My Month In Games: July 2016

Furi - PS4

I'm not going to be able to hold back my enthusiasm for this one, so I won't even try. Furi is an incredible game and easily my current front runner for Game of the Year. The core gameplay is so tremendous, and the overall vibe so strong, that whatever faults it might have barely even registered for me. To my surprise however, Furi has been receiving some middling review scores from a few major publications, so after I tell you a little bit about the game and my experiences with it, I'm also going to tell you why those other guys are dead wrong about this title.

In its most basic elements, Furi is a hack 'n' slash/shoot 'em up combat game that features ultra tight gameplay, a distinctive, neon-tinted art style, and an impeccable soundtrack. What really sets it apart however, is that it consists of boss fights only! You play as a prisoner attempting to free himself from a nine-level "jail world" along with the help of a man in a bunny suit (!?) who fills you in on the story beats between fights. Each of Furi's nine main levels and one (not so) hidden final stage features a challenging boss "guardian" who must be dispatched before moving on to the next one. Gameplay consists of a mix between timing based hacking and slashing, "bullet hell" inspired shooting/dodging sequences, and a few quick time events thrown in for good measure. Dodge, parry, then unleash a flurry of quick sword attacks for big damage, or hang back and use your automatic handgun to chip away at the enemy's health. Each boss has several attack phases you must learn, and most phases contain both close quarters and ranged combat sections.

"Bullet hell" sections are often as beautiful as they are dangerous.

I won't mince words here, Furi is a very challenging game that definitely put my reflexes (and occasionally my patience) to the test. There are no weapon upgrades and no special moves to learn as you progress; you have every move at your disposal right from the outset, and the challenge comes from learning the boss' attack patterns and reacting to their moves so that you can deal the most damage in return. The beauty is that when you finally beat a boss there's a real sense of accomplishment. Even the really tricky ones can be taken down with enough practice and dedication, and your reward for victory is that you truly do feel like a champion gamer! It's tough but fair, and so enjoyable that failure only spurred me on to try again and again until I was in control. The feeling was intoxicating!

The fast-paced action, distinctive visuals, and top-notch synthwave soundtrack add a tremendous amount to style to the proceedings.

Professional criticism of the game has struck me in a way that feels unfair, so even though I don't normally do this kind of thing, here are a few examples from a couple of major reviews that I considered to be particularly off-base along with my reactions:

From Kotaku:

"Combat is brutal. You can slash, shoot, parry and dash, mechanics that, for me, usually inspire a state of flow regardless of a game’s difficulty. The key, it seems, is memorizing bosses’ animations and training your reflexes to adequately respond to their attacks. No problem — but the delay on your dash mechanic (intentionally, I’d imagine) makes it extremely difficult to time when dodging an area-of-attack blow."

This is mostly inaccurate. Yes, the difficulty can be "brutal" at times, but there absolutely is NO DELAY on the dash mechanic. How it works is that the dash doesn't trigger until after you LET GO of the button; the reason being that it is possible to charge your dash in order to cover more ground. If the dash move triggered just by pressing the button then the charge mechanic wouldn't be possible, and there would be less depth to the control mechanics. Just like anything, you have to get a feel for it first, but once you do you're fine. Also, dodging area-of-attack blows is not "extremely difficult" relative to any other aspect of the game. Tap the dash button quickly and you're good to go.

Your rabbit-suited companion provides story exposition and context to the action. Also, Furi = furry? Hmm...

From IGN:

"Losing three lives during a single phase of each fight restarts the whole thing, which means trudging through three or four phases just to return to the part you were having trouble with, with no opportunity to really practice until you get back to that point. During these do-overs — which force you to repeat linear sequences that, on the second or third try, feel routine rather than rewarding — I often felt like I was just going through the motions of a boss fight as opposed to defending and reacting against a dynamic opponent. Add to this the fact that the parry mechanic feels functionally inconsistent in arena mode, where trying to block and run at the same time sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t, and Furi can go from fun to frustrating pretty quickly."

