Video Game Review #590: Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!

Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!

PlayStation

Before Playing:

This was a game that escaped my attention when I was a kid. I wasn't really into the whole Disney thing. In the PS1 era, I tended to gravitate towards more dark and mature titles. I would've been playing Resident Evil, Parasite Eve, Metal Gear or Silent Hill. Not a Toy Story game. So it's understandable that I'd skip over this completely. I mean, I liked platformers. But to me, Toy Story was probably a little too "child-like" for me.

I would have never given this game a second thought, but then it started popping up in some of my online gaming circles. People really seemed to like the game, praising it and saying it is one of the best (and most underplayed) 3D platformers of the PS1 era. Of course, my interest was piqued by this. I'm a big fan of 3D platformers where you collect a lot of stuff. I fondly remember enjoying games like Croc, Jersey Devil, and Gex when I was younger.

I made an oath to play this game someday. And here we are. What would I think of it? Let's find out.

Story:

I haven't seen Toy Story 2 in a very long time, but this game follows the story pretty accurately (from what I can remember). Woody is taken by the evil toy collector man. You play as Buzz as you pursue him and try to get him back. You progress through a series of stages representing different parts of the movie. You start in Andy's room, and have to explore the house. Then the next level is the area outside the house, and the intersecting yards of all the neighbors. And then the next level is a construction area down the block (which I don't remember from the movie). Things eventually take you to Al's Toy Barn, where the main events of the movie play out through the game.

Cutscenes from the movie fill in the action in between stages. In fact I think some of these scenes must have been created just for the game. You have to say: they really nailed making this a great Toy Story themed game. 

Gameplay:

Like I said before, this is a 3D platformer. You control Buzz Lightyear. Each stage is filled with pizza tokens, which act as the game's "gold stars" - to make a Mario comparison. You have to collect enough of these tokens within a stage before you can move onto the next one. They are hidden in several different ways. For example, you may collect one from beating a boss. You may collect one from winning a race. You may collect one by climbing to the stage's highest point. You may collect one from finding all the five hidden items in a stage. These hidden items all vary from stage to stage. The most memorable one for me was collecting army men, because they would fire off explosives 'n shit to signal to you where they were hiding. Another thing you must do is collect 50 coins, and bring them to the piggy bank toy. He is hidden in each stage. When you bring him 50 coins, you get a pizza token.

I was pretty thorough as I played, making sure to get as many tokens as I possibly could before moving onto the next stage. I'm a big fan of collectathons so this game was right up my alley. Occasionally I would run into a roadblock, as there are sections you can't do until later in the game when you unlock an ability. Then you have to come back at a later time. That was a little annoying, because this game doesn't make it clear that it is one of "those games" at any point as you are playing.

Overall, my main complaint about the game is how you have to be 100% precise in the 3D platforming segments. You're constantly battling the camera and the occasionally jank controls at the same time, so it can get ugly. I hate how you can't adjust the camera yourself. A game like this should be using the trigger buttons to move the camera. But no. It is all automatic. The camera will pan and turn behind you whenever you turn Buzz to look in a certain direction. But there is a slight delay to it. It really messed me up as I was playing. I am not normally one to complain about controls or the camera, but this was annoying. 

Because it is so difficult to make precision jumps, this made some areas of the game nearly fricking unplayable for me. The construction area was one of those areas. You have to jump from beam to beam and platform to platform within this giant construction tower. If you mess up once you will fall all the way to the bottom and have to start over again. And this is a really long, painful segment. It can take five or more minutes to get all the way back up there again. Luckily I was playing the game on PlayStation Now, which includes the ability to rewind the game when you mess up. I would have ripped all my hair out if I didn't have that rewind feature.

Frustrating parts aside, the game is not too difficult if you are looking to just race through it and not collect everything. It can likely be beaten in a day or two. I was aiming to get the platinum trophy, so it took me a few weeks of intermittent playing to get there. 

Graphics:

The game looks good. Obviously it is not going to hold a candle to, say, Kingdom Hearts III and its Toy Story stage. That game is freaking incredible looking, like they pulled everything straight from the movie itself. This game is much older, and shows its age. It's definitely a PS1 game, with its polygons, messy textures, and glitching graphics. 

That said, I still like how it looks. I grew up in this era of gaming, so it doesn't look ugly to me at all. Never at any point were the graphics a hindrance to my enjoyment of the game. The camera maybe, but not the actual graphics. The game does a fine job at capturing the look and feel of the Toy Story universe.

 

Sound:

Ironically, the sound that plays during the cutscenes is terrible. Since it is mostly pulled straight from the movie, you'd think it would be good. But no, its muddled, too quiet, and the quality is flat out grainy and bad. You'd think they would have noticed this when testing the game? IDK, man. Maybe it is just the version I played.

The sound that plays during the actual game is fine. The music is catchy. The sound effects fit the tone of the game. There are tons of voice acting clips taken from the movie that really help to sell this world of Toy Story coming to life. No complaints here.

Overall:

I had a decent time with this game. I'm not going to say that it was on the same level as Mario 64 or Banjo-Kazooie, because that would be a lie. It's more along the lines of something like Jersey Devil, Spyro, or one of the 3D Gex games.  

If you are a big fan of the 3D platforming genre, you'll probably feel the same way I do. I think the people that rabidly seem to love this game are either massive Toy Story fans or they grew up with the game. Or both. And there is nothing wrong with that. I'm never going to shame someone for liking a game. Heck, I liked this game. But I can't say that I loved it.

