Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Video Game Review #407: Double Dragon Advance

Double Dragon Advance
Game Boy Advance




Nostalgia Factor:

Mop Up Duty moves into 2003 - the year I turned 21 years old. Video games were on the back burner for me around this time as I was focused on doing 21 year old things like partying and getting drunk. I certainly wasn't playing Double Dragon for the Game Boy Advance.

Speaking of the GBA, I never owned one of these growing up, so expect to see several titles for this handheld system appearing on my Mop Up Duty review tour. This system has a huge library of games I've never played before, so it only makes sense that if I'm attempting to broaden my gaming horizons that I check some of these games out.




Story:

This game follows the same basic plot as the original Double Dragon, where you play as a pair of brothers who are attempting to rescue Marian from a gang of bad guys.

This version of the game tries to squeeze a little bit extra out of the game's thin storyline, adding things like nuclear blasts to the plot and anime-esque cutscenes in between levels, explaining the progression of the brothers from one stage to the next. Honestly, this can all be ignored as it doesn't really add much to the game itself.




Gameplay:

If you're looking for a port of the NES classic, you've come to the wrong place. Double Dragon Advance is a port of the arcade version of the game - with things like extra levels, enemies, and story sequences added to the mix.

There's not much I can say about this title's gameplay, as I've already reviewed the arcade version in the past. This is a beat 'em up. You walk from left to right, punching and attacking the enemies that pop up in your way. You can pick things up like whips and baseball bats to attack your foes. In this version of the game I found some of these pickups almost to be overpowered, especially the whips and nunchuks. They never disappear no matter how many times you get hit and drop them. They have long range. They do massive damage to enemies, and can hit multiple enemies at the same time. My strategy was always to find the longest weapon and hang onto it throughout as much of the entire stage as possible.

Enemies in this game attempt to swarm you from all angles, so that is why having a weapon that hits multiple enemies at the same time is such a big deal. They get stun locked when they are hit, which makes it very easy to get in multiple follow-up attacks. Whenever I got overwhelmed, I would jump kick my way out of the fray, and that seemed to work more often than not.

I found the enemy AI in this version of Double Dragon to be the worst of any Double Dragon game I have ever played. The whole game is very easy. The enemies fall for the trick of going up and down on the plane and then hitting them nearly every single time. The only danger you really have to worry about is getting swarmed on all sides. They can take down your health pretty quickly. You know what else is very dangerous? Falling off the bottom of the screen. This happened to me so many times, I was getting a little mad about it.

It turned out okay in the end. As I said, this game is very easy. When you run out of lives you can use a continue, which drops you off right where you died. You are never sent back to the beginning of a level again, nor do you ever have to really worry about running out of lives or not being able to complete the game.




Graphics:

To an outsider, this is probably the best looking version of the original Double Dragon. The detail added to the characters sets it aside from its NES and arcade counterparts, as do the improved backgrounds and settings. The are new enemy types added to this game which helps add some variety to battles.

To me, I think I prefer the simplicity of the earlier versions of the game. This version is a bit too blocky for me and I think it will not age as well as the other versions.




Sound:

All the music from the original game returns, but now sped up and "modernized" to appeal to gamers in 2003. And I don't like it. Not that the music is bad, but give me the classic version of the Double Dragon soundtrack any day of the week. It's not even a comparison. I understand that the whole point of Double Dragon Advance is to upgrade an old classic with new graphics and new music, but this is one of those situations where the music should have been left alone.




Overall:

This is a decent version of the original Double Dragon. The NES game will always place #1 in my heart, but this version gives the arcade game a run for its money. One thing this game does better is in its length and its replayability. The original arcade game can be beaten in about 25 minutes, and once you are done with it, there really is not much of a reason to come back.

This game took me somewhere in the area of an hour to complete, with the added stages and cutscenes. I swear some of the existing stages were extended as well. Upon beating the game, I realized there were multiple versions of the game to play through, as well as a co-op mode that I am sure is fun to play with a friend. So I would say that this game has the arcade version beat in that area.

