I had forgotten just how surrealistic TJ&E is. The humans are all parodies of we earthlings - and often quite barbed parodies at that - but the world design is rather trippy with the floating landmasses and paths. Less an action game than an exploration-heavy roguelike, particularly in random world mode, this one is all about vibing to the great soundtrack, exploring at a careful, deliberate pace and taking measured risks, whether opening presents or choosing to head up to the next level feeling unprepared. Surprisingly difficult, it was very fun to revisit a childhood favorite and find the game design and style both hold up well. A weird game executed beautifully.

Played on Genesis Mini console, in single-player fixed world mode.

just so boring. i like the idea with the presents and how they can help you and can speed up the game but when you have nothing to help you in your inventory and youve been walking around slowly for the past like 5+ floors i just cant take it anymore. i try to be patient with slower games like this but the gameplay loop is just so so repetitive and slow and by the time i got 5 ship parts slowly walking around a world that constantly looks, feels, and plays the same i just feel drained on playing it and that im not gonna be missing out on anything from the second half of the game i have left

If you have been around the video game scene for the past decade or so, then you may or may not be familiar with the rouge-like genre. For those of you who somehow aren’t familiar, these are essentially games that typically have you going through a set of levels in dungeons, caves, or what have you, that are all procedurally generated. This makes it so that every playthrough you do of the game won’t always be exactly the same as the previous, and as such, adds a lot more replay value then what you would typically see from other video games. There is a reason why this genre has exploded in popularity in recent years, but this genre has been around for much longer then you would think, dating all the way back to the early 80s, and while it definitely wasn’t the most prevalent genre, there were plenty of games made around this time that were in this genre… even ones that you wouldn’t think would be part of it from just glancing at it. One of these examples of early rouge-likes would be with, surprisingly, ToeJam & Earl.

Just like with a lot of the games I cover here, I had known about ToeJam & Earl from a long time, and I thought it looked cute enough, being incredibly 90s to the point where it physically hurts, and the gameplay itself looked interesting enough, but never enough to where I wanted to immediately check it out. After all this time though, I figured I may as well check it out to see what I was missing, and I was pretty surprised to find that it was essentially a rouge-like. Just, you know, minus a lot of elements that you would typically see in one of these games. Despite that, I ended up playing through all of it, and I ended up really liking it. It is very charming, and the game itself can be pretty fun, but it definitely has some things holding it back from true greatness, and I can see how others can’t get into it like I did.

The story is very simple, about these two goofy-ass aliens crashing onto Earth, and they need to find all the parts of their spaceship in order to fly back home, so it is essentially just Pikmin without the slave labor, the graphics are very charming, having plenty of bright and colorful characters and enemies, while also having an aggressively high amount of 90s scattered all throughout the game, which I can’t help but unironically love, the music is actually pretty great, with there being plenty of tracks that, while repeated several times, got me bobbing my head and humming to myself often, and some of the tracks have definitely stuck with me after playing it, the control is good enough, even if you have a pretty slow default movement speed, and going through the maps and menus can be complicating at times, but you can get used to it quickly enough, and the gameplay is pretty unique for one of the more noteworthy Sega Genesis games, and it was one that I quickly grew to enjoy, despite seeing the faults in it.

The game is a rouge-like adventure game, where you take control of either ToeJam or Earl, or maybe even both with a friend, take on a set of 25 procedurally generated levels, explore the land to find plenty of enemies, presents, and hazards that have quite a lot of variety to them, use these presents to assist you in many different ways throughout the game, and locate all of the parts of your space ship in many of the levels while finding the exit elevators to move on forward. For me at least, there are very few other games that function like this that I have seen from this era, and this caused me to get sucked in pretty quickly, and have a lot of fun with it, not just in terms of the gameplay, but also its style.

