Game #1303: Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series

 The dream isn't dead.

 You wanted more Klonoa? Well, you get twice the usual amount of Klonoa with Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series, a two-pack remake compilation of the first two Klonoa games!

 The good news is that as far as gameplay is concerned, these are pretty much identical to the originals, so I won't go over how it plays or what each game is, as there's no need to. I'd rather speak about the remakes as a whole... or as two halves of a whole? Anyways...

 While the gameplay remains brilliant and simple, well... Klonoa 1 had this beautiful sprites against 3-D backdrops that made the game stand out. The second game instead of having sprites had cell-shaded character models. Both games looked gorgeous in their own way. I won't say here and claim that the games are ruined, because they are not, but now the feature generic 3-D graphics. Nothing about these games, graphically, stands out from other games. What's more, since both games run on the same engine, Klonoa 2 feels like little more than an expansion pack featuring a slightly taller Klonoa. They could've at least went for cell-shading on both games. Again, for most people this is a nit pick, and it could very well be, but the original games feel ever so slightly more charming.

 On the other hand, both games are so cute, and play so well... that they feel right at home on the Nintendo Switch. It's as if this is where Klonoa should've been from the start, so yeah, I'd rather play it on the Switch.... even if I experienced a few framerate drops here and there. Both games now feature a new easy mode, I didn't try it, but you get more hitpoints, infinite lives and longer reach on your grab, which sounds perfect to make the games more accessible.

 Klonoa 1 is pure bliss, the has only two buttons: Jump and grab, and once you grab an enemy you can use it as a projectile or as a double jump. With these mechanics you'll get to platform your way through an admittedly short, but very sweet, adventure romp. The story is super depressing too! Klonoa 2 adds more puzzle elements, sometimes you'll have to use new enemies that supercharge your jump upwards, enemies that turn color as they absorb other enemies and what not, heck, bosses now have multiple phases, and there are new skating stages too. The plot is super depressing too! Both games are fantastic in their own right, I love the original's simplicity, but I also love how they evolved the gameplay without messing with how basic Klonoa's moveset is.

 I do think the original games look better, even if they didn't look as sharp, but here's the thing... both Klonoa games are prohibitedly expensive nowadays, but with this cart you get both games, they play JUST as fantastic as before AND you even get accessibility options... So yeah, there's absolutely no reason as to why you shouldn't get this cart instead of splurging on the original too. Now then, if we could only get Namco to remake the GBA Klonoa games using this engine too....

 9.5

Game #1302: River City Girls Zero

  Who cares about Kunio-kun these days anyways, right?

 It was like... 10-15 years ago, I was surfin' the web for SNES roms, and I came across the news that Kunio-Kun something-something was finally translated, and knowing absolutely nothing about it I gave it a try. It was a beat'em up! I used to love beat'em ups, and it was edgy, and dark, with the characters starting out in JAIL over running over a woman. Well... the River City Girls are a thing now, so the game finally gets an official translation... and it's been horribly rebranded as River City Girls Zero. I loved the River City Girls, but I hate the rebranding, they did Kunio dirty.

 So, about this package... There is a pseudo save-state, but you have to save and quit to use it. There's a tiny art gallery with the instruction booklet it Japanese... and that's about it really. No rewind, no save states, no 'enhancements'. Don't even play the game in Easy mode, as it just stops midway through or somethin'. On the other hand, the game offers two translations, a more literal one, which even has Kunio calling his girlfriend a bitch(Japanese games were hardcore like that) or a more localized script. Either way, I think this is a pretty neat way of making both camps happy. I couldn't care less for a localized version that thought they could be funnier or more '''''topical''''' than the real script, even if it came across a bit rougher, but if you prefer something more colorful... go ahead! The game also features a new cringy intro song that breaks the fourth wall, but the animation looks pretty decent. There's a new intro and outro too featuring the River City Girls. I dunno, I didn't care for those.