All in all, this is a good beat 'em up. If you're a fan of the genre I fully encourage you to check this out. On the flip side, this isn't a great beat 'em up. I wouldn't put it on the level of something like the TMNT games, Final Fight, or the Simpsons. Even as far as Double Dragon games go, this game is lacking that "iconic" hook to it that elevated the series above its peers back in the 80s and 90s. If you were to put this game in front of me along with the NES and arcade versions of the game, this would be the last one I'd come to. I know that doesn't make any sense considering I just said it is probably better than the arcade version, but that is just how my mind works.



THE GRADE:
B



40th Birthday Mop Up Duty Celebration Tour:




1986:


1987:


1988:


1989:


1990:


1991:


1992:


1993:


1994:


1995:


1996:


1997:


1998:


1999:


2000:


2001:


2002:


2003:
Double Dragon Advance (the review you're reading)


And up next, we're moving onto 2004,
to speed things up a bit, with
Metroid Zero Mission!


For a complete index of all my past posts and game reviews, click



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Tuesday, August 30, 2022

Video Game Review #406: The Revenge of Shinobi

The Revenge of Shinobi
Game Boy Advance




Nostalgia Factor:

History being made here, folks. Put it on your calendar. My first ever review of a Game Boy Advance title.

To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect with this game. It bears the name The Revenge of Shinobi, which is a Genesis title I reviewed back on May 2nd as an earlier installment on my Mop Up Duty review tour. A little research on Google determined that this was actually a completely different game, although it shared the same name.

That was good enough for me. I was looking for a quick game to play for the year 2002, and this one fit the bill. Let's check it out and see if it lives up to the Shinobi name.




Story:

This game takes place in ancient Japan. Legend says that an evil demon was destroyed by five heroes, each of whom yielded a magical blade. After its defeat, the demon's corruption worked its way into each of these five blades, turning the heroes into maniacal villains. It's your job to defeat these villains, collecting all five blades in the process, and bringing them back to your village elder who can use magic to banish the evil demon and free the heroes from its influence once and for all.

Spoiler alert! The village elder turns out to be the demon in hiding, and once you bring all the blades to him, you have to fight him and defeat him as he attempts to morph into a massive dragon. Defeat him, and you return peace to the land.

If I got a few small details wrong, sue me. I wrote that all from memory.




Gameplay:

This is Shinobi in name only. It might look like a proper Shinobi game at first glance, but don't let the ninja theme fool you. Most Shinobi games follow a fast-paced run and slash gameplay formula with platforming elements. This game does not.

This game is slow. Very slow. You walk forward. You see an enemy. You hesitantly walk toward it, slashing it when it is within distance of your sword. If the slash doesn't defeat your enemy, you back off and let him or her come to you, and then you slash them again! Enemy defeated, you move forward into the stage. Rinse and repeat for every single enemy you encounter.

You have to take your time as you make your way through each stage. You can't just run through, slash the enemy, and keep moving. This title is focused more on slower paced one-on-one battles with individual enemies.

Each stage has a beginning and an end point. It's simply your goal to make it to the end point. Gates may bar your passage, so you have to be on the lookout for switches that can open them. Finding these switches often involves going inside buildings to look for them. What's inside buildings? More enemies to defeat.

This entire game is very repetitive. Walk through a level. Enter every house you see. Dispatch every enemy you see. If there's a switch, throw it. If there's a scroll, collect it. That's about it. There's the game for you.

Maybe I am oversimplifying things a bit too much, but I think I'm pretty much on point. You fight bosses from time to time, but most of these bosses can be defeated with the same plucky hit-and-retreat style attacks that you use on normal enemies. 
 
There are other ways to engage enemies, like with magical spells or ninja stars, but it takes a very long time to fill your magic meter, making these attacks impractical. Ninja stars? You have a very limited supply of them, and honestly I learned that when I fiddled around with the stars I often left myself open to enemy attacks. I was better off just using the sword and sticking to my tried and true tactics instead.

There are five sets of missions to complete. At the end of each set of levels is a boss to fight and a sword to collect. Once you've collected all five swords you fight the game's boss. Defeat him and the game is over and the credits begin to roll.

I wish I could say there was something special about this title's gameplay, but there really is not. This is one of the most middle-of-the-road games I've ever played. Not bad, but not particularly enjoyable either. It's like they set out to make a mediocre game and accomplished just that.




Graphics:

If this game has a bright spot, it is the graphics. Your character and his enemies are composed of charming sprite based artwork. The animation is nice. This looks like a late 16-bit era title.

