Saturday, January 24, 2015

Parodius Da! -Shinwa kara Owarai e- (GB) Review

Received: March 9th, 2012 / Written: January 21st-24th, 2015
(As played on Game Boy Player)
Alternate Name: Parodius [|O|]
Year: 1990, 1991 | Developed and Published by: Konami | [|O|]
 
Hello everyone, StarBoy91 here; passionate about video games, big retrophile, and fan of all things 16-bit.  =)  Konami's done a lot of series throughout their video game career, from Gradius to Ganbare Goemon to Castlevania to even Contra among many others.  And while those may be well-revered, there are two series which I feel deserve more credit and spotlight: TwinBee and Parodius.
Image from Wikipedia
But of the two you might be more familiar with the latter than the former.  Three years after Konami started the Gradius franchise in 1985, they created a cute'em up game for the MSX computer which was fully lathered in Japanese folklore and culture that poked fun of their own serious shoot'em up.  Essentially a parody of Gradius, the game notably referred to as Parodius (full title translated as Parodius: The Octopus Saves the Earth) was something that was rarely seen before in video games; with characters from some of Konami's franchises teaming up to defeat the bad guy while contending with weirdness galore.  That's it!  I never played the 1988 MSX hit, and chances are you probably haven't either, but I hope to experience it one day after I import Parodius Portable for the PlayStation Portable.
 
What you more likely have played and what was likely your foray into this crazy series (as was mine), is (one version or another of) the widely known 1990 arcade sequel Parodius Da! -Shinwa kara Owarai e-, which received numerous ports and rereleases in both Japan and Europe.  But because Europe got the game as just Parodius, it's more often than not confused as being the same game as the MSX title, which is not.  Even still it was a hit which America missed out on for reasons I'll explain later, and gamers just couldn't get enough of it.  Luckily it got ported to the Famicom/NES, the NEC PC-Engine, the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo, the SharpX68000, the PlayStation One and Sega Saturn (paired with its 1994 arcade sequel Gokujō Parodius! ~Kako no Eikō o Motomete~), and finally the Game Boy in 1991--making this the only standout game of the series to be given a handheld treatment.  =)  So, how crazy is this series?  Well, let's take a look.  =)  But first, let's meet our characters.
We've got veteran starship Vic Viper from the Gradius series, the Octopus who headlines the Parodius games, the pre-Shuzilow HA version of TwinBee (the arcade game was made in 1990, a year before Detana!! TwinBee had the TwinBee jets redesigned, so regardless of when this Parodius was ported TwinBee would look as he did in the arcade original), and finally we've got the token penguin and best character of them all in my opinion Pentarou, son of Antarctic Adventure's and Penguin Adventure's Penta.
 
What I find curious is that their ages are displayed, and I feel mixed about this: so, according to Parodius Da! Vic Viper (or the pilot) is middle aged, TwinBee is slated as being seventeen (when Konami clearly established in 1994's TwinBee: Rainbow Bell Adventure that the pilot Light is thirteen), and Pentarou is nine.  Because the game stars the Octopus as the main headliner, I guess it's fitting we don't know how old he is.  This doesn't affect the game as a whole, mind you, but I looked up that the ages were brought up in the Game Boy version only; and while it is a bit interesting, it could also be contradictory of other games at the same time.

It just wouldn't be a Konami
game if Moai statues hadn't
appeared at some point  ;-)
Like the Gradius series that preceded it, the Parodius games are horizontal-scrolling shoot'em ups; or in this case cute'em ups because they're lighthearted and do not take themselves so seriously.  Like the majority of games in the genre you can move in any segment of the screen that you wish, unfortunately you only face one direction; which means that if there are enemies behind or around you then you must maneuver yourself and find a safe spot to make your move.  Along the way you'll be contending with a variety of enemies, and should you defeat a group of them (or blast open chests) they may leave a power-up or wipeout item behind; and also like the Gradius series there is a series of squares at the end.  Getting one will advance the bottom bar by one, and if you press the button on a shaded box then you may get a powerful move.  Some of these range from speed, to option (up to two), homing missiles, lasers, and even shields.  But be careful because if you press the button while you land on the "?!" box then all the power-ups you earned will be gone and you'll be going slow once more.  =(

Shoot your way out of
this pastry room
But if certain enemies (or chests) don't leave a power-up behind then the other thing you'll get from them is a TwinBee bell which must be shot until they are a certain color; that way something temporary may aid you.  Because the original Game Boy was a monochromatic system, however, it left Konami little option but to give subtle clues if they're at the right point or not: whether they be completely white, be dark, be gray, or have stripes.  Attaining these bells will either wipe out every enemy onscreen thanks to a giant blast, render your character huge for several seconds thereby making them invulnerable, give you a blowhorn that emits kanji, or sending up to three barriers which will annihilate all enemies that approach it.  You can shoot the bells as much as you want without penalty, and even if you don't land on a color then you'll get lots of points if you get it otherwise.  Takes a bit of practice to accustom to all these different power-ups, and if you make yourself go faster then you'd better maneuver yourself carefully.  Also be careful not touch the ceiling or the floor otherwise you must start over from the last checkpoint.

