Choaniki

~ CHOANIKI ~

NCS/Masaya

Super CD-ROM

1992

Choaniki plays more like a traditional sidescrolling shooter than does its bizarre kinsman Ai Choaniki, and it doesn't have quite as much... uh, "homoerotic" stuff. But it does feature lots of oddball enemies and strange musical tracks (most of which are really good and will inevitably get stuck in your head, watch). Said enemies have an affinity for projectile attacks, so the screen tends to fill up quickly with bullets, making this title reminiscent of another NCS/Masaya shooter, Wings of Wor (although Choaniki never gets nearly as intense as that masterpiece). Still, while I wouldn't quite call the game easy, you'll be done with it in a day or two if you're a decent player.

The trip is made up of only five levels, but there are no fewer than twenty enormous bosses patrolling those levels. These weird, wacky giants frequently flood the playfield with bullets and are definitely the highlights of the Choaniki experience.

The action that will occupy your attention outside of boss fights is satisfying but formulaic. Basically, you'll face a wave or two of small fiends whom you can wipe out with your standard shots, and then you'll encounter a larger enemy or two whom you'll probably want to use your mighty "men's beam" on. The large guys usually drop "protein" power-ups; you'll pick those up and march onwards, repeating the process, occasionally finding a bald bodybuilder to serve as an option ship. There's plenty to shoot at and dodge, but the proceedings never really stray from this basic pattern. I remember my brother Duomitri talking about another shoot 'em up and saying it was "too linear"; at the time, I thought that was a ridiculous comment to be making about a shooter, but now, having played through Choaniki, I think I understand what he meant.

Ai Choaniki has better graphics, while this one has finer play mechanics and holds the slight musical edge. I get more of a kick out of Ai, but I'm more likely to play its predecessor on any given day. They're both good (if not quite great) and worth purchasing, though Choaniki can be a bit expensive. You may want to do some deal hunting before buying it.

Salamander

~ SALAMANDER ~

Konami

HuCard

1991

It's no secret that I'm not a big fan of most of Konami's space shooters--I was one of the few people disappointed with the ballyhooed Gradius II--but I actually love this one. It's fast and exciting (the majority of the others are neither), and it transitions from sidescrolling to vertical stages in seamless fashion, successfully incorporating variety lacking in its one-track-mind peers. It employs a nice, normal nab-the-icon-and-enjoy-the-upgrade power-up system (rather than Gradius' "innovative" bars-at-the-bottom nonsense) and fair checkpoints that let you come up with strategies to get by rather than simply requiring you to get lucky.

While some other players revel in the purported delights offered by the aforementioned Gradius II, I utilize that clunker as an object of comparison when extolling Salamander's many positive traits. Considering the conglomerate of orange balls and worms that are the predominant elements of G2's fiery first stage only makes the raging flames and fire hawks of Salamander's "BURNING CHAOS" level seem all the more impressive. Memories of G2's Stage 3, which has you methodically bust up crawling, crumbling crap chunks and evade pellet shots, serve to accentuate the awesomeness of Salamander's "ASTEROID HELL" area, which places you under extremely heavy enemy fire amid a veritable storm of stone.

While Gradius II's "thrilling" conclusion involves a "joke" boss that merely sits there as you batter it, Salamander's final stretch comprises a daring escape from the enemy base in the form of a tight, exciting speed run.

You duel with many of the same bosses in Salamander as you do during Gradius II's gauntlet stage, but here they actually go for the kill, and there's no goofy pharoah head to deal with. (Okay, so that fool isn't in Gradius II, but whatever.)

Salamander is a fairly short game at six levels, but I think that's a good thing. Gradius II is long and slow, and as a result, I feel like I'm being hit over the head with its antiquity, as its many levels employ one tired concept after another. Salamander is brief and exciting, and at no point do I even consider that the game is rather archaic visually. I just have a blast with it.

And no matter how many times you've heard it and how many lesser games it's appeared in, the Salamander boss music will always rule. Always.

