Uh-oh, I feel a little bit left out with this one. 

From a technical standpoint, it's awesome; there are tons of visual tricks that display the power of the Super Nintendo hardware. Gameplay is not all that bad either; there's some really neat boss battles, like that one where the whole screen rotates.

What kills it for me is a combination of my four biggest pet peeves when it comes to shoot 'em ups.

First, the scroll is way too slow. There are times when absolutely nothing's happening.

Second, there's no instant respawn; if you die, you are forced to get it at the beginning of the stage.

Third, enemy ships are just bullet sponges and your projectiles are useless. You are basically forced to charge your beam at all times since it's the only attack that actually does something.

Fourth, the game has unreadable enemy patterns. Projectiles will kill you in the blink of an eye at the speed of light with not enough time to react, so the challenge feels more like a trial-and-error kind of deal than a skilled-based one (I'm especially looking at you, laser tubes). I feel like I'm playing the shoot 'em up equivalent of Syobon Cat or one of those "I Wanna Be the Guy" kinds of games. 

It's also really short, and... I don't know, man. I truly wish I had enjoyed it.

We are in 2024, graphics are getting better than we could have ever imagined before, and companies are still racing against each other in hopes of reaching a technical finish line that, time and time again, has been proven to not exist.

Not only famous game directors are receiving more mainstream attention, but big-name actors are also getting interested in the industry, attracting a significant number of outsiders as a result.

From the biggest AAA studio to a single-handed indie developer, all sorts of resources are easily available to help make their projects a reality, and because of it, we are getting more and more releases per year to the point where it's impossible to keep track of them all.

But for some reason, despite all that, this ugly as a sin 2008 game made in the ancient RPGMAKER2000 engine of all things, borrowing licensed music and numerous visual assets, achieved something that's rarely seen in gaming: using the video game format to create something personal; something real.

The uniqueness of its presentation and its quirky, loud nature, completely devoid of ego, hooked me from the start, and it never let me go, not even once it started to get darker as we dived into its abyss.

The plot hit me like a truck because I could feel its sincerity, especially after that ending, which I would feel like a criminal for spoiling because it's one of the absolute bests I have ever seen in any artistic medium.

So, yeah, please give this one a try. Take your time to explore and talk to every NPC you see. Whether you end up loving it or hating it, I'm certain that the experience is not going to leave you indifferent. And goddamn, isn't that alone such a beautiful thing?.

I really liked it! It maintains all the mechanics of the previous title, but this time in 3D!

I wish the game had a first-person camera and better mobility in mid-air; it feels like you don't have much control over it, especially while you are falling, but that being said, I actually think this is the best 3D platformer we have gotten in a while; in my opinion, it's definitely better than the disappointment that was Bowser's Fury. I hope this becomes a full game; it just needs a bit more polish.

Also, I can't get over how cute low-poly Maddy is.

An amazing conversational adventure with a futuristic setting.
Darn impressive for the NES, considering the amount of backgrounds and animations it has. The plot started simple enough but slowly became more and more interesting until it hooked me completely.

One thing I absolutely loved was how quickly the game managed to turn from cozy to straight-up creepy in the blink of an eye. I haven't been caught off guard this bad since I read Higurashi many, many years ago.

It's slightly outdated now; the dialog moves really slowly, and you are required to select the same choices multiple times in order for the game to progress, but if you are a fan of video games, you owe yourself playing it. Just grab something to eat and enjoy the ride.

I'm having a lot of trouble writing this review, so instead of going full-detail like I was trying to, I'll keep it as concise as I can.

This game is a massive improvement over its predecessor in every aspect. Every single thing Monster World III did wrong, Monster World IV fixes to the point where it's really hard to believe both of these games are in the same franchise.

The visuals are simply stunning, featuring some of the most impressive spritework of its generation. From the beautiful, detailed backgrounds to Asha herself, she's so full of life! The number of unique animations she has gives her so much more personality than the previous MC.

The level design of the temples is also a huge improvement, varying from okay to really good. My only complaint is that the ice piramid goes on for a bit longer than needed, but both the Water and Cloud temples completely blew me away.

Your companion is super useful this time! He will accompany you for most of the game, and he's the key to solving a vast variety of puzzles. Seeing him try his hardest to help you out made me fall in love with him really fast.

So yeah, play the hell out of Monster World IV! It's a fantastic game and easily on my Top 10 list of Mega Drive games.

I played this game alongside its counterpart, "The Jetsons: Invasion of the Planet Pirates" and in my opinion, this one is the better game out of the two.

It not only fixes some control issues, but it also gets rid of every single annoying section, most notoriously Stages 7 and 8, which were by far the worst in that game, as well as having a more epic final shodown on the last boss.

Ruka is super cute, and the Oni head that serves as a replacement for the vacuum cleaner... I find it rather amusing. Japan never ceases to amaze me.

Very cool game; I would definitely check it out if you like strange oddities on the Super Famicom.

It saddens me to say that the best parts of the game are on level one. I believe they put all the effort there, as the latter levels are either super uninspired and short or go on forever and feature dumb, slightly unfair challenges.

The vacuum cleaner mechanic is super interesting, but it's rarely used in a creative way, which feels like a missed opportunity since the vast majority of the game revolves around it.

The music is super goofy; i kinda like it, especially Stage 3's theme. Others, like the one on Stage 4, are... not very good, though.

This game would later receive an updated version released in Japan called "Yokai Buster Ruka" which is honestly the better game. That version gets rid of Levels 7 and 8 completely, fixes some control issues, and has a better last boss battle, so there's really no reason to play this one unless you are a big fan of the show since, in favor of the game, it does manage to capture its essence with its colorful visuals.

Super short and super sweet Metroidvania that features amazing boss battles.

I can definitely tell that the Lady Bug Team are Shmups fans; I can see the Ikaruga influence on this one.

Music slaps so hard, if you are a Megaten fan, you'll enjoy the remixes of classic songs.

Significantly inferior to its predecessor, Wonder Boy in Monster World, or just "Monster World III" is a very slow-paced, repetitive, and grind-heavy adventure game that doesn't have much to offer besides some very minuscule sparks of brilliance.

That last boss battle was awful, and that ending was outright insulting.

The game looks cute, though.