Star Tropics (1990)
– Chronicling the life of a young boy named Mike Jones, Star Tropics involves
cave exploration, alien bad guys, and fighting off enemies with a magical
yo-yo. The story begins with Mike
visiting his uncle, Dr. Jones, on C-Island only to find him missing. Baboo, Dr. Jones’ assistant, lends Mike
a submarine, a crucial component of the game, in order to island hop to find
clues about his uncle’s disappearance.
Defeating cavern bosses grants Mike extra hearts that increase the
strength of his yo-yo. The
intensely colored 2D graphics and memorable music add to the game-play, but the
true genius comes from increasingly difficult chapters and puzzles swirled
around a complex and unexpected plot.
Owners of the original game were surprised with an unusual clue to
solving Uncle Jones’ disappearance, a physical letter to be dipped in
water. New gamers fear not, Star
Tropics is still available for purchase on the Virtual Console for Wii. (Released by Nintendo for NES).
Mansion of the Hidden Souls (1994) – The game-play is slow, the music repetitive, and
the storyline short, but if you look past the bad, Mansion of the Hidden Souls
is a story worth the experience.
Mansion resident June is summoned by the elder to solve the mystery of
the blood red moon by speaking with other ghosts and solving puzzles. The ghosts appear as butterflies that
transform into eerie human heads that, at times, react fiercely to stories and
events of the plot. Over ten
spirits haunt the mansion, leaving June with an overwhelming task of moving
from room to room searching for clues.
Combine the floating heads with random encounters, paranoia-inducing
music, and voices that always seem to trail off to get a creepy game that keeps
you looking over your shoulder every few minutes. Remember, try not to make Cathy angry. . . (Released by Sega for Sega Saturn).
Astal (1995) – On a
world known as Quartilia, young Leda and her protector, Astal, watch over the
planet and bring life to all inhabitants.
While the goddess, Antowas, sleeps, an evil force, Jerado, fights to
takeover the world with his warrior, Geist. Astal ravages the land after Geist kidnaps Leda, only to
awaken Antowas and receive punishment for ruining her creation. Imprisoned on the moon, Astal watches
as Leda is stolen once again, causing him to break free and finally rid
Quartilia of Jerado and Geist. Play
the game as Astal and his bird companion, racing through over 20 levels of
gem-like enemies and larger-than-life bosses. Each level is side scrolling, split between
player-controlled time and computer-controlled time. The planet resembles its name, a plethora of quartz crystals
sparkling in time to twinkling music, like faeries with a dark sense of
humor. If you have two
controllers, one player can control Astal while the other uses the bird to help
fight enemies. (Released by Sega
for Sega Saturn).
Suikoden (1995) –
Although popular among veteran gamers, Suikoden is probably unknown to new
video game enthusiasts. The first
role-playing game (RPG) of its kind, Suikoden boasts a turn-based battle system
that invokes physical and magical attacks through the use of runes, the
cornerstone of all Suikoden games.
Wander the world as the hero and recruit the 108 Stars of Destiny to
build an army, construct your own castle, and return peace to the land. To be successful, an RPG must possess a
deep, spiraling plot, believable characters, music and graphics to match the
feel of the game, and, most importantly, the addition of challenging quests and
puzzles to receive 100% completion of the game. Trust me, Suikoden excels at all of these traits. Without a guide, some serious footwork
is required to recruit every Star of Destiny, and if you don’t know where to
look, you may find your save file reaching over 60 hours of gameplay. And I loved every second of it. (Released by Konami for PlayStation).
NiGHTS into DREAMS (1996) – Flying around a dream land, collecting orbs of Ideya, and fending
off Nightmaren may sound simple, but only with speed and exact maneuvering will
players defeat Wiseman and deliver peaceful dreams. NiGHTS into DREAMS opens to reveal two children, Claris and
Elliot, who have fallen prey to nightmares due to fears in the real world. With the help of Nights, a Nightmaren
who has betrayed his creator Wiseman, each child flies through Nightopia to
collect their missing Ideya, colorful spheres of light which hold positive
pieces of their personalities.
Each level or dream consists of four Mares where players must fly
through the dream to collect points.
Each Mare is graded, and passing grades go on to a boss battle hosted by
one of Wiseman’s top Nightmaren.
Characters fly in a whimsical 2D environment, but can also use their
human counterparts to walk each dream in 3D. However, the dream will end if caught by a beeping alarm
clock. For diehard fans, the game
music is unforgettable with its upbeat tempo and flute-like sound. While the Sega Saturn version may be
difficult to find, Nintendo released a new game, Nights: Journey of Dreams, for
the Wii. Not the same experience,
but at least it gives gamers a taste of Nightopia. (Released by Sega for Sega Saturn).