It's a good start  =)
The gameplay is very good and each character's moveset is fairly responsive.  In the options screen you have the option to change controls, start the game between the first or seventh stages (why is this option necessary, you don't see the best ending that way), set the game difficulty (Easy, Normal, Hard), or even alter trigger speed to your heart's desire.  =)  Each character has actually configurations lifted from or inspired by different shoot'em ups: Vic Viper and TwinBee (straying from his usual vertical cute'em up nature) obviously use their movesets from their respective games (Gradius and TwinBee), but the Octopus uses the config from Salamander while Pentarou uses one from Gradius III: From Legend to Myth... which is actually the title this Parodius' translated title pokes fun of (From Myth to Laughter).  I like the fact that the four characters have diverse sets of skills, for it gives the game sense of variety and adds replay value (if not for the other aspects too).  =)

Lasers, activate!
I've only played the Game Boy version of Parodius Da!, and usually when games that were originally full of color were transitioned here they had to make it monochromatic at the expense of vibrant colors and lots of detail (due the handheld's technical limitations), and this game is no exception.  But, all things considered: for a game that was visually and structurally downsized it doesn't look bad.  Each character  Okay, so there are a couple instances where there's a blank background, but for the most Konami makes up for that by adding some little details; such stars, clouds, and tubes among others.  But for what's there in the foreground it makes up for the rest.  The choices in settings are well-drawn and designed; like the island, the pastry-laden area, the pinball-like environment, an icy-cold setting, and even an area sentient volcanoes and moving trees, among others.
 
Shoot the core!
The animations for the characters and enemies are very decent, especially when the former flies upward or downward or when they lose a life.  There's some bit of charm seeing Pentarou flap his legs as he's flying while sweating, or for when Octopus looks like he's walking in the air (albeit fast).  =)  Some of the enemies you combat are Moai statues (Konami regulars), wasps with oversized eyes, large flying pigs, giggling fish, syringe needles, and legions of pengui--waaait, Pentarou's a penguin, why's he fighting his own kind?  O-0  But the real show-stealers are the (mid)bosses, who are huge and full of detail; and while sometimes they tend to flicker or not appear seamless in certain details (though it may be because of all the bullet-fire) they look pretty cool.  Want to shoot at a pirate ship that's got the head of a cat on it?  Want to fight against a giant fat sumo wrestler?  How about contending with a bug boss with the combination of Life Force's brain boss' arms and the core of a Gradius boss?  Some of the others in the roster are a series of mouths, a giant Moai mistress statue, or even a boss with a frozen shield surrounding him with clawed arms.  The bosses are very absurd and outrageous, but that's the beauty of it.  XD  Even more so are when they get blasted or after they've been defeated.
 
And now, ladies and gentlemen: the main purported reason that none of the Parodius games have ever seen release in America:
The main boss at the end of the second stage is an American eagle.  It's not because the North American continent doesn't have a sense of humor or could not handle satire.  O.O  Oh... =<  too soon...  <=(
 
Rather, it's because each country has got different cultural norms that they follow; what may be normal for one country might be unusual or weird for another.  Everyone has experienced culture shock whenever they entered or experienced anything from a country different from their own, and I can only imagine that had any Parodius games been released in America it would've served as one giant cultural shock due to the games' insanity-filled world.  As for why Europe got two of these titles and not America; well, let's be honest, they have a higher tolerance level for these lighthearted, cute, and/or quirky games than America(n video game officials) ever does.  =(
Images from both Wikipedia and MobyGames; click for full size
Which would probably explain why these games never saw American soil, even when we're currently in the age where some of these games actually get re-released for current-gen gamers.  It's times like these when I'm grateful that the option to import (physical cartridge) games is available for those who have the resources to do so.
...... Oh, and there's this scantily dressed saloon dancer too that occasionally winks any time she reaches the end of either side of the screen; but I don't think this would've affected the cause for a non-American release.  Even if it had, Konami would've probably covered up some of her skin otherwise.  I did say this game's (mid)bosses were absurd before, but I'm not offended.  =}  I can understand how some might feel that way, though.
 
