Most gamers were introduced to the Super Nintendo through the latest adventures of a certain portly plumber, but for me things were a little different. I was too young to have a job when the system released, and I still had only experienced a fraction of the NES library anyway. But as time went on, focus increasingly shifted to the more Super of Nintendos on the market, and eventually a cheaper package was released sans-Super Mario World. It was after this that one of my older brothers surprised me with what I still consider to be the greatest video game system ever made.

A Super Nintendo, the very same one that is hooked up behind me right now, sat on my bed and I was beside myself with excitement. The cheaper model came with a mail-in voucher for Super Mario All-Stars, but what was I to play in the meantime? It turned out the other surprise my brother had in store was a copy of Cybernator, a game I had never heard of before.

I’m so glad that Cybernator was my first Super Nintendo game because even today, I can’t seem to find a single living soul (in person) who knows what it is. Had it not been given to me with the system, I might still be unaware of this incredibly solid gem of a game.

"Please don't hurt me. I have a robo-wife and kids."

Cybernator, better known in Japan as Assault Suits Valken, felt familiar thanks to other run and gun games like Contra. But at the same time, it far exceeded anything I had ever seen. Missions opened up with a briefing before a giant robot rocket boosted out of a drop ship. Characters talked (via written text) to move along an actual story in an action game. The graphics were incredible and the music sounded like actual instruments instead of square waves. Did I mention I got to control a giant robot?

But that was only the beginning. Nothing could have prepared me for the actual gameplay. Eight point aiming is nice and all, but all the cool kids have sixteen points. Having trouble handling your many aiming options? No problem! Just hit the aim-lock button and you’re free to blast away baddies at a twenty-two and a half degree angle while rocket boosting.

When rocket boosting and hovering with your jet pack isn’t enough to get you out of harm’s way, your trusty shield is there to save the day. Of course you can’t move while using it, but it’s a smile price to pay for protection. No run and gun would be complete without a variety of weapons. Cybernator delivers and does so with a persistent upgrade system. And if your various guns aren’t enough to do the trick, you can always punch the enemy in their stupid face with your giant robo-arm (which is also upgradable).

"Meanwhile, in a shmup..."

Stages actually follow the context of a story, taking you to different meaningful locales instead of randomly throwing you about. And to dig up an overused term, these stages are epic! In as early as the second stage, your mech has giant space jets attached to its back so it can fly through an asteroid belt in a level resembling a shmup. After your space jet pack detaches, you find yourself in what can only be described as “robo-Contra with zero gravity”. In a later stage, you’ll fire at enemies as you fall through the Earth’s atmosphere at breakneck speeds.

Many stages have side goals that will determine which of two endings you’ll get. They also have a sense of openness about them allowing for a bit of exploration. This is how you’ll get more of the aforementioned upgrades. You’ll come across giant boss fights. Some of these are fairly straight forward while others involve you destroying the engines of a space station hurling toward Earth in 2 minutes while another mech attempts to robo-punch you with an arm bigger than your entire body.

Sure, Cybernator may be a bastardized version of the Japanese original. Some of the story is less coherent, the anime character portraits have been removed, and the main villain no longer commits suicide after realizing he’s lost. But even with those changes, it’s still an amazing game and one that I’m proud to have experienced as an introduction to the greatest game system of all time. It’s also available on the Wii’s Virtual Console service. I think you know what to do.

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

When the Game Boy hit North America in 1989, it brought with it a new Mario game. The first Mario game that was portable (outside of Game & Watch devices, that is).

Originally, the Game Boy was going to be sold with Super Mario Land. But as the legend goes, Henk Rogers was able to convince Nintendo that packaging the system with Tetris, which he had the license to, would give their new handheld a wider appeal and sell to a larger demographic. With the wild success of the platform, you can’t really argue that he was wrong.

Still, Super Mario Land was available at launch in both Japan and North America. Even though it was a bit of a departure for the series, it sold incredibly well.

