January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Story Title: “The Strange Experiment of Dr. Erdel” Published: November 1955 Writers: Joseph Samachson and Jack Miller Artist: Joe Certa
Story Title: “The Case of the Magic Baseball” Published: December 1955 Writer: Jack Miller Artist: Joe Certa
The Review: Our first introduction to J’onn J’onzz, the shapeshifting “Manhunter from Mars”, begins in the fittingly high-tech (for the time) observatory of “famous scientist” Professor Mark Erdel. Professor Erdel has just completed his greatest creation yet: a “robot brain” he hopes will allow him to explore the mysteries of the cosmos and other dimensions. Professor Erdel eagerly activates the machine and sets off a cacophony of lights and electrical energy, though even he isn’t sure if the machine is reaching into “space—time–or the fourth dimensions!” Presently, the professor’s musings are answered as a strange alien being appears courtesy of his awesome machine: a muscular, green-skinned figure in a blue cape and matching boots. Identifying himself as J’onn J’onzz, the enigmatic figure boasts incredible psychic powers, which he uses to read Professor Erdel’s mind and quickly learn our language. However, J’onn opts to simply ask how he’s been transported from “the fourth planet from the Sun” and is impressed by the professor’s ingenuity. However, J’onn asks to be returned home forthwith, only to learn that it could take Professor Erdel “weeks–months—even years!” to “change the thinking plot of the brain” and return J’onn to Mars. Still, J’onn doesn’t seem too upset and quickly decides to adapt his appearance fit in for his extended stay, warping his flesh and attire with his “chameleon-like powers” to resemble a common Earthman. Professor Erdel’s so amazed by this, and his visitor, that he suddenly suffers a debilitating heart attack. Although J’onn believes Martian “Xymo serum” could cure the professor, he never gets the chance to retrieve it as Professor Erdel is too weak to do anything but apologise for stranding J’onn on Earth before he dies.
Stranded on Earth, Martian J’onn J’onnz decides to play detective to pass the time.
Realising he’s stuck on Earth for the foreseeable future as it will take his people years or centuries to complete their interstellar “Star-Ride” experiments, J’onn throws on a hat and coat and explores his new home. J’onn visits the seashore to use his incredible mental powers to extract gold particles from the sea to fund his travels around the world (since I guess he can’t fly just yet?) in an incorporeal form, marvelling at our skyscrapers, monuments to war, and “ancient-wheeled vehicles”, concepts and technology that Mars has abandoned for a thousand years. Becoming visible, J’onn reflects on humanity’s crime epidemic (another concept Mars made obsolete through “enlightened science”) and decides to help, visiting the local police station as “John Jones” and requesting to become a police detective. This goes ridiculously well as, after a few off-panel meetings, J’onn is immediately hired by the “Chief of Detectives”! It’s not clear what qualifies J’onn to be a detective, and the story doesn’t even show him fabricating documents or using his mental powers to convince the cops to accept him. In fact, J’onn’s more concerned with people smoking cigarettes since fire is his one weakness. J’onn “J’onz’s” first case sees him use his intangibility to pass through a wall and apprehend some gunmen and get the drop on trigger-happy Tom Taylor. J’onn’s lieutenant then tasks him with watching star baseball pitcher “Big” Bob Michaels, fresh out of prison and seemingly a target for mobsters seeking to ruin his chances at a comeback. Hanging around outside Bob’s apartment, J’onn uses his telepathy to listen in as Bob receives a threatening phone call from the Devon mob warning him to purposely lose his upcoming game or have his career ruined before it can properly begin.
J’onn telekinetically aids a star pitcher from being abused by devious mobsters.
To his credit, the defiant Bob refuses to go along with this demand as he’s determined to rebuild his life. Pondering Bob’s fate, J’onn uses his uncanny powers to take a mental peek into the future and predicts victory for Bob and his team, the Flamingos, if the star pitcher goes unmolested. Eager to see this vision become reality, J’onn attends the big game between the Flamingos and the Wonders, where Bob attracts much media attention. Devon and his mobster buddies also attend the game, relishing Bob’s obvious discomfort and confident that he’ll play ball (no pun intended). Watching on, J’onn employs “a little Martian molecular hypnosis” (what we’d now just call telekinesis) to aid Bob, snagging the baseball in mid-air and driving it straight into the catcher’s mitt for a strike. Each time the nervous Bob pitches, J’onn pushes the ball to the catcher, much to the delight of the crowd and the irritation of the mob, who suspect that Bob is double-crossing them by playing to win. When Bob steps up to bat, J’onn again intervenes and ensures he hits a spectacular home run, securing a dramatic victory for the Flamingos. Enraged, the mobsters reach for their guns and prepare to make Bob pay for his insolence with his life, only to be tripped by the invisible Martian Manhunter. Detective John Jones then apprehends the Devon mob, who are summarily charged with attempted bribery and blackmail.
Final Thoughts: Like many readers, I’m sure, I haven’t read any of the Martian Manhunter’s solo adventures prior to these issues. There’s a good reason for this as many of J’onn’s solo ventures typically die out as the character is historically unsustainable in his own book and works far better as the heart and soul of the JLA. With the JLA, the Martian Manhunter is a keen mind, a moral compass, and a powerhouse when needed, bringing an outsider’s perspective to the team and carrying a great deal of emotion after losing his home world. Naturally, his debut stories came five years before the first appearance of the JLA so you don’t see any of that here, but that’s not all that’s missing. J’onn’s world is said to be very much alive and so technologically and intellectually advanced that they’ve abolished all war, evolved beyond our “primitive” means of transportation, and have eradicated crime. Oddly, J’onn laments that his people won’t be able to rescue him for years or even centuries as they haven’t mastered space travel yet, which seems to go against how amazingly advanced J’onn makes Mars out to be. Additionally, J’onn is a super nice guy and ridiculously understanding, barely sparing any time mourning his fate or being separated from his world. Indeed, he’s impressed by Professor Erdel and intrigued by his new home and doesn’t seem put out at all by being trapped on Earth.
Although a visually fun character, J’onn’s debut fails to do him justice.
The Martian Manhunter is certainly a powerful character, even in his debut issues, though his abilities are mostly limited to mental powers and intangibility. J’onn can render himself invisible and intangible at will, with no apparent limitation on how long he can stay in this state. Although now known for being a shapeshifter, the Martian Manhunter only uses this ability once to assume a human guise, a form he basically sticks to for the rest of these two stories. If this ability has more possibilities, we don’t see them here, meaning you’d be forgiven for thinking these were bog-standard detective stories at first glance. The Martian Manhunter makes great use of his invisibility and intangibility to surprise goons and helps Bob Michaels out with his telekinesis, but I don’t get why he didn’t just go to the Devon mob directly and proactively stop them. This might’ve given the story a chance to showcase J’onn’s weakness to fire, which he talks about, but we never see. Or, perhaps, showcased his shapeshifting powers to bee effect as he could’ve impersonated someone. There’s also no sense that the Martian Manhunter can fly or has superhuman strength and speed, though personally I don’t mind this so much as I think it’s better when J’onn’s powers are focused on his mental abilities. Still, these are awful stories to read that completely fail to take advantage of their unique premise or the incredible abilities of the Manhunter from Mars.
My Rating:
⭐
Rating: 1 out of 5.
Terrible
Did you enjoy the Martian Manhunter’s first appearance? Do you agree that his incredible powers were misrepresented here? Were you surprised to find Mars is still populated at this point? What are some of your favourite J’onn J’onzz moments and sci-fi comics? Agree or disagree with me in the comments and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest other Martian Manhunter stories for me to review.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 8 August 2017 Originally Released: 1 March 2010 Developer: Inti Creates / Capcom Metacritic Scores: 81 / 8.3
Also Available For: Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series S
Gameplay and Power-Ups: Like its predecessor, Mega Man 10 is a throwback to the 8-bit glory days of the Blue Bomber, though without all the distracting sprite flickering and slowdown. You battle eight initial stages and their “Robot Masters”, acquiring their “Special Weapons” before tackling Doctor Albert Wily’s latest death trap lair. Mega Man still sports a very stripped back arsenal, unable to slide, charge his shot, or gain additional armour as these abilities are divided between the other playable characters. All three have the same basic controls which, by default, see you firing your currently equipped weapon with X, unleashing a rapid-fire attack with B, and jumping with X or Y. Jumps are noticeably floaty when underwater or in space and players still replenish health and Special Weapon ammo by collecting capsules. While you can switch between Mega Man’s Special Weapons from the “View” menu, the Left and Right Bumpers allow for quick switching again and you can now save and visit the shop at Doctor Thomas Light’s lab from the stage select screen and after clearing every level (even Dr. Wily’s stages). You spend the screws you’ve collected on special items, such as restorative Tanks, 1-ups (both also found in stages) and helpers like Beat and Eddie (who save you from bottomless pits or dish out goodies, respectively). You also grab single-use items that protect you from spikes or double the damage you take, and an item that automatically refills whichever Special Weapon has the least ammo. The shop is much cheaper than in Mega Man 9 (though I was playing on “Easy Mode”) but also somewhat redundant as Mega Man 10 is noticeably easier. When in the “View” menu, you can activate your Tanks to refill your health and/or ammo and call upon Mega Man’s robotic canine companion Rush to spring you to higher ground or carry you across pits (until you hit a wall or the meter runs dry).
Each character sports unique abilities to alter the game’s thankfully less taxing challenge.
You can pick between Mega Man, Proto Man, and Bass from the start. Proto Man reflects projectiles with his shield, has a charged shot, and slides to avoid damage while Bass fires in all directions (when standing still), dashes, and combines with his robot dog, Treble, to don powerful armour. Bass is the weakest, however, and only Mega Man uses the returning Special Weapons from the Game Boy-inspired games. Special Weapons have little functionality outside of boss battles (I mainly used the Commando Bomb to destroy certain walls) but they make fighting Robot Masters a joke if you attack with the right ones. As ever, their abilities will be familiar to long-time players: the Chill Spike fires a freezing shot that leaves icicles on the ground for a short time, the Wheel Cutter sends buzzsaws travelling across every surface, and the Commando Bomb explodes and sends shockwaves on impact. The Triple Blade is a useful three-way shot, the Rebound Striker bounces about hitting anything in its path, and the Water Shield protects you and fires in a spiral spread. The Thunder Wool was probably the most troublesome Special Weapon as the thundercloud can be easily dissipated by enemies before it fires its lightning bolt. Some Special Weapons drain faster than others, though “Easy Mode” features a handy additional power-ups that fully restores your health and ammo. “Easy Mode” also reduces the damage you take and adds floating platforms over pits and some spike beds, greatly reducing the difficulty. Blade Man’s stage features see-saw-like platforms that carry you over spikes and pits, the time bomb platforms from Mega Man 6 (Capcom, 1993) return to help (and hinder if you linger too long), and you’ll run on treadmills in Sheep Man’s stage to temporarily activate platforms.
Alongside returning hazards and mechanics, some fun new gimmicks keep things fresh.
All the usual hazards return, including insta-death spikes, pits, flames, and slippery surfaces. Conveyor belts push you towards spiked walls in Solar Man’s stage, giant bubbles carry you to the same hazard in Pump Man’s stage, and shifting sand threatens to consume you in Commando Man’s stage. You must dodge or hop to speeding, kamikaze trucks in Nitro Man’s stage, drop down a few spike-lined shafts, and be sure not to linger when on Chill Man’s destructible ice cubes. Disappearing and reappearing blocks also show up (though you can usually use Rush Jet to bypass them), as do ladders and moving platforms. Sheep Man’s cyberspace-like stage features tetrominoes that disappear when you touch them (often dropping you to spikes or pits), Commando Man’s stage also features a unique sandstorm that pushes you along (and to your death if you’re not careful), and Pump Man’s stage sees you traversing pipes, having your jumps screwed up by falling water, and struggling against the flow of the murky underwater sections. Solar Man’s garish stage is more vertical, introducing fireball hazards from the walls and ceilings, and Dr. Wily’s fortress recycles most gimmicks to test everything you’ve learned. Dr. Wily’s tetrominoes and destructible blocks often lead to goodies, if you dare take the risk, and his third stage features a unique rising platform section where you must hop to pressure pads on either side to navigate insta-death spike fields. The see-saw platforms are underwater, where your jumps are floatier and you’re at greater risk of hitting insta-death spikes. When you climb ladders in his lair, enemies and hazards are placed to knock you off, though there are no horizontal autoscrollers or anxiety-inducing chase sequences to worry about here. Even the Legacy Collection 2’s janky-ass “save state” feature (which simply saves everything you’ve collected and returns you to your last checkpoint) is tolerable as Mega Man 10 is so much easier than the last game, meaning things are challenging but not frustrating and I enjoyed the chance to “get good” at the trickier sections. Die-hards can make things harder for themselves with “Normal Mode” or using Bass or Proto Man, but I’ll take a more relaxed “Easy Mode” any day over being needlessly stressed.
Presentation: Like Mega Man 9, Mega Man 10 continues to ape the old-school 8-bit aesthetic of the NES games, though it seems the developers took more inspiration from the laudedMega Man 2(Capcom, 1988) this time. The sprites, especially in cutscenes, seem more basic than Mega Man 9’s and far closer to Mega Man 2’s. This doesn’t stop Mega Man 10 including nice, chunky, partially animated sprite art alongside its sprite-based cutscenes, though, with the story depicting Mega Man’s “sister”, Roll, getting sick and Dr. Wily first helping, then betraying, the heroes (only to be in their debt when he also gets sick). Mega Man’s sprite is otherwise unchanged from before, only blinking when idle and changing colour with Special Weapons, and still dramatically exploding upon death. He demonstrates each Special Weapon more thoroughly, however, the stage intros are a bit more detailed than before, and Proto Man even appears on the title screen. Mega Man 10 continues to showcase some super catchy chip tunes, nicely translates Bass from a 16-bit character to a chibi 8-bit anti-hero, and recreates the limitations of the NES even when it doesn’t have to (like placing larger bosses against a plain background, for example). Mega Man 10 is one of the rare Mega Man games to include five stages to Dr. Wily’s fortress rather than the usual four, thankfully separating the final battle against him to a unique area, one set about his ominous space station. Dr. Wily’s fortress is also bigger and more impressive than ever, the weapon select screen has been overhauled from the last game, and stages seem to be more detailed and varied compared to Mega Man 8, while still very much staying true to the simplicity of the NES titles.
The throwback graphics and quirky new stages shine all the brighter this time around.