Ice, ice, baby!
Another thing that's very memorable about the Parodius series is the music; or rather, the absurd and hysterical takes on previous Konami tunes and classical music (which practically comprises every segment--so much so, that there is even a whole Wikipedia page dedicated to it).  XD  Each character has got their own brief prelude during space before the stage begins; like Pentarou's theme from Antarctic Adventure and TwinBee's from his original game.  Some of Parodius Da!'s standouts as far as wacky remixes are concerned are Johann Strauss Jr.'s "Thunder and Lightning Polka" during the first stage, Edvard Grieg's "Hall of the Mountain King" from his "Peer Gynt Suite No. 1" in the Game Boy-exclusive ice stage combined with Frédéric Chopin's "Fantaisie-Impromptu Op. 66", and the "Flight of the Bumblebee" by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, to simply name a few.  There are just so many famous tunes to name; they are good songs and funnily remixed.  XD  And some remixes from previous Konami games aren't bad either, like Gradius II's "The Final Enemy" for the dancer midboss, and the final boss theme for this game "Aircraft Carrier" from Gradius.  The sound samples are decent considering the original Game Boy, and the soundtrack is really good and fun to boot.
 
Oooh, right in the outie!  X{
Depending on the difficulty setting you choose Parodius Da! will either be easy or hard, which is true in the latter because there's more firepower and enemies during that mode than in the easier modes.  Part of what affects the difficulty is the trigger speed in the options screen: 1 being the slowest and 7 being the swiftest.  You have to be very careful when confronting enemies, because no matter how many there are onscreen or how much firepower is occurring onscreen there is no graphic slowdown whatsoever (there's flicker, but no slowdown).  This is also one of those one-hit games (unless your shield is strong), making your character very vulnerable; 'cause if you lose a life then you will be sent back to the nearest checkpoint at the expense of all the power-ups you had gotten bringing you back to square one.  If you lose all your lives you have the option to continue or not (unlimited tries), and whether you want to continue on with the same character or not.
 

Oh, Konami... XD
You may have noticed in that screen that there is an option between "Auto" and "Manual"; what that means is that if Auto is chosen than the power-up you get will automatically be selected for you, while Manual gives you the opportunity to get one now or later (which is especially true for "roulette" moments)--personally I always choose Manual, since I don't want to risk getting a power-up I don't want had I chosen Auto instead.  All things considered, there is plenty of challenge to be found here, but it is manageable in the long run.  Some enemy groups will come out from gaps, some might appear out of nowhere, and one thing to beware of is the fact that sometimes they will appear from right behind you, no matter what side of the screen.  Some (mid)bosses require that you follow certain patterns, like flying underneath the dancer's legs without getting stepped on and trying to shoot at the core boss without getting touched by his extending arms.  And while the pattern might be easy to memorize and simple sometimes, bear in mind that they will occasionally fire back at you.
 
Flying in space
Parodius Da! -Shinwa kara Owarai e- is a wildly enjoyable and over the top cute'em up with quirkiness galore, displaying some of the best action you'll find on the Game Boy handheld, but like the rest of the series it's not for everyone.  Not because of its difficulty (or lack thereof), but because of the obscene amounts of weirdness itself.  But like the shiritori puzzles in Namco's Wagyan series, take away the absurdity in Konami's series and it just wouldn't be Parodius without it.  The only way any of these Parodius games will appeal to you is if you've got an acquired taste and do not mind that the games do not make any damn sense.  If you fall in this category I think you might enjoy this game, for it gives you the opportunity to see Konami at their riskiest and at their strangest.  Lord only knows how stoned they must've been to have thought up all this.  XD
 
As much as I like Parodius Da! however, I actually prefer the sequel Gokujō Parodius! ~Kako no Eikō o Motomete~, which I got to play as the 1994 Super Famicom port (oddly enough, the only version of Fantastic Journey - Pursue the Glory of the Past--as it's known in Europe--to not see European shelves) slightly more.  It's got more characters, the gameplay feels more polished, and there is an extra stage which you can access after sitting through (or skipping) the credits sequence.  Throw in seven difficulty settings and there's tons of replay value.  =D  And in case anyone is wondering: no, I still haven't played the 1995 Super Famicom sequel Jikkyō Oshaberi Parodius, since I'm not 100% on board with a cute'em up that's got a neverending chit-chat commentary on your progress (maybe it's just me, but it seems like it could be distracting).
 
