Sneaky Snakes is an Action game, developed by Rare Ltd. and published by Tradewest, which was released in 1991.
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adds some much needed lore to the metal gear saga, it's a shame much of it was retconned because kojima deemed it "non-canon" :\
gameplay-wise however while i respect it for trying something different, it doesn't work quite as well as a stealth game compared to the first 2 metal gears. if this had played closer to ghost babel, which released 7 years later, i could see this being more fondly remembered as a sleeper hit in the metal gear saga. perhaps konami will remake this game one day.
gameplay-wise however while i respect it for trying something different, it doesn't work quite as well as a stealth game compared to the first 2 metal gears. if this had played closer to ghost babel, which released 7 years later, i could see this being more fondly remembered as a sleeper hit in the metal gear saga. perhaps konami will remake this game one day.
Despite my own personal thoughts on the game, Snake Rattle ‘n’ Roll is a pretty creative and unique platformer for the NES. The isometric platforming, the Rare charm that can usually be found in their games, the enjoyable music and graphics, and the creative gameplay when compared to other platformers at the time, make it a pretty noteworthy title that didn’t get as much attention as many of the others, and while I myself couldn’t stand the game due to it’s horrendous control, especially in later portions of it, I can definitely see why plenty others could have a different opinion, and really like it. With all that being said, I don’t think this game really needed any kind of follow-up, and yet, we still got one anyway known as Sneaky Snakes, which has gotta be one of the most uninspired titles for a sequel ever.
Despite what the 1 out of 5 star rating may tell you, I have very conflicted feelings on this game. On one hand, a lot of the problems that I had with the original game have been fixed here (somewhat), making it much less aggravating for me to play and enjoy this one. On the other hand, the aggravation does come in through plenty of other elements seen later in the game, making it on the same level for me, if not even less so, then the original game. And this game doesn’t even get the benefit of the doubt of being one that I can see other people enjoying, or possibly being a hidden gem, because really, around all the bullshit and questionable design choices, it is also extremely bland, and not worth checking out if you have already seen the original game.
This time around, we actually have somewhat of a story, which involves the two snakes, Genghis and Atilla (weird references, but ok), saving another girl snake, which… I mean, I guess it is better than no story at all, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites of the characters and the enemies do look close to what was seen in the original NES game, so they look good, the music is also enjoyable, even if there aren’t as many tracks as you were hoping there would be, the control is miles better then the original, giving you plenty of control over your character, even though it feels a little floaty, which isn’t really that preferable, and the gameplay follows the same structure as the original, but from a new perspective, which may be better or worse depending on who you ask.
The game is a 2D side-scrolling puzzle platformer, where you take control of one of the snakes, travel through plenty of stages taking place in several environments, defeat the enemies that gets in your way, gather items and points along the way, eat all the balls you can to extend your body, hit the bell at the end, and go through the goal. If you haven’t caught on what makes this different from the original yet, it is that rather then being an isometric platformer like the original, the game is a more traditional 2D platformer with a lot of the same elements and physics as the original, and this change can be seen as good and bad. On one hand, this removes a good chunk of the originality and creativity of the original, making it much less appealing to fans of the original as a result.
On the other hand, sweet merciful lord, THANK YOU. I wasn’t kidding in that previous review when I said that the controls and terrain were the aspects that truly ruined the game for me, because if those things were much more manageable, then it would’ve been a pretty decent game. Many others could probably excuse those issues, but for me, I couldn’t ignore it at all. Thankfully, this time around, not only is the terrain much easier to navigate, but the controls are also a lot more simple, making the game much more tolerable to play as a result. Needless to say, if I were to ever come back to one of these games in the future (which I probably won’t), it would be this one.
With all that being said though, where all of my previous issues with the game were taken care of, a load of other ones were put in their place: the gimmicks of the levels. Throughout the game, there are plenty of gimmicks to be found in the levels that change up how you progress through the stage, as well as getting the segments to your body. Such gimmicks include one with mosquito segments that have to carry you towards the goal (very erratically, mind you), needing to hit a bird in order to have it lay the segments as eggs, and several underwater levels to switch things up, including how you control. I will give these gimmicks credit for being pretty creative, especially compared to any of the gimmicks that were in the original game. On the other hand, these gimmicks make progressing through these stages a huge pain in the ass.
I stopped at Stage 12 of the game, because the gimmick in that level was just way too frustrating for me to properly want to pursue anymore, so I just decided to stop, and almost all of the other gimmicks I had experienced at that point were also pretty frustrating to a degree. When paired with the floaty jumps and all of the stage hazards that you have to deal with, trying to properly get a hang of these gimmicks to succeed is way harder than it needs to be, making the game significantly less fun in comparison, and making me never want to play these levels ever again. It doesn’t help when a number of the gimmicks, such as the mosquito and bird one, seem almost out of your control, cause the mosquitos will fly you wherever the fuck they want, usually to your death, and while the bird does have a set pattern it flies in, it will always lead to you getting smacked in the face by another obstacle, or falling into a pit. It’s no secret after that as to why I stopped playing the game.