The highlight for me has to be the setting of the game. The backgrounds can be beautiful sometimes. I like when you enter the tall grass and butterflies fly away from you. It's small touches like that which really help bring ancient Japan to life in a very fun and charming way.




Sound:

This game has some nice soothing music which helps to add to the charming and authentic ancient Japan aesthetic. The sound effects are appropriate for the type of game this is. Nothing really to complain about in this department.




Overall:

While this game has some nice things going for it in the music and graphics department, everything else about it screams average.

The gameplay is just so bland and so repetitive. Everything fun and addictive about the Shinobi series has been zapped dry from this version of the game. I almost wish it was an adaptation or port of the original Revenge of Shinobi. There's nothing memorable, fun, or innovative about this game.

That said, this isn't necessarily a bad game. The mechanics are all right. I had some fun with a few of the early stages. The boss battles, particularly the ones at the end, are enjoyable. I liked how open each stage is, and how they are non-linear in the sense that you can explore them for collectibles and scrolls that enhance your magic attacks.

So yeah. This is certainly a playable game. And I wouldn't say it is a bad or terrible game. It's just not particularly memorable either. It's there. It exists. It's a completely and utterly average title, befitting of the C I'm about to give it. You know what? I'm even going to dock the score a little bit since this game does an injustice to the legacy of the Shinobi series. Definitely the worst game in the series I've played. 



THE GRADE:
C-



40th Birthday Mop Up Duty Celebration Tour:




1986:


1987:


1988:


1989:


1990:


1991:


1992:


1993:


1994:


1995:


1996:


1997:


1998:


1999:


2000:


2001:


2002:
The Revenge of Shinobi  (the review you're reading)


Next, Mop Up Duty moves into 2003
with another Game Boy Advance title:
Double Dragon Advance!



For a complete index of all my past posts and game reviews, click



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Video Game Review #405: Austin Powers Pinball

Austin Powers Pinball
PlayStation




Nostalgia Factor:

Sometimes I'll spot a cheap game on the shelf and just think "why not?" That's what happened with Austin Powers Pinball. I had never heard of the game. I'm not a big fan of pinball. Presumably I wouldn't like the game. But it was only 50 cents. If anything, it would be good for a few cheap laughs. I just had to buy it!

This was about six or seven years ago. That's how long the game sat on my shelf before I finally picked it up and played it. Why now, after all these years? Because this game came out in 2002. I'm up to 2002 in my Mop Up Duty tour. It was like it was meant to be.




Story:

Pinball games don't really have stories, but I have to give credit to the pinball machines featured in this game for how well they capture the spirit of the films. The visuals, the sound bites. The fact that you can do pinball "missions" inspired by the film, such as hitting the ball into different holes to ask a prisoner questions.

This is a pinball game, first and foremost. You don't have a quest to complete or an end objective other than getting the highest score.




Gameplay:

You are given a choice between two different pinball machines to play on. The first one is based on the original Austin Powers movie and the second one is based on its sequel: The Spy Who Shagged Me.

There are different modes you can pick from for each pinball table, such as novice, regular, arcade, and tournament mode. What do these different designations mean? I don't know. It's not explained at all in the game. I tried them all, but for the most part I just went ahead and picked regular for most attempts.

Have you ever played on a pinball table before? Good! I shouldn't have to explain too much how this game works. You use the flippers and you hit the ball around the table, looking to hit things and trigger different events and missions, which can help you earn bonus points and extra lives. If the ball gets by your flippers and goes off the bottom of the screen you lose a life. You start each stage with three or five lives depending on what mode you selected. Your goal is to have the highest score when you run out lives.

Simple, huh? Yes. And I don't mean that in a bad way. This game does a very adequate job of bringing the pinball experience to the home screen. I don't think I've ever played a game that has replicated the experience quite as well. The downside to this? Just like real pinball machines, it gets boring fast and has very limited replay appeal.

I've never been one to waste a lot of time or money on pinball machines when I'm at the arcade. And apparently I'm not one to waste a lot of time on them at home either. I think I played each pinball table in the game for about 10 or 15 minutes each before I was done with them. So that means this game offered me a whopping 30 minutes of gameplay before I got tired of it.

That is not good.