Unlike the regular games in the series, SML takes place in Sarasaland (which I think technically is supposed to be part of the Mushroom Kingdom). The cast of characters is also changed up. Instead of Princess Peach, we are introduced to Princess Daisy. Rather than having Bowser get up to his old tricks, there is a crazy alien named Tatanga. But the rest of the plot is what you would expect. The princess is kidnapped by the bad guy and Mario has to save her.

Sarasaland is broken up into four worlds (instead of the eight from the original Super Mario Bros.), each of which has its own theme. In addition to the platforming, there are also two vehicle levels that continuously scroll to the right. Other bizarre differences include turtles that explode when you stomp them, “superballs” instead of fireballs (which bounce off of surfaces at a 45 degree angle and can collect coins for you), and gameplay that doesn’t pause when you get hit or collect a power-up.

"Moai: Not just for Gradius Anymore!"

Why did I pick this game?

Nintendo just launched their Virtual Console service for the 3DS. The three titles that came out the night of launch were Super Mario Land, Alleyway, and Radar Mission. I wanted to try out the service, and even though I remembered Super Mario Land as a fairly mediocre game, I bit the bullet and purchased it.

If I had held out until the next day, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX hit the shop.

How does it hold up with time?

Unlike its NES big brothers, Super Mario Land does not hold up well. Everything feels off, and I’m not talking about the plot and setting (Super Mario Bros. 2 being a series favorite of mine). The running and jumping aren’t right. The speed at which you and items you are trying to collect fall is way too fast. The level design seems simplistic and uninteresting.

When I think of Mario games, I think of them controlling a very specific way. Super Mario Land doesn’t control the way it should. The tight control and interesting level design of other Mario games is what makes them stand out from the crowd.

It is also incredibly short. There are only a total of twelve levels, many of which are short themselves. Once the game is complete, you unlock a hard mode, but I had absolutely no motivation to try it out.

Strangely enough, the two scrolling vehicle levels were the most interesting thing in the game. They play like a simple SHMUP, and are actually pretty fun. I haven’t played SML since the early 90′s, so I had forgotten that the final boss was also fought in one of the vehicles.

Super Mario Land is a very forgettable entry in the pantheon of Mario titles. Fortunately, it was followed up with the far superior Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. Also, was it just me or was Chai Land super-racist?

There is something about the launch of a new console that makes me ponder the past. Perhaps it is something to do with seeing how far technology has come that makes me look back at the games I loved in years past.

A console we’ve sadly neglected here on WingDamage, yet nevertheless had some really amazing games, is Nintendo’s original Game Boy. Granted the first model, with its blurry green and puke colored screen, was a tough one to enjoy games on (but we all did nonetheless). Its later iterations, the Game Boy Color, Super Game Boy, and subsequent Game Boy models that were still backwards compatible, let us have those experiences in a mercifully blur-free environment.

With the May release of the Virtual Console on the 3DS, we are hoping to get a good variety of titles from the Game Boy’s back catalog. Here are a few of the games I want, nay, crave to sink my teeth into once again.

Donkey Kong

Also known around the internet as Donkey Kong ’94. This title took the classic game we all knew and loved and really upped the anti. It eases you in by pulling the first levels straight out of the original Donkey Kong. Just as you think you’ve won, Donkey gets back back up, grabs the girl and leads you off into a brand new adventure.

Once you are past the initial stages, Donkey Kong really starts to mix things up. Instead of the old “get to the top of the screen” gameplay, it becomes a puzzle platformer with a flavor of Super Mario Bros. 2.

Final Fantasy Adventure

If you are a fan of Secret of Mana, then you are most likely aware that it is actually the second game in the series, with Final Fantasy Adventure (the US title for the game) being the first. Oh sure, the action RPG was remade for Game Boy Advance in the form of Sword of Mana, but there is just something pure about the original.

I think it has a lot to do with the way it throws you head first into the action, whereas the remake talks you to death. It’s a fairly expansive game that really lives up to the “Adventure” part of its title.

Mario Golf

There have been a lot of video golf games over the years. The NES had a slew of them. The Game Boy even had its share. So why should anyone give a crap about a twelve year old video golf game?

