The dead have risen from their graves, and monsters and mutants prey upon what's left of the living. Three monster hunters have joined together, using their knowledge of the occult to slay the undead scourge.
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Man, I really haven’t been covering that many beat-’em-ups recently, haven’t I? Those games used to be one of my go-to genres when it came to whatever game I wanted to try out and potentially review on this website, and while I have checked out one or two recently, it has been nothing like what I had checked out further back then. It makes sense, seeing as I have already covered some of the most note-worthy titles from that era, and I have been focusing on clearing out a lot of other shit, but I think it is about time I go back to talking about more of these games, including some of the more obscure ones that I have been wanting to try out. So, let’s start this train off with one that has been on my radar for a long time, Night Slashers.
Whenever I would scroll through the NS eShop, I would always see this game available on discount, and while I would never purchase it for myself, I had always been curious about it, wondering if it was any good, or if it was better then some of Data East’s previous outings in the beat-’em-up genre, like Bad Dudes or Gates of Doom. I mean, it’s clear it has some nostalgic value to people, seeing as there was a remake announced for the game not too long ago, so I figured I should probably give it a shot to see what it was all about… only to find that it had been removed from the eShop with no word as to why (thanks for that, Johnny Turbo). Therefore, I booted up the ol’ emulator, blazed through it all in one go, and ended up having a good time with it all around. It isn’t too different from other beat-’em-ups of the era, not even having too many unique ideas, but it still manages to be gratifying and fun, both in terms of the visuals and its gameplay, to where I can say it holds up.
The story is your generic beat-’em-up story with a hint of spookiness added in, where the world is suddenly overrun by monsters, mutants, and freaks alike, killing millions of people and taking down all government forces, with the carnage lasting for over three months, so it is up to the Night Slashers, a gang of vigilante warriors, to step up to the plate and stop these creatures once and for all, which is a slightly darker twist on your typical storyline for one of these games, and I like it well enough, even if we don’t get much else out of that. The graphics look pretty great, looking as overexaggerated and detailed as an arcade game like this should be, but it doesn’t look too different from other similar games at the time, the music is alright, having plenty of tracks that I did enjoy while playing through the game, but not many of them stuck with me after I stopped playing, and the gameplay/control is par for the course, featuring most of what you would come to expect from one of these games, but it still manages to be fun and engaging enough to where that doesn’t matter.
The game is your average side-scrolling beat-’em-up, where you take control of one of the three Night Slashers known as Jake, Chris and Hong-Hua, go through a set of seven different levels each taking place in a different environment, beat up every single ghost and goblin that stands in your way using plenty of regular attacks, or even some super attacks when things get too dicey, gather plenty of different weapons, gold, and food items to help you out along your way, and fight plenty of well-known monsters as bosses, each one testing you out not only on how skilled and fast you are, but also how many credits you can put into the machine before you throw up your hands and say “Fuck it!”. Any arcade veteran knows this song and dance all too well, and for what we got here, it works pretty well, and can be a great time with a friend, not just because of the standard gameplay, but the flavor it has compared to other games at the time.
One of the things that sets it apart from many other games at the time is its emphasis on horror. It isn’t necessarily a scary game, and it doesn’t try to be, but many of the enemies you will face will include zombies, werewolves, vampires, Frankenstein, and even Death himself. In addition, the game is also extremely violent, having lots of blood and gruesome death animations, not just for all the enemies, but also for the bosses, as they melt away upon defeat, or they crumble down, only to never be able to fight again… for the most part. It all feels like a cross between the gothic nature of Castlevania and the brutality of Splatterhouse, and for the most part, it works out wonderfully. It can get kinda stale after a certain amount of time, especially with the lack of variety that can be seen in the late game, but for the most part, the style and blood really does carry this game in plenty of places.