Chill Man’s stage is full of gleaming, slippery surfaces and features looming, frozen pyramids in the background, which turns to night and is beset by a thick snowstorm. Nitro Man’s stage boasts the twinkling night sky and a futuristic city background and is apparently set on a bustling highway as aggressive trucks speed from both sides. Commando Man’s stage initially echoes Pharaoh Man’s stage from Mega Man 4(Capcom, 1991), starting as a scorching desert, though it quickly becomes clear the sand is littered with mines and plagued by sandstorms. Blade Man’s stage is a medieval castle, with cannons visible on the outer walls and banners, columns, and gaping windows set into the brickwork. Strike Man’s stage was the most impressive and unique as it’s set in a football stadium. You start on the pitch, with empty seats in the background, and battle past the surprisingly aggressive lockers, hop to basketball hoop platforms, and blast rocket-powered footballs to reach higher ground (or pass under them when they sport spikes). Sheep Man’s stage was a bit of a mess with its constantly shifting, cyberspace-like foreground, but I enjoyed the PC desktop theme seen throughout, especially in the Pointan enemies. Pump Man’s stage seems to be a cistern or dank sewer, featuring murky water and lots of pipes to jump to. Haiker N’s clog some of these and the underwater current can mess with your movements. Solar Man’s stage was by far the most garish, featuring a vivid and ugly red backdrop to a mechanical foreground beset by spinning gears, glowing pipes, and lava. The exterior to Dr. Wily’s fortress is drenched by an all-too-brief downpour and the inside is a mechanical hellhole that features previous gimmicks. As ever, these are the last visually interesting stages as it’s all just a mess of mechanical bits and bobs and unnecessarily loud colours, but stage five does feature a unique layout where the entire background is upside down due to the gravity. Oddly, there’s no gravity based gimmick here, though your jumps are floaty and the final battle does see the Earth hanging upside down for a fun visual.
Enemies and Bosses: The hard-hat-wearing Metalls return with three variants: the regular spread shot Metall, ones that fly using propeller hats, and Numetall variants that spit sticky goo. The machine gun-wielding Sniper Joe from Mega Man 9 returns, still hiding behind his shield and jumping to fake you out, as do the jet-powered Shield Attackers. The floating Suzys are also back, as are Mega Man 2’s Molmoles (both are great for “farming” resources), Shrimparages, and annoying Sprinklans (which reflect your regular shot). New enemies include a fireball spitting robotic antlion hidden in Commando Man’s desert, a sound wave-firing totem pole found in Sheep Man’s stages and baseball throwing Mecha Pitchans in Strike Man’s stake. Sentient axes try to hack you in Blade Man’s stage, snowman-like Kaoa Geenos toss their heads in Chill Man’s stage, and heavily armoured Oshitsu Osarettsus await in Nitro Man’s stage. We’ve got weird robotic brains that link to turrets or little tanks, searchlight robots that screw with the direction of conveyor belts, floating and stationary cannons, mechanical flowers than unleash a charged laser blast, and relatively harmless cubes that multiply when hit. There are four mini bosses to encounter here, with two being recycled in Dr. Wily’s fortress. You battle a mechanical goalpost twice in Strike Man’s stage, riding its heavy fists to blast its head while avoiding being electrocuted, and hop to Tricastle’s spiked platforms to blast its eyes in Blade Man’s stage. Fenix and Suzak appear twice and are fought in tandem, with the robo-birds taking turns spitting flames and darting from side to side, as does the Octobulb. This is a pretty unique fight as you must run on a treadmill to power-up blocks to hop to so you can blast its lightbulb-like head, though you must be wary of its minions and the sparks it sends around the arena when the power runs out.
Though uninspired, the new Special Weapons make mincemeat out of the Robot Masters.
As always, Mega Man 10 can be made more challenging depending on the order you fight the Robot Masters, though many are so ridiculously easy that you can decimate them in a few hits with the right Special Weapon (on “Easy Mode”, anyway). I fought Chill Man first, who is weak to Solar Blaze, but your regular Mega Buster will do just fine. He leaps about firing his Chill Spike, which either freezes you or forms spikes if it misses. While this Special Weapons doesn’t travel too far, it’s more than enough to cool down Nitro Man, who races back and forth on his motorcycle and tosses his gear-like Wheel Cutter, which travels across the floor and up walls. This makes short work of Commando Man, a bulky sprite who stomps around firing his Commando Bomb at the walls or floor to cause a shockwave. While Blade Man impresses by clinging to surfaces, flinging his Triple Blade and darting at you like a missile, the Commando Bomb is all-but-guaranteed to hit him no matter how nimble he is. The Triple Shot is so overpowered against Strike Man that he barely got a chance to move, let along toss his ricocheting Rebound Striker shot! And good thing, too, as these balls can be troublesome to avoid as they careen off every surface, a mechanic that’s perfect for the bizarre Sheep Man. Sheep Man transforms into four storm clouds to fire lightning bolts and bursts with electricity when on the ground, but you won’t have to worry about picking which cloud hides the real Sheep Man if you toss a few Rebound Strikers. Although Pump Man is weak to the Thunder Wool, his Water Sheild and large hit box mean the attack can be dispelled before it can properly fire. Luckily, Pump Man simply hops about and fires an easily avoided spiral in mid-air, meaning you can just unload with the Mega Buster’s autofire mode. Like Strike Man, Solar Man was a joke with the Water Shield, which shreds him before he can even think about unleashing Solar Blaze. As always, each Robot Master is fought again in Dr. Wily’s castle.
Despite one tedious boss fight, even the endgame is far more forgiving compared to the previous game.
Dr. Wily’s stage also features three simulators that unleash drone mimics of nine former Robot Masters to try your new Special Weapons on, alongside a new version of the Yellow Devil. The “Block Devil” slowly assembles from the blocks surrounding you, which can be tricky to dodge and are immune to all damage. Once formed, it floats up and down and fires a big plasma shot from its central core, which must be hit with either Rebound Striker or Thunder Wool. This battle is more tedious than challenging since it involves a lot of waiting around for the Block Devil to assemble and disassemble. The Crab Puncher prior to it is much more interesting, being a big, cartoonish robot crab that shields its vulnerable eyestalks with its pincers (which can also be destroyed) and spits froth-like projectiles. The Commando Bomb and Thunder Wool work well here but you can also use the floating, spiked platforms to blast its weak spots. When you reach Dr. Wily’s fourth stage, you face a two-phase battle against his large, intimidating, skull-faced pirate ship-like craft. Though it sports a large hit box and fires homing missiles from its back, you can hop to the gigantic missiles that fire from its mouth to unload on the skull-like face with Solar Blaze. After enough hits, Dr. Wily’s cockpit is exposed and the ship regenerates its health, now flying overhead and firing spiral projectiles and devastating lightning bolts. These are easily avoided, however, and the Water Shield deals big damage to the cockpit (though Triple Blade also works). After beating it, you stock up on resources and head to Dr. Wily’s space station for the final showdown, thankfully one of the easiest of any Mega Man game I’ve played! The feverish Dr. Wily attacks in his UFO-like capsule alongside an obvious decoy, both firing plasma orbs, sending shockwaves across the ground, or firing a larger projectile between them. Though they teleport away pretty quickly, the lower gravity gives you the edge you need to get high enough to attack with the Chill Spike.
Additional Features: In the original release of Mega Man 10, there were twelve Achievements up for grabs, but Legacy Collection 2 features only three (with you earning one for beating the game with each character). You get additional Achievements by taking on Legacy Collection 2’s “Challenges”, however, which remix stages and hazards from the four games and present time trials and boss rushes that I had no interest in trying to beat. Legacy Collection 2 also includes borders, filters, a music player, sound test, and extra armour to reduce the damage you take. There are additional challenges in Mega Man 10 as well, from simple stuff like running ahead, climbing ladders, and defeating bosses to trickier objectives like avoiding damage, dying, or playing without your helmet. You can make the game harder with “Normal Mode”, tackle it as either Bass or Proto Man, and play three “Special Stages” based on three of the Game Boy games. These act as a coda to the main game, charting Mega Man’s escape from Dr. Wily’s exploding space station, and see you acquiring Special Weapons from those games (the explosive Ballade Cracker, the Mirror Buster energy shield, and the arcing Screw Crusher) and using them against the so-called “Mega Man Killers”, Enker, Punk, and Ballade.
Final Thoughts: Given how much I struggled with Mega Man 9, I wasn’t optimistic about Mega Man 10. Even when I saw the “Easy Mode”, I had my doubts as Capcom’s definition of “easy” differs greatly from mine. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Mega Man 10 is challenging, but not impossible, and vastly more enjoyable as a result. Every complaint I had about Mega Man 9 has been addressed, with the game offering more chances to save, use the shop (which is much cheaper), and being much fairer with its obstacles. Things can get rough, of course, thanks to the knock back and many bottomless pits and insta-death spikes, but it never had me tearing my hair out even if there weren’t any “Easy Mode” safety nets nearby. Although the Special Weapons continue to find their most use against Robot Masters and once again fail to be very imaginative, I liked that Mega Man, Proto Man, and Bass all played differently (though it might’ve been nice to swap between them at will). Mega Man 10 looked, played, and “felt” far more akin to Mega Man 2, rivalling that game with its soundtrack and level variety at times. While Solar Man’s stage is an eyesore, I liked Strike Man’s stadium-themed stage and Blade Man’s medieval castle. I was happy to see Rush Jet once again be a viable way to bypass obstacles, and that some stages featured alternative paths, and that the final boss was split into separate sections to make it less aggravating. The Robot Masters were as colourful and lively as ever, if far weaker than usual, though Dr. Wily’s defenders left a lost to be desired. Still, I had a lot more fun with Mega Man 10 than I was expecting as the difficulty curve is far more manageable this time around, making it a worthy successor to the NES classics.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Do you agree that Mega Man 10 is superior to its predecessor, or did you find it too easy? Which character was your favourite to play as and what did you think of Mega Man’s new Special Weapons? Were you also glad to see the save function and shop be more accessible? Did you ever beat the game on “Normal Mode” and best the returning Game Boy bosses? Which sci-fi videogames are you playing this month? Use the comments section below to talk to me about Mega Man10 and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest more Mega Man content for the site.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 29 September 1990 Developer: Capcom MobyGames Score: 7.6
Also Available For: Arcade, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Master System, MS-DOS, Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii (Virtual Console), PC, PC Engine.TurboGrafx-16, PlayStation, SEGA Mega Drive Mini, ZX Spectrum
The Review: Essentially a remake and reimagining of the original arcade game, its ports, and its sequels, Strider is a 2D arcade-style hack-and-slash title. Players guide top assassin Strider Hiryu through five stages (set in the far-flung future of 2048) to assassinate Grandmaster Meio, who has established a dictatorial rule with his robots and cyborgs. Though he lacks any idle poses or victory animations, Strider is a visually impressive character, sporting a purple/blue/silver attire, a shock of red hair, and somersaulting about with his floaty jumps. Gameplay options are a simple as you could want, with Strider performing his aforementioned jump with either A or C and slashing enemies with his sword with B. You can crouch and attack, attack in mid-air, and press A and C or C and B together to performing a leaping attack. Strider clings to walls and ceilings with a pair of hooks to clamber up surfaces and shimmy over enemies. Pressing down and either A or C sees Strider slide under hazards, projectiles, and some enemies (though I always took damage if I hit an enemy) and you can extend the reach and power of your sword attacks with certain pick-ups. Others grant you an extra life or make you temporarily invincible (both of which you’ll desperately need!), restore some or all of your health or extend your health bar, or award points. You earn extra lives with a high score and you’ll get some temporary help from robot allies if you’re lucky. The Dipodal Saucer may weaken your energy bar, but it attacks with electrical blasts when you slash your sword to attack other enemies, the Terapodal Robo-panther fights alongside you on the ground, and the Hawk Robot circles above striking nearby enemies. You often grab these items by destroying robot drones and they nearly always land in precarious positions, meaning you’re likely to injure yourself grabbing them!
Run, jump, slash, and climb through and past enemies and obstacles alike.
Strider offers three difficulty settings and allows players to set the number of lives they start with. Each stage contains a few different areas to battle through, with the game being surprisingly generous with its checkpoints, and betrays its arcade roots by pitting you against a timer. This refills when you defeat mini bosses, but it can be quite tight to reach each checkpoint with the many hazards and projectiles in each screen. Strider may be nimble but he’s a very big, often slow target and it’s extremely easy to be hit in mid-jump or when sliding under projectiles. It doesn’t help that the enemies flood the screen, constantly respawning and swarming you, or that this slows the action with sprite flickering, screen tearing, and stuttering as the game loads each area. While fun to control on the ground and often tasked with outrunning explosions and other hazards, leaping across chasms or hopping to moving platforms, Strider is very finnicky when affixed to walls and ceilings. His controls go a bit wonky, he hangs there as an obvious target, and it’s very easy to simply slip or be knocked down one of the game’s many bottomless pits. Some stages feature a gravity gimmick, forcing you to battle on the ceiling and turning the sky into a hazard. Others have you hopping to flying platforms and hanging beneath them to avoid bombs dropped by the Ballrog battleship. Drill-like spikes, piranha-infested waters, unreliable springy platforms, explosive munitions, spiked walls, and hidden boosters that send you flying into the abyss are commonplace, so you must constantly be vigilant. While each stage is quite large and varied, they’re also paradoxically short and there are no bonus games to mix up the action, such as a sidescrolling shooter where you get to control Strider’s awesome, high-tech glider. Instead, you must settle for some bonus points at the end of the stage.
If there’s one thing Strider has going for it, it’s some bizarre and challenging bosses.
Although Strider often struggles with all the action and many enemies sport basic attack animations, the game throws loads of enemies in your path and they’re all annoying! From swarms of seemingly never-ending drones to cybernetic soldiers carrying pulse rifles, to spider-like robots and chicken-like mech walkers, the game’s enemies are relentless, constantly respawning and filling the screen with projectiles. You’ll also encounter many mini bosses and peculiar large mechanical guardians, with many littering the screen with flames or projectiles upon defeat. Stage 1 pits you against a theatrical wrestler who blocks your sword and judo tosses you overhead, a security robot traps you in an enclosed space and fires lasers that ricochet off every surface. A gaggle of onlookers turns out to be a large, sickle-wielding robot centipede whose back you must jump and cling to to pummel its head! Stage 2 has you battle a giant (but limited) mechanical ape (who bursts into hazardous flames upon defeat), desperately landing hits as he fires homing missiles, darts offscreen, and take out three kung-fu ladies to gain control of the Ballrog. While on the battleship, you’re sent flying around an antigravity chamber attacking the floating central control sphere, which is protected by smaller spheres and often sees you take damage without even realising it. A titanic mechanical dinosaur awaits in the jungle, which taxes the Mega Drive hardware and sees you using the high ground to attack its head and avoid its spiral flame shot and extendable claws. Most bosses return for a gauntlet in the final stage, with you battle the floating sphere, security robot, the mechanical ape (alongside constantly respawning but largely harmless Tyrannosaurs rexes), and the robot dinosaur (this time forced to time your jumps since there’s no platform). After besting the flying gunner again and being carried across a void by the robot centipede (and then destroying it again), you finally confront the grandmaster. This cloaked nuisance floats around an antenna, with a bottomless pit below and various projectiles to dodge. Luckily, you can grab some health here and there’s a chance you can stun-lock the grandmaster to make short work of him, but it’s pretty challenging since Strider’s such a huge target.
