NES Week: Day #4
When I was doing this NES week the one game I was slightly looking forward to playing was Clu Clu land. Surprisingly I actually wanted to give it a try and see what the big deal about it was after hearing so much from it. I almost wanted to see what you actually did in the game and if it was any good.
Was I disappointed? For once…I sadly was
So what do you do in Clu Clu land anyway? Well, you play as a red blob who has to spin around and find gems which will make some sort of shape. You do this whilst avoiding these spikes. In a way, imagine Clu Clu land like picross but nothing like picross. The controls really get on my nerves and I just don’t like it. The spikes really really get on my nerves as they seem to come at you at the exact wrong moment and to be perfectly honest with you it’s just not really that great of a game. Sure it has some interesting shapes to make but it’s still really not that interesting and only seems to get on my nerves more then it does give me any form of fun.
Interesting shapes, red blob, I fucking hate spikes
When I was doing this NES week the one game I was slightly looking forward to playing was Clu Clu land. Surprisingly I actually wanted to give it a try and see what the big deal about it was after hearing so much from it. I almost wanted to see what you actually did in the game and if it was any good.
Was I disappointed? For once…I sadly was
So what do you do in Clu Clu land anyway? Well, you play as a red blob who has to spin around and find gems which will make some sort of shape. You do this whilst avoiding these spikes. In a way, imagine Clu Clu land like picross but nothing like picross. The controls really get on my nerves and I just don’t like it. The spikes really really get on my nerves as they seem to come at you at the exact wrong moment and to be perfectly honest with you it’s just not really that great of a game. Sure it has some interesting shapes to make but it’s still really not that interesting and only seems to get on my nerves more then it does give me any form of fun.
Interesting shapes, red blob, I fucking hate spikes
The game has an interesting method of traversal. You really have to wrap your mind around swinging around dots and not just turning left or right. It's frustrating, but interesting. However the timer is way too strict and the patterns for levels can be a bit obtuse.
5/10 It's a fun novelty, but I'm not salivating to replay it. This is the epitome of a 5/10 NES launch title.
5/10 It's a fun novelty, but I'm not salivating to replay it. This is the epitome of a 5/10 NES launch title.
This game is the reason why Trump got elected.
Obviously, while playing this, the first thing you'll notice are the controls, which are impossible to get use to. Thankfully, on the first level, you move pretty slowly, making it easy enough, but once you get past the first few levels, it literally becomes impossible. Clu Clu (no fucking clue what his name is) moves so fast, its impossible to get all the tiles while avoiding the enemies at the same time. Okay premise, bad execution.
One of the first game I ever have the memory playing was DK: King of Swing for the GBA. A Donkey kong apinoff that takes the gameplay formula of CLu Clu Land and kind of expands upon it.
So it was my main curiosity to check out the OG and.... yeah it is kind of a divisve title for a reason.
Don't get me wrong: I ADORE how Bubbles moves. Once you get the hang of the weird movement and grabs, you feels like a young fish swimming in the sea at high speed.
The main issue is that the map is less than a sea and more of a tiny fishbowl: the maps feels a little too cramped, full of invisible bouncing walls, claustrophobic wall, and 2 spiny enemies that are Items in Smash for some reason... I feel I was able to enjoy the fast and weird movement only on bonus stages, where you don't have all of these hazards to think about.
Not to mention that, compared to other arcade games like Pacman, the objective of each stage is kinda wierd: basically you gotta "draw" specific things by passing through certains zones of the map, that will glow once you pass through them..... the issue is that you never know what picutre you gotta "draw", and the images themselves don't even have a certain theme. SOmetimes you gotta draw a bird, or a submarine, or a smile.... and other times it's just a bunch of squares that don't really form anything "concrete"
I dunno, I hadn't the wost of times, but I can see why many peeps are not really into the Clu Clu Land..... at least some of its elements were able to survive in other games.
So it was my main curiosity to check out the OG and.... yeah it is kind of a divisve title for a reason.
Don't get me wrong: I ADORE how Bubbles moves. Once you get the hang of the weird movement and grabs, you feels like a young fish swimming in the sea at high speed.
The main issue is that the map is less than a sea and more of a tiny fishbowl: the maps feels a little too cramped, full of invisible bouncing walls, claustrophobic wall, and 2 spiny enemies that are Items in Smash for some reason... I feel I was able to enjoy the fast and weird movement only on bonus stages, where you don't have all of these hazards to think about.
Not to mention that, compared to other arcade games like Pacman, the objective of each stage is kinda wierd: basically you gotta "draw" specific things by passing through certains zones of the map, that will glow once you pass through them..... the issue is that you never know what picutre you gotta "draw", and the images themselves don't even have a certain theme. SOmetimes you gotta draw a bird, or a submarine, or a smile.... and other times it's just a bunch of squares that don't really form anything "concrete"
I dunno, I hadn't the wost of times, but I can see why many peeps are not really into the Clu Clu Land..... at least some of its elements were able to survive in other games.
stupid bucktoothed once-chewed cherry gumball
Genuinely enjoyed the hell out of this. Although I will say, I think the copy I played on had something weird wrong with it, as there were certain tiles in the top row that I would get stuck in. Like, the little character would just get sent back and forth endlessly and the only way to break out was either getting hit by an enemy or running out of time. The "player 1" text was also stuck in the top row and wouldn't disappear so I wonder if those were related.
it's like pacman but you're on rollerskates
The controls are so wack that it's hard to master. I can give props to try to make the mecanics of the game more unique than other games, but it didn't landed for me unfortunately.