Unfortunately though, it can’t carry it for too long, because if you take the style and blood out of the equation, then it just becomes your standard beat-’em-up from the arcades and nothing more. Nothing really new or exciting is added to the gameplay to make it stand out from others, so if you aren’t one that is interested in a horror setting like this, or the amount of blood that is present, then you won’t really be a fan of this. Not to mention, it also houses some quirks that I am not a fan of when it comes to this genre, such as repeating boss fights, and having sluggish combat. It isn’t exactly as sluggish as something like Golden Axe, and it works fine enough for the most part, but it just doesn’t feel as fluid or fast as it should be, and thus, it kinda makes the combat feel like a drag in some places. Not enough to where I would stop playing mid-way through, but enough to linger in the back of my mind while playing.
Overall, despite the repeating bosses, sluggish-ish combat, and a lack of change from other games in the genre, Night Slashers is still a perfectly competent and enjoyable romp, one that provides plenty of gothic elements and bloody brawls for those who are fans of both of those things, and the same gameplay that you can enjoy with a friend for a good half hour or so before moving onto something else. I would recommend it for those who are big fans of beat-’em-ups, especially ones from this era of the arcades, because while it isn’t anything to write home about, it still does its job, and does it well enough to where you won’t regret your time with it. And hey, maybe at some point later down the road, I’ll check out the remake as well whenever it comes out………. you know, if it doesn’t suck.
Game #541
Whenever I would scroll through the NS eShop, I would always see this game available on discount, and while I would never purchase it for myself, I had always been curious about it, wondering if it was any good, or if it was better then some of Data East’s previous outings in the beat-’em-up genre, like Bad Dudes or Gates of Doom. I mean, it’s clear it has some nostalgic value to people, seeing as there was a remake announced for the game not too long ago, so I figured I should probably give it a shot to see what it was all about… only to find that it had been removed from the eShop with no word as to why (thanks for that, Johnny Turbo). Therefore, I booted up the ol’ emulator, blazed through it all in one go, and ended up having a good time with it all around. It isn’t too different from other beat-’em-ups of the era, not even having too many unique ideas, but it still manages to be gratifying and fun, both in terms of the visuals and its gameplay, to where I can say it holds up.
The story is your generic beat-’em-up story with a hint of spookiness added in, where the world is suddenly overrun by monsters, mutants, and freaks alike, killing millions of people and taking down all government forces, with the carnage lasting for over three months, so it is up to the Night Slashers, a gang of vigilante warriors, to step up to the plate and stop these creatures once and for all, which is a slightly darker twist on your typical storyline for one of these games, and I like it well enough, even if we don’t get much else out of that. The graphics look pretty great, looking as overexaggerated and detailed as an arcade game like this should be, but it doesn’t look too different from other similar games at the time, the music is alright, having plenty of tracks that I did enjoy while playing through the game, but not many of them stuck with me after I stopped playing, and the gameplay/control is par for the course, featuring most of what you would come to expect from one of these games, but it still manages to be fun and engaging enough to where that doesn’t matter.
The game is your average side-scrolling beat-’em-up, where you take control of one of the three Night Slashers known as Jake, Chris and Hong-Hua, go through a set of seven different levels each taking place in a different environment, beat up every single ghost and goblin that stands in your way using plenty of regular attacks, or even some super attacks when things get too dicey, gather plenty of different weapons, gold, and food items to help you out along your way, and fight plenty of well-known monsters as bosses, each one testing you out not only on how skilled and fast you are, but also how many credits you can put into the machine before you throw up your hands and say “Fuck it!”. Any arcade veteran knows this song and dance all too well, and for what we got here, it works pretty well, and can be a great time with a friend, not just because of the standard gameplay, but the flavor it has compared to other games at the time.