While visually impressive, Strider is handicapped by staying too close to its arcade origins.
While Strider initially impresses, with Strider slicing apart the title screen background, there is no pre-game story cutscene or context to be found. Interludes pop up between stages, featuring the bad guys mocking you and praising Grandmaster Meio, but the game’s surprisingly light on story considering how rich its visuals are. Indeed, while the music didn’t exactly wow me and many backgrounds were disappointingly sparse, resembling the plain voids often seen in Master System titles, there’s a fair bit happening in every stage. You start off in the vaguely-Russian city of Kazufa, battling past the twinkling city lights, searchlights, and towering, Byzantine-esque buildings which hide futuristic weapons factories. There are always platforms to hop to, cling to, or pull yourself up m, with many being slanted and sporting hordes of mechanical enemies. Turrets line the walls and ceilings, drones hover from above, and giant gears turn platforms as you progress. Stage 2 places you in the frigid Siberian mountains, where wolves and an avalanche force you into a robot factory, where large dynamos flash intermittently to turn everything black and fill the screen with lightning bolts. Upon scaling the mountain, Strider finds himself on the heavily armed, steampunk-esque Ballrog battleship, whose outer hull is defending but turrets and a massive, tank-like cannon that sends you flying it you don’t quickly destroy it. Strider must smash his way inside, running and then frantically wall jumping to avoid being crushed, before making his way to the control cockpit. Stage 4 takes a bizarre detour into the Amazon jungle, where Tarzan-like natives toss boomerang-like projectiles, swarm from bendy branches, and friggin’ dinosaurs stomp past! You can hop on the backs of Brachiosaurus to fend off flocks of Pterodactyls and avoid being torn apart in the dangerous waters below. As if that fever dream wasn’t surreal enough, the game ends with you storming the grandmaster’s main base on “The Third Moon”, a space station teeming with deadly hazards, defences, and sending you reeling with its gravity gimmick. You’ll hop to giant satellite dishes, desperately cling to slanted platforms, be jostled about in another antigravity chamber, and end up clambering up an antenna to face the big bad himself. The game’s ending is barely worth it, with Strider looking upon the destruction he’s caused and flying off victorious past an enemy roll call as the credits play, with the game offering no high score table for your efforts.
Final Thoughts: I was really excited to get my hands on Strider, a very affordable and often visually impressive early title for the Mega Drive, primarily because of how cool the title character looks somersaulting about and slashing foes with his giant sword. Unfortunately, the game sticks a little too close to its arcade roots, throwing a timer, hordes of nigh-endless enemies, and a slew of unfair pitfalls and hazards at you. With limited lives and no continues, you’re probably better off taking advantage of some of the push button codes or even modern ports of the game, which include rewinds and save states. Still, I was impressed by Strider in a lot of ways. Strider looks great, the foregrounds, especially, are incredibly detailed and varied, and I enjoyed the cyberpunk aesthetic that permeates every area (except for that random jaunt into a prehistoric jungle…I don’t know what that was about!) Unfortunately, the game might be a little too ambitious as the Mega Drive struggles to render everything at an acceptable speed and consistency, slowing the action and assaulting you with flickering and stuttering. I loved the giant and creative mini bosses, but they were painfully limited and artificially made more challenging by restricting you to tight corridors where Strider’s hit box works against him. power-ups were few and far between and it’s way too easy to take damage when slicing through enemies, severely limiting the action. This means you can neither blast through the game at high speed or afford to take your time, as the clock and the enemies are always against you. I enjoyed the stage variety, though, and gimmicks like the exploding floors and walls, but many of the backgrounds were far too basic for a 16-bit behemoth like the Mega Drive. Honestly, you’re probably better off emulating the arcade version as at least then I assume you can keep pumping in coins to push through tougher sections, but this home console port is a little too unforgiving to be as enjoyable as it could be.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
Did you ever play the Mega Drive version of Strider? Were you impressed by how close it was to the arcade version? What did you think to Strider’s appearance and sword attack? Which of the game’s bosses did you find the most ludicrous? Did you manage to clear the game legitimately? What are some of your favourite sci-fi-orientated videogames? Whatever your experiences with Strider, feel free to share them below, check out my other sci-fi and retrogaming content, and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest other games for me to review.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 4 August 2015 Originally Released: 22 May 2000 Developer: Rare Metacritic Scores: 97 / 8.3
Also Available For: Nintendo 64, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series S
Gameplay and Power-Ups: As the spiritual successor to one of the greatest first-person shooters ever made, it should be no surprise that Perfect Dark focuses on gun combat, stealth, and accomplishing various objectives across its nine missions. While the game allows two players to play solo simultaneously with one of its controller settings, allowing one to move and interact and the other to aim and shoot, Perfect Dark also offers co-operative play and “counter-operative” play, in which players actively try to interfere with each other in a single playthrough. “Perfect” Agent Joanna Dark is a spy working for the Carrington Institute, allowing GoldenEye 007’s mechanics to be expanded upon and refined. Though you can change the controller setup, I always found the “classic” controls to be the best so I was interacting with the environment (opening doors, activating consoles, and such) with A, cycling through weapons with B and Y, manually reloading with X, and using the Right Bumper to switch to my weapon’s secondary function. The Left Trigger aims, the Right Trigger fires, and I crouched behind cover (crates, desks, and such) by pressing in the left stick. You can also toggle a few options from the menu (such as the crosshair, auto aim, and the blood), create and name multiple save files, and pick from three difficulty settings. As in GoldenEye 007, these not only increase the intelligence and durability of enemies but also add additional objectives to each mission to provide a greater challenge. Upon clearing a mission, you’re presented with your performance, which tracks how long you took, your accuracy, your kills, and other stats and also displays any cheats you unlocked. As Perfect Dark is a more futuristic setting than GoldenEye 007, Joanna utilises shields to extend her health, slows time with the “Combat Boost” item, and utilises gadgets like infrared goggles and various scanners to detect objectives. However, like Bond, Joanna fails missions if she destroys key equipment or kills too many innocents, so you can’t be too trigger happy.
Joanna utilises some familiar, and alien, weapons to complete objectives and clear missions.
Anyone who’s played GoldeneEye 007 may be familiar with some of Joanna’s weapons. The standard issue Falcon 2 isn’t a million miles away from the Walther PP7 or the DD44 Dostovei, the DY357 Magnum is functionally identical to Bond’s Cougar Magnum, the super powerful RC-P120 is essentially an upgraded RC-P90, and Joanna also utilises grenades and various mines. Joanna also gains a wrist laser, a hunting knife, and utilises a sniper rifle in the second mission, alongside blasting enemies with a high-powered shotgun and blowing attack choppers out of the sky with a rocket launcher. There are plenty of new toys to play with as well, such as a wrist-mounted crossbow, a gun that masquerades as a laptop, the super fun Cyclone machine gun, and high-powered assault rifles that seem ripped right out of Aliens(Cameron, 1986). Thanks to its sci-fi narrative, players also wield various alien weaponry, such as the super slick Maian firearms and the more destructive weapons used by the vicious Skedar. These include the sniper-like FarSight XR-20 with its infrared mode and wall piercing rounds, the rapid-fire Callisto NTG, and the grinder-like Mauler. Every weapon has two functions, with the primary fire being a standard shot and the secondary varying between weapons. While most pistols have a melee function, Joanna can punch out or disarm targets, kill or subdue, or switch to a weapon’s explosive shot. This makes your Dragon a grenade launcher or allows you to toss it as an explosive, lets you deploy the Laptop Gun as a sentry or expel an entire Cyclone clip, has the MagSec 4 fire a three-burst round, and sees some weapons to lock-on to targets. The RC-P120 comes with a limited cloak, the shotgun can be switched to a double shot, and the K7 Avenger can highlight nearby threats. It’s fun discovering each weapon’s secondary mode and you can hold multiple weapons at once, and even bring up a weapon wheel, though your arsenal switches out between missions and some unlockable weapons don’t have secondary modes. Joanna can also utilise explosive crates and barrels, hoverbikes, and even turrets to help take out or bypass enemies, though sometimes you’ll need a stealthier approach. At least two missions (on “Agent” difficulty) require you to change into an outfit and hold off from killing to infiltrate areas, which is fun even with the time limit, and you must sometimes bring explosive crates to cracked walls to progress.
Even simple missions have multiple objectives and some obtuse puzzles to solve.
Some missions see you escorting a non-playable character (NPC), like the sentient laptop Doctor Caroll, or pushing the unconscious Maian “Elvis” to safety in Area 51. Elvis fights alongside you numerous times, gleefully taking out enemies from afar and up close and activating alien technology to open new paths for you. Joanna also works alongside Jonathan Steinberg of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) at one point and has to get the United States President to safety more than once. Thankfully, these NPC allies are more capable and durable than Natalya Simonova and are often protected by shields. Your objectives change depending on the difficulty you’re playing, but generally you must reach certain areas (lifts, rooms, etc), disable security systems (either manually, with a device or by decoding a password, or by coercing nearby NPCs), obtain items (key cards, evidence, disguises, prototype weapons, etc), and reach the exit. Sometimes, you’re given or must obtain a weapon that must be saved to complete your objectives, such as tossing a timed mine to detach a spacecraft from Air Force One or affixing target amplifiers to the correct Skedar ruins. Other times, you must reprogram service robots, capture (non-lethally subdue) or eliminate specific targets, such as the President’s clone or malicious dataDyne Corporation executive Cassandra De Vries. You must go to infrared to cover Elvis as he activates teleportals on an alien ship, switch to the CamSpy to photograph targets or listen in on meetings, rescue hostages when the Skedar infiltrate the Carrington Institute, and eliminate the monstrous aliens to gain control of their attack ship. By far the worst mission, for me, has always been “Chicago – Stealth”, which sees you recover your equipment, create a division by setting a taxi to explode, avoiding an indestructible drone, and sneaking into the G5 building before the guards lock the doors. You must also prepare your escape route, place a tracking device, and avoid killing the undercover CIA agents. “Crash Site – Confrontation” is also tricky as it’s a very wide, open area full of enemies, turrets, and cliffs you can fall down. While the radar helps, it’s easy to get lost or accidentally kill the wrong President, and tricky to find your way at times. “Skedar Ruins – Battle Shrine” can also be needlessly obtuse at times with its narrow passages, dark, maze-like interiors, and randomly generating which ruins must be targeted each playthrough.
Presentation: Everything that made GoldenEye 007 an instant classic returns in Perfect Dark, but amplified and refined thanks to the game utilising the Nintendo 64 Expansion Pak. While characters’ mouths don’t move in cutscenes, all cutscenes are fully voiced and there’s a greater emphasis on narrative here, with some missions being interrupted by cutscenes to change the environment and objectives. While Joanna isn’t nearly as iconic as Bond, she’s a decent character, with some wit and snark about her, though she’s outshined by the smart-mouthed Elvis whenever they’re paired together. While it might not seem like a big deal now, Perfect Dark has so many fun little touches that make it and impressive game, such as Joanna visibly (and uniquely) reloading each weapon, her vision going blurry when hit by melee attacks, and her talking and reacting to events and NPCs as you play. Enemies are more expressive than ever, shouting when they spot you, jumping for cover, limping and screaming and running when shot at, and not only even surrendering but also double crossing you at times! You can disable the blood but you really shouldn’t as blood now splatters on the environment and enemy bodies even stay on the ground, allowing you to easily see where you’ve been. Enemies also punch and kick up close, rush to alarms, sometimes utilise a cloak or shield, and non-lethal NPCs sometimes betray you when you coerce them. Glass shatters when you shoot it, areas are sometimes plunged into darkness, and environments are littered with little touches, from wine cellars, pictures, desks, and consoles to bizarre alien architecture and sprawling, futuristic laboratories. Unlike GoldeneEye 007, which sometimes struggled when too much was happening, Perfect Dark is slick and stable no matter how many enemies are coming for you and the textures (while retaining that signature blocky aesthetic) are more detailed and varied than ever, with Joanna and her enemies switching up their outfits and weapons each mission.
The game improves everything over its predecessor to be, perhaps, the greatest FPS on the N64.
Perfect Dark also boasts a hub world, the Carrington Institute, where you can freely explore the controls, chat with NPCs, and even test your shooting skills at the range. This area is repurposed for one of the game’s final missions, which is a great touch as it’s quite harrowing seeing the normally serene hallways crawling with Skedar. Joanna’s assignment starts simple enough with her infiltrating the towering dataDyne skyscraper, an area you must first descend into and then escort Dr. Carrol through after liberating him from the shiny, high-tech (if repetitive) labs beneath the structure. After that, Joanna takes out snipers and eliminates dataDyne soldiers who’ve captured Daniel Carrington at his villa, exploring his luxurious abode and reactivating the wind generator. While Perfect Dark owes a lot of its visual identity to Blade Runner (Scott, 1982), this is most keenly felt in “Chicago – Stealth” where you’re on the rainswept streets of a cyberpunk city filled with skyscrapers and dingy alleyways. The interior of the G5 building isn’t much to shout about but things pick up when you infiltrate Area 51, with you bypassing the outer defences and taking a freight elevator down to the futuristic lab where scientists are preparing to eviscerate Elvis. Joanna also explores a couple of snowy environments that put GoldeneEye 007’s “Surface” missions to shame, with “Crash Site – Confrontation” being an intimidatingly large map filled with smouldering debris from the crashed Air Force One and alien ships. Air Force One recalls GoldenEye 007’s claustrophobic “Train” mission but hides some fun nooks and crannies to explore, alongside a tense escort mission as you get the President to his escape pod. Once the alien plot really kicks in, you’ll be exploring the sprawling ocean vessel Pelagic II before forming a brief and ill-fated partnership with Cassandra aboard the Skedar attack ship. This sees you running around the ominous, threatening alien craft with few resources but soon backed up by Maian reinforcements. Finally, you explore some ruins on the Skedar home world, a surprisingly restricted, arid landscape full of ancient structures and canyons, where cloaked Skedar roam and their hidden army awaits in an alien lab.