Glover (1998) – Have
you ever experienced a game so frustrating that you screamed in conjunction
with a Donkey Kong throw of the game controller? Well, Glover will make you do just that, along with slightly
cry when your ball is destroyed with one life left at the end of the level. Confused? Good, because complete sanity should be abashed when playing
this game as an enchanted white glove that must save the kingdom from his evil
counterpart, Cross-Stitch. After a
corrupt potion spills and turns the kingdom into a wasteland, Glover must
return the kingdom’s transformed crystals to the wizard’s castle to restore the
realms. Glover would normally be a
simple, linear adventure game with fun, crazy levels of carnivals and dinosaur
forests, but adding a required bouncy ball into the mix proves to be extremely
challenging. Players must travel
with the ball throughout every level, using its different forms to solve
puzzles and cross barriers. Add in
thin ledges, ball-snatching enemies, repetitive music, and slightly off camera
angles to the party for a borderline breakdown of gamer sanity. But, to be a true gamer, one must face
hardships (and chest pains) to save the world. I’ll see you again in three months with missing hair and the
gleam of bouncy balls in your eyes.
(Released by Hasbro Interactive for N64)
Bomberman Hero (1998) – Picture it, an adorable, long-eyed warrior
cloaked in white, pink, and blue.
Atop his head rests a small, pink bomb. Although he looks cute, Bomberman is a serious warrior who
will stop at nothing to save the princess from the evil Garaden Empire and
their leader, Bagular. Bomberman
must travel to different planets, exploring various stages to reach the
assigned bosses under Bagular.
Each planet offers a new visual experience, ranging from dark forests
and snow covered mountains to volcanoes and pyramids. Not only can Bomberman run and jump, but some stages also
require the use of flying and submarine modes. Stages are ranked based on the number of points collected,
gold being the highest possible rank.
Those who achieve gold rankings for every planet will unlock special
minigames and an alternate ending.
No worries though, stages can be replayed an unlimited number of times
in order to achieve a perfect score.
So if you love throwing bombs at enemies, especially salt bombs at
slugs, use Bomberman to fulfill your pyromanical desires and save the princess
from the empire (insert Star Wars music).
(Released by Nintendo for N64).
Tonic Trouble (1999) – Eating
your vegetables has never been more important, especially when faced with
oversized killer carrots and turnips.
When spaceman Ed finds an unknown can of sludge on the table, he does
what any sane person would do, throws back his head and takes a nice, big swig. The nasty flavor causes Ed to dispose
of the liquid, which makes its way to Earth and into the hands of the evil
Viking, Grogh. The potion
transforms Grogh and the surrounding lands, and Ed must fights his way to the
can to prepare an antidote. Each
level consists of collecting parts to build a catapult that will fly Ed to
Grogh’s kingdom. A variety of
weapons are earned throughout the game after saving The Doc from his haywire
robots. Ed must travel through
canyons, glaciers, and ancient pyramids to find all of the machine parts. With the help of Suzy, The Doc, Agent
Xyz, and some magical popcorn, Ed stands a good chance against defeating Grogh
and bringing peace back to Earth.
Despite an inventive plot and range of challenging levels, my two gripes
of the game would have to be the poor camera angles and load times of the game,
known for causing partial freezes and glitches during gameplay. If you can ignore those flaws, Tonic
Trouble is a fun adventure for all types of gamers. (Released by Ubisoft for N64).
Jet Force Gemini (1999)
– Defeat the evil Mizar and his insect army by cruising the galaxy as the
brother-sister-dog trio known as the Jet Force Gemini team. The only crew left from their
organization, Juno, Vela, and Lupus must go from planet to planet saving
natives and killing alien bugs in order to stop Mizar from destroying the
galaxy. Jet Force Gemini is a
product of Rare, known for their graphic styling and catchy music. Gameplay exists as third-person
shooting with a multitude of weapons to use. If accuracy isn’t your gig, you may find yourself
consistently running low on ammo, one of the big challenges of the game. Certain members of the team, with each
team member hosting different abilities like swimming and flying, can only
explore specific planets. Although
most levels are tedious, requiring the rescue of every tribal to acquire 100%
completion, the game is worth the experience, testing gamers’ attention to
detail and shooting skills. Halo
and Call of Duty just can’t stand up to this N64 galactic classic. (Released by Rare for N64).
Legend of Dragoon (1999) – Yet another gem in the RPG world, Legend of Dragoon has some of the
best custom music ever created for such a long and in-depth game. Players begin the game on the continent
Endiness with Dart, a blonde, rough-looking guy who is immediately attacked by
a giant dragon. Physical attacks
are launched using a sync system where the X button must be pressed when a
series of squares align in the middle. Throughout the game, Dart travels through
different regions and meets companions who join his quest to destroy the black
monster that killed his parents.
Each member of the team resonates with a Dragoon spirit, equipping them
with various elemental powers and armor of matching color. Exploring the expansive map requires a
lot of time and patience in order to collect all of the treasure chests and key
items. Although battling becomes
monotonous when power leveling, the storyline is captivating and the side
quests allow players to gain more knowledge about the characters’ pasts. Misplaced trust, murder, and secret
love flourish throughout Dart’s life, unbeknownst to him and the player until
the very end. (Released by Sony
Computer Entertainment for PlayStation).