Look dude, the game is all boss fights. If you game over then you have to start the fight over again. Yes, sometimes that means that you have to trudge through an earlier, more linear section of the fight in order to get back to the part you're having trouble with. It is a minor form of punishment and provides some incentive to work your way through the challenge. It's a lot like Punch-Out!! in that regard, but unlike in that game most of your opponents in Furi can and do throw curve balls at you to keep things feeling fresh. Also, who says you have to feel "rewarded" for making it halfway through a damn fight? The feeling of satisfaction comes when you win. If the opponents were more "dynamic" you'd be whining about the increased difficulty that would bring, I suspect. Also, the parry mechanic is not "functionally inconsistent". If you're running away from an enemy and they attack you from behind, you can't parry. Turn to face your opponent and the parry works.

Not every battle takes place in some kind of future-disco.

Also from Kotaku:

"In more direct combat, if you land three successful slashes against an enemy, your character goes into an automatic attack animation. It’s a reward for rare successes, but also made me feel like I had less agency over my character. It’s distancing, but looks excellent."

Untrue. There is no automatic attack animation that triggers after you land three successful slashes against an enemy. There is an optional auto attack (which lasts about 2-4 seconds) that can be unleashed after a perfectly timed parry attack, but if you prefer to have more "agency" over your character you can back off and nail the boss with a charged sword slash or simply wait for it to recover...which is generally a bad idea.

Some battles subvert expectations and require more patience. The only way to hurt this guardian is to destroy his protective barriers first while dodging your own reflected shots.

And one more from Kotaku:

Although “Promenade” (easy difficulty) isn’t significantly easier than “Furi,” (normal difficulty) it does offer you more lives. You’re shamed for picking it, which made me wonder why it was included at all. Really, you’re not only shamed for picking it as much as you’re shamed for being the kind of person who would pick it: “Anyone will be able to enjoy the universe and the story, but the game will be much shorter and very easy. Does not unlock trophies, the Furier difficulty and the Speedrun mode.” After you select “Promenade,” Furi warns you again that you’re a wimp: “Are you sure you want to change the difficulty? It will prevent you from feeling the rush of combat... Once you have changed the difficulty, you can’t go back to the current difficulty.” Ouch.

Sounds more like a fair warning and less an insult to me. To be sure, Furi is most certainly a niche title and was clearly designed to be challenging. Players who cannot get down with its difficulty curve will have a tough road ahead of them, but I just don't think it's fair to ding it for being upfront about its overall level of challenge. I'm sorry that you felt "shamed" by some informative text at the difficulty select screen, but let's be professional about this, huh? That said, the only thing I encountered that did feel a little cocky to me was a message at the very end of the credits after completing the game's hardest difficulty. It was something along the lines of "Thank you for playing through the hardest difficulty. We appreciate the time and effort that must have taken. Congratulations for playing the game it was meant to be played." That's a little arrogant, sure, but you only see that message at the conclusion of the game. While playing, I actually found the game to be pretty encouraging, as it gives you a little pep talk each time you game over. Not all games are easy, and there is a market for people who want a challenge. I understand that there are people who have become accustomed to the fact that games tend to be easier nowadays, and I also get that there is an annoying cult of gamers who look down their noses at people who don't find difficult games to be all that much fun, but again, I think it's shortsighted to blame a game for staying true to its intentions or because your feelings got hurt by a menu screen.

This cat hits hard and his fighting area is cramped. Stay focused!

After all of this, I gather that you have a good idea of what Furi is all about. I LOVED it, but I can recognize that it's not a game for everyone. If twitchy, stylish action with a somewhat steep but rewarding challenge is your thing, you really should give this wonderful game a look!

Grade: A

My Month In Games: June 2016

DOOM - PS4

I'm no great connoisseur of first-person shooters, but I do like to get down with one every so often, and since I played a lot of Doom back in the day (who didn't?), I thought I'd give this new one a shot. The reviews have been fairly stellar and let me tell ya, they're right on! This game is a bloody good time!