Sumo cat!
Parodius Da! is a fun game to play once in awhile (the second Game Boy game I imported from Japan), and I can understand how one might feel put off by its insanity incarnate status.  It's outrageously absurd and is completely unapologetic about it.  It looks, sounds, and plays good on the Game Boy, and there's plenty of challenge, a regular and bonus stage exclusively available here, and replay value that will make anyone come back for more.  But, as I said before, whether or not you end up liking this game depends on how accepting you are of the weirdness that surrounds it all or not.  If you're not, then this game may you rub you the wrong way; but if you are, what you've got is one of the best cute'em ups in the genre, and one of the best Game Boy games of its generation.  =)  Check it out if you can; you never know how you may react to it all.
<(^o^)^TO EACH THEIR OWN^(^o^)>
My Personal Score: 9.0/10
What's this?  A ribbon?
Since it's 2015 now, I thought it would be a great idea to award games that I review which were made in the year that ends in the digit "0" or "5" to celebrate their anniversaries.  =)  While the Game Boy version of Parodius Da! -Shinwa kara Owarai e- was made in 1991, the arcade original version came out in 1990; thus this game has the distinct honor to have my first of my series of anniversary ribbons.  *kisses ribbon*  =)  Wish I had thought of it sooner.
Happy 25th Anniversary,
Parodius Da!
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P.S. Alas, this gamewould not work on my Super Game Boy, so I had to instead load it to my Nintendo GameCube's Game Boy Player.
 
P.S. 2 If you're thinking of the collage I made displaying the games released in Europe and Japan and not America, you're probably pondering why titles like Terranigma, Devil World, Mario's Super Picross, and Mega Man Battle & Chase aren't included?  That's because, as unfair as it is, they had non-cultural reasons that prevented them from seeing initial American release.  For Terranigma, it's because Enix of America closed down thereby causing its NTSC cancellation, for Devil World it's Nintendo of America's old no religion code (even though there's no reason it should hold them back now), for Mario's Super Picross it's the fact that Nintendo didn't want it to be a failure like its predecessor Mario's Picross was, and for Mega Man Battle & Chase Sony of America just did not want to put up with yet another mascot-themed kart racer.  =|  I didn't say it was a good thing.
 
P.S. 3 I still like the Parodius games more than the Gradius series.  =)
 
I'm StarBoy91, and may your day shine brightly!  =)
Thank you for reading my review, my readers, please leave a comment whether pertaining to the subject or the specifics of the blog post itself and let me know what you think.  Hope you have a great day, and take care!  =D
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Personally I find Gradius decent at best, but different strokes for different folks, I suppose.  Besides, I think its sequels are superior anyway.

Saturday, January 17, 2015

Namco Museum (GBA) Review

Written: January 15th-17th, 2015
(As played on Game Boy Player)
Year: 2001 | Developed by: Mass Media | Published by: Namco
 
Hello everyone, StarBoy91; passionate about video games, big retrophile, and fan of all things 16-bit.  Long before Namco got bonded with Bandai they were at the top of their game, especially when it came to rereleasing their arcade games in compilations for home consumption.  =)  Nowadays whenever they announce another compilation it results in a groan-inducing tone due to them making Namco Museum titles ad nauseam, mostly due the fact that most of their collections under that name usually contain the same content (give or take a few different ones).
 