It's good for what it is worth. I like that the worlds are more open, and not as linear. I like interacting with the Toy Story characters and looking at all the creative ways they brought the world of this game to life. The game is relatively easy, though (aside from some of the more unforgiving platforming sections), and it can be beaten in a relatively short amount of time. Unless you are a completionist, there is not much reason to stick around or play through the game again. I played long enough to get the platinum trophy, and then I was out.

While this is an enjoyable game, I question its legacy. I've played through it once, and I doubt I'm ever going to play it again. It's a fun and enjoyable game, and it is good for what it is. I just can't muster too much excitement over it.

THE GRADE:

B-

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Video Game Review #589: Batman: The Video Game

Batman: The Video Game

Game Boy

Before Playing:

This was my first time playing through this game. I was inspired to play it by an episode of Cartridge Club Portable, where this game was highlighted. The hosts liked the game and said it was fun. And you know what I like? I like fun. And I like Batman too. So of course I was going to check this out. Let's see how I feel about it.

Story:

This game follows the same basic plot of the movie. It is broken up into four stages: Axis Chemicals, the art museum, a Batwing flying stage, and the cathedral. There are still-frame cutscenes from the movie vaguely advancing the plot of the game in between stages. Simple but effective.

Gameplay:

People refer to this game as "Batman with a gun." And I can see why: you control Batman and your main method of attack is a gun. Batman is normally very anti-gun, so it is interesting they'd go that route here. But what do I care? I am not a Batman purist. Is the game fun? That's all I care about.

Yeah, it is. I don't know why I always come into Game Boy games thinking they are going to suck. I enjoyed this a lot. It just has the feel of a classic, 2D side scroller that I would have loved to play when I was growing up. I can just see myself dedicating hours and hours to this game and getting ridiculously good at it. It's too bad I never had a Game Boy when I was a kid.

The game is relatively short. Each of the four stages is broken up into sections. Level 1-1, level 1-2, etc. Things start out fairly easy. I died maybe once or twice during the first stage, just simply finding out the controls. Batman's jumps are very floaty, and it can be hard to nail precise jumps until you get the hang of things. The line between over and undercompensating when adjusting mid-jump is a fine one. 

You start off with a normal short range projectile weapon. You will notice floating blocks as you make your way through the game. They can be destroyed. The white ones are just standard blocks. The black ones have an item in them. If you were comparing this to Super Mario Bros, the white blocks are like normal bricks and the black blocks are like question mark boxes. Inside these boxes are things like health items, extra lives, and alternate weapons. You can get a long range gun, a wave gun, and a batarang projectile that comes back to you like a boomerang. Different power ups increase the damage these weapons do. I think you can get up to x3 on the damage. But there are bad items that bring your damage level down a level if you pick them up. And if you pick up a weapon you don't want by accident, it drops back to one. I always found myself accidentally picking up the short range pea shooter you start off with, and it was driving me nuts.

The basic goal of each stage is to navigate from the starting point to a door at the end of the level. Point A to point B. Standard 2D platformer stuff. Occasionally you will fight a boss character. Bosses are essentially bullet sponges with attack patterns that are, for the most part, predictable. The boss of level one is Jack Napier. Beat him and he falls into the chemicals and becomes the Joker. The museum level has you fighting one of the Joker's big brutes. The end of the game (the fourth level) has you fighting the Joker himself, of course. When you beat him he goes flying off the roof to his death. So Batman uses guns and kills in this game.

The third level, which you will notice I skipped over, is a flying stage. It's a pretty standard 2D shooter. You control the Batwing and you can move up and down and left and right on the screen, as it scrolls forward. You can shoot both forwards and back. Enemies appear and you shoot them. I was never challenged on these levels. They are very easy. The bosses are easy too, once you figure out their pattern. The flying stages may be fairly simple, but I enjoy them and how they bring some variety to the gameplay.

I played through this game twice for my review. The first time, I used save states just to get through the game and complete it. Then I came back a few days later and beat it the normal way. I was surprised at how easy it was the second time through. Really, the only time I ever died or ran into trouble is when I would mistime a jump. The only truly difficult level is right at the end of the game: the scrolling stage in the cathedral. The screen scrolls forward pretty fast, and you don't have the opportunity to see what is coming up and where you will need to be jumping. Plus, the ledges are filled with enemies. There is almost no way to get through without taking a ton of damage.

Graphics:

It's a simple looking game, but it works just fine for me. Obviously it isn't going to look as good as anything coming out now in 2025. And that is totally okay. The game looks good for its time, both the stages themselves and the cutscenes in between. While it may be a simple looking game, at no point do the graphics hinder my enjoyment of the game, or detract from how much fun it is.

Sound:

I need to do a better job at remembering how a game sounds when I write these reviews. I feel like I always put the same thing: "I just finished the game two days ago and I have already forgotten what it sounds like. I never stood out to me as good or bad either way. I suppose if it was bad, I would have noticed it. I guess that means it was fine."

I should copy that somewhere so I can paste it into further reviews. Because it 100% applies here.

Overall:

This was an enjoyable game. Like I said before, I would have loved this when I was a kid. It was right up my alley. It's challenging, but not overly so. It's fun, it's short, it keeps you coming back for more. The fact that I played through it twice should tell you something, because I rarely do that for these reviews.