One of the things that sets it apart from many other games at the time is its emphasis on horror. It isn’t necessarily a scary game, and it doesn’t try to be, but many of the enemies you will face will include zombies, werewolves, vampires, Frankenstein, and even Death himself. In addition, the game is also extremely violent, having lots of blood and gruesome death animations, not just for all the enemies, but also for the bosses, as they melt away upon defeat, or they crumble down, only to never be able to fight again… for the most part. It all feels like a cross between the gothic nature of Castlevania and the brutality of Splatterhouse, and for the most part, it works out wonderfully. It can get kinda stale after a certain amount of time, especially with the lack of variety that can be seen in the late game, but for the most part, the style and blood really does carry this game in plenty of places.
Unfortunately though, it can’t carry it for too long, because if you take the style and blood out of the equation, then it just becomes your standard beat-’em-up from the arcades and nothing more. Nothing really new or exciting is added to the gameplay to make it stand out from others, so if you aren’t one that is interested in a horror setting like this, or the amount of blood that is present, then you won’t really be a fan of this. Not to mention, it also houses some quirks that I am not a fan of when it comes to this genre, such as repeating boss fights, and having sluggish combat. It isn’t exactly as sluggish as something like Golden Axe, and it works fine enough for the most part, but it just doesn’t feel as fluid or fast as it should be, and thus, it kinda makes the combat feel like a drag in some places. Not enough to where I would stop playing mid-way through, but enough to linger in the back of my mind while playing.
Overall, despite the repeating bosses, sluggish-ish combat, and a lack of change from other games in the genre, Night Slashers is still a perfectly competent and enjoyable romp, one that provides plenty of gothic elements and bloody brawls for those who are fans of both of those things, and the same gameplay that you can enjoy with a friend for a good half hour or so before moving onto something else. I would recommend it for those who are big fans of beat-’em-ups, especially ones from this era of the arcades, because while it isn’t anything to write home about, it still does its job, and does it well enough to where you won’t regret your time with it. And hey, maybe at some point later down the road, I’ll check out the remake as well whenever it comes out………. you know, if it doesn’t suck.
Game #541
Gostinho de jogar, ótima variedade de inimigos e combos fácies de realizar. E uma dificuldade nada desafiadora, mas mesmo assim ótimo pra matar o tempo.
Campy fun beat-em-up with hilarious pixelated gore and wet gloopy synth blood sound effects. Really fun to quarter-mash through.
Incredibly stylish beat-'em-up that fills an important "80s gore-fest" niche for the genre. Not super-deep mechanically, but gets a lot of mileage out of its presentation and wave-based enemy structure. Fun to mow down bloody zombies.
Night Slashers is Data East's horror themed BTM game (beat em up) about three 90s OVA characters—an edgy blonde white guy with robot arms, a martial artist vampire hunter, and a highly agile female martial artist—killing zombies, Frankenstein, Frankenstein's monster, werewolves, vampires, Dracula himself, Final Fight enemies with axes, fat guys, mummies, commando knife fighters with and without Jason masks. Like most BTMs, how much you enjoy the game is going to mostly rely on how much you vibe with the theme. There's a lot of variety in enemies and level art, but the level designs still feel somewhat samey. The combat is simple BTM stuff, but there's a little bit of complexity in special moves and grabs. The bosses are pretty easy, but their standard trick is that they spawn adds. The best part of this game is the animation, which can be really satisfying, particularly the death animations. Zombies (and weirdly other enemies) melting into nasty piles of goo after death never got old.
This was a BLAST. Campy monster hunting, silly mini-games like Zombie Javelin Throw, and combat that, while simple, is never frustrating or overwhelming.
It's got a little Jojo's, a little Castlevania, it's a perfect aesthetic that refuses to take itself seriously and deserves praise for that. Compared to more fleshed-out beat-em-ups like Battle Circuit or Tower of Doom, this title won't stand out, but it's a perfectly memorable romp to spend an hour or two on!
It's got a little Jojo's, a little Castlevania, it's a perfect aesthetic that refuses to take itself seriously and deserves praise for that. Compared to more fleshed-out beat-em-ups like Battle Circuit or Tower of Doom, this title won't stand out, but it's a perfectly memorable romp to spend an hour or two on!