Again, I don't play a lot of FPS games, so I can't really speak with authority about which features and mechanics make an FPS great in 2016, but I can say that Doom does have an old-school vibe that reminded me a lot of the first two games, with enough modern touches to make it feel fairly fresh. Much like Dooms 1 and 2, the fast pace of combat and the overall challenge level require that you keep moving, as stalling on the battlefield or scouting for sniping points will generally leave you outnumbered and overwhelmed. After an enemy has taken a certain amount of damage they will begin to glow, which is your cue to move in close and perform one of the game's brutal finishing melee attacks, the glory kill. Performing a glory kill on an enemy will cause it to drop much needed health, ammo, and armor powerups, so the gameplay mechanics are definitely geared toward running and gunning and finishing with close-up encounters. Don't get me wrong, you can still unload on an enemy from a distance and blow them to smithereens without the glory kill finish, but the finishing moves are a good way to keep yourself healthy and armored. Combat is a lot of fun and fights get pretty thrilling, especially after you've acquired a few of the heavier hitting weapons.

Demon hunting in all its glory.

The story is not especially deep and it's loaded with sci-fi cliches, but I rather enjoyed it anyway! I mean, let's not forget that Doom is a series of games about a space marine on Mars single-handedly beating back a demonic horde. I believe that any attempt by the developers to have made that plot any more "serious minded" than it turned out to be in the finished product would likely have been a disaster. You're a super-powered soldier! Get out there, kill some hellspawn, and don't think about it too goddamn much! Joking aside, I don't want to sell the non-combat aspects of this game too short; the story, scenario, and characters feel just right in context, and there's lots of dark humor and fun references to the classic series of games.

Secrets abound. There's even hidden rooms that feature graphics from the original games.

If I was going to ding the game for anything it would be this: the pattern of the gameplay started to feel just a little samey toward the end of the main campaign. Explore the level, get locked in a room with a shitload of demons, clear 'em out, and repeat. It's a fun time and the combat is well tuned, but I can see how some might start to find it a bit dull near the end. That said, I really don't know if I would have handled it any differently. Doom is clearly designed to hearken back to an earlier era of first-person shooters, and it succeeds so well on that front that I can't really fault it too much for retaining some of the dated gameplay concepts from the old days. There's a simplicity to the proceedings that really suit the game well; just be advised that once you have all of the available weapons, you'll have pretty much seen all that Doom has to offer in terms of gameplay.

I'd also like to take a moment to go on a mini rant about the way that the game autosaves your progress. So dig this; there I was, making my way through the dozen or so missions of the main campaign, when something very lame happened. When you finish a level you get a status screen that tells you how many of that mission's secrets and extras you've found. After moving on to the next mission you can always elect to return to the main menu and play through an earlier mission in an effort to round up all of the secrets and extras you might have missed. At one point fairly late in the game I left the current mission and proceeded to clean up a lot of the stuff I missed from the earlier missions. When I was all done gathering items and completing a few of the game's extra challenges I returned to the later mission I'd had yet to clear. Since it had been some time since I had elected to leave that level and play around in some of the earlier ones, I decided to restart that mission from the beginning. I was given a warning that by starting the mission over I would lose all of the progress I had made to that point, but I figured it was referring only to that most recent mission. Well, it turns out I was wrong. Everything I had done after quitting the most recent mission and returning to the earlier stages was completely wiped out, and I had to go through and redo the challenges and gather up all of the side items again! That's friggin' asinine. The game should obviously save your progress each and every time you complete a level, gather an item, or complete a challenge, but it doesn't. It only saves your progress when you complete the current mission. So if you decide to do what I did and go back to gather some things you missed, make sure that you finish the current mission before turning the game off.

"Why the hell did we give these things cyber implants again?!"