 The game... hasn't aged very well. You can punch, kick and jump, and you get a third 'back' attack. You can couple all three attack buttons with Block to produce special moves. Kunio, Riki, Misako and Kyoko get their own special modes. You can press ZL to swap between characters at any time, but if any of them dies... it's back to the last checkpoint. It can be played with a second player. In between stages there are AWFUL bike-riding stages that control poorly, and if you touch a wall it's back to the start. Thank god the Save slot that can help you cheese them.

 What brings the game down is how unpredictable it feels. Sometimes hitboxes can feel off, and enemies can just attack out of your combos. It doesn't feel very fair, at all.... which makes the lack of a rewind feature, or any other enhancement to make the game more palatable, a very glaring omission.

 It hasn't aged very well, it's missing features that most modern ports of old games have and, to top it all off, it was horribly rebranded as a River City Girls game, when both Miyako and Kyoko play a very small part in.... but I'm still glad the game got an official release. Having official re-releases of old games is always OK in my book.... even rereleases as lackluster as this one.

 5.0

Game #1301: Star Wars - The Force Unleashed II(Nintendo DS)

  Leashed, it's very much leashed.

 I was bamboozled! I was watching some videogame footage and came upon Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II on the DS, and it looked as if, unlike the original, it didn't have tacked-on stylus controls. But I was wrong, as it's even worse than I remembered the first one being.

 The game follows the same plot as the console game, however, for cutscenes we get ugly stills. The game is made up of about five stages, and each stage lasts about 30 minutes, which feels like a slog considering this is a handheld game and the game isn't much fun.

 You use the DPAD to move and you use the touchscreen to attack and use your force powers. The gist of it is: Swipe to slash, tap and hold to use: Push, Electricity, Saber Throw or Grip. Force Powers can be used in battle, but you'll also need to use them to solve puzzles, and sometimes, puzzle bosses. So, firstly, combat is a masher, rather, a swiper, it feels clunky and ungratifying. Even worse, as you swipe on enemies, sometimes the game will think you tried using a Force Power instead. It's not too bad since force powers are still useful in battles, but it's annoying.

 So, the combat isn't fun, what about the rest of the game? Just as dull. There's a lot of platforming, and falling into a bottomless pit means being sent back to the start of the section, which can be so frustrating when it feels so unfair. You jump with the R button, but it feels super janky, the jump is too high, and too floaty, so it's easy to mis-calculate the direction. And when it involves the double-tap dash? Ugh....

 The second boss almost made me drop the game. You have to bring down its shields with force powers, but using grip didn't work. So I looked up guides... and nobody wrote one, so I searched for a gameplay video.... I could only find a single longplay.... and the guy was doing exactly what I was doing, so why wasn't it working? Eventually it started reading my inputs... some times? It was SO frustrating.

 The Force Unleashed II on the Nintendo DS is a trainwreck, the first game was already bad, but this one is even worse.

 2.0

Game #1300: Shin Megami Tensei V

 Will the real Nocturne please stand up?

 I've enjoyed pretty much every Shin Megami Tensei I've played.... except SMT IV, which is why I'm so happy that Shin Megami Tensei V went back to Nocturne. In fact, it might stick a bit too close to its source inspiration, but I'm not about to complain considering how much I adored Nocturne in the first place.

 In what may be a bit disappointing considering this is an RPG, the plot in this game is easily it's weakest aspect. The game is a bit more open worldish than any other game in the series, so there's more to explore and what not, while the plot takes a bit of a backseat. It's not too bad, it has a small ensemble of mysterious, arguably because they are underdeveloped and underutilized, characters that you meet with every now and then. As for you, taking a page from Nocturne's iconic Demi-Fiend, now you play as the Nahobino, a fusion of man and fiend. As per usual, you get a scant few dialogue choices... that matter very little, as which ending you get depends on what you choose at the end... and whether you finished a few sidequests or not.