If you are a fan of classic 2D side scrollers from the 8-bit era, you should definitely check this out. No, it's not "the greatest platformer of all time" or anything like that. But if you were alive back when this game came out, you probably would have liked it. Some people find it hard to go back and play games from this era. But not me. I embrace it. The game does have its flaws (floaty jumps, bullet sponge bosses, that darn auto scrolling stage, and the game's overall short length), but those flaws aren't insurmountable. 

This is now the 17th Batman game I've played and reviewed for this blog. Of the 589 games I have reviewed so far, 2.9% have been Batman games. I wonder if it is my most reviewed franchise, or if something like Sonic or Mario has it beat. I should check that out someday.

THE GRADE:

B

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Video Game Review #588: Resident Evil 6

Resident Evil 6

PlayStation 3

Nostalgia Factor:

I remember very little about Resident Evil 6. I've only played through it one time in my life prior to playing it for this review. I remember disliking how it was such an action oriented explosion fest. It didn't even try to be scary, like prior Resident Evils. The series had taken a turn away from the scary with 4, continuing the trend with 5. But this game was on a whole different level. It seemed to have no interest in being scary, or to have any tense, frightening moments. It was all bang bang shoot the enemies and boom duck under the explosion, and quick! - run across this crumbling bridge, jump onto a helicopter!! Flashy graphics, cinematic cutscenes. All action, all the time. To me, this is where the series truly stopped being Resident Evil as I know it.

Because I was so disgusted with the game, I never bothered to play it a second time. Looking back through my trophy info, it seems the time of my initial playthrough was 2013, which was 12 years ago. I think enough time has passed for me to cool off and look at things objectively. I keep seeing discourse online that this game isn't as bad as people remember it. And maybe that will be true. This time, I'll know what to expect coming in. This time, I'll be able to put aside those lofty expectations I had for this coming in, and just be able to sit back, have fun, and enjoy the game as its intended to be enjoyed. At least I hope I am able to enjoy it. I'm able to be open minded in my old age.

So let's do it. Resident Evil 6: good game, or just as bad as I remember it to be? Time to find out.

Story:

I just finished playing through this game with all four available characters, and I still couldn't tell you what the heck just happened. The story is complete nonsense. There's a plague. You're racing around the world trying to stop it. You fight the bad guys who are pulling the strings. That's really all I can tell you. I don't know. Like I said, it's a mess. Nothing is explained in the game's opening scenes. I don't have a manual, so I don't know if anything is explained in there either. The game just kind of throws you into the action and expects you to keep up.

It's all so ridiculous. Clearly, the game is more about moving from giant set piece to giant set piece than telling an actual coherent story. You'll go from shooting enemies in a cave, to getting on a boat that crashes into the coast, to fighting through hordes of zombies in the street, to getting on a plane and fighting monsters on the plane, to crashing the plane into a city, to wandering a cemetery, to finding an underground lab, to riding a mine cart and blasting away at Ada Wong's clone (?). I think there's a plot about the game's fictional president getting ass @ssinated (don't want my blog to get shut down). And Wesker has a son, but he's a good guy - apparently?

*sigh*

To be honest with you, I stopped paying attention an hour or two in the game. It's complete rubbish. What happened to the Resident Evil I used to love? Just out of curiousity, here is the Wikipedia summary for the game's story:

"On 24 December 2012, Jake Muller, son of late bio-terrorist Albert Wesker, flees local authorities during a bio-terrorist attack in Edonia. He partners with Division of Security Operations (DSO) agent and Raccoon City survivor Sherry Birkin and learns that she is to extract him from the country to create a vaccine for the newly emerged C-virus. However, they are relentlessly hunted by Ustanak, a hulking bio-weapon. Meanwhile, a Bio-terrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA) strike team, led by Chris Redfield and Piers Nivans, is deployed to eliminate the infected local populace. They are attacked by the leader of Neo-Umbrella, who claims to be Ada Wong; she kills the entire team, except Chris and Piers, using a device that injects them with the C-virus, turning them into monsters. Chris goes into a self-imposed exile, afflicted with post-traumatic amnesia. Meanwhile, Sherry and Jake's extraction by the BSAA is sabotaged, forcing them to crash land into the mountains where they are captured by "Ada" for six months.

On 29 June 2013, US President Adam Benford plans to publicly disclose the truth behind the 1998 Raccoon City incident and the government's dealings with Umbrella to prevent further bio-terrorism. However, the venue, located in the American town of Tall Oaks, is hit by another attack, infecting the President. The only survivors, DSO agent and Raccoon City survivor Leon S. Kennedy and Secret Service agent Helena Harper, are forced to kill him. The pair encounters the real Ada Wong (also Taylor), and Leon learns that National Security Advisor Derek Simmons is affiliated with Neo-Umbrella and orchestrated the attack. Leon and Helena fake their deaths and pursue Simmons to Lanshiang, China, where Jake and Sherry escape from their captivity.

Chris returns to duty in the BSAA with Piers and a new team in a besieged Lanshiang. He recovers from his amnesia and recklessly pursues "Ada", resulting in casualties among his unit. Chris and Piers track her down until Leon intervenes. After being informed by Leon, Chris and Piers pursue "Ada" to an aircraft carrier, where they destroy cruise missiles laden with the C-virus. Meanwhile, Leon, Helena, Sherry, and Jake confront Simmons over his involvement with the outbreaks, during which Sherry covertly hands Jake's medical data to Leon in case of their capture. Simmons, infected by a J'avo, admits to assassinating the President to maintain national security. Leon and Helena defeat the mutated Simmons, while Sherry and Jake are captured again. After a C-virus detonates and causes an outbreak in the city, Leon informs Chris of Jake's true identity and has him rescue Jake and Sherry in a remote oil platform. With Ada's assistance, Leon and Helena kill a further mutated Simmons for good.

