Mitsota Reviews: Retro Game Crunch
Retro Game Crunch is a compilation of 7 80's inspired video games by Rusty Moyher, Shaun Inman, and Matt Grimm. They do not have a company name, and Rusty is the only of the 3 to have an independent work available for purchase on Steam. As these are 7 different video games bundled in one launcher, I'll separate each of my reviews into little easy to digest groups.
Game #1: Super! Clew Land
Super! Clew Land is an exploration platformer; A genre that's been very dormant for a long time time. The idea behind the game is that it's a metroidvania platformer without a combat focus, the point of the game is more about solving puzzles and sometimes gimmick mechanics. In this case, the Gimmick mechanic is evolution. If you eat a creature, you'll get little colored points on the pink diagram to the right of the screen.
If you sort the colored points correctly, as shown on the diagram, you'll add to the evolution meter. Fill it all the way to gain a new power. The game's challenge comes from knowing which creatures to eat and when to maximize your evolution rate, thus giving you the necessary powers to see the game's end. It's all very Commodore 64, I like it.
Game #2: End of Line
End of Line is a top down grid based puzzle game about a little blue robot who must kill a room full of medical robots so that he can then kill himself. It's actually a pretty fun game, despite the horribly morbid description. I enjoyed myself while playing this one. Sure, a few of the puzzles were a little phoned in, but a lot of them were serious brain benders that held me up for quite a while. A great DOS style puzzle game, the theme would even fit in well with other DOS puzzle games, as a lot of them were cute on the outside, morbid on the inside.
Game #3: Gaia Attack
Gaia Attack is a score based platforming brawler for 1 to 4 players. Enemies fall into the arena from above, then once players clear the arena of enemies, the screen scrolls slowly up through a platforming segment to the next arena. Each level ends once players board a flying pirate ship and defeat it's captain. Once a level ends, you move onto a harder level with new enemies and a new theme. (Swamp, Desert, Ice, ect.) This game most likely has an ending, but I ragequit on level 3, and came back to discover that this particular game doesn't save your progress. Cute game, not sure how much money I'd spend on it at an arcade though.
Game #4: Paradox Lost
Paradox Lost is a metroidvania platformer, and unlike Super! Clew Land, this one has combat! You got all the usual moves, shooting, ice shooting, sliding through tight spaces, double jumping, huge sprawling map, ect. The game is more or less a clone of Metroid, but with time travel mechanics. (That basically boil down to "time travel here, then time travel 2 feet away to get past a wall!") While this is the longest and most in-depth of the games in the bundle, I'm not really a big fan of this one.
Game #5: Wub Wub Wescue
Wub Wub Wescue is a slow paced arcade platformer, in the vein of Donkey Kong Jr. The player controls a cute lil' pug dog, and must navigate him through a series of short reflex based puzzles in order to save the pug's master from some tribesmen. This game is pretty simple, and pretty adorable, I like it.
Game #6: Brains & Hearts
Brains & Hearts is a deviously simple 2 player card game. Each player draws 3 cards from a 14 card deck, with the cards 2-7 and the "Warp Card". (or Ace. The warp card acts as a 1, a 7, and can be used to chain 7s and 2s.) Players take turns playing 1 card each in 1 of 3 slots for each player. The ultimate goal is to chain together a consecutive chain of 3 numbers. (I.E. 2, 3, 4; W, 2, 3; 7, W, 2) Any card in play can be used in the chain, and the chain can be continued as long as there are consecutive numbers in play. Chains can be prevented or set up in 3 ways: by declaring a card you place as unplayable until your next turn, placing a new card over one of your existing cards, or by rolling the "god die". a 1-2 means you can lower the value of one of your in-play cards, a 3-4 means you can lower the value of one of your enemy's in play cards, and a 5-6 means you loose a turn. Play continues until there are no more cards in play/chains possible, the winner is whoever claimed the most cards.
I know it sounds complex, but it's actually a brilliant card game, and it makes a lot of sense after your first game. My only complaint is the name; I would have called it "Hearts and Minds", I'd guess it's an in-joke among the devs or something.
Game #7: Shuten
Shuten is a Feudal Japan themed shmup. Gameplay consists of the player fighting demons with his magic sword. While it's attack power is weak, it can reflect enemy shots in a large area in front of the player, and when the slash button is held, can be used to assassinate weaker demons and steal their power, which can then be used until the player's death on an alternate shoot button. Each stage has it's own theme and enemy wave paterns, as well as their own boss. Inbetween stages the player can buy upgrades for demon powers as well as extra lives with accumulated money. While the game got steadily more and more challenging, I never felt so frustrated that I gave up, thanks to the helpful powerups that become more affordable as enemies drop more and more money. A solid shmup experience.
All in all, I had a lot of fun with Retro Game Crunch, even if I didn't enjoy Paradox Lost. The other games in the collection held my asttention just fine, and I really enjoyed my time with them, Shuten and Wub Wub Wescue specifically.