Graphics:

It looks like a pinball table. What else can I say? I guess a little more could have gone into this game's presentation. No cutscenes. Very drab and lifeless menu screens. I don't know what else to say.

This is not a visually exciting game, I guess I can say that.




Sound:

While this game does a nice job with its voice acting and its small music clips from the movie, it is lacking in one major department: there is no Soul Bossa Nova to be found here. That's right, the world famous Austin Powers theme song does not even make an appearance in the game. This is inexcusable. It would have fit in perfectly as background music with all the authentic pinball sounds these machines make.

I'm just going to go ahead and post this musical track below and you can listen to it while you read the rest of this review.




Overall:

This is an extraordinarily average game, which surprisingly exceeded my expectations of it. I thought this would be a horrible, cringe-worthy title that would make me roll my eyes every 20 seconds. It's not. Instead it is a perfectly playable port of two pinball machines you could find at any bowling alley or retro arcade.

If you're into pinball: cool. Go ahead and check this out. If you are like me and you're not into pinball, you aren't missing anything by not playing this. This game reminds me of every single reason I'm not a pinball fan to begin with. That main reason is bad luck. It happened to me FOUR STRAIGHT TIMES in this game where the ball dropped directly between my flippers without even giving me an opportunity to hit it. Four straight times. That's a microcosm of my pinball "career" right there. I have the worst luck when playing this game, and that's one of the reasons I think I don't like it. It doesn't matter how good you are or how careful you approach the game: you often don't have your fate in your own hands. Too much is up to random chance.

I don't know if I will ever be able to get past that.



THE GRADE:
D+




40th Birthday Mop Up Duty Celebration Tour:




1986:


1987:


1988:


1989:


1990:


1991:


1992:


1993:


1994:


1995:


1996:


1997:


1998:


1999:


2000:


2001:


2002:
Austin Powers Pinball (the review you're reading)

And next up, my first
Game Boy Advance review:
The Revenge of Shinobi!



For a complete index of all my past posts and game reviews, click


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Video Game Review #404: Batman: Gotham City Racer

Batman: Gotham City Racer
PlayStation




Nostalgia Factor:

Mop Up Duty moves forward into the year 2001 with my review of Batman: Gotham City Racer for the PS1. I had never heard of this game when it was released. In fact, I had never heard of this game until just a few days ago. I thought it sounded fun, so I fired it up.

I expected something like a Mario Kart or Crash Team Racing game, where you'd control characters like Batman, Robin, The Joker, Penguin, etc. I was very wrong. Read on for my full thoughts on this very unusual game.




Story:

This game uses the characters and events from The New Batman Adventures cartoon series. As a kid, I had stopped watching after Batman: The Animated Series went off the air (or so I thought it did). This series uses many of the same characters and voice actors from the Animated Series, including Kevin Conroy as Batman, Mark Hamill as the Joker, and many returning original favorites like Poison Ivy, The Penguin, Two-Face, The Riddler, etc. I can't believe I missed out on it!

Many of the stages are introduced by small cutscenes which push along the game's action. All the cutscenes are taken from the cartoon. While it is nice to see clips from the cartoon (featuring so many villains that I absolutely love), the story sequences seem very shallow and rushed. It simply jumps from one tiny scenario to another. For example you'll be chasing down Two-Face, and you fight him and he gets away. Then you'll see Catwoman climbing a building and chase after her. And then you have to disarm a series of bombs set by the Joker. Events just keep happening one after another. Even the charm of the cartoon clips can't hide how shoddily this game's story is put together. There's no depth to it whatsoever. It's just a series of events.

I know this probably sounds like an odd criticism, but I hope it makes sense.




Gameplay:

Let me get this out of the way: the is NOT a cart racer like Mario Kart or Crash Team Racing. Not at all. Story mode consists of a single player campaign consisting of 51 driving-related missions that you must complete.

The first thing you'll notice when you start playing is how difficult it is to control the Batmobile. I couldn't believe how tough of a time I was having on my first attempt. I was sliding off the road, bashing into walls. I couldn't drive straight. Couldn't take a turn without wiping out. I kept getting stuck in corners and having to try and wildly back out. I failed miserably on my first several attempts before I had to back away from the game and take a breather. Did I even want to continue playing? The game was such a nightmare to control. I couldn't imagine having to suffer through this for 51 stages.