I’m happy to say Mario Golf wasn’t just another golf game. The title screen (posted above) looks how it does for a reason. Here Camelot managed to mesh golf with an RPG and come out with something really unique and fun. That “kid looking off into the distance at a castle in the sky” title screen is definitely there to imply that you won’t just be playing golf, you’ll be questing… golf.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

Not to be outdone by his own golf game (which admittedly came out seven years later, but I have a certain flow going here so back off) or to be derailed by a terrible sub-title, Super Mario Land 2: 6 Gold Coins did something that was sorely lacking in the original Super Mario Land; bringing the true Super Mario Bros. experience to Nintendo’s hand-held device.

SML2:6GC not only looks fantastic, but has the tight platforming action you expect when Mario’s name is in the title. The fireball’s behave how they should (not like SML‘s goofy “superball”) and the floating power (acquired from the Carrot which gives you bunny ears) leads to some good old fashion level exploration.

The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening

When Jesse and I bought our first Game Boy with the money from a change jar our grandparents gave us mixed with our own scraped together pennies, it came with The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. It easily ranks at the top of my most played Game Boy games, right there with Pokémon and Tetris.

Everything that was ever good about the Zelda series can be found in Link’s Awakening. The sense of adventure and exploration, the puzzles, and the boss fights. They just did so many things right with this game that it makes my head hurt thinking about how many things have gone wrong with recent portable titles in the franchise. And while they are at it, they may as well give us Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons, which were both great in their own right.

Metroid II: Return of Samus

One of Nintendo’s best series had a fantastic entry on the Game Boy. I am of course referring to Metroid II: Return of Samus.

Everything that was great about the original was crammed onto the tiny 8-bit cartridge. The sense of solitary exploration was fully in-tact, the graphics were an amazing technical achievement and the monsters were just plain fun to fight. The lack of colors did make it easy to get lost, but it was a small price to pay for such a great game on the go.

Unlike it’s predecessor, it even featured a battery backup system and save points, making it much easier to complete Samus’s quest to destroy the Metroid Queen.

Tetris

If you’ve read this site at all, you knew this was coming.

OK, so you already have about a billion versions of Tetris. You have it on your fancy modern game console, your PC has access to a million free flash and Facebook versions, you have it on your smart phone. Heck, you probably already have a copy for your DS. So why should you re-buy such an old version?

You think that infinite spinning garbage is the real deal? Throw every other version of Tetris right in the garbage, for your own sake. If you aren’t playing the Game Boy or NES version, you aren’t really playing Tetris.

————————————

So there you go. These are the games that I will jump on day one when they hit the 3DS Virtual Console. There are a lot more great games out there, many of which I either missed back then (Metal Gear Solid, Wario Land 2) or have newer versions that are actually solid enough to have replaced my need for the original (Pokémon: Red/Blue/Yellow).

I am very interested to hear what Game Boy games the 3DS launch has left you nostalgic for. Let us know in the comments!

"Back when Captain Falcon was known more for his racing than his punching."

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

When the Super Nintendo released in North America, it launched with a mere five games. It may not seem like a lot, but these games were no slouches. The lineup consisted of Super Mario World, Pilotwings, Gradius III, Sim City, and F-Zero. Quite a strong launch, I’d say.

F-Zero in particular went on to have numerous sequels, as well as play a very influential role in the racing genre. But before all that, there was the original; a launch game for a system now two decades old.

In F-Zero, players pilot one of four insanely fast hovercars as they race across futuristic tracks, often situated high above cityscapes or rugged terrain. The game is light on modes. Either you play the Grand Prix, which is divided into three circuits across four difficulty settings (one of which must be unlocked), or you delve into the game’s practice mode which only contains seven of the game’s fifteen tracks.

Every race in F-Zero consists of five laps. Rather than give you points based off your placement to total up at the end of the circuit, F-Zero only cares if you’re within a “safe” rank. At first, you only have to be within the top fifteen, but with each lap the safe rank becomes smaller until finally it reaches three. If you’re placed outside the safe rank when you finish the lap, you lose a life.

Since there are only four playable cars, every other car on the track uses a single, generic design. Even if you’re in first place, you’ll lap countless generic racers, some of which will be on the verge of exploding. Hitting them can ruin an otherwise perfect lap.

