Yep. This sure is a game that exists. For some reason I had a hankering for a match-3 sort of game and wound up finding this in the depths of my steam library and...
Yeah. It exists. Graphics are plain and cheap, theres nothing here that hasnt been done 100 times and more over. Its slow, cheap and has absolutely no personality to it. I will absolutely forget about this games existence by tomorrow.
Yeah. It exists. Graphics are plain and cheap, theres nothing here that hasnt been done 100 times and more over. Its slow, cheap and has absolutely no personality to it. I will absolutely forget about this games existence by tomorrow.
1990
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
I dont.... Hate it.... But its certainly an argument for why vertical shmups on systems like this just dont work very well. While graphically the game is absolutely on point and the sheer amount of destructible items is very fun, everythings just squished together far too much, throw in some rather chunky hitboxes and the difficulty often doesnt feel very fair and seems to rely on you being able to tank the occasional bit of damage thanks to the game using life-bars vs a 1 hit and die system.
Its annoying because it does a lot right and the moments of fun are good but the claustrophobic gameplay is a bit too much.
I dont.... Hate it.... But its certainly an argument for why vertical shmups on systems like this just dont work very well. While graphically the game is absolutely on point and the sheer amount of destructible items is very fun, everythings just squished together far too much, throw in some rather chunky hitboxes and the difficulty often doesnt feel very fair and seems to rely on you being able to tank the occasional bit of damage thanks to the game using life-bars vs a 1 hit and die system.
Its annoying because it does a lot right and the moments of fun are good but the claustrophobic gameplay is a bit too much.
1989
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
Just meh. Im honestly having difficulty talking about this game, its not really all that special or interesting thanks to a slow speed, featureless levels and a lack of any real flair to any of the shooting. Sure its fun to see things blow up around you but generally there has to be a point or build up to something right? This just feels like its shmupping for shmupping's sake and thats a bit dull.
Just meh. Im honestly having difficulty talking about this game, its not really all that special or interesting thanks to a slow speed, featureless levels and a lack of any real flair to any of the shooting. Sure its fun to see things blow up around you but generally there has to be a point or build up to something right? This just feels like its shmupping for shmupping's sake and thats a bit dull.
1989
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
Oh good we're back to this nonsense again. What is up with Lynx games and oversized sprites being hit by things charging in from offscreen. This is a mess of a game with ugly graphics, messy sound design and clunky unplayable gameplay with incomprehensible design all-round. So another tech demo that should have stayed a tech demo.
Oh good we're back to this nonsense again. What is up with Lynx games and oversized sprites being hit by things charging in from offscreen. This is a mess of a game with ugly graphics, messy sound design and clunky unplayable gameplay with incomprehensible design all-round. So another tech demo that should have stayed a tech demo.
1991
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
As a retro-style racing game, it ticks pretty much all the boxes, there's plenty of tracks, it controls well and there's a nice amount of modes on offer, special mention going to the game just openly letting you freely practise in the various tracks without CPU players or time-trial elements.
Its fun at times but honestly it feels like its missing something to really make it pop. Still a decent enough racer and one that makes for a decent, if slightly unspectacular time.
As a retro-style racing game, it ticks pretty much all the boxes, there's plenty of tracks, it controls well and there's a nice amount of modes on offer, special mention going to the game just openly letting you freely practise in the various tracks without CPU players or time-trial elements.
Its fun at times but honestly it feels like its missing something to really make it pop. Still a decent enough racer and one that makes for a decent, if slightly unspectacular time.
1989
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
BMX: 10/10 concussions. I did laugh as I launched my bike off a cliff, span around and landed head-first into the ground causing the bike to zoom off into the right-side of the screen. I laughed not at all as the bike repeatedly toddled up basic hills and slipped over small logs without rhyme or reason as to get by them. The eastern European judge clearly has a vendetta against me.
Surfing: After a debacle where I clearly misunderstood the assignment and ground myself into the beach repeatedly, ruining a small child's sandcastle project in the process, the judges were kind enough to let me try again. After another misunderstanding where the judges refused to give me points for riding the neverending wave tunnel, I began zooming up and down and spinning like a real surfer dude. I did briefly ponder how long this wave was and that brief moment of confusion was all it took for the waves to overtake me and pull me under. I awoke to find some scruffy dog licking my face. It felt like sandpaper.
Halfpipe: Well this was a failure on all accounts. I repeatedly fell over, failed to get speed, ruined my knees and knocked out one of the few judges who still actually liked me with a flying skateboard to the face. I'm doomed.
Footbag: Wait this counts as a sport? Hackeysack? I did awful at this but somehow scored well despite looking like somebody who had broken all of his limbs in the previous game. Feet went flying, I span around helplessly trying to spot the small bag and a seagull got concussed as it flew overhead. I won the event but lost when the animal welfare society arrived to charge me with seagull based crime. We all fled the scene sharpish.
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I don't know if this is just a bad port of if California Games is just this much of a hellscape because while fundamentally the game works, control wise its just a frustrating time with the game often barely providing enough of a window of time to clear even the basic of moves, regardless of what sport you happen to be playing.