But, at the time that they started their Namco Museum franchise back in 1995 with Namco Museum Volume 1 (developed by Now Production) for the PlayStation One it was a refreshing and novel concept that was rarely seen before.  Many games of old to play for the price of one?  How could anyone resist that?  Another rarely seen aspect was a virtual museum, which was a very welcome and enthralling feature which would sadly last until Tose's Namco Museum Volume 5 on the same console two years later.  Since then all subsequent Namco Museum compilations which were made would include a big amount of titles... but not implement the namesake museum at all.  Doesn't matter what cool arcade gems they had in store for us next, it just wasn't the same without the interactive museums.  =(
Still, this would continue for awhile longer, which is where today's version comes in.  Namco Museum for the Game Boy Advance, which came out in 2001, is actually a port of the Nintendo 64 game which came out in 1999 for the Nintendo 64, developed by Mass Media.  Yep, there's that elephant in the room again, although what separates this one from the rest is that this came out before gamers felt the novelty of the namesake wore off.  The Nintendo 64 assembly piece contained six games while the Game Boy Advance port only comprised of five.  The lone standout is the original Pac-Man, which is understandable since the Game Boy Advance Namco Museum came out roughly at the same time that Mass Media worked on Pac-Man Collection on the same console (which contained that title); so if you notice any similarities in structure between the two it's no coincidence.  I'll get to those later, but anyway, let's go over these arcade games and see how they fare in their thirties.
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1979
One of the very first video games Namco made in the late '70s, Galaxian is the oldest in this Namco Museum installment and their very first of many forays into the space shooter genre.  The object of the game is to shoot all the aliens at the top of the screen with your Galaxian at the bottom of the screen, whom you move to the left or right.  The alien horde will be gradually positioning themselves to either side of the screen, so it's imperative that you properly aim.  Another thing to bear in mind is that from time to time some aliens will try to dive-bomb towards your Galaxian in kamikaze fashion, unless you shoot them before it happens.  The controls are pretty simple, and a lot of the aliens exhibit quite a bit of personality; but there is one little problem: it's slowToo slow!  Your Galaxian moves at a snail's pace, the alien horde shifts itself slowly, and when the aliens try to dive-bomb towards you only have a little bit of time to react before they get to your level; whether by shooting at them or by avoiding them.  And even if you do manage to overcome the obstacles you'll be hard pressed to get farther into the game.  There's also the sound effects for when the aliens go down which I don't really like and find them all to depressing to listen to.  I know I probably shouldn't harp at Namco since as I said it was their first space shooter, but even then you could do better.  Taito's Space Invaders, which Galaxian tried to compete with, was faster and had playable controls by comparison--and it preceded Namco's game by one year!  Point: Taito!  Yes, Galaxian was the first to achieve some elements that would resurface in games since (icons for lives and stage numbers, scrolling starfield, colorful explosions, background music), but even as a kid it was never my favorite.  =|
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1981
The first sequel to Galaxian, Galaga is in my (and pretty much everyone elses') humble opinion a vast improvement over its predecessor on virtually every category.  Namco got it right this time around, which led to this 1981 hit being one of the most successful arcade games of all time.  Right from the get-go the game feels very playable and manageable, with your starfighter moving (once more left and right) at a decent quick pace, avoiding dive-bombing aliens is now manageable and swift, and the gameplay feels more responsive this time around (especially with the rapid fire option).  The aliens, instead of just starting off a full horde, would make various entrances until they went into to position; coming from all angles and even going in circles.  One of the things that makes this game awesome is the fact that it is possible to have up to two ships side by side doubling your firepower--all it requires is for you to deliberately be sucked in once by the alpha alien, and then when said alien is close by shoot at it (but don't shoot your ship otherwise it won't work).  After every few stages there are even bonus stages where you shoot oncoming aliens in a chance to score lots of points (and possibly a life).  Something you'll notice about both of these games is how they're presented in letterbox format, with the aspect ratio preserved albeit at the expense of detail (with the HUD on the sidelines); but considering how these shoot'em ups are structured it's really the only way they could be presented.  Galaga is a very fun title that has stood the test of time well, and it is leaps and bounds better than its immediate predecessor; it's just too bad that Gaplus and Galaga '88 weren't on it, but oh well, at least there's other collections they're available in.  =D
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1981
When Pac-Man took the world by storm in 1980 it has inspired lots of ports and merchandising.  Another thing that was inevitable was the fact that there would be some clones or hacks that would cash in on its success.  One of them was made by General Computer Coorporation as an enhancement to the original titled Crazy Otto.  Bally Midway, at the time Namco's American distributor, took notice of this and were impressed by it that they bought the rights and altered it to a Pac-Man game, which would become Ms. Pac-Man.  As a result it became not only one of the most profitable America-made arcade games of all time, but also the first video game to be made starring a female character.  Because of its success Namco was pleased and surprisingly decided to include it into their Pac-Man canon.  Yes, this is one of those rare cases where a hack job led to something good.  Amazing!  The rules are the same as the first game, with Ms. Pac-Man trying to munch all the pac-pellets in the maze in order to proceed to the next stage, all the while she's in pursuit by the four ghosts Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Orange Ghost who frequently changes their name between games this time named Sue.  Luckily, you can turn the tables on the phantasms once you munch on a Power Pellet, giving you the small opportunity to munch on the now-turned blue ghosts thereby temporarily placing them out of commission.  Once in a while differing fruits will hover around the maze for extra points.  The mazes actually have a bit of color to them, the cutscenes are fun to watch, and every few stages the maze design actually changes.  As was the case with Pac-Man in Pac-Man Collection due the size constraints of the handheld, your options of playing it were either Scroll (with the shoulder buttons letting you see outside your playing field) or Full Screen where the aspect ratio is retained while it loses its detail due to low image resolution.  There's really not much else to say that hasn't been said before, but I find Ms. Pac-Man to be tons of fun--better than Pac-Man even.  =)
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1982
I'm just going to say it: Dig Dug is my top favorite arcade game made by Namco ever.  And I'm not just saying that because I played it a lot during my childhood; I'm saying it because despite the controls being very simple to play it can be a hell of an addicting game to play, even in short bursts.  =)  The goal is to guide the eponymous digger Dig Dug down through destructible layers of dirt and defeat all the goggle-wearing Pookas and the fire-breathing Fygars deep underground.  Digging in untouched spots will add holes, in which case Dig Dug will just walk and/or climb inside the open pathways.  There are two ways of dispatching yourself of these enemies; one is by pumping them until they blow up (which come to think of it is pretty graphic for 1982) and another which you may have to rely on sometimes involves walking under the boulder rock, thereby loosening it up making it fall down resulting in an enemy or two being squished (if they're under it, of course).  One advantage the enemies have over you is the fact that after awhile they can phase through the wall trying to reach you, and in later stages there will be more enemies than you would expect.  There is just so much personality with this game; I love how every few stages the color layer of the environment would be different, and having a row of flowers serve as stage number indicators is very clever.  The original arcade game was vertical-screened, which means that for the Game Boy Advance they had to crop and scroll it; which doesn't entirely hurt it, in my opinion.  Dig Dug is awesome, it stands the test of time after all these years, the challenge value is great, and it will always hold a place in my heart.  I loved it when I was little, I love it now, and I will still love it in the years to come.  =D
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1982
And now the final game of the lot, this is the racing game that defined racing games to come.  Pole Position centers around a Formula One racecar who must drive as far as he can until time runs out.  The main thing to watch out for is the opposing racecars who you must avoid coming into contact with, and being careful to make turns while staying inside the curve and not flying into oncoming billboards on the side of the road.  Failure to do so will result in your racecar exploding, costing you a few seconds in your time window.  You can just hold down the button to make your racer fly, but with another you can decide whether to alternate between driving at high speed or moving at slow speed (preferably when it comes to driving around curves).  The scaling and rotation is very impressive for 1982, the amount of color available onscreen is equally impressive for its time, and I like how several billboards feature cameos or references to different Namco media.  Pole Position is a fun time to race once in awhile, and despite controlling with the Control Pad as opposed to the steering wheel like in arcade cabinets it doesn't detract from the fun.  =)
 