For each lap you complete, you’ll gain a single boost. You can hold up to three of them at once. Unfortunately, F-Zero has some of the worst rubber banding AI I’ve ever seen. Whether or not you just managed to squeeze into first place or you’re setting the world record for the track, the computer controlled players will be right behind you. Because of this, it becomes useless to use your boost if you are already in first (unless the flashing signal indicates you’re about to be passed). That is… IF you’re playing to win against the computer.

But you shouldn’t play to beat the computer. Beating the computer is a moot point when it comes to F-Zero‘s AI.  You could easily have a better finishing time in third place than you did when you finished in first. Rank is incidental. Instead, what makes the game addicting is that after you complete a circuit, all of your lap times and track times get entered into the records section. The reason you should use those boosts is not to pass your AI opponent, but to pass the opponent better known as “the current track’s best time”.

And what makes beating the best time so addictive is that, even today, F-Zero‘s driving controls are solid as a rock. You can use the L and R buttons to strafe your ship or turn extra sharp when using them in conjunction with the d-pad. The silky smooth turning allows you to drift around insane 90 degree, zigzag, and hairpin turns.

But these tracks have more than complex layouts to throw at you. Every wall is lined with a grippy surface that deals damage. There are also plenty of obstacles including mines, magnetic strips, jumps, and ice covered roads (which for some reason affect hovercars). But it’s not without respite. There are glowing strips you can drive over to regain some of your health.

"A machine actually coming over to heal your ship is a nice touch."

Why did I pick this game?

To anyone that knows me, it’s no secret that I am an F-Zero fan. While I’ve never had the chance to play the 64DD expansion of F-Zero X, I have managed to play everything else the series has to offer. That includes the Satellaview sequel, the Japan-only F-Zero Climax on GBA, and even F-Zero AX in the arcade.

F-Zero was one of the only games I owned for the SNES for quite some time. While I still consider its GameCube successor, F-Zero GX, to be the greatest racing game of all time, I wanted to revisit the original game that first made me care so much about racing.

How does it hold up with time?

The controls of F-Zero feel as tight today as they did twenty years ago. Everything about the core gameplay is still great. The Mode7 graphics, while flat, aren’t too bad to look at and the soundtrack is full of very memorable, high energy tunes (one of which can be found in one of our podcast stingers).

However, the AI of the other racers is downright horrendous. The game is also very light on features, probably because it was a launch game. There’s no multiplayer to speak of and there are only four hovercars to choose from. The only unlockable is a fourth difficulty setting.

Still, if you’re looking for a solid racer to perform time trials on, there’s a lot of fun to be had with F-Zero. If only they would patch in online leaderboards to the Virtual Console version on Wii. Then I would be set for life.

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

When Dracula X: Rondo of Blood first made it on the US Virtual Console, I remained casually interested. The early Castlevania franchise has simply never enthused. Yes, the music is always excellent, and the series art has always had the fun Gothic aesthetic, but I just found the whole classic Castlevania era fairly archaic.

Simon Belmont always felt stilted in his movement, almost gawky. Don’t even get me started on how gimped the throwing weapons were. I naturally presumed Rondo of Blood would simply be more of the three NES games I couldn’t get into.

Yet, the hype got to me. Titles like “best game in the Castlevania series”, “best TurboGrafx game”, and even one of “the best games of all time” were all heaped upon Rondo of Blood. How could all of these people possibly be wrong? With nine-hundred points left over from purchasing my precious Cave Story, I decided to give Rondo a try.

I still couldn’t shake the feeling I was buying a game I knew hardly anything about, in a franchise I’ve never personally enjoyed. Could Rondo really live up to the hype?

"I have the feeling I'm being watched..."

Eggs on my face. I was totally blindsided by the quality of the game. It’s hard to believe a game this hyped for this long can come out today and still objectively blow my mind. Dracula X: Rondo of Blood is a culmination of Castlevania concepts and gameplay refined into pure, video game gold, and one of the best games to bless the Virtual Console with its presence.