 Overworlds and dungeons are a thing of the past.... kinda. there's a very small traditional SMT dotted map overworld but only for the human world, and you'll only use it during interims, as the proper game is divided into four large open areas. Each of the four zones will take you upwards of ten hours to completely finish, at least if you, much like me, try to finish every sidequests, battle every bonus boss and find every Miman, tiny red demons that give you rewards every five you find of them. Enemy encounters now appear on the map, and you can choose to engage them, which will transition into the classic turn-based, press-turn combat that SMT has been using since Nocturne. 

 A thing to note is that all four zones are a bit similar, as they represent different parts of Tokyo in ruins, which means a lot of sand. Golden sand in the first area, red sand in the second area, grey sand in the third area and white sand in the final one. Not to say they are identical, as they all have their landmarks, but you'll be treading through deserts. A lot of deserts.

 There are also three very rudimentary dungeons in the game. The first one comes after you finish the first zone, and it's just a multi-leveled corridor-based dungeon. A bit dull. the next one comes after the third zone, this one has puzzles regarding fans that propel you upwards or forwards. This one was a bit tedious and confusing. It was far longer than it needed to be too. And then the final dungeon is about freezing time, which... eh, it was alright. The dungeons were a bit of an after thought, but I wouldn't go as far as hating any of them.... it's just that there rest of the game is simply SO much better.

 The only big issue I found with the open world approach is the fourth, and final, zone. The previous three zones, while large, had a clear route forward. You were free to explore around, but you could draw a line between the start of the map and the end of the map that has you going through every part of the map. The fourth area is more of a circle. You are start close to the center of the map and you are supposed to roam around while grinding, and grind you'll have to, as you start this area with your level as high as late 50s at most, while basic enemies can reach up to level 70. The bosses you have to defeat in this area are level 76 too. And this is compounded by the hidden damage modifier that makes higher level enemies hit harder and take less damage from you, the opposite is true as well, as lower level enemies deal less damage and take extra damage. This means that the fourth area feels aimless. Just roam around, battling enemies and finding fast travel beacons so that you can attempt the bosses once your level is high enough. No other part of the game is like this, and I won't lie, it was annoying at first when enemies 10 levels above me could wreck me, while I tried to fight encounters I could farm for XP.

 That makes me suspect that it was done on purpose. The only way to get the true ending involves defeating the Super Boss, which is at level 96. The highest level enemy you can find is at 87, which means... getting to its level is incredibly tedious unless you've been saving... which why would you, if you didn't know that higher level enemies didn't exist? But there's a way to solve that... buy the DLC that lets you farm gospels. Atlus is known to be scummy when it comes DLC, so this tickles the noggin;

 Combat, on the other hand, is fantastic... because Atlus struck lightning in a bottle with Nocturne, and there's a reason it hasn't changed since. Basically, scoring a critical or hitting an enemy with their weakness gives you an extra turn, enemies can also get extra turns like this. It's still really fun after all this years. You can also skip animations by mashing A, which makes it go by faster. They added a new wrinkle to the combat in the form of Magatsuhi, a new gauge that refills every turn, and once full can be spent on an extra ability. The main character, as well as every demon race, have access to a generic "every hit will crit" ability, which remains useful until the end of the game since it means you get EIGHT critical attacks in one turn, but each race also has their own exclusive ability. For instance, the Fiend class gets the Demi-Fiend's Freikugel that deals a ton of damage in one turn. And do be warned, enemies get the 'every hit crits' ability, and trust you me, bosses love to spam it. Oh! And hitting an enemy in the overworld, in order to trigger the random battle, doesn't always grant you the first strike, which is kinda whacky.

 Much like every other hero in SMT, the Nahobino is joined by a party of demons you can recruit by negotiating with them. It's been a bit more mainstreamed than before, and most demons are usually recruited after you give them a few items or money. The other way you get demons is through fusion, and boy oh boy, it's easier than ever to create THE ultimate demon. For starters, now you can see all the results you can get.... by purchasing demons from the ones you've registered in the compendium, so fusing every single monster and getting whatever demon you want is EASIER than ever.