Chris and Piers head into an underwater facility beneath the oil platform, where they free Jake and Sherry from captivity before encountering a massive bio-weapon called Haos. Severely injured, Piers injects himself with the C-virus to turn the tide of the battle, allowing them to defeat Haos. However, aware of his inevitable mutation, Piers sacrifices himself by forcing Chris into an escape pod and using his mutated abilities to destroy the facility. Jake and Sherry also escape the facility and kill Ustanak as they ride a rocket-powered lift to the surface.

Ada's imposter is revealed to be Carla Radames, a scientist who was forced to transform into an Ada clone by Simmons. Although presumed dead after being shot by one of Simmons' soldiers, Carla attempts a final attack against Ada after injecting herself with a powerful dose of the C-virus, but is killed. Ada then helps Leon and Helena in their fight against Simmons, and later destroys the laboratory where Carla was developed before accepting a new assignment. Leon and Helena are cleared for duty; Chris remains with the BSAA in command of a new squad after overcoming his guilt; Sherry continues her work as a DSO agent; and Jake begins a new life combating bioterrorism in a developing country, with his identity concealed by the BSAA."

Props to you if you were able to read that without your eyes completely glazing over.

Gameplay:

Since I didn't care about the story of Resident Evil 6, my main focus was on its gameplay. This is a behind the back shooter, expanding upon the formula introduced in Resident Evil 4 and 5. I always thought RE4 was a worthy entry in the Resident Evil series, despite the more pronounced shift from horror to action. RE5 put an even greater emphasis on action. As a result, this was where the series started to go off the rails for me. RE6 pushes things even further. This has always been where the series stopped being Resident Evil for me.

Looking at it strictly from the perspective of a shooting game, it is alright. Looking at it from the perspective of a Resident Evil game, it is terrible. But let's put that aside and focus on the basics. Is the game any fun?

Yes and no. I'm not going to lie and say this game is garbage or anything. It is a perfectly serviceable action title. The combat is fun. The giant set pieces can be thrilling. The game can be challenging, but never unfairly so. Well, except for a few parts maybe. But we'll get to that later.

It is fun going through the game's stages and experimenting with your different weapons. Seeing what weapons are effective against which enemies - and where to shoot them. But to be honest, the weapon selection doesn't really give you anything you haven't seen before in the last few Resident Evil games. But this game places a bigger emphasis on melee mechanics than the series ever has in the past. You can also take a lot of damage. You feel more like a superhero than ever before. Blasting, stabbing, kicking, taking a ton of hits. The game clicks when it is moving along quickly from battle to battle. Blast some zombies, move on to the next area, where maybe a few new monsters are introduced, and move on some more. At its best, this is a very well-paced action game.

At its worst, it is a repetitive, ridiculously over the top cheese fest. There's no self-awareness here. Everything is super serious, all the time. The other games had a B movie quality, often smirking at you or giving you a reverential nod from off camera. But this game throws all that charm out the window. It feels like it is going for the look and feel of a Michael Bay movie. And the effort falls flat. It's all explosions and shooting enemies and running from action sequence to action sequence. It felt heartless to me. I never really cared what was going on from moment to moment.

I say it is repetitive because you often end up fighting through the same areas and same bosses, due to how the game is broken up by characters. Let me talk about that. So when the game opens up, you are given the choice of the Leon, Chris, or Jack campaign. These campaigns intertwine with one another, telling you the story of events from the perspective of each of these characters. As a result, you often find yourself fighting through the same set pieces and same boss battles you have before. I don't like this. Show us something new! It worked in past games like Resident Evil 2. In part because I actually cared about the story, the characters, and what was going on in the game. But that didn't apply here. 

When you finish all three campaigns, the fourth and final campaign opens: the Ada Wong campaign. But don't get too excited. It's just more areas you've already seen before. Who was excited to do the mine cart section for a second time? Not me.

I hate how the game is constantly trying to cram the multiplayer aspect down your throat. When you turn on the game and try to continue from your last save, you have to navigate through about 9033430430403403 menu choices before you are allowed to continue. It's like, no. I don't want to play the freaking game online or with a partner. It came out 13 years ago. Is anyone even still playing it online anymore? They don't need to push it so hard.

What else can I complain about? How about the herb system? In every RE game leading up to this one, you can combine herbs and directly use them from your menu. In this game, you can combine herbs, but there is no option to "use" them. I was so freaking lost when I was in a tough battle, I needed to heal, and I couldn't figure out how to use a green/red combined herb. Heal me already! But no. In this game, you use your herbs to create health capsules, which you must eat with the game unpaused by pressing the R2 button. Never at any point in the game was this ever explained, and it took me forever to figure it out. Why fix what isn't broken? I hated it.

Partner AI is dumb. But I do like how they can revive you when you run out of health. It saved my butt a number of times. But other than that, there is no real advantage to having a partner in this game. Sometimes the partner can even be a hindrance, like when you need to wait for them before you can enter a door. This leads to a complaint I mentioned earlier in the review. There is an area in the game when you are outside a church and enemies are swarming you. You have to fight several waves of them before the front door unlocks and you can run inside. But I died twice here because my partner couldn't get to the door in time without me getting killed. And I had to do that entire, long action sequence that precedes this all over again. Twice. Drove me nuts. And I remember getting frustrated by this same segment when I last played the game in 2013. It's pretty much the only thing I remembered about the game, aside from the Asian market boss battle, the fight with the giant Godzilla thing among the crumbling buildings, and the infested city area full of purple gas.

