Insanity

Aetherbyte - 2009 - U.S.A.
Super CD-ROM

Out of the depths of the Interwebs in 2009 sprang independent developer Aetherbyte Studios, bringing with them news of the first new TurboDuo game in five years. “New” here is subjective, however-- Aetherbyte’s Insanity is a port of the 30-year-old arcade/Atari “classic” Berzerk. As a kid growing up I was familiar with the game in the form of a port titled Clone Wars for the Kaypro IV running under CP/M. When my family got a PC running MS-DOS in 1991, I moved on to more advanced games and all but forgot about my two-shades-of-green monochrome childhood.

Only the color and speed of the robots differentiate one level from another.

To be honest, I was not expecting much from Insanity. I was not particularly excited about the game as even back in 1987 Clone Wars was only entertaining for so long. Expectations being as low as they were going in meant that I actually had some surprises in store for me. Gameplay is definitely faithful to the original, which is by far the game’s biggest detriment. Some enhancements to the gameplay would have worked wonders for Insanity; as it stands, the shoot-all-the-robots-in-a-room formula is dated and, let’s face it, boring. Room layouts are seemingly chosen at random from a pool, clearing a certain number of rooms advances you to the next “level.” Cheap deaths abound in Insanity as you’re often dropped into a room a few paces from an enemy who fires off a lethal shot before you’ve even had a chance to take a step. Levels are differentiated solely by the type (color) of robots roaming the premises, which brings up an important point: there is only one type of robot enemy in this game, palette-swapped from level to level. This is a prime example of an area just begging for improvement where a little initiative and creativity would’ve gone a long way. Also inexcusable is the lack of any sort of high score table. I mean, isn't the whole point of this type of game getting a high score?

Robot love?

Visually, Insanity is as its worst with the “room” graphics; these aren’t even palette-swapped from level to level. I find the color choices not very complimentary which gives the game a bit of a chintzy feel to it. As with the gameplay, a little variety here could have turned the general feel of the game upside down.

Spend too long destroying robots and you'll encounter a strange looking robotic face.

It might sound like I have nothing good to say about Insanity, but that’s just not the case. Starting a new game you’re given the choice of a PSG or CD soundtrack. Being the chiptune fanatic that I am, I eagerly selected PSG for my first Insanity run through. My

ears were met with an average sounding tune... that in mere seconds went from average to pretty damn good. New level, new tune, even better than the first. Before I knew it, I was honing my robot slaughtering skills so I could forge further just to he

ar the next tune. What Aetherbyte has done with the Turbo’s sound chip h

ere is impressive for what amounts to an independent developer’s first attempt; the tunes are catc

hy and seem to utilize good instrumentation. Insanity is no Batman or Dungeon Explorer aurally, but frankly doesn’t sound out of place next to the rest of the Turbo library. I find myself digging the chiptunes so much I haven’t spent a great deal of time with the enhanced CD soundtrack, although my handful of plays with it sounded good.

What Aetherbyte doesn’t provide in gameplay improvements they make up for with four different game modes. In addition to our standard mode, we’ve got Hyper mode, Arcade mode, and what is known as “Predator” mode. Of the other three, Predator mo

de proves most interesting while Arcade mode seems most superfluous.

Robots are invisible in Predator mode, only appearing as outlines every few seconds.

Arcade mode emulates the simplistic style of the arcade original.

I’d be lying if I claimed Insanity didn’t have a unique charm to it. Sadly, it’s difficult to get too excited about ports of 30-year-old games unless they’re really bringing something new to the table. That said, every developer has to start somewhere. With that in mind, Aetherbyte makes a promising debut with Insanity. You have to give them credit for the speed at which Insanity was developed: less than a year from concept to pressing. As of this writing they’ve already announced their next project-- a compilation of “enhanced” versions of more arcade “classics.” Unfortunately, the last thing the Duo needs at this stage of the game is more ports of three-decade-old snoozers. The Duo needs... DESERVES fresh blood. After sharpening their teeth on these musty old relics, I’d love to see what Aetherbyte could do with a fresh id

ea.

Brandish

~ BRANDISH ~

Falcom / NEC Home Electronics

Super CD-ROM / Arcade CD-ROM

1994

Brandish is an excellent overhead-view dungeon crawler, an absolute must-play if you're at all into games that ask you to explore mazes, collect items, and solve puzzles. I wept streams of tears as I neared its conclusion, as I really didn't want the experience to end.

