The Brothers Duomazov

Before purchasing PCE Altered Beast, I took a look at screens of it lined up against caps from the Genesis version, and the comparisons left me disappointed with (and very critical of) the HuCard's visuals. So I was absolutely amazed to find that said visuals are extremely appealing when viewed firsthand, mainly thanks to the gorgeous colors the artists employed. Some of the foreground objects and backgrounds that I'd scoffed at ended up looking not so bad onscreen. Even without parallax scrolling, the PCE version of AB looks fantastic. In fact, the colors add so much to the experience that I'd say I prefer the graphics here to those in the Genesis game.

I was also shocked by just how wonderful the tunes sound. This was crucial: one of the main reasons I'd bothered to hold on to the practically worthless Genesis cartridge for many years was that it has quality music--music I believed would be stronger than whatever the PC Engine's sound chip could manage to crank out. As it turns out, the tracks here sound very rich, "lacking" only the shrillness and tin of their Genny counterparts.

And then there's the challenging gameplay. Altered Beast in any form is a mechanically simple beat 'em up at heart (for those unacquainted with it, your bruiser punches and kicks his foes prior to evolving via power-ups into a stage-specific beast with remarkable attack capabilities), but studying the ways in which the levels play out is necessary here if you hope to make it through all five stages. I had to memorize the exact locations where my enemies would appear and determine the most effective techniques to utilize against them. And the bosses in this version require that you come up with strategies; some schemes I devised actually made me feel proud, as each of the big beasts can really put up a fight. Yes, this is an Altered Beast that actually makes you think.

But make no mistake about it: this is rough-and-tumble stuff. While the Genesis AB was the laughingstock of every seventh-grader back in the day because of how easy it is, the PCE version will pummel you over and over again. Using the directional pad rather than a button to leap might not feel intuitive to players weaned on the Genesis version (although I was surprised by how well it works). Much more of a concern are the enemies who'll knock you to the turf and stomp on your helpless avatar until your life has been drained completely. Frankly, the game can feel cheap at times. Be aware of what you're getting yourself into before you buy it. Heck, I love it and I've mastered it, but even I get pissed at it every now and then.

But I can forgive it for its annoying aspects. In fact, it's a version of Altered Beast that I can actually say I own and enjoy for the game itself and not just for reasons related to nostalgia, which wasn't the case with the Genesis cartridge (which, by the way, I came to view as expendable and eventually disposed of, as the PCE rendition endeared itself to me to such an extent that eighteen years' worth of Genesis-version sentimentality had been effectively obliterated).

Familiar enemies and backgrounds look extremely nice in this version.

The simple interludes exhibit no overt alterations.

Creatures most of us know well. The eyeball guy who goes down so easily in the Genny version is a bastard here.

The first boss battle is as far as most people get. I kid you not.

Only the hardiest of champions will live to evolve into a golden werewolf and be able to finish the job.

Alien Crush

~ ALIEN CRUSH ~

Compile / Hudson Soft / NEC

HuCard

1989

I wasn't particularly happy the day I lugged Alien Crush home with me. I had journeyed to the local game store with the intention of picking up the famously intense Blazing Lazers, but some other Turbo-owning bums had apparently beaten me to the punch, as Compile's blaster was no longer in stock. A pinball game, regardless of the theme it was built on and the embellishments it was adorned with, seemed like a rather poor substitute. But it took only a few minutes of ball-and-flippers-style outer-space-creature annihilation for AC to ingratiate itself with me, and presently I find it anything but shameful that this game and its followup, a duo of thematically intense pinball titles, were among the system's most well-received releases.

There's no question about it: both of the Turbo's Crush games rule. But Alien Crush has a certain appeal for me that the formidable Devil's Crush has never had. Nostalgia plays a part in this; I had partaken in eleven years of alien obliteration prior to setting foot in DC's den of iniquity. Also, I prefer the music in AC, repetitive as it may be. The two selectable compositions--one a fast-paced torpedo of a tune and the other an eerie distortion-laden dirge--prove to be very memorable numbers, as do the bonus-round tunes and the brief Game Over track. Most importantly, AC feels better to play, mainly because I don't like the fact that DC's playfield scrolls as the game's camera follows the ball. I know I'm in the minority here, but the "blinking" that takes place in AC as the ball crosses over into a new section of the field has never bothered me; and I like being able to see my flippers at all times, especially when the ball is making a fast trip south.

I wouldn't try to convince anyone that Alien Crush is the better of the two games, as it isn't. Speaking as "objectively" as I can on the matter, Devil's Crush is superior in almost every way, and it's the one I recommend first to people who haven't played either. But if I'm in the mood for a quick, fun thirty minutes of video-game pinball, AC is the title I reach for.

Little alien critters emerge from the brains and cocoons you bust open. Of course, there's another way to come across these creatures: the big purple guy occasionally spits 'em out at you.

A look at Alien Crush's bonus rounds. You can count on playing the "centipede" one about seven trillion times during any given game.

Racking up points isn't a problem, but it can take a hell of a long time to get to 999,999,999.