The biking game and Skateboarding game has the worst of it with the controls often just giving up at a moments notice and the speed often feeling random. Hackeysack also has some control issues and feels so finicky with where you're standing and moving at any given time and the bonus points feel random and unfair. Surfing at least works but its also probably the most boring of the four events.
So yeah, when it works its kind of dull and when it doesn't work its frustrating. I had more fun writing this than playing the game.
BMX: 10/10 concussions. I did laugh as I launched my bike off a cliff, span around and landed head-first into the ground causing the bike to zoom off into the right-side of the screen. I laughed not at all as the bike repeatedly toddled up basic hills and slipped over small logs without rhyme or reason as to get by them. The eastern European judge clearly has a vendetta against me.
Surfing: After a debacle where I clearly misunderstood the assignment and ground myself into the beach repeatedly, ruining a small child's sandcastle project in the process, the judges were kind enough to let me try again. After another misunderstanding where the judges refused to give me points for riding the neverending wave tunnel, I began zooming up and down and spinning like a real surfer dude. I did briefly ponder how long this wave was and that brief moment of confusion was all it took for the waves to overtake me and pull me under. I awoke to find some scruffy dog licking my face. It felt like sandpaper.
Halfpipe: Well this was a failure on all accounts. I repeatedly fell over, failed to get speed, ruined my knees and knocked out one of the few judges who still actually liked me with a flying skateboard to the face. I'm doomed.
Footbag: Wait this counts as a sport? Hackeysack? I did awful at this but somehow scored well despite looking like somebody who had broken all of his limbs in the previous game. Feet went flying, I span around helplessly trying to spot the small bag and a seagull got concussed as it flew overhead. I won the event but lost when the animal welfare society arrived to charge me with seagull based crime. We all fled the scene sharpish.
------------------------
I don't know if this is just a bad port of if California Games is just this much of a hellscape because while fundamentally the game works, control wise its just a frustrating time with the game often barely providing enough of a window of time to clear even the basic of moves, regardless of what sport you happen to be playing.
The biking game and Skateboarding game has the worst of it with the controls often just giving up at a moments notice and the speed often feeling random. Hackeysack also has some control issues and feels so finicky with where you're standing and moving at any given time and the bonus points feel random and unfair. Surfing at least works but its also probably the most boring of the four events.
So yeah, when it works its kind of dull and when it doesn't work its frustrating. I had more fun writing this than playing the game.
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 13: Atari Lynx Collection 1
I was honestly expecting more of a boulder-dash game here instead of whats essentially Chips Challenge but messier but here we go. Ultimately its a pretty fun game as you race around the various levels collecting gems, shooting enemies and pushing rocks around but its... just missing something for me to really make it shine.
I think the core problem is the variety isnt quite there so you'll be burnt out by the game long before you've even hit the halfway mark, let alone hitting the top of the 281 levels the game has going for it. Its still a pretty fun time but one that doesnt quite hit the heavy highs its wanting to.
I was honestly expecting more of a boulder-dash game here instead of whats essentially Chips Challenge but messier but here we go. Ultimately its a pretty fun game as you race around the various levels collecting gems, shooting enemies and pushing rocks around but its... just missing something for me to really make it shine.
I think the core problem is the variety isnt quite there so you'll be burnt out by the game long before you've even hit the halfway mark, let alone hitting the top of the 281 levels the game has going for it. Its still a pretty fun time but one that doesnt quite hit the heavy highs its wanting to.
1989
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
I feel I'm about to just parrot a lot of what @HongKongHermit has already stated in their review but this absolutely is a game that's style over substance. Graphically the game absolutely shows off what the Lynx could do and there's certainly a neat feeling with the After-Burner style graphics going but after just a bit, there's the feeling of sluggishness as the game just is missing the speed needed for this sort of game.
It doesn't help that the game isn't very helpful with showcasing what's deadly and what isn't, resulting in some later levels being a shroud of shrapnel where its questionable if you'll be hit or not. As it stands its not an awful game but just one that drags itself across the line with graphical goodwill and the occasional heated moment.
I feel I'm about to just parrot a lot of what @HongKongHermit has already stated in their review but this absolutely is a game that's style over substance. Graphically the game absolutely shows off what the Lynx could do and there's certainly a neat feeling with the After-Burner style graphics going but after just a bit, there's the feeling of sluggishness as the game just is missing the speed needed for this sort of game.
It doesn't help that the game isn't very helpful with showcasing what's deadly and what isn't, resulting in some later levels being a shroud of shrapnel where its questionable if you'll be hit or not. As it stands its not an awful game but just one that drags itself across the line with graphical goodwill and the occasional heated moment.
1989
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 14: Atari Lynx Collection 2
Ok I should get back to this and lets start the second Lynx pack with this behemoth of a game. At its core, its a pretty frantic action puzzler where you race around, collecting computer chips, avoiding enemies and solving puzzles and you know what, its pretty darn fun, there's a HUGE variety in the levels themselves and the mix of music and speed helps things move along quickly.