Graphics:

I suppose if there is one area you can't criticize the game too much, it is the graphics. It all looks pretty good. The characters, the bosses, the mutated enemies, the gore, the environments, the giant explosions and set pieces: everything. No, maybe it doesn't look as good as something designed for the PS4, but that doesn't matter to me. It looks perfectly fine and at no point ever are the graphics a hindrance. Well, I take that back. It can be too dark sometimes.

Sound:

I have no major complaints here, either. It would be hypocritical of me to complain about the voice acting, when admittedly I didn't care about the story. That aspect of the game means nothing to me. I'm here for the gameplay. As long as the in-game conversations weren't too disruptive, which they weren't. The music and sound effects are good. The game is quiet and ambient when it needs to be, and loud and chaotic when the action gets going. 

All that being said, there is nothing memorable about the music of the game. You could blindfold me and make me listen to the soundtrack for this game, and I probably wouldn't be able to identify it even though I just finished this game a few days ago.

Overall:

Let's circle back to where we started. How do I feel about Resident Evil 6 after 12 years since I played it last? I'll be honest and I will say that I liked it a little bit more this time around. The gameplay is fun. I enjoyed battling my way from area to area. If I can set aside my feelings about the original Resident Evil games and look at this on its own merit, it's an alright game. But that's as far as I'm willing to go. An alright game.

I can't muster up the excitement to give it much more praise than that. It's okay. It's nothing earth shattering. It's just a shooter. Maybe if the name Resident Evil wasn't attached to this, I might be more willing to cut it some slack. But I just can't. It's a fine game. An alright game. But nothing that really stirs any strong feelings within me. And certainly nothing I'll ever play through again in my life.

I'll be generous and say that this game is above average. Because it is. But I'm not going any further than that.

THE GRADE:

C+

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Video Game Review #587: Doom II

Doom II

PC

Nostalgia Factor:

Prior to this review, I had played through Doom II twice in my life. Both times I liked the game, but I didn't really consider it to be anything special. I usually play it on the heels of the original Doom, and I'm sure I just get "Doom'd out" from playing so many of these levels.

This time, I approached the game from a different perspective. Instead of sitting down and devoting long chunks of time to playing the game, I would play it more sparingly. A level here, a level there. Maybe play for 45 minutes each night before bed. The more casual approach definitely helped, as I was more able to enjoy the game than I have in the past.

Let's move onto my full review.

Story:

If you are playing Doom II for the story, you're doing it wrong. I don't know what this story is about. You're a soldier and you are fighting against the bad guys of hell. Mars! Space stations! None of that mattered one tiny bit to me as I played through this. I was here for the gameplay.

Gameplay:

If for some reason you've never played a Doom game before and aren't familiar with how they work, let me explain it to you. Doom is a dark, futuristic first person shooter. The action is fast and chaotic. The levels are giant mazes, and you have to blast through waves of enemies to find the keys you need to make it through the stages and get to the level exits.

The game is filled with weapons you can pick up to mow down your foes. Doom II introduces the double-barreled shotgun. This was my favorite weapon as I played through this game. It packs such a devastating punch. There were only a few occasions in the game where I found myself running out of ammunition. But you still have to manage your ammo inventory properly. You can't just spin around in circles, firing recklessly every which way but where. 

While the gameplay is very similar to that found in the first Doom, I think this game does things just a little bit better. The stages are more creatively designed. There is a wider array of enemies to fight. Lots more secrets and hidden passages to discover. There's even some bonus stages in this game that transport you into the world of Wolfenstein 3D. I was so shocked and surprised to discover these stages on my playthrough, because I had never unlocked them in the past.

There are about 30 stages in total. However, Doom II offers a series of hidden stages called the Master Levels. These levels are extra difficult, and you start each of them with only a handgun. These levels were pretty fun, and added a longevity to the game that wouldn't have been there otherwise.

My only real complaint about this game is the fact that I got lost so many times while playing it. So many stages had one small thing that would hold me up. A switch I couldn't find, a hidden door that I didn't know was there. I had to turn to the internet for help more often than I would care to admit. I don't feel too bad, though. I'd probably still be wandering aimlessly through this game if I didn't turn to the internet for assistance. Back in the day, I can imagine this game must have been quite frustrating to play through without the option of looking online for a walkthrough.

Graphics:

People might say that Doom doesn't look good anymore. I beg to differ. To me, this game has a timeless look and feel that will never die. The levels are big and atmospheric. The enemies are iconic. I can't help but feel overwhelmed by the game's charm when I play this. The graphics clearly are from the 90s and suffer from pixelization and muddied textures at times, but it never effects the actual gameplay.

Maybe this game doesn't look as clear and defined as a Call of Duty game or anything like that. But I love how this game looks. Heck, I prefer this look to the look of the recent Doom remake and its sequels. They lack the heart and soul found here. And they always find a way to mess up the Cacodemons.

Sound:

This game sounds great. It's dark and moody when it needs to be. I love the combination of metal and techno music. But what steals the show for me are, oddly, the sound effects. Each enemy is easily identifiable by the sound it makes when it becomes aware of you. The Imps make kind of a yelling sound. The Pinkies make an oinking sound. The Cacodemons hiss. You always know which weapon to get ready and which enemy to expect when you hear their signature sound effects.

