjoy repeating it. In fact making it through a full game is a bit of a slog. I'd be very interested to learn if anyone has got really good at this game, because the offensive aspects of it really seem down to relying on a lot of luck. Trash, fast food, quick-blast fun that is ok to snack on, but nowhere substantial enough to fully satisfy either. As disposable as it is playable. Probably like Baseball itself.

Super Baseball 2020

Nothing outstanding or mind-blowing, however everything about it is crafted SO well, that's it's just a joy to slip into. The town, the dungeon maps, the battles etc. It really is one of the easiest RPGs to get into which I've played in a long time, but it also gives you enough to get your teeth into too. The first dungeon alone displays a lovely balance between puzzles, simplicity, depth, combat & secrets - it's a perfect portion size. A few hours in and I was really enjoying myself. And the combat is balanced absolutely superbly too, real masterclass here. You can enter a Dungeon under equipped and vulnerable, but because of the fact that battles aren't random & you can stun enemies with your arrows, you can still progress. On the flipside, there's plenty of in-dungeon secrets, and a big variety of spells & weapons, armour & items to buy from towns, so you've also the option of grinding a bit and entering the dungeons far more badass than before. Yet again, the balance with both is superb, vulnerable doesn't feel impossible and powerful doesn't feel OP. Great stuff. Monsters are visible, but only move when you do. This leads to some really interesting scenarios, and is a great little system. Really surprising that this hasn't been copied much since. The puzzles are plentiful, and flit between having to make you think to trickily-clever, but rarely are they either pointless or frustrating. They mostly have a touch of uniqueness to them too, which again adds to the quality. In fact, I'm not one for puzzley dungeons, but this game does them & the dungeons SO well that I really enjoyed both. Top marks. But, as well done as they are, you also really need to be prepared to spend a lot of time dungeon crawling in general. It isn't for everyone, got a bit monotonous for me, and it really could have done with a few more roleplaying/exploration aspects to break it up. Unfortunately there are other significant bugbears too. Firstly there's little to no secrets in the roleplaying areas, a particular bane of mine. Also, the main dungeon theme tune gets real old real fast, in fact I think the same track plays in every dungeon. Then you've got the game's structure. It really is town-dungeon-town-dungeon for a large portion of it, which soon becomes very repetitive. And finally you've got the story which, whilst not awful at all, isn't particularly exciting either and tends to feel like one random event after another, each of which has little or nothing to do with anything that happens before it or after it. It really did leave me disinterested at times, as the main story hook kept disappearing (similarly to how Witcher 3 has you hunt the Wild Hunt.......then have nothing to do with them for ages). And it is a 16-bit JRPG too, so be prepared for slightly obscure objectives. I enjoyed this a lot, and think it's definitely worth playing, but be mindful that it's way more for gameplayfags than storyfags, and has enough bugbears to prevent it from being a classic.

Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals

6 likes