You never know what sorts of weird creatures will show up...

1943 Kai

~ 1943 KAI ~

Naxat Soft / Capcom

HuCard

1991

I psyched myself up for 1943 more than I should have. The screens I'd seen were nice, and the reviews I'd read were enthusiastic, but I probably should've known better than to get all pumped up for a vert that hails from the Sky Shark era. I ended up extremely disappointed with the title due to its repetitive gameplay, lackluster soundtrack, lame enemies, and dull scenery. A trip back to the shooter stone ages wasn't what I'd had in mind, but that's what I got, with little pink planes to evade, bland warships to annihilate, and boring seas to soar over.

To be fair, while it's quite terrible at first, the game does get better... eventually. After I'd played through countless primitive lookalike levels, a brief "cinematic" sequence relayed the fact that my plane was being reoutfitted.

Once combat resumed, I was greeted with snare-drum battering and dealt a heck of a lot more bullets to dodge and large craft to obliterate. The action picks up significantly, the visuals make quite a leap, and the repetition is alleviated somewhat once you reach Kai's "new" stages (levels that aren't in the original arcade game). Trains and neat little gunboats break up stretches of jets-and-ships tedium. Scenery thankfully strays from dull waters, consisting at times of caverns and lava flows.

Sadly, the journey tends to drag even after you've reached the "good stuff." Weariness felt during the later stages certainly is attributable in part to the doldrums levels that must be endured early on. But while the new-board projectile counts run high, the challenges still fail to indicate that any actual thought was put into them. Ingenuity is absent in the enemy designs and level constructions. There's a lot of dodging to do with nothing present that's really worth remembering.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Air Zonk

~ AIR ZONK ~

Hudson Soft / Red

HuCard

1992

Air Zonk is a treasure-trove of creativity and originality. The basic premise of a futuristic Bonk starring in a shooter is pure gold, and granting the cool-and-cocky hero a group of charismatic, sunglasses-donning allies to fly and fight alongside was a stroke of genius. There's experimentation to be done here, as some of the wacky wingmen perform better in certain locations than they do in others. Fresh methods of attack are to be discovered when Zonk merges with a co-misfit to become a single ridiculous gestalt of destruction. And the enemy cast is as wonderfully wacky and colorful as you'd expect in a game with Bonk ties. But AZ's mid- and end-level giants don't settle for mere cartoony brilliance, measuring up to other great shooter bosses with their numerous attack types (and, in many cases, myriad forms). The power-ups you can utilize against them are awesome and atypical, and Zonk's automatic backwards fire frequently comes in handy.

On top of all that, the prismatic, parallax-laden visuals are about the best that any TurboChip has ever delivered; you really can tell that a lot of effort was put into them. The uptempo music also impresses; in fact, the painfully sweet second-stage tune ranks among the greatest HuCard tracks.

AZ is a really, really cool shooter, good fun from beginning to end, and it gives me very little to complain about. At times, the gameplay can feel a little sloppy because of the chunky sprites and the slowdown/flicker that rears its head every so often (understandably, considering the ambitiousness of this chip project). Also, this is an easy ride until the very last boss (who sends speedy "chaser" devices after you and who would be even more daunting if you weren't sure to have lots of lives left for the fight). But none of this really detracts from my enjoyment of the game. It's one that every TG-16 owner can show off to those who are skeptical of the base system's capabilities.

Tyrannosaurs and lobster monsters are no match for the card spreadshot and the might of mini-Zonk.

You're sure to run into a few pals from the olden days...

...as well as some very nutty bosses.

Zonk assumes wacky new forms upon merging with his allies.

You've gotta love POWER DUMP.

You needn't worry much about these, uh, whatever-the-hell-they-ares, but...

...this guy can put up a fight.

After Burner II

~ AFTER BURNER II ~

NEC Avenue / Sega

HuCard

1990

This into-the-screen shooter is a bit of a fan favorite, but while I like it well enough, I'm not crazy about it. It's very reminiscent of Space Harrier, but it doesn't stand up well in comparison. SH gives players lots of cool enemies to deal with, and its levels are delightfully wacky and colorful. After Burner II's jets-and-fields theme just isn't as appealing to me.

More importantly, I need to utilize a little strategy while I'm playing SH. AB2's gameplay, even outside of this comparison, is too facile: shoot and dodge and shoot and dodge and--SPEED BURST--and shoot and dodge. When I first beat SH, I felt like it was the ultimate result of the practice and planning I had put into the game. No, it wasn't especially difficult to do, but I did feel that the experience was a rewarding one. By contrast, when I first beat AB2, I felt like it was simply because I had bothered to start up the game enough times that making a successful (and perhaps lucky) run through all twenty-three stages was an inevitability. I didn't feel like I had pulled off anything particularly significant or that I had achieved something as a result of earnest effort.

Still, AB2 certainly has its merits as a fairly exciting little pick-up-and-play title and delivers some really nice music, most notably the catchy bit that typically accompanies the transition from the second stage to the third.