The sound of your weapons firing is awesome, too. Who doesn't feel like a badass when using the double barreled shotgun and listening to the sound it makes as you reload in battle?

Overall:

I had such a great time coming back to visit the classic Doom originals. I really liked the first Doom (let me shamelessly plug my own blog and give you the link to my review here). As much as I liked the original Doom, it is possible that the second Doom is even better. I absolutely loved it. Not only did I love it, but my 5 year old son did too. Now I know this isn't a game for 5 year olds, but he came home when I was playing this once and saw me playing. He would periodically ask to see it in the ensuing weeks, and I'd put it on for him for a few minutes. He became fixated on the Cacodemons. When we have play time before bed, he likes to hiss and pretend we are hiding from the Cacodemons. Sometimes he lays down and says he's dead and that they killed him. It's very cute.

I gave the original Doom an A+. Since I like this game even more than the original, it will very obviously also get an A+. To me, this is super surprising. When I started replaying these old Doom games, I did so with trepidation. I knew that I liked them from when I was younger, but I wasn't very excited to come back. I certainly didn't expect to fall in love with them like I did.

So yeah. Classic Doom. Both 1 and 2: these are awesome games. I had such a fabulous time with both of them. Looking back at my old reviews, I gave Doom 64 an A back when I reviewed it in 2021. So it's not just a fluke. The whole darn series is pretty good. I don't know why that comes as a surprise to me. Doom is a popular franchise for a reason. I'm glad I have finally opened my eyes and am just now appreciating its true greatness.

THE GRADE:

A+

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Video Game Review #586: RoboCop vs The Terminator

RoboCop vs The Terminator

Sega Genesis

Nostalgia Factor:

I rented this game back when it first came out. I really don't remember much about it. I know that I played it. I think I beat it, but I can't say that I did with absolute certainty. I know a lot of people have really fond memories of this game, but to me - it was just another weekend rental, akin to something like Taz: Escape from Mars, Demolition Man, or a Chester Cheetah game. It did not leave a giant impression on me.

30 years have passed. Now that I am listening to a lot of retro gaming podcasts, this game has been brought back onto my radar. It's been discussed on many of my favorite podcasts, and everyone always seems to love it and say glowing things about it.

I decided that it was a good time to come back and revisit this game. I'd always written it off as forgettable, but maybe I hadn't given it the proper chance. Let's jump in.

*quick note, I have recently played and reviewed the SNES version of the game. I reference it a few times here, but please note that it is a completely different game

Story:

This game's story is very thin, but I can't imagine anyone actually plays this game for the story. In short, Skynet has been born out of the technology used in RoboCop. Now, RoboCop must fight against Skynet both in the present, and in the future. You progress from fighting human enemies in modern Detroit, to Terminators and other robots in the future. 

Like I said, the game is very thin on story. Pretty much the only area where the SNES game has this one beat is in the story, which is told through comic book style panels. This game doesn't even try.

Gameplay:

This is a 2D side scrolling shooter. Aside from the d-pad, you only use three buttons: jump, shoot, and switch back and forth between weapons. You control RoboCop. Generally, your goal is to make it to the end of the level and defeat a boss. Some levels are straightforward, point A to point B. Others contain objectives like rescue all the hostages. Some are maze-like in structure.

From the moment you pick up the controller, you are going to find that this game is quite action packed. Your best strategy is to just keep firing ahead of you as you are walking. Enemies come at you from all angles, and you always have to be on the top of your game. There are are several different weapons to pick up as you are playing: grenades, a spread gun, a rapid fire gun, a lazer, a wavy projectile weapon. There's even a gun that shoots homing missiles at your enemies. I think I found this gun in one of the earlier levels in the game. It quickly became my go-to. But when you die in this game, you lose your weapon. I lost mine early on, and then never got one back again.

Although the game is tough and throws a lot of enemies at you, there are lots of health items to replenish your health meter as you move forward. You can earn extra lives by hitting certain point milestones. There are also extra life icons hidden in the stages. There are unlimited continues as well. Plus, when you die, you respawn exactly where you died, with a few seconds of invincibility. You don't go back to a checkpoint or anything, like in a lot of platformers. This becomes very important, especially during boss battles. You're going to want to save up those extra lives.

Although you are mainly just walking forward and blasting everything in sight, there is a little strategy involved. Knowing which weapon to use against which enemy. Switching weapons when you die so you can hang onto your favorite one. You also learn to spread your line of fire all over the screen, up and down. Enemies come at your from every angle. And the best way to stay alive is to get them before you get you. That is what makes it essential you hang onto your good weapons. When you get knocked all the way back to your standard pea shooter, it is not good news. Especially in the later levels. The default gun does almost nothing against your enemies.

There is a lot of trial and error involved. The more you play (and replay) certain areas, the more you understand what the game expects of you. It shouldn't take you too long to complete. I believe it is only 10 or 11 stages long. And most of these stages take between 5 and 10 minutes to complete.

Graphics:

The graphics for this game look pretty good. The characters are large and well animated. RoboCop looks like RoboCop. The Terminator looks like The Terminator. The backgrounds and the stage design can be a little repetitive. But at least they look good, right?

The blood and gore is one of the first things you'll probably notice. And this is something I do remember from when I played this as a kid. It gives the game a lot of edge and a lot of character. Both movie franchises don't hold back when it comes to violence, and I'm glad this game doesn't water things down, and it follows suit.