Like Pac-Man Collection this version of Namco Museum is a solid yet imperfect assembly piece of classic games, and the fact that both were made by the same company makes them easily comparable in more ways than one.  What must be said about Namco Museum is that that compilation feels more balanced as far as its content is concerned than the aforementioned Pac-Man Collection, and the reason for this is because the four games in that one spanned sixteen years; whilst Namco Museum for the Game Boy Advance's five games spanned only three.  And while Pac-Man Collection had a common theme in that all games starred the main character, this compilation goes for more diverse titles adding variety to the proceedings.
And while I'm on the subject, the link between games is incredibly obvious if you've played one or the other before experiencing the other or the one.  The title font is the same; the game selection screen is the same; the options and settings screen is the same.  If not for the different games available to play (and the fact that its menu screen is a glowing vortex instead of a series of Pac-Man sprites changing colors) it would just be the same exact thing.  But I did find it surprising how bluntly similar the structure was for both compilations when I first played both in 2003, and I still find it surprising today.
 
Even so, I still find it to be a worthy assembly piece to play once in awhile .  =)  I got Namco Museum before I got Pac-Man Collection that same year in 2003, and like that compilation this too has recently seen the light of day on the Nintendo Wii U Virtual Console; as such I wanted to express my thoughts on today's subject while it was still relevant.  If you're a classic arcade enthusiast I think you'll get a lot of this one.  It's not the same without the virtual museums to explore and be immersed in like the PlayStation One Namco Museums, but at least the games in it are good (most of them have aged well), and it's always interesting to change the settings for each game which augment replay value.  =)  Even if the original arcade games have been cropped down to size, it doesn't hugely detract from the enjoyment.
 
<(^o^)^TO EACH THEIR OWN^(^o^)>
7.5/10
P.S. Seriously though, I do find Space Invaders slightly superior to Galaxian=|
 
P.S. 2 Again, briefly summarizing multiple games in one post head on (without rough drafts) is not my forte; and while I managed to survive this one just fine, I sadly took much longer than I did doing it for Pac-Man Collection=(
 
P.S. 3 Since this was the first Namco Museum video game I reviewed, I want to assure you all that it won't be the last.
 
P.S. 4 Query: Dig Dug's enemy Pooka is seen as an ally in Pac-Man World, but in Pac-Man World 2 he's an enemy.  Consistency, Namco!  What is he in the Pac-Man universe?
 