Enemies and Bosses: Joanna’s primary opposition throughout the game, even when the Skedar come to the forefront, are the various soldiers of the malicious dataDyna Corporation. These come in a few different forms and wield various weapons, such as regular infantryman carrying CMP-150s, masked shock troopers using Dragons, and green-clad troopers. Cassandra is protected by female, shotgun-wielding bodyguards and snipers patrol the rooftops of Carrington’s villa. G5’s various guards are functionally similar, though many give you the run around with their cloaking devices or are quick to sound alarms when they spot you. DY357 Magnum-carrying Federal agents appear in “Chicago – Stealth” alongside a high-powered, shielded drone that’ll gun you down on sight, while Area 51 is protected by various troopers carrying MagSecs, grenades, and SuperDragons. You must also contend with technicians who try to drug you, corrupted Secret Servicemen who riddle you with Cyclone bullets on Air Force One, and towering, blonde-haired brutes who are actually Skedar in disguise! The Skedar come two forms: a smaller, less threatening minion and the larger, much more vicious warriors. While the smaller Skedar appear in packs, the larger ones can be cloaked and carry the devastating Reaper and Slayer, as well as biting and slashing up close. Still, most enemies can be put down with a few good shots, or immediately with a bullet to the head, but you must always be wary of enemies appearing from previously locked doors, taking cover behind barricades, tossing grenades, or swarming from thin air when alarms are raised.
Just about the only area the game doesn’t shine is the lack of bosses, where the Skedar king stands alone.
Like GoldenEye 007, there aren’t really any traditional bosses in Perfect Dark, with some exceptions. When playing “dataDyne Central – Extraction” on “Special” or “Perfect” Agent, you must grab a rocket launcher to blow an attack chopper out of the skies before it cuts you (and/or Dr. Carrol) to shreds. G5’s robot drones can also cause a headache as, while the drones in “Crash Site – Confrontation” can be destroyed (unlike the one in “Chicago – Stealth”), their laser cannons are tough to avoid and you must be quick (or discover the higher path) lest the President is executed. Turrets also appear (though less frequently than in GoldenEye 007) and you’ll run into the corrupt Trent Easton a couple of times (though he ultimately dies in a cutscene). The Skedar that patrol “Attack Ship – Covert Assault” are particularly difficult to deal with as you don’t have a gun or much ammo, forcing you to rely on your knife or fists. Cassandra’s bodyguards must all be eliminated to clear the final part of the first mission, and the towering blonde men could be said to be mini bosses despite how easily they go down. Indeed, the only true boss is the Skedar king fought at the end of the game. After escaping the labyrinthine caves and eliminating his secret army, you battle the king in a throne room of sorts, dodging his rockets and projectiles and taking out any minions he spawns. You’ll quickly see that the king is protected by an impenetrable shield; however, you can significantly weaken this with a charged shot from the Mauler. This sees the king take a few seconds to regenerate, in which you must fire another charged shot at the spiked obelisk behind him. Repeat this enough times, chipping away at the ruin, and a cutscene eventually plays in which the Skedar king is crushed and the day is saved. Three more Skedar kings appear in a bonus mission where you play as a Maian soldier; though these can be fought more traditionally, they’re by no means less lethal.
Additional Features: There is loads to unlock in Perfect Dark and loads of replay value packed into the game. Every mission hides a mysterious piece of cheese that, while useless, is fun to spot. You can tackle every mission on different difficulties to challenge yourself, visit different areas, and accomplish different, more difficult objectives. You can play the main campaign alongside (or against) a friend and explore the Carrington Institute hub world and take on a series of tutorial training scenarios that not only teach you the basics and complexities of the controls but also unlocks a virtual reality duelling simulator where you engage in firefights with various characters. There’s also a shooting range where you’ll unlock classic GoldenEye 007 weapons if you achieve a “gold” rating and, like in that game, clearing missions with fast times on various difficulties unlocks some fun cheats. These grant you invincibility, extra shields, unlimited ammo, and all guns but also enlarge characters’ heads, speed up your punches, shrink characters, and allow you to play as Elvis! Clearing the game on each difficulty unlocks bonus missions, such as another visit to the dataDyne tower, this time as Mr. Blonde (in possession of a limited cloak) to apprehend Cassandra, a return to the Skedar home world (as and alongside Maians) to defeat three more Skedar kings, and another mission where Elvis battles through the G5 building. This version of the game also comes with twenty Achievements, with three earned by beating all three difficulty settings, one for clearing the first mission, one for completing one mission in co-op and another for clearing a mission in counter-operative mode, and another for killing enemies in various ways. You’ll also get Achievements for destroying Carrington’s wine collection, destroying five security cameras, and earning all the leaderboard crowns. Additionally, Rare Replay (Rare, 2015) features bonus materials related to the game and you can create save states when playing on the Nintendo Switch.
Unlock extra modes, classic guns and cheats, or tackle the addictive deathmatch simulator!
Like GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark also boasts a multiplayer deathmatch mode, the “Combat Simulator”, though again this is vastly improved! Now, you can not only select a character to play as but can also customise them to your liking, setting up weapon load outs (or choosing from a preset list) and setting kill, time, or score limits, handicaps, and even the music. There are loads of game options to pick from, such as a standard free-for-all and team-based deathmatches, one-hit kills, slow or fast movement, disabling the radar and/or auto aim, and highlighting players or items. You can play a couple of “capture the flag” variants where you either claim a briefcase or capture an enemy base, score points by hacking terminals, or pursue a randomly selected target. There are sixteen maps to play on once you’ve unlocked them all, with all but three reusing and recycling assets from the main game. Honestly, you won’t be playing on any of these maps as the classic GoldenEye 007 “Facility” map has been recreated as “Felicity” and is the only map you’ll ever need (though two other classic arenas are also available). At the end of each round, all players receive some stats showing how well they played and are given a ranking that either commends them or chastises them for “camping” or playing dishonourably. Perhaps the best aspect of the Combat Simulator is that you don’t need friends to play as you can customise “Simulants” of various difficulties to play alongside or against you, changing their behaviour and weapons to suit your gameplay. There are also thirty challenges to complete in this mode, with you awarded up to three stars for completing them, which task you with playing each loadout against different Simulants with different weapon sets and rules. This sees you playing king of the hill with only pistols, using cloaking devices and N-Grenades, fighting in slow motion, or desperately trying to keep hold of the briefcase while one-hit kills are enabled. I wasted so much time on this mode back on the Nintendo 64 and it’s honestly such a blast to play that it baffles me more online only, asymmetrical games didn’t include this for offline single player.
Final Thoughts: As a massive fan of GoldenEye 007 as a kid (and to this day), I naturally snapped up Perfect Dark for the Nintendo 64 and played it to death. I marvelled at how visually superior it was to is predecessor, how the controls and gunplay were refined and enhanced, and at how much more lively and interesting enemies and environments were. I loved how packed full of little details and content the game was, from the co-op and counter-operative modes, to the unlockable cheats and weapons, to the incredibly addictive Combat Simulator and it’s other challenges. Decades later, I jumped at the chance to experience the game in high definition as part of Rare Replay and I wasn’t disappointed. The graphics and gameplay had only been enhanced further, resulting in a slick, smooth game that makes shooting baddies and saving aliens a blast. However, Perfect Dark has some flaws. The improved graphics highlight the odd textures, some areas are either too dark or you’re blinded by lights, and some missions can be needlessly challenging since the objectives are so obtuse. I’ve never been a big fan of Joanna either and find her a bit obnoxious and annoying, but the main reason Perfect Dark loses out on a perfect score is simply that it isn’t GoldenEye 007 and I always found myself choosing that game over this one because of how powerful nostalgia is. That’s definitely unfair as Perfect Dark is a five-star game, but I’ve always felt a touch of sadness that it wasn’t a true GoldenEye 007 sequel. Still, this is a fantastic FPS game and perhaps the best FPS on the Nintendo 64. The sheer amount of unlockables and options make it well worth the money and it’s one of the few games that really got the most out of the console. While it’s a shame it released too late in the day to make as big an impression as GoldenEye 007, I always enjoy revisiting it and have a greater appreciation for it now than I did as a teenager.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Were you a fan of Perfect Dark? Do you agree that it’s better than GoldenEye 007 in every way except for nostalgia? What did you think to Joanna’s character and the improved graphics? Were you a fan of the bonkers sci-fi plot or did you find it a bit out of left field? Which mission and/or weapon was your most or least favourite? ere you a fan of the Combat Simulator? Would you like to see more of Perfect Dark and what are some of your favourite sci-fi-orientated videogames? Tell me what you think about Perfect Dark in the comments, then check out my other sci-fi content, and support me on Ko-Fi if you want me to play more Perfect Dark videogames.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 29 June 2005 Director: Steven Spielberg Distributor: Paramount Pictures
The Review: Like the 1953 film, this big-budget adaptation of The War of the Worlds is set not in Victorian England, but in then-modern day America, beginning in Brooklyn, New York and following deadbeat dad and longshoreman Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) as he desperately tries to get his kids to the presumed safety of Boston, Massachusetts when aliens suddenly attack. Ray starts the film as a bit of an asshole. Though he’s said to be a hard worker as a crane operator down at the docks, Ray’s not in the business of working more hours than he has to, citing union rules about overtime (and, honestly, rightfully so), and is therefore seen to be arrogant and condescending. Ray’s a keen mechanic, filling his house with car parts and booming through the streets in his prized 1966 Shelby Mustang, and neglecting to fill his refrigerator and cupboards since he favours takeaways. Ray’s so self-absorbed that he completely forgets when he’s due to meet his kids at his house, though his pregnant ex-wife, Mary Ann (Miranda Otto), is well past arguing about his tardiness and irresponsibility. Instead, she glares at him and makes snap criticisms, all with the general idea of urging him to do better by moody teenager Robbie (Justin Chatwin) and inquisitive youngster Rachel (Dakota Fanning). Although Rachel is begrudgingly polite to her dad, Robbie has no interest, preferring to ignore him, call him “Ray”, criticise his lack of parenting skills, and generally give him a hard time. Ironically, Robbie emulates his father’s dress sense more than he realises and is just as irresponsible, stealing his car and dragging his feet on his homework and rejecting Ray’s questionable attempts to bond with a sneering angst. Rachel is surprisingly mature for her age, ordering healthy foods and giving Ray pointers, only for him to balk at both since he clearly doesn’t like deviating from his junk food or receiving criticism for his parenting.
When aliens suddenly attack, deadbeat dad Ray must rise to the occasion to protect his estranged children.
Luckily for Ray, he’s given the perfect opportunity to step up when a mysterious storm looms overhead and lightning repeatedly strikes the ground, setting off an electromagnetic pulse and fries all vehicles and electronics and terrifies Rachel. Curious, Ray wanders outside and is amazed when a gigantic alien machine bursts from the street with an ominous honk. The towering Tripod immediately sets to work vaporising the terrifying crowd, reducing them to dust and tattered clothes, and Ray races home covered in an ash-like substance that was once his neighbours, too shellshocked to properly explain what happened and desperately urging his kids to flee before the Tripod reaches their block. Despite Robbie demanding answers and Rachel suffering a panic attack, Ray loads his kids into the one working vehicle (thanks to a solenoid change) and races away as the Tripod decimates the area, barely able to describe what happened to his terrified kids. Ray’s struggling to hold together when they get to Mary Ann’s home in nearby New Jersey, desperately trying to keep his kids calm and wrap his head around the death and destruction he’s witnessed and succeeding only in scaring or alienating them further. Ray’s stress only increases when a Boeing 747 partially crashes into the house, littering the street with burning wreckage and bodies that Ray desperately shields Rachel from and angering Robbie so much that he becomes obsessed with fighting against the invaders. Ray’s very much against this not just because the Tripods are so massive, intimidating, and dangerous, but also because a newswoman (Camillia Sanes) reveals that aliens travelled through the lightning bolts to pilot the walkers, meaning humanity is facing a violent extermination from an extraterrestrial force. Refusing to risk their lives by joining the military effort, Ray frantically focuses on getting his kids to Boston, partially because he’s underequipped for the crisis but also because he knows the kids are better off with Mary Ann. Along the way, the car is literally ripped apart by an angry mob desperate to get to safety, forcing Ray to pull out his pistol to drag Robbie and Rachel out of their path as the mob fights over the vehicle.
The devastating attack inspires fear, rage, and paranoia as survivors fight or flee from the aliens.
A momentary respite at the Hudson River quickly turns into another fight for survival when the Tripods arrive, capsizing the ferry and abducting many survivors. Ray and his kids are caught up in the military’s desperate counterattack and witness how unstoppable the Tripods really are as they shrug off damage with energy shields and vaporise tanks and troops alike. Ray sees this as a futile effort, seeing only death when the Tripods appear, and frantically argues with Robbie when he insists on witnessing and aiding the fight. In an emotionally charged moment, Ray’s resolve falters and his reluctantly lets Robbie go to forge his own path, hoping that they’ll be reunited in Boston when it’s all over. Still rattled from this, Ray gratefully accepts shelter in Harlan Ogilvy’s (Tim Robbins) basement, struggling to reassure and calm Rachel following her brother’s absence and quickly realising that Harlen is a danger to them. When the aliens carve up the grounds outside, spreading their disturbing red weed by harvesting their human captives, Harlen grows more unstable, ready to fight back when a probe and pilots investigate his house. Ultimately, Ray’s forced to have Rachel distract herself with a lullaby as he kills Harlan offscreen in a way we never see but which understandably unsettles him, both of them being severely traumatised by everything they’ve witnessed but doing whatever they can to survive. While I’m no fan of Tom Cruise, this is one of the few movies he’s in that I can tolerate and admit that he does a decent job. He makes for a great and very believable jackass father and has the stature to pull off an “Everyman” figure, one whose first instinct is to run rather than oppose such an overwhelming force. Like the book’s narrator, Ray bumps into many characters, learning more about the aliens as he goes and witnessing how devastating their attack is each time, which only compels him to keep moving. Like the book, the focus is squarely on our main characters and their attempts to survive rather than the fight the invaders, which only makes the aliens more ominous and dangerous.
As daft as the aliens look, their technology and assault of the planet are horrifying and intimidating.
Thanks to advancements in technology, H.G. Wells’ iconic Tripods were finally brought to life in all their terrifying glory, booming a trumpet call of war that echoes the long-running musical and appearing more horrifying than ever as Spielberg uses them as an allegory for the 9/11 attacks. Spielberg fully commits to the iconography of the Tripods, forgoing the other alien tech to focus on the massive, highly advanced war machines that vaporise everything in their path, crush buildings with their advance, and scoop up victims with their tentacles. Despite its different setting, War of the Worlds is far closer to the book than the previous adaptation, with the Tripods upturning a ferry and seeding the land with red weed from their victims to terraform the Earth. However, Spielberg alters the origin of the aliens, which apparently prepared for their invasion by burying their machine thousands of years ago and are never said to be from Mars. The aliens also look very different to the book and the first film, being strange, gangly creatures with three legs and little evidence of advanced intelligence beyond their unstoppable war machines. While the narrator (Morgan Freeman) repeats that the aliens were motivated to attack by envy, desiring Earth’s rich natural resources, they’re seen to be largely ignorant of our society, culture, and technology despite having observed us for generations. Their strategy is simply to overwhelm with superior numbers and force, littering cities with destruction and ash, leaving bodies floating in rivers and toppling entire cities within hours. I was impressed by the special effects used to bring the Tripods to life and they’re framed as especially intimidating against the rainy night sky, though I would’ve preferred to see the machines be simply armoured rather than having energy shields and for the aliens to look a bit more unique rather than appearing as cousins to the invaders from Independence Day(Emmerich, 1996).