Sound:

I really enjoyed listening to this game as I played it. I don't know how to describe it, but this game just has SUCH a Genesis feel to it. The music is nice and crunchy, full of bass. At times it actually makes me think of Ecco the Dolphin, which is about as different a game from this that you can imagine. And there are sound effects that I swear are pulled from other games, too. Like X-Men for the Genesis. The sound of Wolverine's claws popping out definitely is something I heard in this game. Among other sound effects.

Overall:

This game was good, I suppose. I'm not going to lie or cave into internet pressure, though. So I'll be honest: it didn't do a whole lot for me. 

I'm sorry. I know this game is well beloved among retro gamers. But to me, the gameplay is nothing special. The game looks good, it sounds good, and it can be fun to feel like an unstoppable force, sowing destruction everywhere you go. But was I actually enjoying myself as I played through this? I can't always say that I was.

I played this with save states. I can't imagine playing without them. Not that the game is that hard. It just takes a lot of patience and some trial and error. But the bosses, mainly the last boss. They can drain your lives quickly. The last boss is a freaking joke. Even armed with two great weapons, seven extra lives, and prodigious use of save states, I still struggled. The last boss is a ridiculous bullet sponge that takes forever to defeat. You can stand there with the rapid fire weapon and just poor your ammo into it life after life after lifer after life, and you still can't beat it. I did cheese my way through with save states, but I just can't imagine doing it without. You probably go back to the beginning of the level, with just three extra lives. You essentially have to be flawless to make it back to the boss with any chance at all. And fewer lives.

I just can't muster up the excitement to give this game more than an "above average" review score. You walk forward and you shoot. Climb ladders and shoot. Jump over gaps and shoot. Pick up items. Cycle between weapons. But always moving, always shooting. It gets tiresome after a while, especially when you factor in some of the game's more frustratingly difficult areas.

So while I will say this game is slightly above average, it's actually going to get the same review score as its SNES counterpart. I don't think the gap between games is as big as people make it out to be. I think this one is probably slightly better, but not enough to warrant a higher review score than the other game. They'll be forever tied together even on my blog, as games that got C pluses together.

THE GRADE:

C+

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VHS Tape #22: May + June '05 Record Tape

(00:00:00)

Tiny clip of Survivor Australian Outback. This whole tape used to be Survivor but I recorded over it.

VH1 Special: When Star Wars Ruled the World. This is mainly a behind the scenes special that goes into the casting and production of the movies and their initial reception at the theater. This first part just covers the first movie and part of the second.

Fear Factor clip where the players have to suck the juice out of these gross intestine looking things, fill a cup with the juice, and then drink it.

VH1 Special (cont). The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi are discussed.

Brief ET clip about a guy who loses 503 pounds.

VH1 Special (cont). Return of the Jedi is further discussed, as well as other post Star Wars stuff, like it's lasting effect on pop culture. Spaceballs is shown. The extreme fans are also discussed, and it shows one couple's Star Wars wedding.

(41:57)

American Idol Presents: World's Worst Auditions
- Discussion about how the same mistakes are made all over the world. The contestants try to make big entrances, they forget the words, they try to bribe or flatter the judges, and they try to bend the age limit
- Brendan auditions. He is a long haired old British guy who is crazy looking and really terrible
- Screeching contestants
- Segment about how every country has a Simon
- Volatile contestants, and a guy who cries
- Funny versions of Satisfaction, Summer of '69, and Hit Me Baby One More Time
- Dino Yazzie
- Funny versions of Together Forever and Footloose
- Bad dancing montage
- Elvis impersonators, people in crazy outfits, and scantily clad chicks
- Keith sings Like a Virgin
- Bad foreign language songs montage
- Funny versions of Tainted Love and My Way

News clips. One is about Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith merchandise and another is about a nerdy girl who is suspended for some kind of plagiarism/citation reasons. She believes she is being treated unfairly.

AI: Worlds Worst Auditions (cont)
- Bad white gangsta with a warbly voice
- Unibrow guy sings Eye of the Tiger
- William Hung and other nerds are showcased
- Promo clip for AI4 finale

Bizarre clip from ABC news where a bunch of Asians are talking, and the channel is glitching. It's pretty trippy.

Clip from MPTV where a man is swimming with the dolphins. The tape is messed up here, so I think I only put this on as filler to get recorded over. The clip ends as soon as the tape clears up.

(1:26:11)

Mad TV
- Guy hits on Bunny Swan at a bar and picks her up
- Woman pretends to be a driving instructor and forces the student driver at gunpoint to drive dangerously to evade the police. He hits a little person among other things and drives through the Gap.

Animal Planet special about Star Wars creatures. Chewbacca and the cantina aliens are discussed

CNN People special about people who hit it big in the entertainment industry. Simon Cowell is interviewed, and details of his personal life are revealed. They also talk about his fashion sense.

Animal Planet SW special (cont). The spotlight is on Yoda and the creature in the asteroid

CNN People special (cont). Mark Burnett is interviewed and they talk about his past as a red beret

APSW special (cont). The creatures at Jabba's palace and also the Ewoks are discussed

CNN People special (cont). More Mark Burnett stuff. They talk about his past as a commando nanny, and of course Survivor is discussed.

APSW special (cont). The CGI Jabba and the re-release of the original trilogy are discussed. The show also dives into the new trilogy. They talk about Watto, Jar Jar, and other creatures from the prequels.

(2:15:42)

Short clip of Yan Can Cook. A woman named Joanne Weir comes out as a guest star and kisses Martin Yan. That's it.