Like I mentioned before, this game is trying so damn hard to be as 90s as possible, and in many ways, it actually somewhat works in presenting a lot of its charm. Not only are ToeJam and Earl themselves so stereotypical of this style, and they are entertaining enough with all of their expressions and reactions to everything, but also all of the different enemies and hazards that you will find throughout the game are very odd, but incredibly charming, such as an ice cream truck, a mad scientist, a crowd of ducks with a bazooka, and a gang of nerds. It may be stupid, but it is stupid enough to where I can smile and have a great time with it. Not to mention, there are many different temporary abilities you can get from the presents, such as being able to throw tomatoes at enemies you come across, having running/rocket shoes to help you get around the levels much faster, wings that allow you to fly over gaps, and a pogo stick that will allow you to jump. They do come in at random, and some of them can be pretty unruly to use, but these items help you out A TON when it comes to finding the ship parts and elevators. I cannot tell you how many times I used the rocket shoes just to blaze through the levels as fast as possible just to see if I would get lucky and find either the elevator or ship part immediately, it was a pretty good time.

But, of course, the game isn’t perfect. One thing I didn’t mention about the presents was that, while a good number of them can help you out a lot of the time, a lot of other ones are meant to punish you, such as ones that hurt you, or others that give you rainclouds that zap you or make tomatoes fall from the sky to hurt you. What’s even worse is that you don’t know what is in a present till you open it, so needless to say, I got screwed over several times by opening up some of these presents, and I am not a fan of that system at all. In addition to this, while it is cool that all of the levels are procedurally generated, a lot of them end up being extremely repetitive. Throughout the entire game, you are going along the same grassy plains and sandy areas, avoiding the same enemies and collecting the same items. And keep in mind, you are doing this for 25 whole levels, and it does get pretty finicky and difficult in later levels with how quickly enemies can bum rush you, so yeah, I wasn’t really a big fan of either of those things.

Overall, despite how repetitive it can get, and the present mechanic being a bit annoying at times, I surprisingly had a pretty great time with ToeJam & Earl, and I think it is one of the more unique and really good titles from the Sega Genesis. It is definitely not gonna win everyone over, but it sure managed to win me over at the end of the day. I would recommend it for those who wanna experience more of the Genesis’s stand out titles, as well as for anyone to try it out at least once, because you may end up finding something you’ll really like out of it. Let’s just hope that the sequel manages to take this formula and expand upon it to- WOW, the next game is a platformer? Damn, didn’t even wait a whole two entries before unnecessarily switching up what the genre was. Bravo, Johnson Voorsanger Productions.

Game #372

Played this with a friend for a whole evening on 2 player on my Sega Mini. I always heard it was extremely weird. I can see how it got that rumour, because it's true. I don't think I've played a game that I could compare it to.

It's about exploring a map with these islands. with a lot of quirky characters and bizarre situations scattered around. You find small gifts with strange abilities.

Without always knowing what you are trying to find you'll eventually find something that makes you progress. An elevator taking you to the next stage, even if you can fall back to the last level if you are unlucky.

It does feel like exploration is the main theme. With 2 player the screen splits, and it does have a unique feel to it. I quite liked it. Very novel and weird game.

Interesting little game where you (and a friend) walk around a randomly generated map in search of Toe Jam and Earl’s ship parts so they can go home. You will be avoiding enemies by just moving out of the way, or using various items either found out in the world or through the shop. It is actually very hard to die in this game as if any character falls off the map they just go down a floor and then they can climb back up all the same. I really liked that this game had the ability to let players walk wherever they wanted even in two player by splitting the screen when they drift too far apart. The only real complaint that I have about the game is how slow it feels to play, although it only took about two and a half hours to finish. It felt much longer due to how slow the walk speed is, but I guess the slow walk speed is there to encourage item use. Overall, a good time to be had with a friend who is willing to play with you, I would not play it in single player.

Now before I begin I just want to clarify this:
This is strictly my own opinion. If you disagree with me, more power to you. Just keep the comments civil and respectful.

Hello, everybody, and welcome back to
GAME MODE: ON!

Since I started writing game reviews for this site, all the ones I've written so far are for titles I've played on a PlayStation console. As much as I love me some PlayStation, I don't want to be mainly known as the Sony Boy because I do want to venture out onto other consoles such as the Xbox or a Nintendo unit.

So I'd figure I would like to try my hand at tackling something alot more retro though the problem with that is that retro games, while fun to play and interesting to learn about, can be ridiculously fucking hard.
I mean, I love a good challenge, I really do, but I can't review a game if I'm unable to finish it. Which is why you might not see me review much older games as frequently as more recent ones. Not that I don't want to review these games, I just happen to suck at alot of them especially if they're from the NES days.