Once again, Mother Nature defeats the unstoppable invading forces to ensure an emotional ending.
Having lost Robbie and living somewhere between denial and desperation, Ray wishes only to take shelter until the aliens leave but is driven to extreme measures when the paranoid Harlen endangers him and Rachel with his crazed obsessions. Despite this, the alien probe spots him and Rachel in the dilapidated house, forcing a terrifying Rachel to flee into the night and be abducted by one of the towering machines. Determined to keep Rachel safe, Ray grabs a grenade belt from a nearby military vehicle and voluntarily gets himself abducted to save her, revealing the grotesque bio-organic nature of the walkers as he’s sucked inside to make more red weed and instead feeds it the explosives. Exhausted and barely coherent, Ray and Rachel shuffle alongside a gaggle of other survivors into Boston, which has conveniently been largely spared much damage. Ushered on by the military, Ray’s amazed to find the Tripods have collapsed in the street. When another comes stumbling by, Ray and the others take shelter in an underpass but his keen eye spots that a flock of birds are nesting on the walker’s cockpit. Though struggled against the cacophony of the Tripod’s trumpet, Ray alerts the nearby soldiers, who quickly take up offensive positions and blast the Tripod with a barrage of rocket launchers. Damaged, the machine finally goes down and ejects one of its pilots, which quickly withers and chokes to death much like the decaying red weed. As ever, the narrator explains that the aliens were undone by the microbes we’ve become immune to over countless generations, Incredibly, Ray then carries Rachel to Mary Ann’s childhood home, which is unbelievably untouched by the devastation. Amazingly, not only are Mary Ann and her family alive, but Robbie’s somehow there too, allowing Ray to embrace his rebellious son and complete his character arc into a caring and determined father. While this makes for a sombre and emotional ending, I still think it would’ve been better to leave Robbie’s fate ambiguous (perhaps have Ray immediately leave to go looking for him?) if only to really sell how devastating this alien attack was for our main characters.
Final Thoughts: While I’m a big fan of the original book, I have to say I’ve never been much of a fan of this big-budget adaptation. A lot of that is due to my personal dislike for Tom Cruise, who I just find annoying and underwhelming, and how disappointed I was that it wasn’t set in Victorian England to really hammer home how insignificant we are against the invaders. I also disliked changing their origin so they arrive on lightning bolts and pilot machines buried thousands of years ago. Simply having the Tripods and their pilots arrive on a meteor storm would’ve been far better for me, as would implying they came from Mars at least in a throwaway line. However, I must begrudgingly admit that War of the Worlds is far closer to the source material than the 1953 film, including mor side characters and events from the book since we’re following a regular guy rather than the military. I liked this aspect and how ill-equipped Ray is at dealing with this crisis since he can’t parent properly, so he’s completely out of his depth and survives only through sheer luck. I really liked Ray’s relationship with Rachel and Dakota Fanning’s work as a mature yet terrified little girl forced to rely on an unreliable father. Robbie was a pain in the ass who stupidly thought he could make a difference in an unwinnable fight. A commendable belief, for sure, but I would’ve preferred to see him die, be injured, or have his fate left ambiguous for his efforts. The Tripods are fantastically realised here, constantly lurking in the background and devastating everything in their path and depicted as a nigh-unstoppable force that only Mother Nature can topple. The snake-like probe and the weird alien designs weren’t as impressive, unfortunately, though it was chilling seeing the tattered clothes, wreckage, and bodies they leave behind, especially considering how the visuals echoed 9/11. Overall, I find this to be quite mediocre but it’s probably the best War of the Worlds adaptation I’ve ever seen…I just wish it’d starred someone else in the lead role.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
Did you enjoy this big-budget version of The War of the Worlds? Do you agree that Tom Cruise drags the film down or did you enjoy his performance? Were you a fan of how the film changed the aliens’ origins and their physical depiction? What did you think to the Tripods and the film as an allegory for 9/11? Would you have wanted to fight the invaders or would you flee? Which adaptation of The War of the Worldsis your favourite and how are you celebrating sci-fi this month? Leave a comment below with your input, check out my other sci-fi reviews, and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest other War of the Worlds media for the site
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 10 December 2024 Developer: Digital Eclipse Metacritic Scores:70/ 6.3
Also Available For: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S
Quick Facts: Cobbled together from the Japanese tokusatsu series Gosei Sentai Dairanger (1993 to 1994) and Ninja Sentai Kakuranger (1994 to 1995), Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (1993 to 1996) was a cultural phenomenon back in the day whose violence outraged parents. After years of Power Rangers videogames of varying quality, Digital Eclipse produced this throwback title that was inspired by classic arcade titles and stood as another effort to honour the legacy of the franchise.
Gameplay and Power-Ups: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind is a 2D, arcade-style beat-‘em-up that takes more than a few inspirations, graphically and mechanically, from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge(Tribute Games, 2022), to the point where I thought they were developed by the same people, and a similar 2D throwback brawler, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle (Bamtang Games, 2017). Inspired by Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always (Haskell, 2023), the game sees a robotic version of Rita Repulsa travel to the past to team up with her younger self and use her future knowledge to destroy the Power Rangers. Initially, players pick from one of the five brightly coloured Power Rangers and battle across multiple stages split into “Episodes”, encountering many recognisable enemies from the show. While all the Power Rangers control the same, some start with higher attack power and lower defence, some charge their special meter faster, and others deal less damage but are more durable. Defeating enemies and smashing stuff earns you points and Power Coins, which are tallied up at the end of each stage and used to upgrade stats, meaning the only thing that separates the Power Rangers by the end are their Dinozords and the weapons they bust out during combos (Zack Taylor/The Black Ranger, for example, briefly freezes enemies with his Power Axe). Gameplay couldn’t be simpler, with players attacking with X, jumping (and double jumping) with A, and dashing by double tapping the directional pad or control stick. Pressing X in mid-air executes either a flying kick or downward attack, pressing it while dashing unleashes a dash attack, and you throw enemies if you attack up close. Pressing up and X does a rising attack and pressing X and Y executes a power attack that drains your health if it lands. You can also press B to dodge attacks, which helpfully renders you invulnerable.
Team up with friends to wade through hoards of enemies as the colourful Power Rangers.
Attacking enemies builds your super meter, allowing you to perform a screen clearing attack with Y once it’s full that sess your Power Ranger call upon an airstrike from their Dinozord. You replenish health by collecting junk food found in crates and such and can temporarily boost your attack power and speed by collecting lightning power-ups. You can also use environmental hazards to damage or defeat enemies, smashing explosive barrels, hitting girders, tossing them into pits and graves and such (though these hurt you, too). While most of the gameplay is classic, mindless beat-‘em-up action, with you going from left to right or riding an elevator filled with waves of enemies, the loop is broken up in some stages. You’ll ride a rollercoaster in both 2D and from a third-person perspective, blasting Putties from the sky and destroying their projectiles, and race down highways on their Battle Cycles. These sections see you holding X to blast vehicles, jumping with A, dodging with B, and unleashing a super attack with Y. You can ride up ramps for additional power-ups, such as health, a shield, and limited, more powerful shots. These mechanics are mirrored in the Dinozard sections, which see you bounding through canyons (or flying over them with Kimberly Hart/The Pink Ranger) blasting enemies, projectiles, and structures. You can grab a faster double shot and some homing missiles to help you out, but these auto-running sections can be somewhat clunky, especially when you must hop over water or gaps or to platforms. While most enemies are optional in these sections, it’s recommended you clear out rocks and mechs to make life easier. You’re also forced to tackle Rita’s giant, arachnid diggers and destroy the generators powering her dig sites. You must also chase Rita’s enlarged minions and tackle them in awkward first-person battles that took me a while to get the hang of. These see you dodging projectiles and thundering towards your target, only for them to leap out of the way or dash in for a strike that can be difficult to avoid if you’re not paying attention.
Though the action is satisfying and varied, the Megazord sections can be clunky.
Initially, there are three difficulty levels in Rita’s Rewind, with harder difficulties limiting your continues. I played on “Easy”, which gives you three lives and unlimited continues, though you must replay the entire stage from the start if you exhaust all your lives (however, any collectibles are saved). As if Rita’s nigh-inexhaustible Putty Patrol isn’t bad enough, you must dodge boulders, pits, falls off rooftops, and bombs tossed by Putties. Putties also toss “Time Disruptors” that rewind time if not destroyed, respawning enemies, and Rita and her minions also deploy similar devices to screw up level layouts for the Dinozords and Battle Cycles. At one point in the carnival, bombs drop before the Ferris wheel, invincible Putties charge across the football field in the “Park” stage, and brainwashed Tommy Oliver/The Green Ranger’s Dragonzord rains missiles and fires a massive laser from the background as you traverse the Angel Grove rooftops. Between stages (or by pressing Y from the map screen), you can visit the juice bar at the Angel Grove Youth Centre to chat with non-playable characters (NPCs), switch characters, and check out the mementoes you’ve found or play some arcade games (once you find their parts). These are simple distractions that mirror the likes of Mortal Kombat’s (Midway, 1992) “Test Your Might” sections and Spy Hunter (Bally Midway, 1983). Each stage has secrets and challenges you to finish it without dying and to achieve an S-rank for extra points and occasionally hides a “guest star” to rescue. Generally, Rita’s Rewind isn’t very challenging (on “Easy” mode, at least), though I did find the Dinozard sections and boss battles aggravating. They’re a strange mishmash of autorunners and rail shooters, meaning I often took damage or fell into water trying to blast stuff that was just out of reach. It also took me a while to figure out the Megazord fights, eventually having better luck by mashing A and X to pound the giant bosses and dodging when their eyes glow. Luckily, there’s no way to fail these battles as you have infinite health, but your Power Sword charge meter will deplete as you take damage, meaning the fight continues until you master the dodging and attacking.
Presentation: Rita’s Rewind is absolutely top-notch in its visuals, which have the same chunky, well animated and colourful sprite work as Shredder’s Revenge. Each stage begins with the Power Rangers in their civilian forms and transforming before the action starts, each Power Ranger has an idle taunt (and a manual one, activated by pressing Y when your super meter isn’t full), and voice clips pepper the action. Cutscenes are brought to life using the in-game sprites, larger portraits, and dialogue boxes, with Zordon and Alpha 5 often alerting you of incoming threats and the story largely retells a condensed version of the first twenty-one episodes of the original series. The game starts with the five Power Rangers receiving their powers and defending Angel Grove from Rita’s forces and retells their first encounters with Goldar and their battles against the Green Ranger, before they head to the Moon to confront Robo Rita and safeguard the timeline. The game is filled with rocking tunes to punctuate the non-stop action, including an awesome rendition of the iconic Power Rangers theme for the Megazord battles and a remix of Farkas “Bulk” Bulkmeier and Eugene “Skull” Skullovitch’s slapstick theme. There are some fun little Easter Eggs peppered throughout each level, such as graffiti, Putties sitting in the bleachers or messing about at the carnival, four turtles wandering in toxic waste, and laundry being aired on the rooftops. The juice bar changes as you progress and rescue NPCs and even gets attacked during Episode 4, Punk Putties headbang to blaring boomboxes, and long-time fans should get a kick out of seeing the original series’ locations brought to life in colourful 16-bit. While the game performs incredibly well, offering non-stop beat-‘em-up action from start to finish, I was forced to do a soft reset when I got stuck on the environment during a transition on the subway train.
A visually impressive and action-packed arcade throwback that does the franchise proud.
The game opens with an animated sequence and an unwinnable battle against Robo Rita’s forces in her grandiose citadel in a retelling of Once & Always that shows what might’ve happened if Robo Rita had succeeded in her plot. You then fight through the desert-like canyons outside of Zordon’s headquarters, passing cactus plants, tumbleweeds, train tracks, and falling boulders before reaching downtown Angel Grove. Putties emerge from garages, spray paint walls and storage containers, and hop from trucks. While fighting across the rooftops, you’ll pass by air conditioning units, billboards, and birds, cross gaps with wooden planks and smashing apart rooftop dining areas. This section is made more dangerous on your second visit thanks to the Dragonzord lurking in the background, while your second visit to downtown Angel Grove sees you head to the subway to battle through a speeding train, which makes regular stops to pick up new enemies and forces you to hop to each carriage to progress. You visit an industrial waste site where the sky is clogged with pollution, toxic waste is strewn all over, and enemies hop from overhead pipes and gantries. The carnival stage was probably the most visually impressive, featuring various attractions and rides in the background, such as shooting ranges and such, before featuring a high-octane autoshooter on a speeding roller coaster and transitioning to a foggy graveyard to battle Bones. Sadly, the Battle Cycle and Dinozord sections are very visually repetitive, taking place on speeding highways and in the same canyons, with Rita’s facilities being identical in each Dinozard section. Things are made a little more interesting when you’re chasing down the Dragonzord as you must blast past the drones blocking the blast doors and confront the Green Ranger and his mech on the beach (and partially in the sea). Rita’s palace may be somewhat simplistic in its gothic atmosphere, but the Earth (and space) looms in the background and the final boss arena gradually explodes and changes as you fight.
Enemies and Bosses: Naturally, Rita’s army is mostly the Putty Patrol, bizarre, clay-like humanoids who come in various colours. The regular grey Putties are little threat, throwing punches and grabbing you if you get too close, but they can toss boulders, tyres, crates, and Time Disrupters. Their ochre-toned variants whip out time bombs, the cyan ones charge across the screen with blade arms, and the black Putties are much tougher, busting out combos and air attacks not unlike your own. Putties also race along the highways trying to ram you in cars, Punk Putties dance near boomboxes, and Clown Putties ride giant, inflatable balls. There’s also a bigger, tankier Putty who takes a lot of hits and performs a dashing grab, shaking and slamming you if they grab you, and a wrestling variant that looks strangely familiar. The Putties are often joined by Tengu Warriors, bird men who flutter above and try to slam onto you or fire their razor-sharp feathers in a spread. I had trouble hitting them in mid-air so found it easier to dodge their downward attack and fly in with a dash attack. A whole bunch of drones and aircraft appear in the Dinozord sections, with larger craft scooping up crystals and large, spider-like diggers tearing up the landscape. These cause earthquakes and fire a green laser from their central core, which you must destroy to progress. Similarly, you must avoid the indestructible laser drones guarding the generators powering Rita’s mines and awkwardly strafe left or right to target power nodes on the generators. Crabby Cabbie also appears in one of the Battle Cycle sections, requiring you to use the boost pads to chase him down and destroy him while dodging the landmines he litters across the road.