The game opens with the awesomely cheesy Anime FMV that presents the struggle of a young Richter Belmont who must overcome the mighty Dracula. Enter the main menu, select new game, and you’re immediately thrust into an impromptu boss battle with a ghoulish, Grim Reaper-like specter. Synthesized TurboGrafx horns blare in the background as you burst into the first stage upon your burning chariot, pumped for some righteous undead slaying. Ghouls start pouring in from the right, and you know it’s time to storm the Castle.

I found the original Castlevania series’ controls inexcusable in a generation shared with the likes of Super Mario Bros. and Mega Man. It pissed me off that Castlevania’s awesome soundtracks and gothic locales came at the sacrifice of Simon’s zombie like movement.

Luckily, Rondo feels much faster and well paced than its predecessors. Richter still feels slightly stiff, but his whipping and jumping are much faster and responsive than his ancestor’s. Levels feel better designed, with multiple pathways, each of which have it’s own unique twist. Enemy placement feels better and much more diverse than the “rush and kill” style that plagued early Castlevania titles. It’s almost a universal update on the series.

After playing Rondo of Blood, I think I have a better understanding of why people love this series so much. It’s definitely not a fast paced Contra shooter, because there’s no real twitch. Rather Rondo, and all of Castlevania, is about precision and knowing where to be at the right time; elements rarely seen in both modern and retro games.

This unique twist on combat, coupled with the art and the soundtrack, must be why people cling to the series. I’ve seen no game better tap into these elements than Rondo of Blood.

Why did I choose this game?

So many people whom I respect lavish praise after praise on Rondo of Blood. Some have even proclaimed it the holy grail of import gaming.

I have very little experience with either Castlevania or the TurboGrafx-16. To remain a well rounded gamer, I decided I should try something new. Why not play one of the most popular games of all time?

How does it hold up?

Superbly. The graphics are still crisp, and the music remains as awesome as ever, especially with the improved audio of the TurboGrafx-16. I do warn you though, it can be quite a challenge. Though I found the lives-based checkpoint system perfectly fair, some will criticize it for being too difficult. But that’s what you should probably expect from something like the Castlevania series. Personally, I enjoyed the challenge.

Rondo has resparked my interest in both the TurboGrafx-16 and the whole classic Castlevania series. I haven’t touched Super Castlevania 4 or Castlevania: Bloodlines. Heck, I want to replay the originals with some more patience and respect, just to see if I can finally appreciate the series for what it is. Rondo is a surprising gem, and definitely one of the best games to ever hit the virtual console.

"Panel de PokéMon!"

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

Long before the sequel to Meteos was themed with Disney characters, a Japanese puzzle game named Panel de Pon came over to North America after being re-branded with characters from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island and renamed Tetris Attack. Jump four years ahead and we find the game now re-re-branded with a paint job of the ever popular PokéMon series.

PokéMon Puzzle League’s base concept is the same “match three” (or more) concept we’ve seen so many times before. And like many of the other games based on the concept, it is a lot of fun to play

Rather than dropping blocks downward from the top as Tetris does, new rows of blocks will gradually come up from the bottom. It’s up to you to use your 2×1 cursor to switch the different colored blocks around in order to make a match of at least three. As soon as a match is made, you won’t be able to add more to it. Instead, you’ll have to plan ahead to pull off large matches.

All blocks are 1×1 squares and obey the laws of gravity. You can move blocks out of tall stacks and have them fall down to where you need them and even set up large chains of combos which can rack up your score. If the blocks stack too high and reach the top, it’s Game Over. Inversely, if you’re doing so well that you run out of blocks to work with, you can speed up the rate that rows come up from the bottom.

"Clearly this is a PokéMon game."

PokéMon Puzzle League has a decent number of modes. You can play the “story” in which you fight the various gym leaders in a Vs. CPU battle. There’s an endless mode where you play until you lose. And the puzzle mode gives you a limited number of moves to clear every block on screen.

The game is the most fun when played with a friend. Even multiplayer has a lot of options and modes. You can battle to the death, sending deadly extra blocks to your opponent with your combos, or you can compete purely for score without affecting each other’s playing field. There’s also a strange mode where you try to get a block down past a line before the other player. You can adjust speed settings on a per player basis, so people of all skill levels can compete with each other.