 So, you've got your dream demon, but its skills quickly get outclassed by stronger demons, well, fret not, as now you may find a Demon's essence after a fight or as a gift after leveling up the demon. These essences can be used to teach any other demon, or the main character himself, the abilities that the essence's demon can learn! Except for unique skills, but still! This means you can pretty much give any demon ANY skill. Oh, but there's a reason you are encouraged to fuse fuse and fuse demons, since they level up very slowly, right? Well, the game is very generous with Grimoires, items you can use to instantly level up a demon. Snazzy. The game is quite generous with permanent stat boosting items for demons too. In other words, if you grow fond of a particular demon you can very easily take it with you until the end of the game. It's amazing. I really liked Yoshitsune's guaranteed 8-hit critical unique skill as well as Alice's "Will you die for me?" unique skill, so I pumped them full of Grimoire's and kept their movesets up to date through essences.

 The Nahobino gets an extra degree of customization, as you can use essences to take up that demon's elemental weaknesses and resistances... if you get the enhancement. There's another currency called Glory, given to you by Miman or by finding Glory Crystals, and Glory can be spent on all sorts of boons, like raising your mastery of elements, increasing the amount of magatsuhi you get per turn, increasing the amount of demons you can carry, etc. There's not enough Glory to get everything, so be careful.

 Shin Megami Tensei is a brilliant step in the right direction after SMT IV, at least if you like the PS2 era SMT games. It has a few quirks and flaws, but overall it's a fantastic new game in the series that takes after its most iconic outing. I found that the game was a bit divisive, since I found a few people that actually hated the game... and it's usually people who liked SMT IV. Thank god it's nothing like IV.

 9.0

Game #1299: WarioWare - Get it Together!

 I can barely get my life together.

 Welcome to WarioWare: Get it Together!, one weird take on an already weird game. WarioWare on the GBA is probably one of my favorite games on the console, which is surprising considering it's the only game in the series I owned... until now.

 WarioWare is a collection of mini-games, called microgames in-universe, in which you are given a single sentence "Trim the hairs!" or "Avoid!", for example, and must figure out what to do and how in just a few seconds. And it's game after game after game until you run out of lives, while games slowly get harder and faster. It's a perfect handheld game, and the you can pick from various different sets, divided by theme or what gives you. That's WarioWare... but this one has a twist. 

 Now you play as different characters. Pretty much every character in the series is now playable, and each one has different characteristics. Wario has a jetpack, so he can move anywhere and perform a tackle. Mona doesn't stop moving, instead you can either select if she moves left or right, but holding down the A button roots her in place and now you control her boomerang. 5-Volt can't move at all, but he can shoot in any direction, and when he is at play, rings appear on screen, and shooting at this rings will teleport him to them. There's Kat and Ana, both can't stop jumping, and Kat shoots left, while Ana can only shoot right. There's a ton of different character with different characteristics, which means that how you tackle a game can be wildly different depending on which character you get. And some challenges may be a complete cakewalk with some character, while very tough with others.

 Before each set of games, or 'stages', you have to pick between 3-4 characters, beating the game allows you to put everyone into the rotation at the same time in case you enjoy CHAOS, and the game will randomly pick one of them for each game. It's an interesting take on the games, although I think it was better before... this new take isn't bad at all. Plus, it allows for multi-player! You can play any stage in 2-P, and some games are actually tweaked to factor both players together.

 As per WarioWare tradition, it's got a very peculiar sense of humor, which I think works really well with the gameplay itself. If anything, I feel that the new character-focused microgames end up a feeling a bit samey. Curiously enough, when you the game gets too fast... the Switch starts struggling and starts dropping FPS, which is kind of a bummer considering the game doesn't look like a resource hog and how the increased speed is part of the challenge.

 You can also unlock a few minigames, which are fine, but they've got nothing on the Pyoro games, Dr. Wario or the other extras you could get in the original WarioWare. On the other hand, you can customize the colors of every character, which is a simple but enjoyable feature! I mean, I pretty much painted everyone in yellow, but whatever.

