Naxat Stadium

~ NAXAT STADIUM ~

Naxat Soft

HuCard

1990

Regardless of its rarity or nature or alleged level of quality, a PC Engine game joining my collection is always an occasion of celebration for me, especially when said game is a freebie, as Naxat Stadium was. Of course, that doesn't necessarily indicate that hours of good times with the title lie ahead. In fact, I felt inclined to toss NS into a pile of HuCards I considered useless just seconds after powering it up. My already-low expectations sunk lower upon viewing the pitcher-batter screen, which resembles the pitcher-batter screens in about seven hundred other old, generic baseball games. It probably didn't help matters that I happened to pick the team with the ugliest home park in the history of our nation's pastime. The revolting infield looks like a big, brown shit plateau.

Thank goodness that in addition to that slop-tundra the game offers ballparks that come without diamonds of defecation. More importantly, it actually plays much better than the oldies it initially seems identical to. The fielders here have rifles for arms, so there's none of that "seventeen infield hits a game" bullshit that must be endured in plenty of said oldies and even in some quality titles like World Class Baseball. And while your computer-controlled opponents aren't all that great at the sport, they at least manage to avoid making some of the boneheaded blunders that AI clubs in many other ancient baseball sims commit, such as throwing to uncovered bases. The controls are rarely cause of grief, and the arcade-style action is always fast and fun.

So while it may not be challenging and certainly isn't pretty, Naxat Stadium is an unlikely winner thanks to its gameplay. Imagine that.

NS is primitive, but it's still got personality. Runners turn into angels and rise up into oblivion when called out, while fielders turn bug-eyed upon committing an error.

And then there are the seventh-inning cheers. GO TEAM D!

Diving plays may look ridiculous, but they're still fun to make.

Only one of my players seemed capable of hitting the ball out on a regular basis. But man, could that one guy crush 'em...

Check out stats and the loser's expression of disgruntlement during the post-game display.

You can play a 130-game season in Pennant Mode if you'd like. I stuck with a nice, brief ten-contest schedule and then participated in the best-of-seven Japan Series.

You can guess how that went.

Buster Bros. (Pomping World)

~ POMPING WORLD ~

Capcom / Hudson Soft

CD-ROM

1991

My stout brother Duomitri had been encouraging me to buy this game for ages before I finally got around to doing so. Just a few seconds after pressing Run, I wanted to kick Duomitri's ass. I guess Pomping World was a lot different from what I'd been expecting. I thought that bubbles would be raining down and that I'd have kick-ass weaponry with which to suppress the storm. Instead, there was one bubble lazily wafting about, and I had a weird harpoon-like thing to shoot it with. At that point, I didn't think the game would be much fun.

A few minutes later, I was singing a different tune. New weapons and other helpful items had appeared, creatures were flying and stumbling about the board, and bubbles were splitting and bouncing all over the place. It's so much fun to grab a gun and the shield power-up and blast those balls to shreds or to pick up the clock icon that freezes time and see how much damage you can cause to the paralyzed bubble army. And there's some complexity and deviousness to the actual board layouts, what with the presence of ladders and destructible platform segments as well as tight lanes and corridors.

The backdrops, depictions of various locations from around the world, are appealing, sometimes even quite nice, but I barely took notice of them, as I was so zeroed in on the man-vs.-bubble action. The pleasant-but-unassertive music met with a similar shunned fate.

I really can't complain about those elements; I think they serve well as they are despite the fact that they never receive much attention from me. But I can gripe a bit about the length of the adventure; I was addicted the first time I played through the game and wanted a whole lot more. Fifty-four stages might sound like plenty, especially when said stages take you all over the world and even into outer space (if you truly go the distance), but each one ends very quickly. An hour or two after I'd first sat down with the game, it was all over. Of course, the two-player mode boosts PW's replayability substantially and is considered by many to be the title's main attraction.

It would've been interesting to see how some larger boards would've turned out (I imagine that "taller" would have had a better chance at success than "wider"), as it seems like the designers did just about all they could with single-screen settings. Bubble-themed bosses might also have been welcome additions--and I mean villains who would've been larger and cooler than this round red goober:

But while I can hypothesize about various what ifs, the truth is that Pomping World is fine as it is. I'll probably still kick Duomitri's ass, but just for the heck of it, and not because I don't enjoy this game, as I certainly do.