I'm StarBoy91, and may your day shine brightly!  =)
Thank you for reading my review, my readers, please leave me a comment whether it be about the game or the specifics of my blog and let me know what you think.  Hope you have a great day!  Take care!!  =)
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Still-shots screengrabbed from my Region 1 Wreck-It Ralph DVD, property of Disney
Dig Dug cameos are the best cameos!  That makes Wreck-It Ralph more awesome than it already is in my eyes.  =)

Monday, January 12, 2015

Pac-Man Collection (GBA) Review

Written: January 12th, 2015
 
Hello everyone, StarBoy91 here; passionate about video games, big retrophile, and fan of all things 16-bit.  2014 is long behind us now, for
it's 2015!!!!!!  =D
2015 has come at last... here is my first video game review of the year.
 
(As played on Game Boy Player)
Year: 2001 | Developed by: Mass Media | Published by: Namco
 
One of the most famous and successful video game franchises of all time--which in turn spawned so many merchandises ranging from lunch boxes to napkins to even television shows--is none other than Namco's Pac-Man, which is going to celebrate its thirty-fifth anniversary this year.  0.0  Man, it seems like just yesterday that the yellow muncher celebrated his thirtieth half a decade ago; time flies!  The game was a huge success around the world, and so because there were many sequels, spin-offs, and even side-games; many of which got ported or were made available in compilations numerous times.  Pac-Man Collection for the Game Boy Advance is one of those compilations, and the reason I thought it was good to talk about it because (like its counterpart Namco Museum for the GBA) it recently saw a release on the Nintendo Wii U Virtual Console, so I wanted to discuss these assembly titles while they were still relevant.
Both collections were made by a company called Mass Media, which has a very clever logo going for it.  Talk about having an elephant in the room!  ....................................................  Riiight.  -_-
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1980
The original that started it all, and the oldest title in this collection, Pac-Man was inspired after one of the people at Namco cut off a piece of cheese one day, which made the remainder of it look like it had a mouth.  In Japan it was released as Puck-Man, but due to fear that some people would scratch off the "P" on the upper board therefore making the title sound inappropriate Namco decided to alter the title for Western releases as Pac-Man.  While not the first maze game ever, it is one of the most innovative in the genre; with Pac-Man being in pursuit by ghosts Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Orange Ghost who frequently changes his name with each game (for this one it's Clyde) in a maze until all pac-pellets are consumed--the further you go the harder it will get.  To momentarily give you the upper hand are power pellets, which once eaten will turn the ghosts blue giving Pac-Man the opportunity to swallow them whole for points; but don't celebrate too long because after awhile they do regenerate.  From time to time there are bonus fruit that will pop up, and after every specific amount of stages will be a neat cutscenes.  As simple as it can be, Pac-Man is still fun to play once in awhile.  =)  Oh, yeah; one thing which will be abundantly clear upon playing any of these games is that due to the small size of the handheld the once vertical screened-games in the arcade are now cropped down to size here.  Although for the first Pac-Man you do have a choice whether you want to play Scroll mode (you can even peak above or below with either shoulder button) or Full Screen mode (which retains the aspect ratio at the expense of detail).
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1987
The round yellow maze runner returns yet again in this well-known installment of the series, Pac-Mania, and the thing that makes this one stand out from the rest is the fact that it's viewed from an isometric perspective, which ran on Namco System 1 hardware.  Like the last iterations the rules are the same: eat all the pac-dots in the maze, avoid being touched by the ghosts, occasionally gather bonus fruit, and eat the ghosts after consuming power pellets.  But, due to the pseudo-3D angle you do have an edge which benefits you: Pac-Man can now jump in the air.  There a ghost heading your way?  Jump over them, and depending on the scenario you could even coordinate your jump in midair.  The visuals are pretty cool for 1987, the ghosts having discerning eyes is charming, and the isometric view is rather refreshing; after awhile the areas change, which is nice, and sometimes in place of a bonus fruit is a power pellet (which lasts nowhere near as long as the authentic one but is welcome to have anyway).  But just because you can jump it doesn't mean you'll always have the upper hand, because as you progress you stumble upon some green ghosts which can jump as well; so be careful.  While not as simple as the original Pac-Man (or even as good) I do still have a soft spot for Pac-Mania, and it is cool to play as 3D Pac-Man sans arms and legs.  =)  Likewise to the majority of these handheld conversions, what was once a vertical screen is now exclusively cropped.
 
