Staff reviews, page 221

Castle of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse review

What we’ve got here is a bridge too far, but it’s nothing that seven special gems can’t fix. You see, as you and Minnie pranced about in the meadows of tranquil Vera City, the evil witch Mizrabel was plotting an evil scheme to attain…

Marc Golding · December 19, 2003

Staff Genesis

Cadash review

Beyond that, you may speak to dull-witted townspeople who offer obvious clues, do not learn after major storyline changes, and who manage their cliched constitutional within five stride limitations. They’ve got nothing to do, and nowhere…

Marc Golding · December 19, 2003

Staff Genesis

Battletoads/Double Dragon: The Ultimate Team review

I picked up Battletoads/Double Dragon: The Ultimate Team for peanuts at a pawn shop and yet… I still had great expectations because of the hype that surrounded the game in my neck of the woods. (Insofar as there can be hype for a 16-bit…

Marc Golding · December 19, 2003

Staff Genesis

Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle review

Alex Kidd got a raw deal. He’s got huge ears -- but he managed to overcome them and retain some semblance of the cuteness that was necessary to keep his job as Sega Master System mascot. His first adventure, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, was…

Marc Golding · December 19, 2003

Staff TurboGrafx-16

Silent Debuggers review

Meet Leon. He’s your buddy, your leader, your home base. He’s also dead cool - he wears dark glasses indoors and rolls up his sleeves like a middle finger extended to the chilly corridors where he must do his tireless, one-handed work (no…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff TurboGrafx-16

Tiger Road review

Perhaps it's the simplicity of the gameplay that draws me in. You control a little bald man, Lee Wong (who bears no relation to Bonk, in case you're wondering). Never mind what the glossy, airbrushed cover depicts; you are not Fu Man Chu…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff NES

Super Mario Bros. review

Super Mario Brothers is instantly memorable, and over time, its appeal only grows. It isn’t as goofy as its oddball sequel, nor is it as wondrous as the magical third game in the series to appear for the system. But it has a wholly old…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff Arcade

Street Fighter II' Hyper Fighting review

Pick Ryu. Try to duck and use rapid short kicks to set up a throw and find the blue beast, Blanka, eating your face a la Hannibal (only our mutant might not know to have a Chianti at the ready). Worse yet, the Japanese fireballer might…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff Arcade

Thunder Fox review

Rend soldier-types with semi-automatics and melt massive vehicles with flamethrowers. As early as level one there’s opportunity to cruise about in an army jeep and literally run terrorists down, or pick them off mercilessly with the…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff Arcade

Street Fighter II: The World Warrior review

For a moment, forgive creator Capcom's penchant for watering down the viability of their own games by releasing sequel after sequel, and see SFII for the head-to-head combat, genre-blazing pioneer that it is. Similar titles had come before…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff Arcade

Ninja Gaiden review

Tecmo made a Double Dragon type game, where the screen scrolled sideways and you could walk up into the background, and added some interesting spices. The result is the arcade version of Ninja Gaiden. Fans of the NES series will find…

Marc Golding · December 17, 2003

Staff Arcade

Double Dragon II: The Revenge review

How wildly our imaginations distort the truth! How apt they are to bend and twist our so-so memories of games into more favourable aspects so that we may think dearly of these adventures from our past, and finally, triumphantly…

Marc Golding · December 16, 2003

Staff Arcade

Crime City review

Remember Miami Vice? Or, failing that, the Lethal Weapon series? Well, from the two-word titles, right down to the main characters - the cool ADD-afflicted Caucasian guy, and by-the-book clean cut black guy - Crime City isn’t ashamed to…

Marc Golding · December 16, 2003

Staff Arcade

Violence Fight review

There’s no game that encompasses the smell of pizza quite like Violence Fight. The aroma twists my head and lures me in. I cannot escape it; it is all-consuming. The game itself -- well, the quality was never in question. At best Violence…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff Arcade

Superman review

Taito used to rule the corner stores with an iron fist. And as such, all we kids who cut class to go to the corner stores to play video games thought Taito was the shit. Superman was a big name cog in the mighty Taito wheel that included…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff Arcade

Street Fighter review

That guy in the first player slot with red hair, jerking about as if frames of animation are missing, is Ryu. You might recognize him; his hair has gotten darker with age and he has since doffed the ruby red slippers he wears in this…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff Arcade

Snow Bros. review

Nick and Tom are snowmen. They wear little hats on the backs of their heads, and are dressed down, trailer park style in overalls, with no shirts. The two always smiling wonders have a daunting task on their plates - no less than 50 levels…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff Arcade

R-Type Leo review

When you play the first few levels, your hardened fan’s heart will melt with the realization that this is the sort of simple genius that makes for excellent shooting, and is deserving of its own sequel, or series. Under another moniker…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff Arcade

Rezon review

The people at Alhummer were some evil, sadistic sons of bitches. I can’t stress this enough. They weren’t so creative, but they were cold and calculating. Consider this: they took Irem’s arcade, horizontal shooter hit, R-Type, and…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2003

Staff NeoGeo

Magician Lord review

Begin as blue-clad Elta in the Dale of Evil Gods, and descend the very rungs of the ladder of hell to recover the Eight Books of Wisdom from the God of Destruction, Az Atorse. Magician Lord is dead serious, and if you don't believe me…

Marc Golding · December 14, 2003