Kagami no Kuni no Legend

~ KAGAMI NO KUNI NO LEGEND ~

Victor Musical Industries

CD-ROM

1989

Ah, the memories. This was my first PCE "teen idol" game, and it's a horrible one... initially. It casts you as a fellow who, at the commencement of the affair, is watching a pop-rock songstress performing a concert on TV. After the show, she somehow gets teleported to a bizarre alternative world. Of course, you get sent there as well to save her.

Yes, I was embarrassed to be playing the game during this entire part.

But then it starts to play like a normal anime-style digital comic--one that's actually not too bad. It usually keeps you exploring and examining your surroundings as opposed to having you sit through Japanese dialogue. You journey through jungles and caves; visit palatial towers and "haunted" houses; and run into all sorts of odd people and creatures, including a friendly little dragon looking for its mother.

The "action" is relegated to the top-left quarter of the screen, but the cartoony artwork is decent enough, and the music is okay--the regular game music, that is. The girl's songs are terrible.

There's one of those first-person maze sequences that are usually downers in digital comics, and Kagami's labyrinth is patrolled by weird three-eyed-head things that pose quiz questions, but they make the process painless by simply pushing you back a few steps and then letting you try again if you respond to a query incorrectly.

There are some spots where you can make a choice that leads to your demise, but they're all a cinch to get past. Only the last boss might prove to be a true challenge, as the string of commands that must be entered to defeat him isn't all that easy to stumble upon.

The Kick Boxing CD

~ THE KICK BOXING ~

Loriciel / Micro World

Super CD-ROM

1992

Well, isn't this cute. It's the CD rendition of Andre Panza Kick Boxing. If you've played the chip, well, this is pretty much the same thing...

...but here are some of the "significant" differences:

There's an awful opening sequence that features a bit of Japanese narration and a goofy-looking boxer who--in English!--invites you to throw down.

The title-screen music gives the impression that its composer was trying to come up with something really close to the Rocky theme. In any case, what said composer came up with isn't very good.

Following the one-screen end credits, there's a bit more ending and a staff roll.

Die Hard

~ DIE HARD ~

Pack-in Video / Activision

HuCard

1990

Being that I'm a huge (and perhaps the only) Pack-in Video fan, and being that I'm a man and thus love the Die Hard movies, I was pumped up for this chip. Oh, sure, I'd seen the low ratings and read the convicting commentary regarding the lack of connections between the game and the film. But over the years, I've seen enough Pack-in titles get slammed for ridiculous reasons by "analysts" who barely play the games to know better than to let such meaningless numbers and blather bring my hopes down. At the same time, I've always insisted that my near-maniacal allegiance to Pack-in wouldn't bar me from maintaining some sense of "objectivity" and calling a spade a spade if need be.

No need--Die Hard is no dud. It's an overhead-view "free roaming" shooter, reminiscent in style of Last Alert. It doesn't have LA's varied mission objectives, as your goals are simply to locate exits and slay a few bosses. But it plays pretty well and serves up plenty of soldiers to kill (especially from Stage 5 onwards). It also implements time limits for each stage, adding a sense of urgency to the proceedings. And the solid action is backed by an appropriately virile soundtrack.

You rarely have to look far to find someone to shoot at.

Some areas, like Stage 2's marshlands, are visually appealing thanks to wise color choices.

Some enemies like to hide out in empty rooms, fearful of your might (or perhaps cleverly plotting an ambush). Charge in and blast them up; you'll usually receive something nice, be it a new weapon, a health restorer, or a protective blue muscle-shirt.

The gameplay is simple, but enemy soldiers aren't your only concern. Avoid laser beams and the always-frightening shattered glass. And watch out for pits; there are plenty of spots where you can plummet to your death.

Some attempts to change things up didn't go very well. Mazelike Stage 3 might've been more enjoyable to explore if the graphics weren't so blah, while obscured visibility isn't the greatest level-design concept Pack-in ever came up with.

The game doesn't enjoy much success with its intermediary imagery. Batman showed us what can be done with cinemas on HuCard. Die Hard is no Batman cinematically.

The map screen, on the other hand, is BEAUTIFUL.

Excluding the final tower-top showdown, there are only two boss battles, but each of these guys can put up a decent fight.

This is a good spot to occupy when dealing with the chopper at the end. Diagonal shooting will allow you to nail the 'copter and shoot down its missiles, while most of its bullets will simply miss you (and you can often avoid the on-target ones just by leaping in place). Don't waste ammo when the boss is out of your range, though, and watch for the weaponry and health restorers that it tosses out.

The battle will probably take a while. Eventually, the 'copter will drop a flame thrower, enabling you to bust it up for good.