Reviews by ethereal

Strikers 1945 II review

A Psikyo shooter is a pretty recognizable thing. If you've had some history with the company's shmup fare, you could easily have won a ''Name That Developer'' challenge with, say, the Dreamcast's Gunbird II. Similarities amongst their…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader PlayStation

T.R.A.G. - Tactical Rescue Assault Group: Mission of Mercy review

T.R.A.G. wasn't even a great concept to begin with. Its base elements manage to be generic AND completely plagiarized at the same time. It wanted to be just a boring action game; T.R.A.G. feels like it was destined to be completely one…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Spider-Man & Venom: Maximum Carnage review

Over the years, Acclaim has tortured the world with its arduous library of licensed fodder, ''original'' garbage and malicious mixtures of the two. Acclaim has consistently released turd after turd into the underpants of the videogame…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader SNES

Super Mario World review

It's something of human nature to form rifts and divisions over situations. When you're older, serious issues like divorce, abortion, religion, etc. cause people to choose a side and defend/attack zealously. When you're younger (or just a…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader SNES

Super Castlevania IV review

It must be a case of brainwashing. For, if any doubts ever entered the rabid SNES fan's head, they'd be soon shaken away by the word ''Super'' in the game's title. No game with such surname hyperbole could ever be second-best. The game is…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Sega CD

Robo Aleste review

Sometimes you have to look where the coal is to find the diamond. Robo Aleste is a vertical shooter of true, distinct quality, mostly unknown and unplayed, even by shooter vets with extensive and expensive collections. As common as…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Sega 32X

Space Harrier review

Space Harrier is a game of unique mold from a time when there were practically no conventions for games. In its day, most genres hadn't been carved yet and games only resembled each other in minimalistic principal similarities. As the…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Sega 32X

Blackthorne review

It doesn't take much for a great game to be overlooked. Lack of marketing, release window too late in a console's life... just one snafu can make an excellent and potentially successful game disappear from gamers' minds. Blackthorne had…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Saturn

Panzer Dragoon II Zwei review

Shooters, typical in their brievity and to-the-point nature, have never been known for scale. They're reknowned for intensity and adrenaline, but they most usually come without grandeur or flair. This isn't to their detriment; it rather…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Saturn

Galactic Attack review

Never call this game Galactic Attack. Its arcade form was called RayForce, its home conversion in Japan was titled Layer Section... both were great, virile names. Acclaim saw fit to ravage such an eminent mixture of gameplay and…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader PlayStation

Castlevania Chronicles review

It has been decreed that Dracula shall only rise from his grotesque slumber every 100 years. Pity then poor Simon Belmont, who has been burdened with no less than four battles with the demon. As many times as Simon has willed himself to…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

X-Men 2: Clone Wars review

So we waited patiently for a decent X-Men game to come along. Marvel and their programming partners knew the franchise was strong enough to sell complete junk to the eager youth comprising their target audience. As our eagerness and…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Thunder Force III review

Thunder Force III is an initially impacting shooter. At first thrust, you're hooked; you rejoice in its beauty and it's soothingly comfortable. Thunder Force III has the basic elements of the series that earmark games like Lightening Force…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Space Harrier II review

Space Harrier II is eerily similar to Space Harrier. In fact, it is more along the lines of a Space Harrier Remix than it is a sequel; it brings nothing new to the table and basically just rearranges the composition of the first game. Be…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review

Sonic 3 is a masterpiece, plain and simple. It is the culmination of years of experience, talent, and refined technique; it is the masterwork of a gifted few that lets shine through their ingenuity and genius at their art. Sonic 3 is as…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Sonic the Hedgehog review

Competition made games better. More specifically, vision and imagination in a time of competition made games better. Such is the only reason there is an existence of my favorite gaming lineage ever, that of Sonic the Hedgehog. Without the…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Ex-Mutants review

This game is bad, bad, bad, bad. How bad? Here's the premise: You were once a mutant. Now, though... Now... you're NOT. That's right! All those cool X-Men mutants like Gambit and Havok and all of them are nothing compared to these…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Castlevania: Bloodlines review

As the world's people have consistently turned to the Belmonts for protection from the manifested Evil that is Dracula, so too have the Belmonts reciprocally thrived of their sacrifice to the destruction of the dark lord. It's in their…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

Altered Beast review

Altered Beast has become an internet nerd's whipping boy. What was once an unprecedented and unparalleled arcade brawler now stands trial among a generation of gamers not old enough to remember its debut more than a decade ago. This…

ethereal · March 14, 2004

Reader Genesis

The Adventures of Batman & Robin review

The feeling, when you want to like something, but can't- it permeates throughout the Batman and Robin experience. It makes you realize how great the potential for the game was, and conversely, how sad it is that it never reached it. The…

ethereal · March 14, 2004