Power Golf

~ POWER GOLF ~

Hudson Soft / NEC

HuCard

1989

I don't like golf at all, but I've enjoyed a couple of golf video games. My friends and I spent quite a bit of time with PGA Tour for the PC way back in the day, and I love Fine Shot Golf (one of the three games that Human Sports Festival comprises). So I was perfectly open to the possibility of liking this title, but it just didn't happen. "Stroke Play" landed me in golfing doldrums, with one boring tune to listen to and one course consisting of holes either facile or inane in design; and practically nothing is offered as far as alternative modes and tournaments go. Variety is clearly lacking, as is personality. The true video-golf enthusiast will probably be satisfied with the basic gameplay and revel in club selection and experimentation, but I'm left thinking this chip could've used a nice RPG mode.

You don't get many play modes to try, but you do get to pick from three available golfers. Leaving out the fellow with the red bucket-hat would've been akin to dropping Guy from Final Fight. Luckily, the TurboGrafx-16 is mightier than the SNES.

The swinging system is standard stuff, but some of the hole designs are not, including this "fourteen bridges to the pole" nonsense.

Birdies elicit fist pumping. Holes in one earn you large letters that soar onto the screen and thrillingly spell out "HOLE IN ONE."

That about does it, thank goodness. Check out your stats at the end of the day.

The "gorgeous" ending screen doesn't exactly make the whole affair worthwhile... but it does make for a fine example of palette swapping at its most pointless.

Parasol Stars

~ PARASOL STARS ~

Working Designs / Taito

HuCard

1991

I was late to the party on this one. PS received mediocre grades in Electronic Gaming Monthly upon its release (one guy even gave it a 4), so I didn't immediately dash out to buy it. But I heard nothing but praise for it after seeing those scores, and as I had enjoyed Bubble Bobble back in the day, I believed that I would have a good time with this similar-in-style followup.

And I did have fun with it, especially during the stages in which I had to put some thought into how exactly I'd reach/attack my enemies. The premise of bopping, heaving, and blasting on-the-scene adversaries is simple enough, but said adversaries can prove rather elusive and sequester themselves in tough-to-get-to spots. As the game goes along, it seems to focus more on stocking its levels with huge, hard-to-stun creatures than on presenting increasingly intricate board designs, which was somewhat disappointing. But the Bubble Bobble-style proceedings--which feature cartoony bosses to fight, tasty-looking treats to collect, elemental weaponry to wield, and score-boosting secrets to stumble upon--kept me entertained until I reached the adventure's conclusion.

Speaking of the conclusion, I was exasperated when I discovered that this devious game has a GNG-esque "bad ending." Thankfully, I was able to achieve the superior finish with little grief during my very next try.

I'm less forgiving of the limited soundtrack; additional good tunes certainly would've been welcome. But the biggest concern with Parasol Stars isn't the soundtrack or the bad ending or the simplistic level design; it's the price tag. The game is an enjoyable time-waster, for sure, but it won't make for a landmark experience for most people, and a price of $10-15 seems more appropriate than what I often see it go for, unless the buyer plans on logging lots of hours in two-player mode.

But to conclude with a positive, I was delighted to encounter the big boss from the original Bubble Bobble in the ninth world here. It'd been many years since I'd last seen the old goober, and the reunion was a fun one!

Legend of Hero Tonma

~ LEGEND OF HERO TONMA ~

Irem

HuCard

1993

This game joined my collection as something of an afterthought. I was expecting it to be goofy and cartoony--not the sort of platformer that's usually up my alley.

Well, it is pretty light in theme, and it is unabashedly goofy at times (like when Tommy, the main character, flails his arms as he fires), but it earned my respect immediately with its fast, initially difficult gameplay. Most of Tommy's foes are extremely quick and constantly on the move, and you'll have to deal with many more projectiles than you're probably used to seeing in a game of this sort.

Be prepared to experience some frustration at first, as Tommy is a one-hit wonder, and upon taking that hit, he'll be flung back to a checkpoint. But this is one of those games that you develop a feel for, and the feel might come quickly. The first time I played it, I struggled mightily in parts, used many continues (which come in limitless supply), and ran into a wall at the fifth-stage boss.

The next time I played it, I roared right through the whole thing and had a pretty darn good time. Tommy is a fun character to control, as he can pull off some stunningly high leaps and build up his firepower to the point where he's blasting away at his adversaries with plenty of bouncing comets and homing fireballs.