There's also a multiplayer mode and a level creator, but I didn't play with those at all because I don't give a shit about any of that.

In the end, the new Doom is a very solid effort and well worth your time. Even if your last dance with the demons was clear back in the 90s, you'll likely get a kick out of this stellar update. I loved it!

Grade: A


Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational - PS Vita

Now that the system is in its death throes, I finally decided to pick up a Playstation Vita. A seller on Amazon was having a special and selling refurbished units for $100, so I finally bit the bullet and bought one. It's a slick little unit and I'm enjoying the fact that I can pick up games on the cheap! Plus, timing was never my thing.

Anyway, the first game I bought for the Vita was Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational. I'm a longtime fan of the series and I've been itching to play a new one for several years now. I just looked it up and saw that the last entry in the series came out clear back in 2007! In fairness, this one was released in early 2012, so I have only my own frugality to blame for keeping me from my beloved franchise for lo these many years, but yeah...it's been awhile. Though this game ultimately doesn't do much to push the series forward in any meaningful way, for my money, Hot Shots is still my favorite golf series. The formula of solid mechanics, realistic physics, and the cast of wacky characters has always just worked better for me than the funky analog controls of Tiger Woods or the somewhat shoddy gameplay of Mario Golf ever has.

Again, for long time fans of the series, there's not much new going on with Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational. The developers have introduced a few new swing mechanics alongside the classic 3-click swing and the modified version seen in the Playstation 3 game Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds. I'm a traditionalist, so I've mostly stuck with the old-school 3-click power/accuracy bar, but a few of the challenges in this game force you to use the other available swing types and they all seem to work fairly well. The process of progressing through the game's many challenges seems to have improved slightly as well. Players can now earn experience points during matches which can be used to purchase additional equipment and character costumes, and each challenge can be beat normally or by following strict guidelines for even bigger rewards.

My only real gripe about the game is that, beginning with the Playstation 3 iteration, the series seems to have lost some of its charm. Perhaps this can be attributed to overfamiliarity or personal fatigue with the series, but I don't think so. I think that the issue really lies in the fact that the wackier and more bizarre characters and caddies have been excised or smoothed out to the point where they just lack personality. This really doesn't affect the overall gameplay of course, but it does lend the most recent entries a more generic feel. Then again, some of the characters and voice acting in the earlier games (particularly Hot Shots Golf 3 and Fore!) ended up coming off a little culturally insensitive, so I guess I can understand if the more recent entries are attempting to sanitize that image somewhat. Still, I have to say that personality goes a long way in games like this (see Mario Golf), and it would be good to see the series re-embrace its sillier roots in future versions.

Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational looks and plays extremely well on the Vita and it definitley scratched my itch for a meatier golf experience in ways that the latest Mario Golf title simply didn't. Recommended.

Grade: B

My Month In Games: May 2016

Shadow Complex Remastered - PS4

After hearing nothing but good things about this pseudo 3D Metroid-vania title back when it was an Xbox exclusive, I was pretty stoked to try it out when it was released for the Playstation 4 earlier this month. The verdict? It's pretty okay!

Shadow Complex Remastered wraps a modern military skin around the classic platforming/exploration gameplay formula inherent to the Metroid-vania genre. Though it may seem ironic for a game with such a strong military aesthetic, movement is generally emphasized over combat. Though it's slow going at first, within a few hours you'll be double (and triple!) jumping, climbing up sheer walls, slinging a grappling hook, and gracefully swimming through underwater areas. Combat, while plentiful throughout, is a relatively simplistic affair, is often skippable, and the generous aiming and targeting systems ensure that no man or machine - including bosses - stays standing for long....but more on that in a moment. I will say that the 2.5D presentation can sometimes make it tricky to target enemies in the background plane, but you can usually take most anything out without fighting the controls too much.