The coolest feature in PokéMon Puzzle League, which was not in any of the previous Panel de Pon clones, is 3D Mode. In 3D mode, the rectangular playing field becomes a cylinder, allowing the left and right sides to wrap. Having to pay attention to how high your stacks of blocks are in a 3D space is daunting at first, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll never want to go back to 2D mode.

While the actual PokéMon theme the game has is largely unnecessary, it’s both nostalgic and hilarious (or if you were never into PokéMon, just the latter). Much of the game’s music is made up of MIDI remixes of the theme song to the TV show. Racking up combos makes both the trainers and their PokéMon shout out hilarious clips including James’ (Team Rocket)  incredibly flamboyant, “I feel giddy!”.

"How many puzzle games have a fully animated cartoon intro?"

Why did I pick this game?

While I missed out on PokéMon Puzzle League in its day, I had always heard it was a really solid title, despite its odd choice of theme. Also, I was a pretty big fan of the PokéMon series back in the days of the original 151. I had been meaning to try this for quite some time.

How does it hold up with time?

Like many other games in the puzzle genre, time has very little negative effect on PokéMon Puzzle League. Even today, it’s a fantastic puzzle game. The addition of 3D mode sets it apart from the games it is based on and makes for a very satisfying experience in both single-player and multiplayer.

Thankfully, the game is currently available on Virtual Console so you won’t need to go hunting for your Nintendo 64. It’s definitely worth the ten dollar price tag if you’re fond of the genre. You’re guaranteed both crazy-fun gameplay and hilarity. What more could you ask for?

"It's like Mario meets Bubble Bobble meets babies."

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa is a 2D platformer where you control a baby named Upa who has been given a magic rattle. Upa must go through seven cheerfully themed worlds to get to a goat demon and rescue a treasure chest full of other babies. Yes, you read that correctly.

As a baby, you crawl instead of walk. However, this doesn’t stop you from jumping ridiculously high. As if that didn’t defy the laws of physics enough, Upa’s jumping momentum completely ignores any and all obstacles in its way. Low ceiling? No problem! Upa waxed his head apparently so that he can skid it along the ceiling allowing him to jump just as far as if there were no ceiling at all. That’s one forward thinking baby!

"Like making a baby jump for candy. Or wait... how does that saying go?"

Health is divided into hearts. Though you only start with two, you can find items that will increase your maximum up to a point. There are a few other powerups including a time-stop and invincibility. Invincibility grants Upa the ability to run on two feet at high speeds for a short time in addition to preventing damage. It looks extremely ridiculous.

Shaking his rattle, Upa can instantly inflate enemies into balloons. Thanks, magic! Once enemies have been given “the Dig Dug treatment”, Upa can either ride on top of them as they slowly float upward or ram into them. Once an inflated enemy has been rammed, they will be sent flying and will ricochet off any walls they come in contact with, taking out other enemies along the way. If you’re not careful, enemies can ricochet back into you, causing damage.

Each of the game’s seven worlds is divided into three stages. At the end of nearly every stage, you will fight a boss. This boss is almost always the same, but with different platforms set up. The creature can only be described as what would happen if Birdo and a pig had a baby.

Though the different platforms mix up the specifics of how you must ricochet enemies, the formula plays out the same every time. Birdo-pig shoots out three enemies at a time and you need to inflate them and send them flying toward it. Once you’ve done it two or three times, you’ll dread the next. Occasionally, the boss wont be Birdo-pig, but the strategy will be nearly identical.

The stages themselves are very short. This is a good thing because the game has literally no checkpoints whatsoever. While there were a few digging and swimming based levels to mix things up, most of the level design felt very uninspired.

Bio Miracle‘s difficulty is pretty inconsistent. While most levels feel like a cake walk, others have unexpected projectiles and platforming segments that are harder than levels appearing later. At times, the game would even fail to respawn an enemy that was necessary to reaching the next area.

Why did I pick this game?

Though pirate copies under the title Baby Mario appeared in certain retail outlets, Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa never officially came to North America until its Virtual Console release in 2008. Having never run into Baby Mario, I wanted to try it.