Alternate Title: Pac-Panic [|O|] [|O|]
System: Sega MegaDrive/Genesis | Year: 1993
The only game in Pac-Man Collection neither originating from nor appearing in an arcade format, Pac-Attack (or Pac-Panic if you live in Europe and Japan) is a puzzler in the vein of, what else?  Tetris.  And actually, this multi-console puzzler was partially adapted from Namco's own Cosmo Gang: The Puzzle (which got its own Super Famicom port which I sadly have not played yet).  There are two different game modes here: Normal mode and Puzzle mode.  Like most puzzlers the idea is to get straight lines with gradually falling pieces you can rotate on the way down, but with a catch.  This time some of the pieces comprise of ghosts, and should Pac-Man accompany one of them they will turn blue and (depending on which direction he faced by the time you set it down) eating a series of ghosts will amount to lots of points.  Normal mode is basically trying to get as high a score as you possibly can, so you can take as long as you want to play it.  But the real meat of Pac-Attack belongs to Puzzle mode as you're only given an allotted amount of Pac-Man pieces to eliminate all the ghosts from the playing field; in doing so you will proceed to the next stage and be freely offered a password to the next stage.  What I like about this mode in particular is the number of ways it's set up and how it tries to make you strategize how to eliminate all of the ghosts; some solutions are simple while others are a bit more complex.  What also keeps you going is that after every several stages the background image will change, which is great.  Pac-Attack is a fun puzzler to play, and while I wouldn't say it's my top favorite in the genre it is worth experiencing regardless.  =)
 
System: Arcade | Year: 1996
The fourth and last game which I'll highlight in Pac-Man Collection is actually my favorite Pac-Man game available to play here; and even better, it's a remake of the original.  Pac-Man Arrangement actually came out during a moment when the arcades witnessed two Namco Classic Collection games: Volume 1 and Volume 2.  These cabinets not only allowed to play the games as they originally appeared but they also let you experienced revamped and updated versions of the classics.  Pac-Man Arrangement was one of those games which debuted in Namco Classic Collection Volume 2 in 1996, and the Game Boy Advance edition which I played for this review was the first time that it ever got ported.  With that said, how do you make a great classic even better?  How about by retaining the fun elements of Pac-Man and update it with new elements which not only make it feel updated and polished but also make it feel fresh in the process.  =)  The gameplay mechanics are still the same, but this time there is an additional ghost called Kinky who will sometimes absorb any other ghost to become super powerful (for Pinky she grows ears and can warp to any part of the maze, for example).  Among the numerous updates are arrows that make you dash through ghosts making them spin around, warps that take you in different portions of the maze, stairs, and new power-ups (doubles, temporarily making you go faster, and even confining ghosts inside a bag for a moment).  This is also the only Pac-Man maze game to actually end on a boss fight; good thing there are unlimited continues.  Once more the vertical screened arcade game got cropped down to size.  I love Pac-Man Arrangement, it's like the original but better.  =D

Pac-Man Collection is neat, albeit imperfect, compilation of some fun games.  The majority of games have been cropped because the Game Boy Advance's screen is neither vertical nor square, resulting in a limited viewing window than the original versions allowed.  There's also the issue with cues and sound when it comes to the latter titles, but what do you expect from a handheld which generally doesn't have a great sound chip to begin with?  With the exception of Pac-Attack you can enable certain settings into your games; like how many lives you should start with and how many points you must score to earn an extra life, which does give this compilation a bit of replay value.  The title and game selection screens have a cool background adorned with Pac-Man sprites from Arrangement, which is wavy and gradually changes color in the latter screen (which I like).  You could make the argument that a handheld isn't exactly an ideal place to play these revered games, but at the same time you could also argue that for short-burst entertainment (being arcade games) it's not a bad thing.  =)

With the exception of Pac-Man (and briefly Pac-Attack which I initially experienced on the Game Boy Color) this was the first time I played any of the other games back when I got Pac-Man Collection in 2003.  It's an assembly piece that I go back to once in awhile, and for what it is I think it's decent fun.  Check it out if you get the chance.  Admittedly you could do better as far as Pac-Man anything is related, but you could do much worse.  =)

7.5/10
<(^o^)^TO EACH THEIR OWN^(^o^)>
 
P.S. It's the New Year, which means new score emoticons and more art pieces and/or banners with my avatar on it.  I hope you like them.  =)
 
P.S. 2 Brief summaries of, well, anything are normally my biggest weakness (since I like to go into detail) when it comes to talking about more than one media at a time; but I managed to survive just fine here.
 
P.S. 3 When I say you could do worse as far as Pac-Man anything is concerned, I of course am referring to Pac-Man World 2.  I know it sounds cliché of me to say that (being a critic), but it's one of the most frustrating platformers I've personally played.  =|
 
P.S. 4 Now I really wish I played Cosmo Gang: the Puzzle=(  I must rectify this one day.
 
I'm StarBoy91, and may your day shine brightly  =)
Thank you for reading my review, my readers; please leave me a comment and let me know what you think regarding the specifics of my blog itself or the subject I talked about.  I hope you have a great day.  Take care!  =)
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In the upcoming days will be my next Review:
(GBA)