Exploration and secrets are handled deftly, as the player can use their standard flashlight to point out destructable barriers, hidden areas, and other secrets without having to "bomb every square" like with most games in the Metroid series. This has the effect of making the exploration elements more straightforward and less "mysterious", but if a greater challenge is what you want you can always elect to leave the flashlight off.

The foam gun is fun. Not super useful, mind you, but you can make some wicked sculptures!

After playing this, it occurred to me that you can usually file most Metroid-vania games into one of two camps: those that emphasize movement an exploration, and those that emphasize combat. The best games in the genre find a good balance between these two forces but, as I mentioned before, Shadow Complex Remastered clearly falls into the former category. This is not necessarily a deal breaker as the fighting here is serviceable, even if it is generally pretty rote. Players looking for epic boss battles and a diverse array of challenging enemy types should beware, as you might find the game to be a little too easy and the enemy variety to be lacking. Still, the platforming here is quite good, and the 8-10 hour campaign doesn't overstay its welcome. For my money, no Metroid-vania title has struck the balance between combat and exploration better than Guacamelee! Seriously, the combat system in that game is deeper and more engaging than nearly anything else I've played in the genre, and the movement and exploration are top notch as well.

I would cautiously recommend Shadow Complex Remastered to hardcore fans of Metroid-vania games, but perhaps this title would better serve as an introduction to those who are less familiar yet still curious about the genre.

Grade: B-

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse - 3DS

This was my first experience with a Shantae game, and I must say that thoroughly enjoyed it! For those who have never played any of the games in the series, you will likely be SHOCKED to learn that they are Metroid-vania titles! Maybe I should just retool this blog into Metroid-vania Glory!, no? Well, to be more accurate, Shantae and the Pirate's Curse combines tighter, more Mega Man-esque platforming gameplay with the exploration and backtracking common in the Metroid-vania genre. The main character, Shantae, and the surprisingly large cast of supporting characters and villains are all adorable, and the game also features a wonderful soundtrack and a delightfully silly story.

I whip my hair back and forth! ...I'll show myself out.

If "cutesy" titles just aren't your jam, then Pirate's Curse may drive you to distraction, but those with a love for Mega Man, Metroid, and games of that ilk will likely be as charmed as I was. Sure, it's a little easy (until you reach the more challenging second quest) and non-completionists might find its 5-ish hour campaign to be somewhat slight, but I found Shantae and the Pirate's Curse to be an out-and-out delight!

Grade: B

My Month in Games: April 2016

Broforce - PS4

Wowie wow, I LOVE this game! While at first blush it may look like yet another generic 8-bit throwback, Broforce is actually an excellently crafted and highly amusing platforming shooter that features a wonderfully inventive twist on the genre. Players control any of two dozen "bros" - parodies of various action stars from the 80s, 90s, and 00s (BRObocop, BROchete, BROveheart...you get it) each with their own distinct weapons and special moves - as they face off against hordes of terrorists, mechs, aliens, and even Satan himself! The action is fast-paced, frantic, and fairly chaotic at times, but the challenge level, pacing, and core gameplay are so solid and entertaining that you almost don't care when a misstep leads to a gory, pixelated death and a return to the last checkpoint.

RamBRO gets got.

For me, the real standout feature of Broforce is the random way your characters are chosen. With a few exceptions, you just never know which of the two dozen or so "bros" the game will give you when you start a level. Saving hostages within a level will automatically swap out your current "bro" with another random character and net you an extra life, so you're more or less constantly switching characters and adjusting your strategy depending on who the game gives you. Written out like that it sounds like it might be annoying to never know who you'll be playing as, but it keeps you on your toes and forces you to get good at playing as all of the characters. Another interesting feature of the game is that it generally allows you to tackle the levels in a variety of ways. You can always go in head first, guns ablazin', or you can take a more measured approach; using your guns to blast away the walls, tunneling underneath your enemies as you make your way towards the end of the stage. The variety of characters coupled with the unique and varied ways you can make your way through the stages shows a level of complexity to the gameplay and strategy that you might not pick up on from still images alone.

