For all the shitty business practices regarding game preservation today, it's cool that changes in gaming culture and development tools have allowed previously cancelled projects to get a second chance. We've seen it with releases of previously cancelled ports (Darius MD, Mad Stalker, 40 Winks), and full versions of previously unreleased games (Ultracore, Starfox 2, Nightmare Busters). Clockwork Aquario's another entry for this growing library of lost relics, and while it's definitely not as good as a finished version could have been, what's here is a sweet little gem regardless.

Clockwork Aquario's a previously cancelled arcade action-platformer by Westone, of Wonder Boy fame. The game was location tested multiple times, but was met with mixed reactions, and inevitably cancelled. Gameplay revolves around using a grab-and-throw mechanic to defeat enemies and pop balloons. There isn't much meat to the game as far as platforming or combat goes, so it's clear the intention was for people to play it as a score-chasing game - and yeah, it's pretty great in that regard. There are lots of opportunities to chain bounces, pummels and headbonks together to get nice score bonuses while watching foes clatter around the screen. Scoring isn't as deep as it SHOULD be though - time and life bonuses are oddly absent, and so scoring is built purely around taking your time to set up enemy combos and defeat everything. It's weird.

Besides the gameplay loop, the other thing that really carries Aquario is the style. The kid's shonen theming of the Wonder Boy games is excellently repurposed into a setting that feels one-half Laputa, another half Twinbee. All three playable characters are distinct in both design and playstyle, and express themselves beautifully through their animations and reactions - Huck being the hot-headed speed character, Gush being the stoic heavy-hitter robot, and Elle being an all-rounded floaty type. The setting and overall vibe is completely unique to this era in gaming, and has a lot of the character-driven appeal of games like Mega Man.

But God, 20 bucks is a hard asking price. I didn't personally mind the price cause I'm a fucking psychopath, but even when factoring in multiple playthroughs and different character types, I don't feel like there's enough meat on this game's bones to justify the price unless you're REALLY a sucker for arcade-y stuff like this. This style of gameplay honestly would've been better suited for a proper console platformer - hell, I'm kinda surprised it never got repurposed as a PC-engine or Genesis game back then. Would've been right at home.

I do hope Aquario succeeds financially despite its shortcomings. Westone's properties have been getting a lot of love from 2nd and 3rd party developers in the last decade, and I think Aquario is absolutely deserving of a sequel that expands the gameplay into something larger and deeper - ideally, something in a vein akin to Mischief Makers. And if it doesn't, this is still a nice little time capsule of an era long gone.