I love 2D platformers, especially from the NES era. I figured this game would be yet another gem that people outside of Japan were deprived of until Virtual Console, like Sin and Punishment. I had also played a version of Parodius with Upa as a playable character and was curious to see the game he originated from.

How does it hold up with time?

Unfortunately, Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa isn’t a very good game. The platforming feels very sloppy, the difficulty is uneven, the levels are bland, and the game is very repetitive. It was Nintendo of America’s decision to turn the game down for quality reasons and I now understand and agree with their decision.

"Easily importable thanks to Virtual Console"

“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

Sin and Punishment is a Treasure developed rail-shooter for the Nintendo 64. When it came out back in 2000, it was exclusive to Japan. Seven years later, it was released on the Wii’s Virtual Console service, finally making its first appearance in North America and Europe. Was it worth finally bringing over?

The easiest way to describe the basic gameplay in Sin and Punishment is to imagine the rail-shooting in Star Fox. However, unlike Star Fox, Sin and Punishment requires you to move your character and your reticule independently of one another. The game also takes place on foot.

Using the classic controller, you can move your character left and right with the d-pad. Double tapping either direction will allow you to perform a quick dodge roll. Though you can’t fly, you can perform a double jump.

The analogue stick is used to aim your reticule. Aiming feels a little slower than I would’ve hoped, so it can be difficult to keep up with especially fast enemies. To remedy this, you can switch to a lock on mode by pressing “A”. You will still have to aim at the target for a good second before the lock on will take effect, but it can be very useful, especially on a few of the bosses. Fortunately, the lock-on is very balanced and not a “solve all” solution. It’s terrible for situations with large amounts of weak targets, and all your shots are weaker when using it.

Neither mode has a charge shot, so holding down the button is your best bet for rapid-fire shooting. Thanks to the sword attack, you won’t be holding down the fire button the entire time. The sword attack is very powerful, but can only be used when enemies are right next to you. To use it, you must let off the fire button and tap it when the enemy is near. Another cool feature of the sword is its ability to deflect certain attacks. For example, when a battle ship shoots a missile at you, you can hit it back with your sword attack and cause massive damage to the enemy.

Though there is a time limit, it’s not “Game Over” when the timer strikes “00″. Once you run out of time, your health will slowly diminish. If you can finish the level or collect more time before you die, you’re in the clear.

Sin and Punishment is a very short game, but it’s packed with variety. While most levels will have your character running in third person, there are a couple levels that take on a side-scrolling platformer perspective. For most of the game, you control a boy named Saki. Sometimes he is a giant, building-sized creature who controls slightly different. There are also a few sections where you control a girl named Airan, but that seemed to be purely aesthetic.

The game has a few difficulty settings and highscore lists to give it some replay value. There’s also a 2-player mode, but it merely allows one player to control the character while another controls the aiming.

There are lots of lengthy cutscenes with full (and terrible) English voice acting, but every one is easily skippable. Even after watching every single one of them, I still have little to no idea what the story was about. All I know is that the end of the game had me standing on the Earth doing battle against another Earth. I’d still recommend watching them on your first play-through. They’re good for a laugh.

"All cutscenes are easily skippable."

Why did I pick this game?

Treasure has a strong history of making top notch shooters. The company is known for developing my favorite SHMUP of all time, Gradius V, as well as other highly regarded titles including Ikaruga. I had also heard very good things about the game online.

Sin and Punishment 2 is coming to Wii in the near future. It looks great, so I felt that I should finish the first game in preparation for playing the sequel. And as I mentioned earlier, the game is similar to Star Fox.  I wanted to fill the void later Star Fox games left in me.

How does it hold up with time?

Sin and Punishment was a satisfying experience. It is a very well put together rail-shooter. The graphics may be low-poly by today’s standards, but the dynamic camera angles and strange art direction help the game still look exciting.

The game’s weak points are its length and how linear it is. The game only takes about an hour to beat and there are no alternate paths. It’s a very “arcade style” experience.

You can purchase Sin and Punishment on Virtual Console for 1200 points (twelve dollars). If you really enjoy this style of game as I do, it will be money well spent.