Sweet chaos!

I could dock a few points for a somewhat generic storyline and some surprisingly long load times, but these slight annoyances really didn't hamper my enjoyment of the game too much. Tone-wise, Broforce also doesn't seem to totally nail the mix of parody and political satire that it's aiming for either, but again, that really doesn't eat into the overall experience. I should also mention that there's a multiplayer component to the game that never delved into. Seems like it could be fun, I just have yet to try it. I highly recommend Broforce and I wouldn't be at all surprised if it ends up in my top 5 games of the year. The screenshots don't totally do it justice, but trust me, this is not just another Contra/Metal Slug ripoff. Go GO GOOOOOOO!!!

Loads of bros...

Grade: A

Galak-Z: The Dimensional - PS4

Y'know, I wanted to like this Rogue-lite space shooter, but its wonky controls completely marred what is otherwise a fairly stylish, Asteroids-esque blast-a-thon with exploration elements. I just couldn't get used to the controls...claw hands, y'know? Also, for my money, Galak-Z doesn't really nail the 80s TV anime vibe it's striving for. It gets close, but it ultimately ends up looking kind of bootleggy. In the end, Galak-Z feels like a good effort, but I didn't really find it to be all that much fun to play.

Grade: C+

GameTracks: Parappa and Lammy...LIVE, ONE NIGHT ONLY!!

Image credit: http://mrrayney.deviantart.com/

This is just...so great! Back in 1999, Sony hosted a live event to celebrate the release of Um Jammer Lammy, the pseudo-sequel to the PS1 hit Parappa The Rapper. The event took place in New York City and featured live performances of many of the wacky songs from the games. Being a huge fan of both Parappa and Lammy I had heard that this event had taken place, and over the years had tried unsuccessfully to locate video of the event online. Now, some 17 years later, series creator Masaya Matsuura posted video of the full concert and it's just glorious. If you have any love for Parappa, Lammy, or the strange and wonderful tunes featured in their games, you just have to see this.

UmJammerLammy_NY_live_Aug26_'99 from masaya matsuura on Vimeo.

My Month(s) in Games: February/March 2016

Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright - 3DS

I was really looking forward to this game because I enjoyed its predecessor, Fire Emblem: Awakening quite a bit, but something about this title just didn't grab me. To be sure, Birthright is a well crafted title, but the fact is that the Fire Emblem series hasn't evolved much over the years, and the games are starting to feel rather samey to me. If you are a huge fan of what this series brings to the table you will likely not be disappointed by what it has to offer, but if you're a bit more casual in your appreciation, like me, then you might find yourself unable to shake the feeling that the series is treading water.

One aspect of the game - and the series in general - that I find particularly irksome is its difficulty. The Fire Emblem series has long been known for its "permadeath" feature, and it came as no surprise that this aspect of the game is once again present in Birthright. I don't have a problem with this aspect of the game, in fact I rather like it, and you are given the option to turn it off at the outset. No, my problem lies in the challenge offered by the different difficulty options. Basically, if you choose "normal" difficulty the game is just a bit too easy, and if you choose "hard" the challenge seems too steep. The problem of this lopsided difficulty curve is then compounded by the permadeath feature. I think that even experienced players who choose to play on "hard" (the game's recommended setting for "experienced" players) with permadeath enabled will find the game to be patently unfair, leaving "normal" with permadeath to be the only real option for those who want a challenge yet don't consider themselves sadists. Also, since it always seems to come up, I'll mention that I do prefer to play with permadeath on, but I always reset whenever I lose someone. I do it that way because it forces you to be perfect and I'm weird like that.

My VERY big sister!