Classic series antagonists show up as surprisingly formidable boss battles.
Long-time Power Rangers fans will surely recognise many of the bosses, three of which are fought in enlarged forms. Naturally, Goldar is first, attacking on the streets with sword swipes, fireballs, and a flaming ground attack later echoed by Chunky Chicken. Goldar’s enlarged form sets the standard for these encounters, with you first chasing after him in your Dinozord, blasting him and hopping over shockwaves or dodging projectiles before battling him in the Megazord. No matter which enlarged enemy you fight, these battles are always the same: you must dodge left or right to avoid their projectiles and dash attack (sometimes dodging to the opposite side when their eyes glow), landing blows when up close, charging in with your rocket punch, and finishing them off with the Power Sword by mashing buttons. The Dragonzord fight mixes things up by forcing you to blast the Green Ranger as he teleports about rocks in the water, which eventually lowers the Dragonzord’s shield so you can attack. Chunky Chicken first attacks on the ground, using portals to attack with his giant scissors, before teaming up with Turkey Jerk, who tosses bombs. They also perform team attacks where Chunky Chicken restricts your controls by flapping his wings and Turkey Jerk either rapidly dashes between portals or spins around firing his laser. Big Eye first appears during the rollercoaster section, spitting smaller eyes that you must blast from the sky, before racing away through the canyons, spewing eyes across the ground, raining them from above, and firing lasers. The skeletal warrior Bones is a surprisingly formidable opponent fought three times in the cemetery and losing more of his body as you progress. At first, he echoes Goldar with an energy wave attack from his sword, then he spews flames, produces duplicates to confuse you, and finally flies across the screen as a line of skulls, flittering about as a disembodied skull that can be difficult to hit.
The Green Ranger and Robo Rita represent some of the tougher, more interesting battles.
Madame Woe was also a bit of a challenge as she freezes you with her icy breath to leave you vulnerable, ensnare you with her hair to electrocute you, and retreats to the background to fill the arena with rushing water. After avoiding the Dragonzord’s attacks, you battle the Green Ranger on the rooftops of Angel Grove, with him mirroring your attacks, throwing up a green shield to become immune to damage, and using his Dragon Dagger to call in support from his mech lurking in the background. Rita’s citadel is a gauntlet on its own as it’s full of every regular enemy you’ve fought so far and few restorative items, meaning you can be in a bad spot when you confront Robo Rita in a repeat of the opening battle. This sees her spawning a slew of Putties using the two generators on either side of the arena. These must be destroyed to bring Robo Rita into the fray, though she poses a significant threat as she blasts you away with red lightning from her sceptre if you get close and protects herself with a shield. You must reflect the flaming projectiles she fires back at her, which I found extremely finicky as the timing has to be just right. It doesn’t help that she sometimes fakes you out, or that she unleashes an energy burst before retreating. Her fireballs increase in speed as you deal damage and are thrown in an arc once her machine is destroyed, though this makes them easier to hit. She sporadically raises and lowers her shield, floats about, and spawns chunky Putties in this final phase, though I found she was easier here than in the first two phases.
Additional Features: There are thirty-one Achievements up for grabs in Rita’s Rewind, with Achievements being awarded every time you defeat a boss and/or clear an Episode. You’ll get another Achievement for playing as every Power Ranger at least once, juggling an enemy ten times, and landing a 25, 50, and 75 hits combo. Tossing an enemy into an open grave or into a falling boulder nets you two more, earning a high score on each of the arcade games grants you another, and you’ll also get Achievements for beating “Hard” and the unlockable “Headache” mode. Each stage has secrets to find, usually by smashing parts of the environment, represented by mementoes and special guest stars. Finding them earns you additional Achievements and adds new NPCs to the juice bar, as does completing every goal for every stage (meaning you must finish every level without dying once to get all the Achievements). You’ll unlock the Green Ranger after clearing the game but, sadly, there’s no White Ranger or other skins available here. You can enable various filters and play online, though there are no Achievements tied to co-op play, and can freely replay any stage after clearing the game (though you’ll need to start a new save file to change the game’s difficulty) and tackle a time trial-esque mode.
Final Thoughts: I was a pretty big Power Rangers fan back in the day, so I’m always interested when new videogames come out based on the franchise, especially when they’re arcade-style beat-‘em-ups like this. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind is a great companion to Shredder’s Revenge, echoing the art style and combat mechanics of that game and being as fitting a tribute to the franchise. While much of it is derivative of Shredder’s Revenge and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle, Rita’s Rewind is still a great brawler for fans of the genre and the franchise, offering fast-paced, action-packed levels that lovingly recreate the look, feel, and cheesy spirit of the original series. While it’s a shame there’s not much to differentiate the Power Rangers beyond their different looks, voices, weapons, and Dinozords, the basic gameplay is very satisfying and it’s extremely fun to tear through Rita’s minions. I appreciated the effort made to mix things up with the Battle Cycle and Dinozord sections, though these were a bit clunky and not as enjoyable as I’d hoped. This is doubly true of the Megazord sections, which were frustrating and tiresome to get through and sadly lacked variety, with every embiggened foe being fought in essentially the same way. I liked the implementation of the Green Ranger, though I felt the game had an anti-climactic ending, despite how difficult I found Robo Rita to be, largely because you never fight regular Rita. It would’ve been nice to see the optional goals have some variety, and to include some unlockable skins and for the story to do a little more with its time travel plot, but Rita’s Rewind is a very enjoyable throwback brawler. The game’s fairly long, with a decent level of challenge and a nice sense of progression, nicely reflecting and paying homage to the original series while giving fans of arcade brawlers a decent amount to sink their teeth into.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Did you enjoy Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind? Are you a fan of arcade-style throwbacks such as this? Which of the Power Rangers was your favourite to play as and did you enjoy the Dinozord sections? Were you happy with the bosses utilised here and did you also find the Megazord fights tedious? Did you ever beat “Headache” difficulty? Which incarnation of the Power Rangers is your favourite and how are you celebrated sci-fi this month? Tell me all about your experiences with the Power Rangers in the comments and donate to my Ko-Fi if you want to see more Power Rangers content on the site.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 5 August 1988 Director: Chuck Russell Distributor: Tri-Star Pictures
The Review: Shifting its setting to Arborville, California The Blob initially begins in a similar fashion to the 1958 original, though with some fun twists. In place of Steve McQueen we have star quarterback Paul Taylor (Donovan Leitch), a gifted youngster from a wealthy background who, despite nursing what looks like a concussion, attracts shapely cheerleader Megan “Meg” Penny (Shawnee Smith). Despite his bravado, Paul’s wingman, Scott Jeskey (Ricky Paull Goldin), gets cold feet when buying condoms ahead of his late-night tryst with Vicki DeSoto (Erika Eleniak) when football loving Reverend Meeker (Del Close) corners him in the local chemist. Wishing to appear virtuous rather than a creep who practically date rapes girls, Scott paints Paul as a wayward soul, much to the disgust of pharmacist Tom Penny (Art LaFleur). This lands Paul in hot water when he pops over (in his letterman jacket, of course) to pick up Meg and realises Tom is her father, though Meg mostly laughs it off while apologising for her bratty little brother, horror fanatic Kevin Penny (Michael Kenworthy). Unfortunately for Paul and Meg, Paul accidentally knocks down a panicked old hermit (Billy Beck). Like in the original, the vagabond investigated a flaming meteorite that crashed into the woods, poking it with a stick and ending up screaming in agony when a strange, slime-like substance latched on to his hand. Luckily for the “old dude”, ruffian Brian Flagg (Kevin Dillon) was fixing his motorcycle nearby and helped, though his presence immediately rubs Paul and Meg the wrong way as Flagg’s a known troublemaker who’s been in and out of juvenile detention centres and is very much an outsider amongst his peers and the town.
Unlikely duo Flagg and Meg must come together when a violent, voracious blob threatens their town.
Genuinely caring for the old man, who had applauded his earlier failed attempt to jump a busted bridge with his motorcycle, and to ensure Paul doesn’t pin the incident on him, Flagg accompanies them to the doctor’s office but quickly leaves after being frustrated by red tape. Paul is horrified to discover the hermit’s skin bulging alarmingly. Panicked, he pleads with the doctor (Jack Nance) for help, only to discover the old man dissolved from the torso down! Alarmed, Paul frantically calls Sheriff Herb Geller (Jeffrey DeMunn) but his chances at being a leading man like McQueen are dashed when the titular “Blob”, now vastly grown, envelops him and leaves Meg unconscious and hysterical after she walks in on him being consumed by the organism. Unfortunately, Paul had time to name-drop Flagg, so the moody outsider is apprehended and grilled by Deputy Bill Briggs (Paul McCrane), who’s convinced that Flagg was involved despite it being literally impossible for him to have melted the two to a mess of meat. Knowing this, Sheriff Geller sets Flagg free and he’s quickly sought out by a desperate Meg, who wants to verify what she saw. While at Fran Hewitt’s (Candy Clark) diner, Flagg dismisses Meg’s wild stories and gives her nothing but resentment, but his disbelief shatters when he hears a commotion and finds Fran’s cook, George Ruiz (Clayton Landey), literally being pulled down the drain by the Blob! Horrified, Brian and Meg take shelter in the freezer, discovering that the Blob is sensitive to the cold, and seek out Sheriff Geller once the coast is clear, oblivious that he, Scott, Vicki, and Fran have all been consumed by the amorphous, acidic creature.
The mutated, man-made parasite excites Dr. Meaddows but spells gory doom for a small town.
However, Flagg and Meg learn that Briggs is at the crash site. Looking for answers, they head over and find Doctor Christopher Meddows (Joe Seneca) leading a military operation of shady government types in haz-mat suits. While Dr. Meaddows is courteous, Flagg is a sceptical, wary bad boy who doesn’t trust or like authority figures so he’s unconvinced by Dr. Meaddows’ explanation that the Blob is an alien bacteria that once wiped out the dinosaurs. Of course, Flagg’s right to be suspicious. After escaping, Flagg overhears a conversation between Dr. Meaddows and Colonel Templeton Hargis (Jack Rader) that reveals the film has reimagined the Blob as a man-made parasite, an advanced form of warfare created during the Cold War that was launched into space in a satellite. Space radiation caused it to unexpectedly mutate and crash to Earth and Dr. Meddows is super excited at the prospect as it means one-upping those pesky Russkies. Accordingly, Dr. Meaddows orders Arborville be pacified with talk of a quarantine from a potential infection and then isolated to contain the Blob, even if it kills the town. Despite his better judgement, Flagg races to warn people using the town’s vast sewer pipes, reuniting with Meg after she was forced to flee down there with Kevin and his friend, Eddie Beckner (Douglas Emerson). Kevin and Eddie’s wholesome midnight screening of a slasher was interrupted by the Blob, which sent the cinema patrons fleeing or consumed them in a far more gruesome and bloody reimagining of the iconic scene from the original film. The Blob then doubles down by melting poor Eddie, leaving Flagg, Kevin, and shellshocked soldier (Bill Moseley) trapped in the sewers ahead of the explosive finale.
The Blob is bigger, meaner, and more dangerous than ever thanks to fantastic practical effects.
Although its origins are different, the Blob is still an amorphous, voracious creature driven only to consume and grow. Even when small, the Blob is tenacious, latching onto the hermit’s hand with a corrosive grip and melting him inside out. This sees it grow large enough to engulf poor Paul, who’s left a screaming, suffocating, melting mess within the creature’s jelly-like body. While the Blob was disappointingly absent for most of the 1958 film, it’s a persistent threat here, stalking through the grass to invade Vicki from the inside out, collapsing her in on herself to attack Scott with writhing tentacles. The Blob is far more versatile here thanks to improved practical and visual effects, appearing in various forms and sizes thanks to miniatures, animatronics, rear projection, and puppetry. Accordingly, it utilises tentacles to ensnare its prey, like when it entangles itself on Meg’s hair or yanks George down the drain. Other times, it simply engulfs its targets, slithering over the telephone booth to absorb Fran while still digesting lovelorn Sheriff Geller. The Blob’s increased screen presence delivers some fantastically gory kills and moments: Paul’s arm is ripped off and lies twitching and melting on the floor, a projectionist (Unknown) gets plastered to the ceiling and left gasping as he dissolves into the creature, and poor Eddie gets melted to a screaming, half-skeletal mush! The Blob grows “at a geometric rate” as a result, eventually becoming large enough to swat solders with giant tentacles, shrug off C4 and flamethrowers (leaving Reverend Meeker horribly burned), and growing thrashing appendages so strong they snap Briggs in half! Dr. Meaddows’ insane attempt to contain the creature and somehow turn it to his advantage see him disregard all civilian and military lives, leading to his deserved end when the Blob snags him through a manhole and leaves him a bloodstain within his suit.