The game actually might not seem all that wonderful right off the bat. It plays a lot like a typical first-person title even though it isn't one (the simple action of turning causes the playfield to rotate ninety degrees), so the control scheme takes some getting used to. Also, the graphics aren't so hot. But I was surprised at how natural the controls felt after just a short while, and the quality tunes (the Tower theme in particular is excellent) make up for the mediocre visuals.

Exploration is the name of the game, so you needn't do much cryptic-clue deciphering. Inability to read Japanese will make one or two puzzles difficult to solve, but for those, you can simply check out a walkthrough for the SNES version of the game, as the solutions to the conundrums in question are basically the same in that rendition.

Brandish's levels are laden with items, secrets, and interesting enemies. They remind me of the labyrinthine floors of Legend of Xanadu's gigantic tower, though they aren't nearly as challenging as those fiendish areas (and they're actually more enjoyable to explore). So if you made it through LoX's devilish final dungeon and enjoyed the experience, this disc is a safe bet.

Another great thing about the game is that it gives you lots of options in regard to how you'll proceed. For instance, I chose to smash up most of my enemies with the protagonist's fists rather than with weaponry; and as I administered one pummeling after another, my character gradually became stronger, so I was able to sell off weapons to earn cash for acquiring other useful items.

Also noteworthy is the final boss, a hardy cyclopean turtle-like thing protected by energy cannons and gates of laser fire.

There's so much to look forward to with every step you take in Brandish. It's always fun to find out what's around the next bend.

Winning Shot

~ WINNING SHOT ~

Data East

HuCard

1989

The realization that I would be having fun with this game occurred the instant my little avatar took a swing and SMASHED the ball across the course. Players absolutely DRILL their drives in Winning Shot; the ball goes way up high and gets really big in a manner reminiscent of the World Class Baseball "pop-fly effect." For video-game golf shots, this is pretty exhilarating stuff.

Amazing!

I know you're thinking to yourself that I'm getting all pumped up over something really stupid, but you need to understand where I'm coming from. You'd be surprised by the number of PCE golf games I've seen mishandle this simple play element. Power Golf 2's shots sputter their way towards the hole, while Ganbare's barely seem to get off the ground. Even the masterful Fine Shot Golf kinda misstepped by having its ball simply launch itself into the sky rather than showing a dude actually hitting the damn thing. But here we've got a game that executes first shots in a cool way.

Thanks to a slow-rising power bar, it's quite easy to pull off those impressive drives. Winning Shot's entire pre-green play system seems easygoing initially; the game even hands you what it believes is the ideal club for each shot (and it's usually right on with its choices). But don't go thinking this thing will be a cakewalk. You'd better familiarize yourself with the hole layouts and the variations in shot arcs that the myriad club types produce. Most importantly, you'll need to figure out just how far your shot will go at each meter increment (and for every club at that), as there's a huge difference between, say, a full-power shot and a "90%" one.

Putting can also be a challenge. The game doesn't help you out much except to give you a general idea of the resistance your shot will be facing, but that's somehow enough once you get used to the system. In fact, to my eyes at least, putts play out here in more realistic ways than they do in many titles that try much harder to be credible simulations.

If you're not satisfied with how your shots are turning out with the character you're using, you can always give one of the other selectable golfers a try. You can even adjust each player's "ability points" as you see fit.

So, what are the negatives here? Well, the music is bad. Turn the game on and you'll immediately be hit with loud, abrasive cacophony. Things get a little quieter but not much better during play. Also, there's only one course to tour. But some of the hole designs are very interesting and feature smart, creative placement of islands and hazards. Sometimes you can even stumble upon sneaky shortcuts to the flagstick. And tournament mode attempts to spice things up by offering bonus dough to players who pull off particular feats (such as a hole in one or the longest drive) on certain holes.

Winning Shot is a real oldie, but I honestly wouldn't have guessed that from its mechanics and presentation elements. I recommend it to folks seeking a fun golf title.

Thunder Blade

~ THUNDER BLADE ~

Sega / NEC Avenue

HuCard

1990

Thunder Blade is a hybrid blaster that alternates between vertically scrolling fare and "into-the-screen" sequences. Both of its play modes are afflicted with the same disastrous flaw: they're choppy as hell. Honestly, I'm not one to allow visual elements to make or break a deal, but the jerkiness here is revolting, and it impacts the gameplay significantly. Hit detection is way off during overhead play (which actually often works in the player's favor) while it can be hard to judge the positions of environmental hazards during the behind-the-'copter scenes (which, of course, is not beneficial to the player at all).