Another vexing aspect of this game has to do with the multiple campaigns it offers. In essence, Fire Emblem Fates is two games in one. There's Birthright, supposedly the easier of the two, and Conquest, the more challenging adventure. When you initially purchase the game you get to choose one of the two campaigns, effectively walling you off from the other campaign until you purchase it as DLC. I'm not opposed to this idea in general, but I'm a little bit bothered by the pricing structure. At full price you pay $40 for the first campaign and an additional $20 for the other. For me, $60 for the complete game feels just a bit steep for a 3DS title. I'm nitpicking a bit, perhaps, but I think $50 for the whole shebang would have been a little more attractive.

At the end of the day, Fire Emblem Fates is a well made game and a fine example of the strategy RPG genre; I think I'm just a bit burnt out on its particular brand of gameplay hooks.

Grade: B-

Sega Classics Collection - PlayStation 2

Here we have a compilation of 10 remastered Sega classics for the PS2. Each of these remasters was released singly in Japan under the umbrella of their SEGA AGES series and I'll tell you right now: it's a good thing they didn't elect to release these games in that way here in the US. I mean, there are some gems here, but if I'd been asked to pay $30-$40 each for these titles I would have probably felt a little cheated. What I'm saying is that, in general, these remasters have a "budget" quality to them. Good gameplay never goes out of style, but in some cases the remastering process only serves to strip away a lot of the charm of the originals. Still, there was some fun to be had with this compilation, and old school Sega fans might do well to track down a copy of this collection. Here's what I thought of each game:

Alien Syndrome

The original arcade version of Alien Syndrome took the bird's eye view perspective and maze running of Gauntlet and grafted an Aliens-style sci-fi skin onto it. It was decent for its day and noted for its crazy weapons and bizarrely gruesome boss creatures. The remaster retains these elements and also darkens things up both figuratively and literally. By working a grittier vibe and and using low lighting to strong effect, it takes the oddly cheerful color scheme of the original and puts it more in line with its subject matter. By far the best part of the remastering effort was the decision to change the control scheme from the original and make it a twin stick shooter a la Smash TV. This one is worth playing and easily in my top 3 for the entire collection.

Individual Grade: B

Columns

I like droppy puzzlers, and I spent plenty of time playing Columns on the Sega Genesis back in the day, but even then I recognized that it wasn't as interesting or as conceptually solid as Tetris. And once Puzzle Fighter and Puyo Puyo came along I found little reason to return to this game. This remake is fine. The simple, clean Greek-influenced visual style is sharpened up, but otherwise they didn't mess with the look of the original too much. They added a cutesy, anime-styled vs. CPU battle mode that I don't think was in the original. It's a welcome enough addition, but the anime vibe clashes a bit with the Grecian formula of the main game.

Individual Grade: C

Fantasy Zone

This is a game that I've always tried my damnedest to like despite its many glaring flaws. It has a goofy, surreal charm that I've always found intriguing, but the core design of this side scrolling shooter is screwed on such a fundamental level that it's basically impossible to have too much fun with this game. If you've never played it, its biggest issue lies in the way the play field scrolls as you move your ship around the stage. Since stages "wrap around" and you can change direction at any time, the game sees fit to send enemies at you from all directions. The problem is that when you change direction to avoid enemies coming from in front of you the screen takes too long to scroll in the opposite direction and you'll often crash into enemies that were coming up from behind you before you are given the chance to see or react to them. Add to that an unforgiving one-hit kill system and the whole affair just feels frustrating and unfair. Unfortunately, it's a problem that has affected every version of the game including this remaster. This update could have ben fun if they would have tweaked the movement mechanics and maybe added a health system, but it's ultimately just too cheap to enjoy. Truly, the wacky and bizarre shooter category has better ambassadors.

Individual Grade: C-

Golden Axe

A mostly enjoyable update to the original. They've rebalanced the characters somewhat and there are some differences in the level design, but this is a decent remake of Golden Axe. The gameplay works, but the graphics are somewhat rough, as the switch from sprites to polygons saps a lot of the charm out of the characters.

