Reviews by Masters
386 reviews · showing 261–280
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Staff Sega Master System
Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars review
The game is so colourful in fact, that a cursory glance at screenshots gives you the impression you are looking at a children’s book. Games that would appear many years later, such as Super Mario Brothers 3 and Yoshi’s Island, will spring…
Marc Golding · January 12, 2004
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Staff Sega Master System
Alex Kidd in Miracle World review
So what's Janken? Well, young Alex defeats his tougher foes (Janken the Great's henchmen with names like Scissorhead, whose head actually looks like a hand in the shape of scissors) by nonviolent means; bringing his great 'skill' at paper…
Marc Golding · January 12, 2004
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Staff Sega Master System
Alex Kidd: High-Tech World review
Alex’s friend approaches him with an invitation to go to a new arcade. The prospect becomes more and more dubious as the fool friend not only informs us that he doesn’t know where the arcade is, but that the map he had of its location has…
Marc Golding · January 12, 2004
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Staff Sega Master System
After Burner review
This game hardly warrants five minutes of your time. While it’s true that Sega had imposed upon its underpowered Master System the difficult task of representing powerful arcade blockbusters that utilized cabinet gimmicks (such as the…
Marc Golding · January 12, 2004
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Staff NES
Toki review
Toki is an ape. He even walks like one, and it's an endearing trait. I was pretty impressed by the genuine monkey gait he gets into, especially when he's going down a slight grade, and you see his little legs adjust and buckle as they work…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Super Mario Bros. 3 review
We miss the point. The majority of the video game demographic is comprised of young males, so it's no wonder. We are a petty, short-sighted, goal-oriented animal. When Brad asks Sheila, ''how was the sex?'' she replies emotionally, ''an…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Super Mario Bros. 2 review
The story is a departure from standard Mario fare. Bowser's off making kids with a mysterious sperm receptacle of a woman (the guy's like Michael Jackson - he doesn't keep the poor mother around). The demented offspring of the unsavory…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Star Soldier review
Right away, fast moving enemies cascade down the screen. You’ll see the inspiration for the follow up game, Super Star Soldier for the Turbografx-16 (well, obviously), but also for Blazing Lazers for that same system. You'll play this game…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Shinobi review
Tengen makes us laugh right away, however unintentionally. The title screen is supposed to feature the face of our hero, beneath the traditional black ninja mask. His expression should be menacing, confident, his eyes should communicate…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom review
Ninja Gaiden 2 was as beautiful as NES platformers come! Well, understandably, Ryu hasn’t changed - his sprite is virtually identical in all three games. Most of the enemies are different naturally, and they’re a decent bunch, the mostly…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos review
Wrestle with darkness, dancing flames and an airborne android in the mysterious Tower of Lahja before beginning the fourth leg of the journey, where waters flow eternally and Naga Sotuva lives on, a blasphemous embodiment of dinosaurs out…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Ninja Gaiden review
If you’ve played the arcade game with the same name, forget what you’ve seen. The Double Dragon-esque play and look of that somewhat overhead coin-op has been replaced by straight up side-scrolling swashbuckling and a massive dose of…
Marc Golding · January 7, 2004
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Staff NES
Magmax review
Magmax allows you to go nowhere fast. I wasn’t aware that the game was one of those simplistic early looping shooters until it registered in my laser-riddled brain that my glazed eyes had been seeing the same backgrounds pass by, over and…
Marc Golding · January 3, 2004
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Staff NES
Life Force review
Take on a massive brain/Cyclops, press through tight spots raining volcanic rock, and reach the famous fire level. It might not look like much these days, but the raging, pseudo-sentient arcing flames were a technological marvel at the…
Marc Golding · January 3, 2004
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Staff NES
Kung Fu review
The little guys are midgets clad in green, who do an admirable job of keeping pace with the huggers. The first time you see them, you might think to yourself, ''hey, the huggers brought their kids to work,'' or something like that. At…
Marc Golding · January 3, 2004
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Staff NES
Gradius review
From deep space and the theme that accompanies it, we fly full tilt into the earthly environs of level one. Dormant volcanoes line the ground, until at last, one volcano proves to be active, and violently so. Hide, and pray, and shoot, and…
Marc Golding · January 3, 2004
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Staff Xbox
ESPN NHL Hockey review
I was with a group of friends at a party, the Xbox was set up, and the owner of the system owned the game as well. We settled down, got comfortable, and got ready for some two-on-two action. I'll stop you right there: we were fully…
Marc Golding · January 1, 2004
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Staff NES
Faxanadu review
You know this sprite. You’ve seen him brandish a whip in the legendary Castlevania, and bear upon his shoulder a hawk in the not-so-legendary 8 Eyes. He’s the ubiquitous NES adventurer sprite. And he reappears, ready for action, in…
Marc Golding · December 31, 2003
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Staff NES
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse review
Trevor, who powers axe and holy water and dagger and stopwatch with fallen hearts from candles on walls to augment his whipping power; just as Christopher would do before him, and as Simon - the most famous Belmont - would do after him…
Marc Golding · December 31, 2003
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Staff NES
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest review
Despite destroying Dracula in game one, stout-hearted Vampire Killer (that’s a proper title, I’d have you know!) Simon Belmont is stricken by a curse at the hands of the dying despot, and desperately needs to find five of the bloodsucker’s…
Marc Golding · December 31, 2003