Still, TB is not difficult. Unless you're actually concerned about your score, you can easily steer clear of enemy flocks throughout the overhead strips, and there's a peculiar gameplay quirk that, if discovered, will allow you to cheese your way through the sub-levels that follow. The game also isn't epic in length, but by the end of its fourth and final stage, I'd had my fill anyway.

As hard as I am on it, Thunder Blade is not terrible. It's, uh, functional, I suppose. But I see little reason for anyone to go ahead and purchase it, as neither of its play modes stands up well. Space Harrier and After Burner II are faster and more challenging than the forward-flight levels here, not to mention that they feature smoother visuals and better tunes (though TB's music actually isn't bad). And we don't even need to look to CD to find about a billion PCE verts that crush TB's traditional blaster segments.

The choppiness in the vertical levels is completely unjustifiable. The bland, ugly terrain; small, simple sprites (the same few of which appear over and over again); and wimpy weapons don't comprise an adequate explanation. We're not talking ambitious stuff here.

I'm not letting these parts off the hook either, as Space Harrier, After Burner II, and even Jimmu Denshou show that stages of this style can be pulled off pretty well on the system.

Most of the bosses are large machines that require you to weave amid periodic blasts and annihilate cannons.

The final fight is reminiscent of boss confrontations in Burning Force, though BF's bosses are cooler and tougher than this thing. BF, of course, is much better on the whole, as are many other similar titles.

Ganbare Golf Boys

~ GANBARE! GOLF BOYS ~

NCS/Masaya

HuCard

1989

Ganbare doesn't make the greatest first impression. A mere two courses to choose from at the outset seems to indicate a lack of variety right off the bat, and matters only become grimmer once an actual round of golf begins. It's not that the graphics are poor, per se, but everything looks so tiny, and even prodigious drives appear to get little lift. The distant view will make most players feel detached from the action, and it doesn't help that this "action" plays out very slowly.

There's one thing that gives Ganbare a shot at success after its unceremonious start. A sweet on-the-course number made me think this would be yet another early-days NCS/Masaya effort that features good music but struggles mightily in other respects (think Energy and the first Schbibin Man). As I tried out the various play modes and advanced through a sequence of tourneys, I found that the soundtrack is no one-cool-tune wonder.

I also discovered that Ganbare's play system is actually quite solid. The targeting system is as simple as can be, and while the game's shot mechanism always feels fair, you won't master it without a little practice.

Blessed with nice music and satisfactory mechanics, Ganbare makes players comfortable within its simplistic confines to the point where issues regarding the game's speed and visuals are easily forgiven and forgotten about.

And while Ganbare initially seems opposed to the idea of letting anything that happens during play seem all that exciting...

...it eventually lightens up and has a little fun.

In fact, there's enough fun to be had here that the chip actually beats out a number of its respectable PCE peers. It's more polished than the Jack Nicklaus titles, and its shot-to-shot action flows more smoothly than Power Golf 2's. Of course, it's far from perfect and anything but a life changer, but it's a likable game and a viable option if you're up for some HuCard golf.

Appare Gateball

~ APPARE GATEBALL ~

Hudson Soft / Azuma

HuCard

1988

I'm not going to explain how the game of gateball works, as that would be boring, but suffice it to say it's a ball-and-mallet croquet sort of thing and its rules are easy to pick up on in this video context.

It's a straightforward kind of competition, but Appare here lets you "customize" your experience, offering two types of playing surfaces, three play modes, and a dozen nutty characters to choose from.

Despite that remarkable cornucopia of options, the game lacks charisma and can be quite boring. The characters look like wackos in their "close-ups," but they're all business when they hit the court. There are no celebrations when a tough shot is nailed, no displays of frustration when a foul-up occurs, no sideline-clearing brawls when one player screws over another. Yeah, I'm being a little silly here, but something could've been done to liven up the proceedings.

Sadly, a lot of players will find Appare not only boring but awful through and through. Its graphics are dreadfully primitive, and its targeting/shot-power system never truly feels reliable or precise.

I'm no gateball fan, but I do know that someone doesn't need to follow or enjoy a particular sport to have a good time with a video-game representation of it. I'll never be able to sit through a round of golf, but I poured plenty of hours into PGA Tour. There are many people (read: fools) out there who dislike hockey, but everyone played and loved NHL on Genesis. Unlike the aforementioned classics, Appare isn't going to make a convert out of anybody; but I wouldn't say that it makes a mockery of gateball (which is actually considered quite exciting by a lot of people who know the ins and outs of it), and I do get some enjoyment out of playing a good round and using a little strategy to screw over my opponents.