Individual Grade: C+

Monaco GP

I had never actually played this arcade racer before, but I was aware of it, and somehow I thought it was going to be more like Hang-On or Pole Position. Instead it features an overhead view, and the gameplay is far more twitchy than I expected. This type of racer really isn't my jam, but it's decent enough I suppose. There's a "classic" and an "original" mode - which, c'mon, what's the difference? - but they're mechanically different enough that it feels like they've tried to breath some life back into this title.

Individual Grade: C

Out Run

Okay, of all the titles in this compilation, this is the one that got the most love in the graphics department. It plays nearly identical to its arcade counterpart, and its wonderful soundtrack got some nice updates. I was and likely always be terrible at this game, but there's something about its overall vibe that keeps me coming back.

Individual Grade: B

Space Harrier

I just love Space Harrier. It has an iconic look and wonderful gameplay and music to match. This is a high quality remaster job, but I was somewhat disappointed with what I perceived as a slight "choppiness" to the animation in some spots. Still, it's a highly playable update and a nice homage to the original classic.

Individual Grade: B+

Tant-r

Of all the "classics" on this compilation, this title is perhaps the least classic of them all. But that doesn't mean that it's not worthwhile! This remaster is actually two games in one. Bonanza Brothers is the more slight of the two, offering a spin on the gameplay of the notable Atari 2600 game, Keystone Kapers. The far meatier experience here, however, is the minigame compilation Tant-r. Any fan of the WarioWare titles will likely enjoy this wacky collection of 40 bite-sized, twitchy time wasters. I dig it!

Individual Grade: B

Virtua Racing

Here in 2016, as we stand on the precipice of a new dawn of virtual reality, you gotta love a throwback like Virtua Racing. Released in 1992, the comparatively low polygon count and stark environments provide an amusing look back at the "promise" of virtual reality in the 1990s. That aside, this really isn't bad for a simple arcade racer. The animation is smooth and you get a great sense of speed during the races. I think the idea is that you're supposed to use the first-person cockpit view, but I'm glad that an overhead, pulled back view is also available. As a remaster, it doesn't seem like a whole lot was done with the visuals, though perhaps that's for the best, as Virtua Racing seems almost more beloved for its looks than for its gameplay.

Individual Grade: C+

Sound Test: BGM 11 - Out Run "Passing Breeze"

As a young lad who spent as much time as he could in arcades - hell, I'd even take a greasy pizza place if it had two or three decent cabinets in it - I was always drawn to the music of Sega games. Shinobi, After Burner, Space Harrier; these games not only had iconic visuals and gameplay, their soundtracks were evocative and memorable as well.

Out Run was never one of my favorite Sega titles because I was (and still am) terrible at it, but I did rather enjoy its soundtrack. I was fascinated by the fact that you could choose the background music by "changing the radio station" at the beginning of the game, and I distinctly remember standing back and silently judging the folks who didn't pick my preferred track, "Passing Breeze".

The smoothed out Latin jazz vibe just fits so well with the visual motif of the game, and the quality of the arrangement was remarkable for the era.

In researching this song, I came to find out that its composer, Hiroshi Kawaguchi, also played keyboards in Sega's official in-house band, S.S.T. Band, which was active during the late 80's/early 90's. S.S.T Band specialized in creating full-band versions of songs from classic Sega games and THEY WERE AWESOME! Seriously, I can't believe that I'm just finding out about these guys. You MUST hear their ultra-funky version of "Passing Breeze".

I also came upon this short documentary about Kawaguchi and fellow Sega musical heavyweight Yuzo Koshiro (Streets of Rage, Shenmue) produced by the folks at Red Bull Music. There's an interview with Kawaguchi around the 5-minute mark where he gives some insight into his inspiration for the Out Run soundtrack. Apparently, the sound design team for that game travelled from Japan to Florida so that they could drive around and feel the vibe of the area. In an amusing twist, Kawaguchi didn't accompany the group himself, instead using photos and relying on the impressions of his team to help him set the tone. Have a look..