I have managed to beat a few retro games in my spare time such as Sonic 2 and Castlevania 4 but that's about it.
But then there's this one game, ToeJam & Earl, that seems to look promising enough. Before this point, I have played a good amount of it and it doesn't seem that bad so I'd figure this would make for some stress-free work. Yeah, I was wrong, this game can be a pain in the ass.
But remember, just because a game is hard doesn't mean it sucks. If a game is difficult but fair and fun, it can work immensely and provide enough enjoyment for the player, I mean, look at Cuphead for example. But if a game is too difficult to the point of absolute bullshit, that's where people's patience can wear off fast. Seriously, that boss fight against Dark Gaia in Sonic Unleashed can go eat a fucking dick.
In regards to ToeJam & Earl, the game has received some great reviews with players praising the gameplay and two-player mode and was considered a sleeper hit despite low sales. It has been re-released many times, spawned three sequels and there's even a movie adaptation in the works. So obviously, this game has done something to warrant such acclaim so let's not waste any time and jump right into it.

STORY & CHARACTERIZATION:
ToeJam & Earl are a duo of rapping extraterrestrials who hail from the planet Funkotron and have a habit of speaking early-90's Californian slang and dancing to hip-hop music.
During a trip through outer space, Earl took over piloting their spaceship for a bit which, due to his erratic driving skills, causes them to crash into an asteroid and send them plummeting to Earth.
Although the two survive the crash, their main concern now is to find the missing parts of their ship so that they can leave and return home.

As this is a much older title, don't expect anything like deep character development or a complex overarching storyline. This is classic old-school shit where the main concern is just, well, actually playing the fucking game.
So there's really not much point in delving into this aspect for long as there's not much to go over. I will say that the characters of ToeJam and Earl do have some fun personality and they can occasionally earn a good laugh.
While I wouldn't call the game absolutely hilarious, there are a few jokes and visual gags that can amuse you and, well, there is a reason why the game is often praised for it's sense of humor. However, most of the jokes are only present if you're playing the game in co-op mode so I hope you have a second player to join you or you'll be missing out. So yeah, not much else to say around here, really.

GAMEPLAY & CONTROLS:
The game works as a rouge-like adventure where you journey through randomly-generated maps to locate one of ten missing ship pieces and then head for an elevator once you're done. If a certain map doesn't start with a pop-up hinting at a piece, you need to head straight for the elevator. While there is an option to play the game with fixed maps, I usually go for random as it makes for a better challenge not knowing where everything is at.
You have the option to play as either ToeJam or Earl but as far as I know, there's not much difference between the two characters in terms of mechanics, speed and whatnot.
When you start a map, it is almost blanked out and the only way to uncover where you are is by wandering around the environment. Occasionally, you'll hear a telephone ringing and if you manage to find it, you can uncover parts of the map much faster.
Along the way, you'll find a variety of items which include dollar bills, food and presents. Good foods like burgers, fudge sundaes and bacon & eggs will refill your health while bad foods such as moldy cheese and fish skeletons... yeah, best to avoid those. Then there are the presents which contain various items but there's no telling which one is which without taking a risk and selecting them. Some items can be very helpful like extra lives, spring shoes and so forth while others will make your life hell including rain clouds, insta-death bombs and a generator that resets all your findings. It's a cheap gamble that I don't find myself using often. There is a man in a carrot costume that can help you identify presents without having to open them for a small fee of two bucks per present which is mega-helpful. You can also use the money you've collected to buy presents at a mailbox but sometimes, it's suicide because half the time, the mailbox is an asshole monster that's too fast to avoid and can knock too much health off of you which can really piss you off.
Speaking of pissing you off, the game has a variety of enemies you encounter throughout. Some are pathetic like those winged babies that seem to barely hit their target, women slowly driving shopping carts and constantly-wandering demons. But then there are those that are so fucking hard to avoid. I've already mentioned the killer mailboxes but then there's flocks of bees, sharks, mad scientists, packs of nerds, tomato-throwing chickens, lawnmowers driven by assholes and moles that steal your items. The worst ones for me have to be the bogeymen and the ice-cream trucks because they're such a fucking chore to avoid and they're usually too fast to get away from unless you happen to have some speedy shoes at the ready. Those things can go to hell for all I care.
There's also these hula dancers that are so annoying because every time you get close to them, your character stops for a moment to dance with them and that can really suck major balls if you're trying to get away from a pursuing enemy, it's like "There's a time and a place, dipshit! MOVE IT!". Oh, and also tornadoes that have the potential to drop you off a level which is extra kinds of frustrating.
To make things worse, not only is it possible for you to slip off a cliff and start right back at the previous level thus forcing you to stroll over to the elevator all over again but once all your lives are gone, that's it, game over. No continues, no password system, you don't get diddly-dick and you have to start all over again. Thank god I played this on the Sega Mega Drive Mini so that I can take advantage of the save states.
Not to mention, there are certain areas of certain maps that cannot be possibly traversed without either finding a secret pathway or using whatever items you have but good luck if you have any spring shoes left and you better pray to god that the all-too-important ship piece isn't on that unreachable area thus stumping you for good.
So yeah, the game can have it's frustrating elements but even with that said, it controls well. Moving your character around isn't too much of a hassle and the button prompts aren't too complicated once you get the gang of it. You can check the map by pressing the C button as while you're there, you can press B to check to see how many parts are left and if there are any on the level you're on.
You can also check up on the item menu by pressing B. Pressing C will switch between using an item or dropping it while A either uses or drops said item. Holding A will have you sneaking about(if you don't already have an item selected that is) which will be helpful if you don't wanna disturb enemies that you know will make things difficult for you.
It is a little slow traveling around and trying to find what you're looking for since your character does walk at an ice resurfacer's pace but you'll get used to it after a while.