FSN countdown of bizarre sports moments. I only get the last two on tape. Ranked number 2 is Randy Johnson hitting a bird while throwing a pitch. Number is the band running on the field during the Stanford/Cal game.

ET preview of the American Idol 4 finale. Bo and Carrie's parents are interviewed.

Some show called Taboo.
- Asians with the long coiled necks are shown. One chick takes the coils off for a day just to see how it looks.
- Branding, piercing, and other body modifications are discussed

AI4 Final 2 performance episode
- Bo performs first after a botched coin flip, and sings Long, Long Road
- Carrie: Inside Your Heaven
- Bo: Vehicle
- Carrie: Independence Day
- Bo: Inside Your Heaven
- Carrie: Angels Brought Me Here
- Reflection on the season

(3:05:12)

The Rob and Amber wedding special. In this first segment, they begin planning the wedding, including the location and the food. They also take dancing lessons and plan each other's wedding gifts. Rob goes to NYC to buy clothes. Amber gets Rob a giant Red Sox painting for a present and takes it to Red Sox training camp to get it signed by the players. Rob gets Amber a house and furnishes it with furniture he buys on a spending frenzy at a store. They also taste the food that will be at the wedding.

Cingular commercial about Star Wars Episode III stuff you can get for your phone.

Rob and Amber wedding special (cont). Rob and Amber plan their vows, and also the drinks for the wedding.

Fox 6 news clip recapping the Final 2 performances of American Idol. There is also a news segment about texting. Oh, the technology these days.

Cheap Seats clip where a guy with a mullet bowls.

More Fox 6 news stuff about American Idol. Katrina Cravy interviews Bo Bice and Simon Cowell.

Another Cheap Seats bowling clip.

Bucks win NBA Draft Lottery. The experts predict that the Bucks will select Andrew Bogut. Which they eventually do.

Rob and Amber wedding special (cont). Rob and Amber have their bachelor and bachelorette parties, and reveal their gifts to each other. The actual wedding finally takes place.

More Fox 6 news stuff about American Idol. Katrina interviews Carrie Underwood.

(4:04:14)

Short clip of Angelina Jolie interview on Showbiz Tonight

Clip from the news where the Bucks are discussing who they are going to select with the #1 pick in the draft

Really short Around the Horn clip where Tony Kornheiser predicts Bo Bice will win American Idol

AI4 Finale
- Beach Boys montage

Short Lost clips interspersed with AI4 finale clips. Artz gets blown up! Yay!

AI4 Finale (cont.)
- Carrie sings a song
- Corey Clark spoof where Paula is hiding a secret affair with Simon
- "Reach" Ford Music video
- Simon Cowell interviewed
- Bad National Anthem singer from the audition process comes back and sings
- Carrie and Bo sing Up Where We Belong
- Reflection on Bo and Carrie's journeys
- Top ten worst auditions countdown
- Simon scandal news story. He is in love with William Hung.
- Carrie sings with Rascal Flatts
- Anthony, Anwar and Kenny G perform I Believe I Can Fly
- Jessica, Constantine, Nadia, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd perform Walk This Way
- Nikko, Scott, and George Benson sing On Broadway
- Vonzell performs with Billy Preston
- Babyface sings with Mikalah and Lindsay
- Bo sings Sweet Home Alabama with Skynyrd

Clip from the Lost Finale. Michael swims in the water after the raft is destroyed and screams Walt's name.

AI4 Finale (cont.)
- Carrie is annonced as the winner and has to sing

(5:24:40)

American Idol 4 coverage on Fox 6 news, followed by commercials.

VH1 Reality TV Secrets 2. Guest commenters include Rob Cesternino and Boston Rob
- They talk about controversy behind the American Idol voting process
- Last Comic Standing vote controversy. The judges votes were thrown out and the producers selected who advanced
- The Apprentice is discussed
- Man gambles correctly on Survivor and other reality show winners based on spoilers. OMG Survivor Sucks is shown!! This was recorded before I even knew what Sucks was.
- Commercials
- Controversy from the show The Swan about the therapist really being a doctor or not
- The Average Joe controversy where the men who auditioned were misled about the type of show they were going to be on
- America's Next Top Model eating disorder controversy
- Discussion about The Simple Life being staged and scripted
- Commercials
- Contestants talk about how they have to sign away their lives to be on these shows, and about how they can never get away from the cameras and microphones

Maury Povich
- Boy who is 7 years old and 250 pounds. His mom brags about how he can eat whatever he wants from the fridge
- Matt the giant is interviewed! He was in Big Fish and on a Howard Stern clip on tape #6 of my record tapes.

Simon Cowell special on VH1. This is really only the beginning part because the tape ends.


END OF TAPE

VHS Archive:

Introduction: VHS Tapes and Me

VHS Tape #0: Howard Stern Tape

Funny Mix #1

Funny Cable Tape (2)

Rudy Boesch Mix (3)

Funny Tape (4)

The Ultimate Rupert Boneham Mix (5)

Are You Ready? (6)

Mixed Tape #7

Matteo Tape (8)

Funny If You're a Pothead (9)

John Tape (10)

Funny Mix #11

Crazy Tape of Psychos (12)

Funny Mix #13

Mixed, Jumbled, Confused, Shaken: It's a Record Tape! (14)

Peanut Tape (15)

Can You Dig It? (16)

Another Fantastic Record Tape (17)

Fairplay (18)

Survivor All Stars (19)

This Tape is The Bomb, Dawg (20)

Go Bo! Bo Bice Record Tape (21)

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