While C4 and a snow truck reduce the Blob to frozen fragments, its threat remains lingering by the end…
Flagg’s rebellious nature and distrustful attitude see his hunch about Dr. Meaddows pay off in the worst way and, despite him planning to leave town, Flagg’s compelled to go back (he even chastises himself for having his head turned by a cheerleader!) Despite saving Meg, Kevin, and the soldier, Flagg is met with suspicion by the town thanks to Briggs’ prejudice and Dr. Meaddows insisting that Flagg is infected by some unknown pathogen and a danger to them. Flagg manages to instil some doubt into Briggs but, luckily for him, the Blob soon convinces the civilians of the true threat. After Colonel Hargis orders the Blob to eat some C4, the creature emerges bigger than ever and goes on a rampage, scooping up, swatting, and consuming everything in its path as the terrified residents flee to the town hall. Thanks to Meg, they fend off the Blob with fire extinguishers, buying Flagg time to commandeer one of Moss Woodley’s (Beau Billingslea) beloved snow making trucks and blast the Blob with freezing cold liquid nitrogen. The Blob reacts violently, overturning the snow truck and threatening to consume Flagg, so Meg completes her evolution into a forthright action heroine by distracting it with an assault rifle and priming some C4 attached to the snow truck. Though both are momentarily imperilled due to being snagged on wires or seatbelts, the two race to safety just as the explosive goes off, flash-freezing the Blob into thousands of ice crystals and bathing the town square in snow. Flagg and Meg embrace as the relieved residents come out of hiding and Moss helps transport the remains to the icehouse. However, Revered Meeker is left badly scarred and traumatised by the ordeal, which he saw as a sign of the apocalypse. Thus, some time later, he preaches of the Rapture and a coming doomsday and is seen to possess a single, writhing piece of the Blob, hinting that the creature may return for seconds…
Final Thoughts: I was probably way too young when I first saw The Blob, but I don’t regret it one bit. This is another example of a remake done right as it takes everything that worked about the original and dials it up to eleven, with the twist that The Blob takes its premise very seriously and is much more of a monster movie/body horror than a cheap (if ambitious) B-movie. As over the top as Flagg’s roguish depiction is, I really liked his characterisation as an outsider who’s been abandoned by his family and is constantly misjudged but who has a good heart and rises to the occasion. Shawnee Smith did a decent job being more than just a pretty, screaming face but I did find her a bit weak compared to Kevin Dillon, though Flagg and Meg made for a good odd couple. I really enjoyed how closely the film sticks to the premise of the original but puts little twists on things, like having the bad boy be the lead protagonist, featuring the creature more to showcase the effects, and altering its origin to make it a man-made parasite as an example of humanity’s hubris and war-like nature. Every complaint I had about the original is addressed here as we see the Blob in full glory for each kill, which are suitably ghastly and disturbing thanks to some truly remarkable practical effects. I loved how the Blob consumed its victims, engulfing them and melting their flesh and bone and leaving them shrieking, helpless messes of meat within its churning body. The Blob was extremely aggressive, sprouting tentacles and changing form to overwhelm its prey and truly depicted as unstoppable rather than being downplayed as a prank. The Blob even has the balls to kill off a kid, something rarely seen in horror, and never fails to entertain me no matter how many times I see it.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Do you agree that The Blob is one of the best horror remakes out there? Were you a fan of bad-boy Flagg and his rebellious attitude? Did you like the changes made to the Blob’s origins or do you prefer it to be a purely space-bound creature? Were you impressed by the gruesome special effects and gory kills? Are you disappointed that we never got a sequel to this film? What sci-fi movies are you watching this January? Tell me what you think about The Blob in the comments, check out my other sci-fi reviews, and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest more sci-fi content for the site.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 8 August 2017 Originally Released: 22 September 2008 Developer: Inti Creates / Capcom Metacritic Scores: 82 / 7.4
Also Available For: Mobile, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series S
The Review: Mega Man 9 is a throwback to the Blue Bomber’s glory days on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), perfectly mirroring the controls, abilities, and presentation from that era. Accordingly, the plot is as basic as you could ask for (Doctor Thomas Light has been set up by the devious Doctor Albert Wily, whose new Robot Masters are causing chaos) and everything is exactly like the NES days. This means you can freely choose from eight initial stages, blast enemies with Mega Man’s “Mega Buster”, and defeat Robot Masters to gain new “Special Weapons”. These occasionally aid you in traversing stages and will make battling Robot Masters easier, since each is weak to a special weapon. As with every game in Mega Man: Legacy Collection 2, players can enable an armour mode to reduce the damage they take, apply borders and filters, listen to the game’s soundtrack, and check out some concept art. Inputting a code or beating the game unlocks three extra modes: two harder difficulties and one where you play as Mega Man’s “brother”, Proto Man, which snags you another Achievement. While you can save your game after clearing each stage and the game features checkpoints, this version doesn’t include rewind functionality. The “save state” feature is a joke, too, simply saving any collectibles you’ve found but returning you to the last checkpoint, making Mega Man 9 an extremely challenging experience without the convenience of being able to undo stupid mistakes. Players can enable a rapid-fire mode but must equip Special Weapons or summon Mega Man’s robotic canine, Rush, from the in-game menu. This is also where you use helpful items like Energy-Tanks, Beat (who saves you from pits), and Eddie (who drops items). These are purchased from Mega Man’s “sister”, Roll, by spending bolts at Dr. Light’s lab, though some are single-use items.
New and returning abilities only somewhat mitigate the pain of this throwback’s old-school challenge.
By default, Mega Man fires his currently equipped weapon with X and jumps with A or Y, but his armour upgrades are missing. Proto Man has the slide and weapon charge, and enemies respawn the moment you edge offscreen. As ever, Mega Man’s new Special Weapons are a mixed bag, with their functionality mirroring previous Special Weapons. The Jewel Satellite is a reskinned Leaf Shield, for example, and the Plug Ball is just a more versatile Search Snake since it travels across surfaces. While the Concrete Shot creates temporary blocks, I found them pretty unreliable (especially if you buy the Shock Guard to resist insta-death spikes). The Laser Trident destroys special blocks to access shortcuts, goodies, and navigate Dr. Wily’s hazardous fortress, and the Hornet Chaser snags faraway items. The Tornado Blow whisks away all onscreen enemies and activates special propeller platforms, but its energy drains very quickly so you’ll want to use it sparingly to have ammo for the Magma Dragons and Magma Man. Magma Bazooka fires a three-way spread and the Black Hole Bomb creates a vortex that pulls in enemies and projectiles, but it’s best to save Special Weapons for the bosses as there’s rarely a need to expend them in stages. You whip out Rush Coil and Rush Jet a fair bit, especially to bypass tricky platforming with the latter and reach goodies like 1-ups and extra health with the former. Rush has no special underwater form this time, unfortunately, or any autoscrolling sections. In fact, I didn’t encounter any autoscrolling sections in my playthrough, just the usual hazards like insta-death pits and various spikes, a floaty jump when underwater, and having to quickly (and I mean quickly) bypass molten metal hazards. You can further increase Mega Man’s defences with the Guard Power Up item (or dramatically decrease it for an additional challenge with the Book of Hairstyles) and ensure that whichever Special Weapon is at its lowest ammo gets replenished with the Energy Balancer. You don’t need to worry about collecting letters or other items here, just snagging screws to buy stuff if you need them.
Mega Man 9 lovingly recreates the look, sound, feel, and difficulty curve of the 8-bit classics.
Visually, Mega Man 9 really scratches that itch if you’ve been missing the 8-bit aesthetic of the classic games. The story is told using large, partially animated, anime-like sprite art, text, and in-game sprites, with Mega Man again changing colour with each Special Weapon and simply blinking when idle. The presentation mirrors an NES title, though sprite flickering and slowdown have been eliminated (unless you activate them), and the music is perhaps the best since Mega Man 2(Capcom, 1988). Mirroring the NES visuals means mirroring the gameplay style, meaning Mega Man is as clunky and limited as he was back in the day, which makes platforming difficult as it’s easy to slip off platforms (even when they’re not frozen) or drop down pits because you fell just short on your jump. Rush Jet helps and is usually a better option as those damn disappearing/reappearing platforms are back and Tornado Man’s stage tosses in moving platforms that spin you around, screwing up your jumps if you’re timing’s off. This stage also features ice, a rainstorm (complete with a minor wind effect), and storm clouds as additional platforms. Dr. Wily’s second stage sees Illusians creating fake blocks to trick you, Splash Woman’s stage has you hopping to fast-moving platforms that fly out of the walls, Magma Man’s stage is full of insta-kill lava, Galaxy Man’s stage debuts teleports that fling you about. Jewel Man’s stage was probably the most visually impressive as it’s set in a sparkling diamond mine, but I liked Galaxy Man’s space station setting and that Plug Man’s stage is a power plant with dials in the background and electrical hazards on platforms. This stage also plunges into darkness near the end and sees fake doubles of Mega Man spawn from television screens, Hornet Man’s stage is largely set in a lush rose garden full of unique flower-based enemies, and Splash Woman’s stage recycles the bubble gimmick from Mega Man 5(Capcom, 1992).
The Robot Masters are visually very fun and just the right level of challenge with the right weapons.
Similarly, many of Mega Man’s usual enemies also return, including Metall, a new Sniper Joe variant with a machine gun, and that Shield Attacker. The Green and Yellow Devil live on in eye-like globs that split when shot, little propeller robots fly around roasting you with their flames, robotic octopi stain you with ink projectiles, sentient coal rolls around in minecarts, and pincer-like robots fly you into spikes if you’re not careful. Four stages include large mini bosses, such as the aforementioned Fire Dragon and a robotic elephant. Three of these are fought in quick succession, with each tossing a giant ball in different ways and suck it (and you) in to repeat their attack. The Hanabiran can be tricky as the robotic flower sprouts from different platforms to fire its petals at you while a rotating flower bar keeps you on the move and a spike pit spells certain doom if you slip. The Stone Head caught me off-guard in Jewel Man’s stage, but you can predict where it will drop if you watch the boulders overhead, so you just need to avoid them when they fall and not get stunned when it crashes down. Mega Man 9 will be harder if you tackle the stages in the wrong order so it’s best to start with Splash Woman. While the trident projectiles she fires can be as tricky to dodge as her downward thrust, she’s easy to beat with the Mega Buster and her Laser Trident is very effective against Concrete Man, whose biggest danger is stunning you with his big ground pound. His otherwise useless Concrete Shot crushes Galaxy Man, whose Black Hole Bomb is enough to stay away from and easily makes short work of Jewel Man, who simply flings his gems while hopping about. The Jewel Satellite makes mincemeat of Tornado Man, whose Tornado Blow is easy enough to either avoid or tank (especially as the overheard spikes are no threat) and will cut through Magma Man in no time (he was probably the easiest of the Robot Masters!) The Magma Bazooka can then take care of Hornet Man, who just fires swarms of hornets and is barely a threat.
I’m fairly confident the later bosses and additional modes would’ve kicked my ass just as hard!
Once all eight Robot Masters are defeated, Mega Man proves that Dr. Wily is behind everything (…shocker…) and four new stages become available. As ever, Dr. Wily’s mechanical obstacle courses remix enemies, gimmicks, and even mini bosses from previous stages alongside new ones, like those propeller platforms. Each is also guarded by a unique boss, with these four Spike Pushers waiting in the first stage. You must quickly blast their spiked balls back at them, avoiding their projectiles, before they can instantly kill you, which is more aggravating than challenging. Sadly, my run ended at the second Dr. Wily stage. While it was taxing enough to quickly spawn Rush Coil and get past the insta-kill molten metal hazards in the first stage, the tight hallways, floaty underwater mechanics, and tricky jumps ended me in a very specific, spike-filled room. It would probably be much easier if I had the Shock Guard, but you must buy this before entering the stage as exiting it means replaying the first Dr. Wily stage, which is just despicable. Looking ahead, there’s a giant mechanical, shark-like submarine, two “Devil” like globs, and the standard gauntlet against the previous Robot Masters. Dr. Wily also pilots a pretty awesome-looking dinosaur mech in the endgame before again resorting to his capsule, teleporting around, and firing electrical projectiles. Had the developers allowed players to create real save states, at least, or respawn in the same area after being killed, this difficulty curve would be much more tolerable. Instead, you’re sent back to or must reload your last checkpoint, getting more frustrated each time (or potentially getting better, that happened to me in a couple of sections) and slowly realising that you entered the stage underequipped since you had no idea that you’d need E-Tanks or special items. The “Hero” and “Superhero” modes only increase the challenge and, while Proto Man boasts a shield and unique abilities, he also receives double damage and greater knockback. Legacy Collection 2 also offers a handful of extra challenges, both based on your gameplay and from the main menu, where you can tackle remixed gimmicks and stages, time trials, and boss rushes for additional Achievements.
Final Thoughts: I have to admit, a big ol’ goofy smile came to my face when I booted up Mega Man 9. I had no idea how much I missed the classic 8-bit art style and NES chip tunes until I started this game, which brilliantly recreates the visuals, gameplay, and challenge of the Blue Bomber’s glory days on the NES. Each level is beautifully basic, featuring simplistic backgrounds that nonetheless pop with colour and have a lot of variety while also being very familiar for long-time franchise fans. While it’s a shame that Mega Man is missing some of his later abilities, such as the charge shot and slide, it’s fun returning to that limited, somewhat awkward gameplay style. Mega Man’s new Special Weapons may lack originality or be somewhat forgettable, but I found myself using them a bit more than in the previous games and it remained as satisfying as ever to whittle down a Robot Master. I really liked seeing new enemies mixed in with some familiar faces, alongside new mini bosses and unique Robot Masters. The siren-like Splash Woman and bizarre UFO-like Galaxy Man were two standouts, as was the Fire Dragon (whose skeleton is revealed as you deal damage!) Sadly, as great as the game looks and sounds, Mega Man 9 is handicapped by the same issues that dogged the NES games. Namely, tricky platforming, unforgiving level design, annoying enemy placement, and insta-death traps galore. Unlike in the remasters of the NES games, there’s no rewind function to save you here and the “save state” system is a cruel joke working in conjunction with a fastidiously old-school difficulty that was sadly too much for me to overcome. It feels unfair to knock the game’s rating down for this, but it did impact my enjoyment of Mega Man 9, which strips back your options and abilities to artificially augment the already steep difficulty curve. Had the game been a little more lenient with its lives and checkpoints (especially considering the two even harder DLC modes!), this would be a solid recommendation. However, as it is, you’re better off picking up the remastered versions of the original games and playing those. They give you everything this game has, and more, and are much more satisfying as a result.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
What did you think to this throwback to Mega Man’s glory days? Did you find it jarring to go back to this visual style and challenge or did you welcome it? Which of the new Special Weapons and Robot Masters was your favourite? Were you shocked to learn Dr. Wily was behind everything? Did you ever beat the game (and, if so…how?!)? How are you celebrating sci-fi genre this month? Let me know what you think about Mega Man9 in the comment, check out my other Mega Man reviews, and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest more Mega Man content.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
Released: 13 August 1953 Director: Byron Haskin Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Budget: $2 million Box Office: $2 million (allegedly) Rotten Tomatoes Scores:89% / 71%
Quick Facts: As one of the forefathers of science-fiction genre, it’s perhaps no surprise that Herbert George Wells’s seminal 1898 alien invasion story The War of the Worlds is so widely lauded in mainstream and academic circles alike. After the book gained widespread notoriety from a radio adaptation, George Pal spearheaded the film version, which noticeably differed from the source material and reimagined H. G. Wells’s Tripods as flying machines courtesy of Albert Nozaki and his award-winning visual effects. Heralded as a sci-ficlassic, inspired a follow-up television show, similarly-themed alien invasion movies, a slew of remakes and knock-offs, and a widely celebrated musical adaptation from Jeff Wayne.
