Retro Game Friday: Gex Enter the Gecko

This week for Retro Game Friday I’m back with the sequel to Gex. It’s Gex Enter the Gecko!

Plot: The plot is just as nonsensical as the first one, with Gex being tasked once more to save the world. It’s not an amazing story, but it was fun as a kid and it’s not the worst plot in a platformer I’ve ever played.

Gameplay: This was the first entry in the Gex series that was in 3D and it did pretty well in making the transition. It kept the feel of the original game fairly well, but was different enough to draw in newcomers. That being said both the GameBoy Color and Nintendo 64 versions were much worse versions, so play the PC or PlayStation versions if you’ve never played this before. The constant pop culture references were great and pretty funny.

Art: Sadly this portion of the game has aged incredibly poorly, but back in the day it was pretty awesome.

Music: The music was okay from what I can remember, but I don’t remember much of it.

Overall: Give this a spin if you love Platformers, as it was a fun game for the younger crowd.

Retro Game Friday: Legend of the River King

This week for Rtero Game Friday I’m back with a game that took me forever to remember the name of. It’s Legend of the River King!

Plot Synopsis: A young boy must find the elusive Guardian Fish. Only with its magical powers can he save his sister from a mysterious illness…

Plot: Yeah the plot is really barebones, but that’s to be expected from a game that literally only revolves around fish.

Gameplay: The game has two modes, Fishing mode, where you catch fish. Obviously. The second mode is raising for fish. Again really obviously.

Art: The one good about a game this old. The art has aged really well, which is about the only good thing that can be said about this game.

Overall: You can easily skip this game, it’s not anything you ought to bother playing, but I wanted to cover the game because I had such a tough time remembering it.

For those who like: Fishing, Fish, Catch Em All Games, Simulation, Good Art.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

Retro Game Friday: Vigilante 8

This week for Retro Game Friday I’m covering a game I had a real hard time remembering the name of. It’s Vigilante 8!

Plot Synopsis: The game is set in an alternate 1975, where a global oil crisis occurs and the United States is on the verge of an economic breakdown. A rampant crime wave in the cities prompts the deployment of more security forces, leaving the hinterlands with little or no law and order. A multinational oil consortium, the Oil Monopoly Alliance Regime (OMAR), is determined to control the global petroleum market and wants the destruction of the US to ensure the success of their plan. The Vigilantes, a group of residents from various southwestern US states band together to preserve law and order in light of the chaos gripping the country.

Plot: The plot was pretty dang good, it’s not super amazing and the liberties taken as “artistic liscense” are more hilarious than serious. However it was a good time, frankly I’ve been trying to remember this game’s name for almost as long as I’ve been writing this blog. Give that a thought.

Gameplay: The gameplay has aged poorly, vehicle handling is iffy at best, with the various characters and their different vehicles handling incredibly differently from each other. That said at the time I had a blast playing the game, even with the quirks.

Art: The art also has aged incredibly poorly. But given that it is a game from 1999, that shouldn’t be a surprise.

Music: I don’t remember it, sorry.

Overall: Probably worth skipping, but I do think I remember there was a sequel.

For those who like: Vehicular Combat, Comedy, Drama, Action, Adventure, Alternative Histories, Cars.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

Retro Game Friday: Shantae

This week for Retro Game Friday I’m covering a really obscure classic. It’s Shantae!

Plot Synopsis: A gang of pirates, the Tinkerbats, led by Risky Boots, attacks Scuttle Town and steals a prototype steam engine from Mimic, the town’s resident treasure hunter. Mimic tells Shantae, the guardian of Scuttle Town, that if Risky retrieves four magical “elemental stones”, she could power up the steam engine and create an unstoppable weapon out of it. Shantae travels across Sequin Land, determined to retrieve the steam engine and the elemental stones and stop Risky.

Plot: Look this isn’t a game that has an amazing plot, but it was fun to play.

Gameplay: Shantae was reminiscent of Banjo-Kazooie for me. Though not quite as good as Banjo-Kazooie, it allowed Shantae to transform into various forms like an Elephant or Monkey. This was a platformer through and through and while it wasn’t especially amazing, it was enough to gain a following, albeit a bit of a cult following. The game was obscured by the launch of the GameBoy Advance and since this was on the GameBoy Color it didn’t receive quite enough attention.

Art: The art is fully 2D, which is good because it’s aged pretty well since 2002.

Music: Don’t remember a whit, if I ever even listened to it. Remember that I played my portable games while traveled when I was younger so having the music on wasn’t really looked on kindly.

Overall: This was a fun game, if somewhat lacking in plot.

For those who like: Platformers, Transformations, Middle Eastern Mythologies, Great Gameplay, Good Artwork.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

Retro Game Friday: Deja Vu

This week for Retro Game Friday I’m covering a really old game! It’s Deja Vu!

Plot Synopsis: The game takes place in Chicago during December 1941, shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The game character is Theodore “Ace” Harding, a retired boxer working as a private eye. The player awakes one morning in a bathroom stall, unable to remember who he is.

Plot: The plot was pretty good, it was intriguing and pretty well done for it’s time.

Gameplay: This was a point and click text adventure that had no action, but was all about trying to piece together who you are and why the heck you woke up in a bathroom stall.

Art: Pretty classic 2D Artwork from the 80’s, it’s aged very well even if it isn’t as pretty as games like Symphony of the Night.

Music: Sorry don’t remember it all that well, was there even music?

Overall: For those who like Mystery games, Deja Vu was one of the first and is a classic.

For those who like: Mystery Games, Point and Click Text Adventures, No Action.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.