Posts Tagged ‘ Retro Review ’

Retro Review: Castlevania II Simon’s Quest (NES)

Title: Castlevania II Simon’s Quest
System: NES
Release Date: 1988

After his first adventure, Simon decided to star wearing pants.

Konami released Castlevania II Simon’s Quest in 1988 after the success of the first Castlevania. Utilizing the first game’s combat, the sequel shifts from a simple linear side scroller to a much larger world of exploration.

The controls are a bit tighter and jumps feel like there’s a better control than the previous game. Simon’s basic weapon is once again a whip, with stronger versions available from shops found throughout the game. A big change is the secondary weapon. Rather than having one at a time, Simon can collect a variety of secondary weapons and items to use as specific points in the game or as a weapon of choice to assist in slaying monsters through the land.

The game is still entirely in a side view, but some areas will have stairs taking Simon to a lower area where venturing through the area will take the player to an entirely different area than the top route would have reached. The game is fairly sprawling by 1988 NES standards, but not to the scope of the Legend of Zelda 8 bit entries. A bit of minimal effort would allow a player to map out the game and determine where things are, though deciphering which clues are real and which are false information would take some work, as well as determining the right place to kneel for a few seconds to activate special items as specific places.

All this is to say Castlevania is an excellent sequel that adds a good deal of exploration to the adventure and gives incentive for additional play throughs after the player has deciphered the game’s secrets: Three endings greet the player, depending on how quickly they revive, and again destroy, Dracula, to lift the curse placed on Simon.

Overall, Castlevania I: Simon’s Quest is an excellent 8 bit side scrolling adventure 33 years after it was introduced to the US and worth playing today. Conveniently, Limited Run Games is releasing a Castlevania Anniversary Collection on Nintendo Switch as an open pre-order, so you won’t need to find your old Nintendo and an original cartridge to experience this one. It would be a wonderful night to have a curse.

2021
05/01
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Retro Review: Alpha Protocol (PS3)

Title: Alpha Protocol
System: Playstation 3

Alpha Protocol - Wikipedia
What appears to be a generic shooter secretly offers much more

Alpha Protocol from Obsidian Entertainment released in 2010 to offer a unique RPG experience blending third-person shooter gameplay, dialogue options, stealth, and mini game challenges that combine to create an equally unique espionage experience.

Although the character creator is somewhat limited in options, players create their own version of protagonist Michael Thorton to play through the story of a highly classified black ops agent burned and on the run trying to prevent World War III. RPG elements are at work as players can customize their agent’s skills with various fire arms, martial arts, computer skills, toughness, and more.

Combat is made up of stealth elements and hand to hand combat options while an arsenal of firearms offers somewhat unpolished but still competent third person shooting. As agent Thorton infiltrates enemy bases, sneaks through CIA safe houses, and unravels a war-for-profit plot, he’ll have to hack computers and pick locks. Both of these minigame-like activities take a little getting used to, but once accustomed to them, they offer a satisfying challenge that rarely leans towards frustrating.

Fans of television series Burn Notice or the Jason Bourne series will definitely enjoy stepping into a similar role for an adventure from the Middle East to Russia, Greece, and Hong Kong, often making allies with unsavory groups in pursuit of the greater good. Those who like a little moral gray in their story will likewise find a compelling story where patriotism doesn’t necessary equate to typical lines of loyalty.

A lot of gamers likely missed this one at release, but it’s worth picking up and still fairly cheap to find on either PS3 or XBox 360.

2021
04/13
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Retro Review: Contra (NES)

Title: Contra
System: Nintendo Entertainment System

Billy and Lance run and gun to save the world from totally-not-Xenomorphs

Contra was released by Konami for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988 after its arcade release the year before. While it’s considered a classic for the console, it is possibly more remembered for the famous Konami code that granted an extra 30 lives. The game, like many NES entries, is certainly a challenge with 3 lives and 3 continues, but the Konami code makes it far more approachable and fun to play through the whole game. With or without the code, the run and gun certainly earns its status as a classic.

A variety of weapon upgrades and the ability to shoot to the left, right, straight up and down, and even diagonally make a fun shooter while there are enough enemies and hails of bullets to avoid to keep the challenge present. Despite more than 30 years of new entries to the genre, Contra still feels fun today, even though the controls aren’t quite as sharp as they could be.

Graphically, the game still holds up well enough for an 8 bit contender and while the music may not be filled with memorable chiptunes, it doesn’t grate on the ears either.

Whether a familiar classic to be revisited or an 8 bit entry yet to be tackled, Contra is still worth a playthrough. Just remember Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start (or Select Start for 2 player) if you find the standard allotment of lives to be a bit tight.

2021
04/12
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