The Review: After humanity decimated each other in two World Wars, the Earth was on the precipice of dangerous and terrifying times. Advancements in nuclear and atomic science saw devastating weapons created and stockpiled, which threatened to destroy all life on Earth. Yet, as the omniscient narrator (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) relates, there are beings in the universe far above humanity’s petty squabbles. Far away on the long-dead red planet, unseen and malicious Martians observed our world with curious and envious eyes. Determining that the Earth was their best shot at migration considering how cold, dead, and hazardous the other planets are, the Martians begin a methodical invasion of our world with the simple crash-landing of a red-hot meteor outside Linda Rosa, California. Naturally, this draws immediate attention from the locals, film crews, and the United States military, who struggle to contain the resultant flash fires and rope in visiting scientists like atomic expert Doctor Clayton Forrester (Gene Barry) to offer their insight. Dr. Forrester quickly discovers the meteorite is radioactive and guesses that it’s hollow, explaining why the impact didn’t destroy the town (or the whole planet). He is so intrigued by the arrival – and clearly captivated by local Sylvia Van Buren (Ann Robinson) – that he decides to stick around and investigate the object further once it cools down, graciously accepting the hospitality of Sylvia’s uncle, Pastor Matthew Collins (Lewis Martin. While Dr. Forrester enjoys the square dance, part of the meteorite suddenly unscrews and a strange, mechanical, snake-like periscope emerges, flash-frying the nearby guards when they try to make contact and knocking out all the electricity and phone lines in the town with a burst of magnetic radiation (what we would now call an electro-magnetic pulse/EMP).
Dr. Forrester is at the forefront when Martian flying machines attack the world.
As more of the objects arrive, the military rolls in to secure the crash site. Major General Mann (Les Tremayne) takes charge, ordering a cordon and authorising lethal retaliation against the invader. Pastor Collins, reasoning that the Martians must be a higher lifeform and thus closer to God, attempts to make contact and is immolated by their “heat-ray”, alongside most of General Mann’s troops, when the Martians emerge from their meteorite (actually a cylindrical travel pod) in sleek, manta-ray-like craft that appear to levitate on magnetic beams. The flying machines obliterate everything in their path, easily resisting gunfire, mortars, and even aerial bombardment thanks to their impenetrable force fields. Dr. Forrester and Sylvia flee in a small plane but crash-land in a field, taking shelter in a nearby farmhouse and using the brief reprieve to bond. While Dr. Forrester has no family, Sylvia comes from a large, close-knit family unit and is thus terrified of the destruction caused by the Martians, who slowly sweep across the world as more of their cylinders crash to Earth. When one lands right by the farmhouse, partially destroying it and briefly injuring Dr. Forrester, the strange, squat aliens investigate and Dr. Forrester learns that they are as fragile as humans and, after reconvening with the remains of the military and scientific community, that they’re entirely dependant on their awesome technology. Research on the Martian’s blood also shows they’re highly anaemic while the severed electronic “eye” Dr. Forrester recovers gives some insight into how they perceive the world and humanity, but little advantage is revealed from this. As the world’s nations crumble under the Martian attack, the survivors are driven far from their homes, with the world’s military and surviving governments forced to co-ordinate from makeshift camps with the strangely untouched Washington, D.C., where efforts to mount an effective counterattack are explored.
Though the atom bomb fails and all seems lost, the Martians are undone by Mother Nature herself.
With the Earth on the brink of complete destruction, it’s decided to unleash a far deadlier and more powerful version of the atom bomb. Interestingly, no one (not even Dr. Forrester) objects despite the incredible risk and soldiers, civilians, and reporters observe the blast from dangerously close proximity, seemingly unafraid of any lethal fallout. The devastating force is barely an inconvenience to the Martians, however, thanks to their forcefields, and civilians are ordered to evacuate to the perceived safety of the mountains. Dr. Forrester and his colleagues are thus given the unenviable task of coming up a solution to the problem, an arduous request considering it’s predicted the Martians will conquer the world in just six days, and one almost immediately scuppered when those left behind descend into madness. Rioting, looting, and violence flood the streets, with Dr. Forrester forcibly removed from his car and separated from his vital equipment, seemingly dooming humanity thanks to greed and fear. Concerned only with reuniting with Sylvia, who was similarly forced from a bus heading to the Rocky Mountains, Dr. Forrester recalls a story she shared with him from her childhood where she took shelter in a church and finds her amidst a gaggle of terrified survivors praying for a miracle. Their prayers are seemingly answered when the flying machines suddenly lose control and crash midway through blasting the remains of Los Angeles. The survivors cautiously flood the streets and watch, amazed, as the Martians succumb to the bacteria and diseases humanity has long developed immunity against. Thus, at the very last second, the world is saved not by force or weapons, but by the simplest organisms of all as the planet itself repels its vicious invaders.
Despite some differences from the book and some strange choices, the film remains a sci-fi classic.
I’ve read The War of the Worlds a couple of times, but I haven’t committed it to memory. This film, while largely similar to the book, its noticeably different in that it’s set in America, follows a named (and somewhat educated) central protagonist, and depicts the Martians hovering around rather than stomping through cities in their Tripods. While the Martians utilised flying machines in the book, they were rarely seen, yet the visual of these sleek, deadly craft spewing red death has become iconic in the sci-fi genre. The film also places also more emphasis on the atomic bomb, as I recall, with the weapon depicted as humanity’s last, best hope against the invaders, and many supporting characters are omitted. Dr. Forrester and Sylvia take shelter in a farmhouse, but the curate is missing. The Martians don’t spread their red weed to terraform the planet, don’t capture or consume people, and are never seen engaging with the Navy. The Martians are also depicted very differently than in the book. Rather than being bizarre, octopus-like creatures with a mass of tentacles and bulbous main bodies (essentially being all brain and little else), the Martians are stumpy, gangly creatures with long, spindly arms and weird, biomechanic eyes. This was a strange choice that makes the creatures look more ridiculous than intimidating, though the scene where one fondles Sylvia is still somewhat striking and the cold, efficient ruthlessness of the flying machines more than makes up for how ridiculous the operators look. Indeed, the film emphasises that the Martians are biologically unremarkable, doubling down when they succumb to simple bacteria, and are only fearsome because of their machines, making for a startling allegory for the arrogance and warmongering nature of humanity.
Final Thoughts: The War of the Worlds certainly earned its place as one of the quintessential sci-fi movies of the 1950s and beyond. It’s the classic story of aliens invading the Earth and set the blueprint for so many alien invasion movies, rip-offs, and parodies, and it all came from this loose adaptation of a centuries-old text whose message has only become more prevalent over time. The main showcase of the film might be the amazing special effects, but the character work is pretty good here, too. I liked Dr. Forrester as an unlikely hero. He knew enough to flee when faced with an overwhelming force and his first thought was also to learning more about their enemy than confronting it head-on, and to protecting others rather than giving in to fear and despair. Sylvia is largely here to look pretty, scream when the Martians attack, and lose herself to hysterics, but she gives Dr. Forrester strength and something specific to fight for and focus on. I enjoyed how stern but fair General Mann was and how utterly useless all our fancy weapons and military might were against this aggressive and advanced enemy. The visual of the Martians shrugging off an atomic bomb remains striking and seeing them slowly and methodically wipe out humanity across the world set the standard for later depictions of world-wide destruction. Sure, there are liberties taken with the text and the Martians themselves look kinda goofy, but their flying machines are now intrinsically linked with the story and have become a symbol of the genre. The War of the World’s message about the dangers of humanity taking their planet and lives for granted remains as true as ever, with us being hopelessly insignificant compared to Mother Nature, and the film remains a bleak, humbling narrative about how insignificant we are against such homegrown and outside forces.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
Is The War of the Worlds one of your favourite sci-fi films? Did you like the changes made to the source material or were you annoyed to see the focus changed so much? Were you impressed by the special effects and the sleek flying machines or did you miss the lumbering Tripods? Do you believe alien life is seeking to conquer our world? Which version of The War of the Worldsis your favourite and how are you celebrating sci-fi this year? use the comments below to let me know, check out my other sci-fi reviews, and donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest other War of the Worlds media for me to cover.
January celebrates two notable dates in science-fiction history: “National Science Fiction Day” on January 2 to coincide with the birth of world renowned sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov, and 12 January being when Arthur C. Clarke’s HAL 9000 was created. Accordingly, I dedicate January to celebrating sci-fi in all its forms.
The Review: Bucky O’Hare is a 2D, sidescrolling beat-’em-up that essentially acts as a series finale for the cult classic cartoon. In it, up to four players battle across eight stages, fighting the Toad Empire, who have conquered planets in the “Aniverse”, imprisoned their inhabitants, and stolen the life force of the worlds for nefarious purposes. Players can pick from titular space rabbit Bucky, four-armed Dead-Eye Duck, Bucky’s strangely alluring first-mate, Jenny, and boisterous robot Android First Class/AFC Blinky, each voiced by the voice actors from the cartoon. While each is armed with a different pistol and has a different special attack, all four play exactly the same and your options are naturally limited to three buttons: attack, jump, and special. You can float for a short time by holding the jump button, occasionally hold fire to rapidly shoot (or melee attack up close), press jump and attack together for a jumping kick, and activate your character’s special move as often as you like. Bucky tosses a bomb, Dead-Eye surrounds himself with a temporary energy field, Jenny tosses an energy wave, and Blinky unleashes a flame-like blast. You cannot dash and, as far as I can tell, there are no co-op moves, but temporary power-ups, health restoring orbs, and extra life gold bars occasionally spawn from special doors. These briefly power-up your standard shot or your bomb to deal greater damage, though there are no other weapons to pick up, no objects to throw, and no explosive barrels or destructible objects to mix-up the gameplay. Two stages see you flying around on a jetpack and one has you barrelling through the Toad mothership on a spacebike, avoiding barricades and blasting enemies, though there are no bonus rounds to break up the monotony.
Sadly, there’s little innovation or to differentiate the characters in this mindless brawler.
Bucky O’Hare mimics the cartoon to an impressive degree, featuring fully voiced, partially animated cutscenes that include cameos from Willy DuWitt and Mouse (who never appeared in the show). Cutscenes progress the story and raise the stakes between each stage and the sprites are full of life and character, with the Toads fleeing in fear, marching along or saluting, and each playable character sporting colourful idle poses or being scorched by flaming hazards. Everything looks ripped right out of the cartoon and there’s generally always something happening in the background, from battleships looming by or burning up, to Toad tech filling the horizon or the mechanical depths of the heavily fortified Toad Star. Things are a tad clunky, however, as your sprite often disappears when respawning (though this might’ve been an emulation issue) and characters are quite sluggish to control. While most stages simply have you travelling from the left to the right, gunning down nigh-endless enemies, Stage 4 is an autoscroller that forces you along an unstable asteroid belt. You must jump when prompted to avoid falling when the asteroids crumble and fight to rescue Mouse, who makes traversing the level much easier by spawning grassy platforms (though you’ll still have to watch out for meteor showers). When jetpacking in Stage 3, you’re hard pressed to avoid the electrical hazards filling and darting across the screen, and bursts of flame or erratic burning rods often dog your progress when on the ground. Stage 2 introduces diagonal, sloping paths and sees you freeing captive rabbits before fending off enemies and wall-mounted missile turrets in a rising elevator section. Turrets attack from the background or rise from the sand, giant cannons fire explosive shots from behind barricades, electrical hazards sometimes creep across the floor, and enemies occasionally spawn from pods or leap in from passing ships to add to your troubles.
A colourful and fitting finale to the cartoon, but largely forgettable as an arcade game.
It’s quite impressive seeing how many enemies fill the screen in Bucky O’Hare. The Toad Empire use laser rifles, knives, grenades, and jetpacks and are bolstered by mechs, robots, mines, and starships. Most bosses are cumbersome and simple to defeat, however, such as Al Negator who fires a pistol and whips with his cybernetic tail. Toad Borg appears in Stage 2 and Stage 7, where electricity hazards add a bit more danger to his jumping punch, extending fist, and energy wave attack. After bringing down Stage 3’s climate convertor and taking out a gigantic, rock-like fish-thing, you battle the crazed Total Terror Toad. This dude jumps all over, blocking your shots, tossing a meat cleaver, and comically falling down the screen upon defeat. A handful of slippery, rock-hardened Toads guard Mouse in Stage 4, which is cleared by destroying a heavily armed Toad attack craft, which blasts across the screen and fills the arena with various laser blasts. After making short work of a strangely archaic, gear-tossing tank-like vehicle, Stage 5 culminates in a disappointingly simple fight against the Cyborg Spider, who wanders about firing energy bolts from its abdomen and summons web pillars. Although the race through the Toad mothership is exhilarating and includes a fight against a mechanical, shark-like submarine over boiling lava, the stage ends with a largely forgettable fight against a deadly Toad tank. This thing may be a huge target and might sport a second phase, but that’s just the gear mech again and it simply uses lasers and drill appendages to attack. Although you first encounter the Air Marshall on Stage 5, he flees after you destroy his fortified cockpit and largely avoids the fight in Stage 7. Instead, he floats about in his hovercraft and lets his minions fight for him, which is a bit of a letdown. The game then ends with a three-phase confrontation with Komplex-2-Go. At first, it stomps about causing splash damage with its energy bombs, then it loses its legs and causes flaming rods to rain down, before finally careening about the central core spewing debris and bursting into flames.
Final Thoughts: Bucky O’Hare may be a sadly forgotten beat-’em-up title and franchise, but you’re not missing out on all that much if you’ve never played this mindless brawler. While the presentation is top-notch, with the game perfectly aligning with and providing a fitting conclusion to the cartoon, the gameplay is needlessly tedious and simple. It’s mindboggling to me that the developers didn’t try to differentiate the characters more, like making Jenny faster or Blinky slower or Dead-Eye hit harder or shoot faster (he fours have four arms, after all!) It might’ve helped if the game had more power-ups, perhaps allowing you to call in other allies or the Righteous Indignation for assistance, or included a bonus game or two to rack up your score and compete against friends. While the sprites look fantastic and are full of life and colour, the backgrounds are painfully bland until the late game, with only a few memorable moments springled throughout (the asteroid belt, for example, and the Toad Star). I liked that the bosses sported text boxes and voice clips and were huge sprite, but they were disappointingly simple for the most part (though this may have been intentional to balance how grossly outnumbered players will be in this obvious coin-muncher!) Fans of beat-’em-ups will likely find Bucky O’Hare lacking compared to others in the genre, though it has a colourful appeal and is a decent enough way to waste about an hour of your time, especially if you’re a big fan of the cartoon and wanted some closure on it. It can’t be denied that it’s not as good as it could’ve been, though, or that it’s noticeably lacking compared to other brawlers of the time.
My Rating:
⭐⭐
Rating: 2 out of 5.
Could Be Better
Have you ever played Bucky O’Hare out in the wild? How do you think it holds up compared to other beat-’em-ups and the Nintendo title? Were you also disappointed that the characters all played the same? Which of the boss battles was your favourite? Do you agree that the game is lacking compared to other beat-’em-ups? Were you satisfied with how the game concluded Bucky’s story and would you like to see him back a comeback? What are some of your favourite sci-fi-orientated videogames? Feel free to share your memories of Bucky O’Hare in the comments and then donate to my Ko-Fi to suggest other sci-fi content for the site.
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