An N64 game that I haven't had sitting in my backlog for almost or over a decade? Shocking! Despite that, I have wanted to play both this & Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon ever since I was going through my N64 collecting craze. During the months of scouring flea markets, thrift stores, and eBay, for one reason or another, I was never able to get my hands on either game. I found & beat a copy of Mystical Ninja a few years ago and eventually got this game soon after, but I didn't get around to completing it until recently. I didn't enjoy it quite as much as Mystical Ninja, but there is still a lot to like about Goemon's second N64 adventure.
While Mystical Ninja was more of a 3d Zelda-like game, Goemon's Great Adventure is a 2D platformer with the only thing that both games have in common being that they share the same 4 playable characters each with a unique gimmick. need to progress. The story in this one is not nearly as ridiculous as Mystical Ninja but you still get that classic Goemon goofiness.
There are a lot of positive things to say about this game. The graphics were pretty for its time and it felt great to play. It also does a great job of making each character useful since some levels will require you to utilize their different abilities like Goemon's chain pipe, Yae's & Sasuke's ability to swim underwater, or Ebisumaru's megaphone that creates small platforms. Exploring the towns and doing the various quests scattered throughout them was enjoyable and made the game feel more lively. Impact makes a return meaning you can still do those awesome mech fights just like in Mystical Ninja. Lastly, this game has co-op which I believe most 2D platformers did not have at the time. I played it all by myself, but I would have loved to play this with friends too.
It isn't perfect though and there is a reason it doesn't have a higher score. The biggest reason for this being the difficulty. While It is a good thing that the game is more difficult since Mystical Ninja was a bit too easy, it is also a bit too unforgiving at times. If you don't find any golden cats or purchase armor, you only have three hits until you lose a life. Not only that, but something TyphoonSwell mentions in his review is that there are a handful of enemies with annoying gimmicks. It was something I kept in mind as I played because I died countless times because of them, especially towards the end. The mech fights drag on a bit more than they did in Mystical Ninja if I remember correctly. I was never good at them but even with my lack of skill, I don't remember them being as long as they were here.
Goemon's Great Adventure is an underrated N64 classic that desperately needs more attention. The difficulty might be a little bs at times, but the fun & fast platforming, local co-op, and the wacky charm the Mystical Ninja series has makes it a game worth playing.
Link to TyphoonSwell's review: https://backloggd.com/u/TyphoonSwell/review/1074941/
While Mystical Ninja was more of a 3d Zelda-like game, Goemon's Great Adventure is a 2D platformer with the only thing that both games have in common being that they share the same 4 playable characters each with a unique gimmick. need to progress. The story in this one is not nearly as ridiculous as Mystical Ninja but you still get that classic Goemon goofiness.
There are a lot of positive things to say about this game. The graphics were pretty for its time and it felt great to play. It also does a great job of making each character useful since some levels will require you to utilize their different abilities like Goemon's chain pipe, Yae's & Sasuke's ability to swim underwater, or Ebisumaru's megaphone that creates small platforms. Exploring the towns and doing the various quests scattered throughout them was enjoyable and made the game feel more lively. Impact makes a return meaning you can still do those awesome mech fights just like in Mystical Ninja. Lastly, this game has co-op which I believe most 2D platformers did not have at the time. I played it all by myself, but I would have loved to play this with friends too.
It isn't perfect though and there is a reason it doesn't have a higher score. The biggest reason for this being the difficulty. While It is a good thing that the game is more difficult since Mystical Ninja was a bit too easy, it is also a bit too unforgiving at times. If you don't find any golden cats or purchase armor, you only have three hits until you lose a life. Not only that, but something TyphoonSwell mentions in his review is that there are a handful of enemies with annoying gimmicks. It was something I kept in mind as I played because I died countless times because of them, especially towards the end. The mech fights drag on a bit more than they did in Mystical Ninja if I remember correctly. I was never good at them but even with my lack of skill, I don't remember them being as long as they were here.
Goemon's Great Adventure is an underrated N64 classic that desperately needs more attention. The difficulty might be a little bs at times, but the fun & fast platforming, local co-op, and the wacky charm the Mystical Ninja series has makes it a game worth playing.
Link to TyphoonSwell's review: https://backloggd.com/u/TyphoonSwell/review/1074941/