Overall, while the game does fix a lot of the issues I had with the original, a lot of other issues decide to come right on in and take their place, resulting in a game that may play better, but one that is also significantly more agonizing with what the game wants you to do. I would recommend it only if you are a DIE-HARD fan of the original game, but if you aren’t, then you have no business ever touching this game in your entire life. Besides, the title is still stupid anyway. I mean, seriously, Sneaky Snakes? They aren’t even sneaky in the game! Except, of course, for sneaking by all of the shoppers, and not selling well at all. Oh yeah, I went there.
Game #317
Despite what the 1 out of 5 star rating may tell you, I have very conflicted feelings on this game. On one hand, a lot of the problems that I had with the original game have been fixed here (somewhat), making it much less aggravating for me to play and enjoy this one. On the other hand, the aggravation does come in through plenty of other elements seen later in the game, making it on the same level for me, if not even less so, then the original game. And this game doesn’t even get the benefit of the doubt of being one that I can see other people enjoying, or possibly being a hidden gem, because really, around all the bullshit and questionable design choices, it is also extremely bland, and not worth checking out if you have already seen the original game.
This time around, we actually have somewhat of a story, which involves the two snakes, Genghis and Atilla (weird references, but ok), saving another girl snake, which… I mean, I guess it is better than no story at all, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites of the characters and the enemies do look close to what was seen in the original NES game, so they look good, the music is also enjoyable, even if there aren’t as many tracks as you were hoping there would be, the control is miles better then the original, giving you plenty of control over your character, even though it feels a little floaty, which isn’t really that preferable, and the gameplay follows the same structure as the original, but from a new perspective, which may be better or worse depending on who you ask.
The game is a 2D side-scrolling puzzle platformer, where you take control of one of the snakes, travel through plenty of stages taking place in several environments, defeat the enemies that gets in your way, gather items and points along the way, eat all the balls you can to extend your body, hit the bell at the end, and go through the goal. If you haven’t caught on what makes this different from the original yet, it is that rather then being an isometric platformer like the original, the game is a more traditional 2D platformer with a lot of the same elements and physics as the original, and this change can be seen as good and bad. On one hand, this removes a good chunk of the originality and creativity of the original, making it much less appealing to fans of the original as a result.
On the other hand, sweet merciful lord, THANK YOU. I wasn’t kidding in that previous review when I said that the controls and terrain were the aspects that truly ruined the game for me, because if those things were much more manageable, then it would’ve been a pretty decent game. Many others could probably excuse those issues, but for me, I couldn’t ignore it at all. Thankfully, this time around, not only is the terrain much easier to navigate, but the controls are also a lot more simple, making the game much more tolerable to play as a result. Needless to say, if I were to ever come back to one of these games in the future (which I probably won’t), it would be this one.
With all that being said though, where all of my previous issues with the game were taken care of, a load of other ones were put in their place: the gimmicks of the levels. Throughout the game, there are plenty of gimmicks to be found in the levels that change up how you progress through the stage, as well as getting the segments to your body. Such gimmicks include one with mosquito segments that have to carry you towards the goal (very erratically, mind you), needing to hit a bird in order to have it lay the segments as eggs, and several underwater levels to switch things up, including how you control. I will give these gimmicks credit for being pretty creative, especially compared to any of the gimmicks that were in the original game. On the other hand, these gimmicks make progressing through these stages a huge pain in the ass.
I stopped at Stage 12 of the game, because the gimmick in that level was just way too frustrating for me to properly want to pursue anymore, so I just decided to stop, and almost all of the other gimmicks I had experienced at that point were also pretty frustrating to a degree. When paired with the floaty jumps and all of the stage hazards that you have to deal with, trying to properly get a hang of these gimmicks to succeed is way harder than it needs to be, making the game significantly less fun in comparison, and making me never want to play these levels ever again. It doesn’t help when a number of the gimmicks, such as the mosquito and bird one, seem almost out of your control, cause the mosquitos will fly you wherever the fuck they want, usually to your death, and while the bird does have a set pattern it flies in, it will always lead to you getting smacked in the face by another obstacle, or falling into a pit. It’s no secret after that as to why I stopped playing the game.
Overall, while the game does fix a lot of the issues I had with the original, a lot of other issues decide to come right on in and take their place, resulting in a game that may play better, but one that is also significantly more agonizing with what the game wants you to do. I would recommend it only if you are a DIE-HARD fan of the original game, but if you aren’t, then you have no business ever touching this game in your entire life. Besides, the title is still stupid anyway. I mean, seriously, Sneaky Snakes? They aren’t even sneaky in the game! Except, of course, for sneaking by all of the shoppers, and not selling well at all. Oh yeah, I went there.
Game #317