That said the game does have one BIG problem and that's its difficulty because the game just loves randomly bitchslapping you at random after you've waltzed through three easy levels, then chucking something like Blobnet at you which can absolutely wear out your time, patience and save states.
That said, the game is at least kind enough to realise how punishing it can be and doesn't bother with things like lives, continues or even requiring you to actually complete a level to move on as if you fail too many times, it'll happily let you skip through to the next level with just a point penalty as punishment.
So ultimately, despite the bone crushing difficulty the game presents, I would absolutely recommend this thanks to how accessible it's made itself.
Ok I should get back to this and lets start the second Lynx pack with this behemoth of a game. At its core, its a pretty frantic action puzzler where you race around, collecting computer chips, avoiding enemies and solving puzzles and you know what, its pretty darn fun, there's a HUGE variety in the levels themselves and the mix of music and speed helps things move along quickly.
That said the game does have one BIG problem and that's its difficulty because the game just loves randomly bitchslapping you at random after you've waltzed through three easy levels, then chucking something like Blobnet at you which can absolutely wear out your time, patience and save states.
That said, the game is at least kind enough to realise how punishing it can be and doesn't bother with things like lives, continues or even requiring you to actually complete a level to move on as if you fail too many times, it'll happily let you skip through to the next level with just a point penalty as punishment.
So ultimately, despite the bone crushing difficulty the game presents, I would absolutely recommend this thanks to how accessible it's made itself.
The fact that this isnt in Rare Replay is an absolute crime. COME ON MICROSOFT YOU COWARDS.
Its not a 'horrible' game as such, the whole premise being setting down traps to turn enemies into tasty tasty peaches... The loop is a simple one... a little too simple in fact.
There's only 8 levels and 2 'bonus' levels in total and its pretty easy to get a basic clear on. Sure the game does loop over and over for high-score chasers with the difficulty bumping up each time but given the levels themselves don't really change between each loop, there's just not enough stuff here and you'll have seen and done everything in about ten to fifteen minutes.
There's only 8 levels and 2 'bonus' levels in total and its pretty easy to get a basic clear on. Sure the game does loop over and over for high-score chasers with the difficulty bumping up each time but given the levels themselves don't really change between each loop, there's just not enough stuff here and you'll have seen and done everything in about ten to fifteen minutes.
Its ugly as sin and basically just comprises of you mashing the attack button wildly without any rhyme or reason until the brain-dead enemy opponents collapse. Absolute brain-rot and beatable in about ten minutes. I mean its sort of to be expected, the GBA was filled with tie-in trash like this but yeeesh.
2014
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 13: Atari Lynx Collection 1
Ending my time with Lynx 1 with a pair of puzzlers. First is this and its a pretty basic puzzle title, go around and remove all the tiles by walking across them and yeah, its not a bad little puzzler but it does suffer from having a bit of a lack of variety in its tiles and a surprisingly low level count. Overall its not a 'bad' game as such and is perfectly fine to pick up and play at random but its nothing i'll likely remember after im done.
Ending my time with Lynx 1 with a pair of puzzlers. First is this and its a pretty basic puzzle title, go around and remove all the tiles by walking across them and yeah, its not a bad little puzzler but it does suffer from having a bit of a lack of variety in its tiles and a surprisingly low level count. Overall its not a 'bad' game as such and is perfectly fine to pick up and play at random but its nothing i'll likely remember after im done.
1990
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 13: Atari Lynx Collection 1
Its a rather basic puzzle game, you have a grid, you have pieces randomly assigned to you and you gotta make full circuit loops using those pieces. Repeat, reuse and redo until you cant put any more pieces down. The end. Its about as basic as you can get and although its not inherently bad, its also not very interesting either outside of an initial play.
Its a rather basic puzzle game, you have a grid, you have pieces randomly assigned to you and you gotta make full circuit loops using those pieces. Repeat, reuse and redo until you cant put any more pieces down. The end. Its about as basic as you can get and although its not inherently bad, its also not very interesting either outside of an initial play.
2008
Playing Through My Evercade Collection Part 13: Atari Lynx Collection 1
Honestly theres bugger all to talk about here. This is basically a bunch of homebrew demos thrown together to make one pack because as a whole they wouldnt actually be enough for a release. Its mostly a unpleasant affair with barebones hangman, a game and watch clone thats boring and slow, a drawing tool that barely works and other gubbins.
I cant really rag on it too much, it is a bunch of hobbyist stuff slung together but its also slapped together so harshly and with the ugliest sounding MIDI level music honking out...
Honestly theres bugger all to talk about here. This is basically a bunch of homebrew demos thrown together to make one pack because as a whole they wouldnt actually be enough for a release. Its mostly a unpleasant affair with barebones hangman, a game and watch clone thats boring and slow, a drawing tool that barely works and other gubbins.
I cant really rag on it too much, it is a bunch of hobbyist stuff slung together but its also slapped together so harshly and with the ugliest sounding MIDI level music honking out...