Due to my interest in the story, I kept going. It took me a while to finally get a hold of things. All it boiled down to was driving my Batmobile from one part of the map to another, avoiding the roadblocks that would pop up in my way. I didn't have to overthink it, nor did I have to try to drive too fast. I adapted a slow but steady approach that kept things manageable for me and kept a close eye on the map. Once I figured out the route to the finish line through trial and error, I could make it there in no time.

That was it. That was the end of stage one. All it amounted to was making it from the starting point to a checkpoint within the time limit. Once I figured out the path to the end, I completed it in about one minute. If one mission could be completed in one minute, it wouldn't take me too long to complete 51 missions.

I kept playing, and the more I played the easier the game became for me. Many stages require you to learn through trial and error, but the vast majority can be completed on your first attempt. The time limit they give you is generous. You just have to pay attention and not panic and you can figure things out in no time.

There are three different standard mission types. There's the mission type where you have to simply drive from one point to another. That's the majority of mission types you will encounter. Another mission type consists of following a car from a safe distance, not letting them see you. You also can't lose sight of the car or you fail. At first I struggled with these stages, but it wasn't long before I became a master of driving the Batmobile. I think these turned out to be the easiest stages. Heck, this whole game is ridiculously easy.

The third stage type is the combat stage. You have to follow a villain's car and destroy it. The Batmobile fires an unlimited supply of Batarangs that you can fire ahead of you. These Batarangs deal a consistent amount of damage to your opponent, particularly if you get very close to them. The Batmobile can also fire up to three electric charges at your enemy. It homes in on them and stands a good shot at hitting them if your aim is in the ballpark area. These things are very useful to have. Combat stages also became incredibly easy to me as I made my way through the game. Like I said: the whole game is easy.

51 stages can be completed in one sitting. I personally made it to the 40s on my first attempt, but I had to stop my gaming session early to go to bed. I could have done it!

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the occasional Batgirl motorcycle levels. These are terrible. It is so much harder to control than the Batmobile. I can't ever say I truly got the hand of riding these. But the levels are easy just as any other level. If you take your time, watch the map, and avoid any catastrophic wipe outs you should pass each motorcycle level with relative ease. Luckily there aren't too many of them.

When all is said and done, I can look back and say that I had a pretty fun time with this game. It has its obvious flaws. The terrible controls, the disjointed storyline, the loading times, the repetitive missions. I understand the game is flawed. But that doesn't mean I didn't have fun playing it.




Graphics:

I enjoy the minimalistic look of Gotham as you are driving around. Some people might see the emptiness as lazy or bland, but I do not. There's just something about it that really does a lot of justice to the style of the cartoon. I love it.

The animated sequences between stages are a nice touch as well. I may have complained about the story being a bit disjointed, but at least the game takes a big swing at making the feel of the animated series come to life. I feel it succeeds in that regard.




Sound:

I would have absolutely loved to hear some music from Batman: The Animated Series make an appearance here. The thought of driving around with that soundtrack playing seems like a total missed opportunity. Nothing against the music they did use. It just didn't quite seem as good.

Props to the voice actors for being terrific, as always. These cartoons have such an enormously talented cast, and it is always a pleasure to hear from them.




Overall:

I'm shocked to say that I had a fun time with this game. When I first started playing this, I was completely disgusted by it and turned off by its seemingly awful controls. It didn't take long for the game to win me over. As soon as you get a hang of those controls, this game becomes fun and addicting.

I was coming into this planning to give it a C+, as I recognized the game was severely flawed despite my enjoyment of it. And then you know what I realized? Screw that. I know this game is not a critical darling. I'm not going to give it a score in the C range just because it is expected of me. I had FUN with this. And that's what counts, right? Having fun?

This won't be a popular opinion, but I don't care. I'm grading this in the B range. Take that, naysayers! To the Batmobile!


THE GRADE:
B-



40th Birthday Mop Up Duty Celebration Tour:




1986:


1987:


1988:


1989:


1990:


1991:


1992:


1993:


1994:


1995:


1996:


1997:


1998:


1999:


2000:


2001:
Batman: Gotham City Racer (the review you're reading)



And up next we move onto 2002 with:
Austin Powers Pinball
(seriously!)



For a complete index of all my past posts and game reviews, click



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