MacBlank
Excellent newbie-friendly strategy game. Deceptively simple mechanics and system lends itself to a surprising amount of depth and strategy by presenting the player with a wide array of options. Feels like a power trip at all times due to how many options the cast has, but it's actually very well-balanced to accommodate, and the player never truly breaks the game over their knee - the hallmarks of a good, balanced power-trip. Very rewarding to watch a plan come together.
1993
Simple but fun run-&-gun. Excellent spectacle piece, weapon combos and enemy tossing makes for fun, kinetic gameplay. Lighting+Chaser sort-of trivializes everything, but it's at least fun to watch it do so. Not fond of the long rooftop level, but I can accept it as less "bad" and more "not my thing". Every other level is cooooool.
2018
Solid entry for the series. Not as phenomenal as 9/10, but still pretty good. Very fun level theming, and I like how unique each of the Robot Master weapons feel. Wily Castle is over and done with way too quickly.
2008
Life itself.
Really strong fangame! Less a translation of the Game Gear game and more a Sonic 3&K romhack with Tripe Trouble's theming and lessons learned from Mania. Not a bad thing - S3&K is a great template, and the most interesting things from Triple Trouble were expanded upon in all the right places. Feels short (but it's based on a Game Gear game), glitchier than the base game (but it's a fan game), and I don't love the pinball Bonus game. Still, highly recommended!
1982
Basic at a point where Arcades were starting to expand their general ideas. Mostly interesting for unlicensed use of Tarzan cry. Vine swinging is good, Alligator screen is fiddly, rock jumping is better in Moon Patrol, last screen is disproportionately short (but maybe for the best?). Quick loop.
MAGICAL. Simple if challenging SHMUP. Feels Christmasy in mostly fun and silly ways, but there's legitimately something to that third stage that feels very special, between the music and the pacing. The Flying Castle from Flying Red Barrel is a weird pull but not unwelcome.
2010
Once my least-favorite game. Now... eh. Basic platformer that mostly exists as a mood and spectacle piece. I find its misanthropy more unpleasant than compellingly melancholy (its abrupt violence is jarringly cartoony for the tone it's going for). Other games since have done far more interesting things conveying mood through the silhouette aesthetic, esp. Retro's Donkey Kong Country games.
But I get why people are pulled in by this, even if I am not.
But I get why people are pulled in by this, even if I am not.
1990
Solid little arcade title! Open-ended levels lend themselves to a decent amount of exploration and experimentation. Wish I'd played it co-op - the game naturally lends itself to it. Occupies a fairly unique space for co-op in the Genesis era; a remake would do well these days in the indie co-op space.
2003
Short but sweet. Solid core experience. Wario is a fun, aggressive player character in 3D space. For what the game wants to do, it's about the right length, but I really wish there was more to the game than there is.
A solid start to a runaway success! Seems quaint and dated now given how much the series has developed since. Normally not something I hold against a game, though WarioWare in particular is a series bad for superannuation. Bonus content keeps it from complete irrelevance.
Heart's in the right place. Great animation for the era, and Punch-Out's a great template to work with. In practice, very basic. Enemy gimmicks are very surface level with little complexity, and most characters are made or broken by the strength of their aesthetic rather than their fights; there's little mechanical difference between the second-best fight (Mimi Li) and the worst fight (Sweetness). Additional game mechanics (hired help, super moves, challenges) are very unbalanced. In a lot of respects, its unpolished nature underlines Punch-Out's strengths.
But not bad. Would've loved to see a sequel apply lessons learned.
But not bad. Would've loved to see a sequel apply lessons learned.
2001
Good! Not my preferred speed for Wario Land; a faster game makes this adventure feel smaller compared to previous titles. But there's lots to love - fun animations, whacked-out character designs, good music and level design experimentation, typical Wario dadaism. Escape sequences are a fun twist, but I wish they were more than a slap on the wrist here. Kind of easy to screw yourself out of the best ending or the boss weapons while learning the game.
"A'ight" platformer that eventually "clicks". A lot of the game is figuring out how to talk to it the way it wants to be talked to (a common problem for touch screen-heavy DS games). Even when you "get" the game, you still run into issues of mixing up symbols for transformations. But as the game comes together, there's a lot to love: great writing, kick-ass music, some really solid challenges in the late- and post-game. You even come around on the mini-games, tedious as they are, once it comes to the Special Episodes. A remake for this would do well.
Simple budget Arkham City. Very basic, a bit repetitive, doesn't really experiment with the format until the last few levels. That said: has all the makings of a great speedrun game. Open nature of most levels lends itself to decent experimentation along its basic mechanics, animations add variety to simple gameplay, fairly short overall. Would love to see something happen to this game as the generation currently playing it grows up.