Game # 17 of my challenge
Game # 17 of my challenge
erm
Clu Clu Land has barely any reason to exist. It was made to capitalize on the maze game craze that started with Pac-Man, but took such a different approach to that style of game design that it just fell flat in almost every regard.
You're supposed to explore a "maze" of hidden objects between a series of poles and expose these weird Zelda rupee-looking things, which is NOT self explanatory and ends up feeling ridiculously abstract in a distracting way.
The control scheme of swinging yourself around poles is novel, but when combined with the character automatically moving forward and the weird task that you're assigned to do, it just is not fun to play.
This is a weird purple-y blemish on Nintendo's history. It has hardly been revisited or reflected on in any capacity, and there's VERY little incentive to want to check it out in the modern day, since the gameplay is just dwarfed by the games it tried to improve on.
You're supposed to explore a "maze" of hidden objects between a series of poles and expose these weird Zelda rupee-looking things, which is NOT self explanatory and ends up feeling ridiculously abstract in a distracting way.
The control scheme of swinging yourself around poles is novel, but when combined with the character automatically moving forward and the weird task that you're assigned to do, it just is not fun to play.
This is a weird purple-y blemish on Nintendo's history. It has hardly been revisited or reflected on in any capacity, and there's VERY little incentive to want to check it out in the modern day, since the gameplay is just dwarfed by the games it tried to improve on.
Somewhat fun once you figure out what to do/how to play but that barrier of entry is hard to get over, simply not fun after about 10 minutes, terrible controls. At least we got a cool Smash Bros Melee trophy out of this one, I also remember the NES Remix levels for this game being pretty brutal
2/10
2/10
I thought it was cute to see sprites from Zelda and the jumping sound from Super Mario Bros in a game that predates both but this game is just kinda weird and even when I had figured out the basics its just not very interesting to play for me personally.
Eu jogava isso também, mas nem sei do que se trata, essa saga continuou?
Pretty fun game honestly. I like the music but I wish there was a different track to spice things up. The control system is unique, but it takes a while to get used to. I haven't really played anything particularly like it
really neat concept! abrasively confusing at first, but once you get a feel for the controls and the actual objective in each stage (drawing out a picture by swinging into hidden rupees) it all clicks together and becomes second nature
barebones, but still fun. i don't get why there's so many negative reviews
barebones, but still fun. i don't get why there's so many negative reviews
As much as I want to make fun of this game for being...ya know...Clu Clu Land...I actually kinda like the gameplay. It's like pac-man but different. And anything that even barely resembles pac-man I'm contractually obligated to enjoy.
played on NSO NES
played on NSO NES
I have never met a single soul even mention this game. No talk, no tweets, no forum posts, its left an invisible mark on history. I genuinely feel like im probably the only person to play it to completion and I feel like i should be put in a asylum
Clu Clu Land is quite a strange mark on history. I have no clue what to think about it, other than you spin around as this red blob, trying to find gems to make shapes, and trying to avoid these spike balls. It's weird as hell, but it can make for some good times.
Game #71
Game #71
bubbles is cooler than pac man
clu clu land was considered for smash bros melee before they decided on ice climbers. we could've had it all
really confusing to first understand, decent arcade fun when you do
Unique, interesting, and moderately challenging mechanics that simply lacks the catchy-ness of Pac Man. Clu Clu Land would have done great if it wasn't for the obvious call to comparison, unfortunately. Decent little game! Fun for the whole 10 minutes!
I actually like this game, but who chose the name clu clu land
When she Clu in the Clussy idk I'm not beating 20 stages of this bullshit
2 stars in one player mode. I haven't played a ton of it but co-op seems to make this game a lot more fun, but god singleplayer is just the most frustrating crap.
Another bizarre, yet interesting NES original from the developers at Nintendo. It's a cool take on the Pac-Man formula, but is hard to master with its odd character movement.
Surprised they never returned to this property. I would love to see this one get another shot someday.
Surprised they never returned to this property. I would love to see this one get another shot someday.
This was Nintendo's answer to the pacmania mazelike craze.
That's right, the 'soulslike' phenomenon is hardly a new thing.
a lot of people just view this as a mid entry to that pile. but honestly, I love it.
I find it super satisfying to play, and can easily jump into it anytime I want an arcadey game to play for 5 minutes.
It genuinely innovates on the mazelike formula and can be decently challenging without going overboard like 90% of games from its era.
That's right, the 'soulslike' phenomenon is hardly a new thing.
a lot of people just view this as a mid entry to that pile. but honestly, I love it.
I find it super satisfying to play, and can easily jump into it anytime I want an arcadey game to play for 5 minutes.
It genuinely innovates on the mazelike formula and can be decently challenging without going overboard like 90% of games from its era.
Played on Nintendo Switch.
This is an interesting take on the Pac-Man formula conceived 4 years prior but unfortunately it falls flat on its face. The movement is clunky and frustrating, the enemies are bland and inconsistent, the protagonist is neither cute nor charming, nothing about this game is done well and it's simply bad.
+ the multiplayer is somehow less fun.
This is an interesting take on the Pac-Man formula conceived 4 years prior but unfortunately it falls flat on its face. The movement is clunky and frustrating, the enemies are bland and inconsistent, the protagonist is neither cute nor charming, nothing about this game is done well and it's simply bad.
+ the multiplayer is somehow less fun.
I basically don't have anything to say about this game. It's functional!