GRAPHICS & PRODUCTION VALUE:
Even after thirty-two years, this game really does look pretty damn good. Everything from the environments to the character designs have that funky and goofy charm to them that it's hard not to appreciate. Who know blast-processing can be so damn hip?
Also, the music by John Baker is quite the banger. Each tune cranked out is pleasing enough to the ear that you'll wanna keep on playing in-spite of it's shortcomings.

So overall, ToeJam & Earl is a good game. It has memorable visuals and music, the titular characters are charming enough and the gameplay is pretty decent and even a little humorous.
Just keep in mind that there will be certain elements that will make your experience hell if you're not too careful enough.
That being said, the game is better played as a co-op experience as you'll cover more ground better and have a more fun time. It's still a fine game playing by yourself but it's best to have a second player around.

If you happen to come across this game on sale either digitally or you happen to still have your old Sega Mega Drive or you're planning to buy a Mega Drive Mini or already own one, I say give this game a shot and see what you think.

Until next time, thank you for taking the time to check out this installment of GAME MODE: ON.
If you liked what you've read here and want to see more, you can go ahead and follow me whenever you want.

And also, don't forget to check out my Letterboxd page for new film reviews every week.

QUESTION: Are the sequels any better and if so, which is your favorite ToeJam & Earl game overall?

One of my favorite games of all time. Encapsulates pretty much everything I love about gaming: a focus on the vibes rather than deep gameplay, an element of RNG to keep the game funny and entertaining, and fun social interactions with the people I play with.

The game is a slow paced roguelike where the idea is less about defeating enemies and more using your randomly generated items effectively to survive whatever potential hazards the game throws at you. If you can live long enough to find all 10 ship parts, yeehaw you win! Everything is randomized, so every playthrough is different and you gotta think on your feet on what choice of action would be the best. Do you risk opening an unmarked present or do you wait for a carrot man? Do you use the bonus hi-tops to get out of a sticky situation, or will a different item suffice? Things like that keep the game engaging despite its very relaxed and slow pace.

The multiplayer is phenomenal, this is one of the best multiplayer games on the mega drive easily. The game has dynamic splitscreen that allows both players to have total freedom in the map, as well as plenty of mechanics that encourage cooperation like items working for both players if they are on the same screen, or the togetherness item that can reset someone from getting knocked off the edge of a level by teleporting them to the other player. I make an effort to play this game at least once with each of my friends, and it has been a fantastic experience every time. All time great here.