Ironically, once you've got "the feel," the adventure suddenly reveals itself to be an extremely short experience (six relatively quick stages followed by the final boss battle). The fast-paced action might lure you back for more, but the superficials probably won't--not that they're poor or anything. The music doesn't play much of a role one way or the other, although I do really like the fifth-stage tune. The graphics are hardly noteworthy in a technical sense, but the color choices are effective, and the bosses are well designed.

Tonma is a fun little game, but there's a possibility that it'll drive casual/low-skill gamers away with its difficulty while proving too brief a journey for good players. In any event, unless you're intent on collecting US releases, you might want to nab the JPN version, as it's cheaper and features the same intermediary text messages, which are delivered in English (poor English, but English nonetheless).

Jimmu Denshou

~ JIMMU DENSHOU ~

Wolf Team / Big Club

HuCard

1989

I don't think I've ever seen anything even remotely positive written about this into-the-screen dash-and-shoot game. After just a few minutes of playing it, I was ready to join the crowd and rip it for its many apparent flaws. The animation and Space Harrier-type field scrolling were choppy as hell, and huge doses of slowdown and flicker didn't help matters at all. The weaponry seemed inadequate, as I started off with nothing but a sword-swipe attack, and minor upgrades that allowed my blade to emit little projectiles didn't seem particularly helpful or impressive. Worst of all, the controls felt extremely shoddy.

But things turned around once I made adjustments to those unwieldy controls. Changing the "RUN" setting from "AUTO" to "KEY" on the title-screen menu (thus ensuring that the sprinting swordsman would hold still unless I was impelling him via the d-pad) made the game feel entirely different (and much better). On AUTO, my clumsy samurai fell from platforms, got stuck on poles, and bumped into bosses. KEY allowed me so much more control over the unfortunate hero. And following my discovery of manageable controls, other bright spots became evident.

The music holds up well throughout the game. I'm sure people have ripped on it and will continue to rip on it, but I'm convinced that if it were part of a different overall package, no one would have any issues with it. One effective boss tune actually reminds me of a fantastic Zelda II palace track. And the aesthetic pleasantness doesn't end there: while the graphics are indeed choppy, some of the distant backdrops are actually quite nice to look at, and the huge bosses are often impressive and compellingly bizarre in design.

Those bosses can put up quite a fight, and battles with the first few can seem like long, drawn-out matters of attrition. But make some progress and you'll encounter giants that require strategy and prudent weapon selection to defeat. It feels really, really good to solve the attack patterns of the toughest ones. And by the time you reach those tough guys, you'll probably be wielding much more effective weaponry than you were early in the game. Your blade can shoot spreading lightning bolts, homing spheres, and other such cool and effective missiles.

You'll need those upgrades to contend with even the standard stage villains, whom you'll find yourself baiting into position before destroying or evading completely. The stages themselves are more than just flat pseudo-3D affairs. You'll have to make tricky speed runs and avoid numerous danger spots. Underworlds and warp zones provide alternative routes through some sections. Power-up locations are not always immediately evident. You'll need to get dialed in and learn the levels inside and out.

And once you're in that zone, you'll likely find that the game evokes all the right feelings. Bosses can disgust and amaze you at once. Speed runs are exhilarating. Dark underworlds are appropriately terrifying. Everything just feels right.

All of these things are elements that, I imagine, we all love to discover in our action-adventure games, and Jimmu certainly delivered them to me. But not everyone will have the same sort of experience with the game as I had. Some folks won't be able to get past the shoddiness and lack of overall appeal that inevitably plague early sessions. And the game is flat-out hard--even grueling at times. Passwords keep track of your health and weaponry, so it's not enough just to stumble your way through a stage; you've got to beat it in decent condition or you'll be crushed as soon as the next one begins. And I'm not even going to try to excuse Stage 3, a nightmare of hellish platforming that the game's controls simply aren't cut out for: contact with the surface means instant damage, and you might find yourself repeatedly plummeting into a long and horribly difficult stretch of underworld.

But if you accept those initial bitter experiences and manage to get past Stage 3... well, there's a darn good chance you still won't like the game. You'll need to have a pretty high level of tolerance for unpolished titles in order to make it through this one, and being a fan of Space Harrier lookalikes to begin with won't hurt. Even then, you might find Jimmu unacceptable. But playing through it was a very rewarding experience for me, and it actually ranks quite highly among HuCards in my book.