 I really enjoyed this new WarioWare game, however, I kinda wish it was a bit more like previous entries. However, I won't fault Nintendo for trying something different, and the end result was pretty good nontheless.

8.0

Game #1298: Dragon Ball Z - The Legacy of Goku

 Not all legacies are worth keeping.

 I was browsing through GameFaqs forums and I came across some people saying that Dragon Ball Z: The Legacy of Goku hasn't aged well but was good for its time. I want a hit of whatever they are smoking, 'cause let me tell you, I played this game the day it released, and even though I was younger, and even though I like Quest 64, I could tell that it was garbage.

 The Legacy of Goku is an isometical Adventure-dash-RPG in which you play as Goku throughout Z's first two Sagas, the Saiyan Saga and the Namek Saga. While many people think that Goku is Dragon Ball protagonist, they are wrong, as Gohan became the main character pretty much after Raditz, and proof of this is that, since this game is set on Goku's point of view, and only his since in this first game only Goku was playable, is very short. And they even added filler into the adventure, like Goku falling from the snake road, which never happened in the manga, and Goku... helping the Namekians and going into their temple...? Yeah, they had to add filler. And it gets ridiculous, because Nappa and Vegeta get pretty much no introduction since Goku arrives to kick their butts, and we never see what happens when Goku isn't there. Same goes for the Ginyu Force and Frieza, you just arrive there as Goku. And, y'know, in a way, it's interesting seeing just how much information you'd miss out if the series was seen exclusively through Goku's eyes, but it also makes for a horrible adaptation of the story that could only work if you are familiar with the source material.

 At the start of the game, Goku can only walk, very slowly, shoot ki blasts and punch with the world's shortest punch. You can also fly for 9 seconds, and can only restore these 'fly points' by finding feather icons. And so, at first, you'll be training to fight Raditz by fighting, um... snakes and squirrels. No, really. Eventually, if you are feeling ballsy, you might try your luck with wolves or Dinosaurs, but be careful, as Goku gets creamed in seconds. This means that combat becomes a tedious game of kiting your enemies with projectiles. No, really, Namek becomes ridiculously hard if you mean to clean house with your punches, instead, you have to move around and Kamehameha your enemies to death. It's boring. And bosses, oh boy, the bosses, the hitboxes are all outta whack. That said, the strategy for dealing with bosses is charging a Solar flare for about half your energy bar, then punch them until they wake up, rinse and repeat. That's it.

 And even though it's a hour long game that feels like a 3 hours slog, and even though the combat is horrible... that's not to mention how vague sometimes the game is. Before you can face off against Raditz you are supposed to finish every sidequest in the city. Your only hint? An old man, that you may miss, tells you "come back to me once the forest has calmed down" or something like that. What the hell? But sure, y'know, I'm a completionist, so that wasn't an issue... until Namek. A guy tells you to find 3 tree saplings. I did. But he'd claim that there were more to find, what he actually meant, was that I had to interact with the holes around him to plant them. And the hitbox is super spotty, so it's easy to think that they are just decoration since nothing happens. You have to be standing on just the right spot. Ridiculous.

 But, whatever, neither of those compare to the Green Artifact. The game's third, and final, zone is Namek. Before entering the temple, unless you want to go through the maze again, you are told about three artifacts. Hopefully you decide to explore the surrounding area, since there you'll find two of them. But the NPC said three, so what gives? Out of ideas, I enter the maze, maybe it's there.  In each room you get various transporters, and if you take the wrong teleporter you'll be sent back to the area's entrance. So, somehow, you make it to the end... only to discover that you are still missing one.... well, tough luck, back to the start. You are supposed to realize that the hands are pointing towards walls that you can go through, and behind one of these is the green artifact. Lame.

 You know, there's actually a happy ending to this story. As terrible as The Legacy of Goku was, somehow, Infogrames gave WebFoot another chance. A chance they didn't deserve, but one they took and ran with it. While I never played Legacy of Goku 2, not more than a few minutes anyways, it garnered a very positive reception, and I did play Legacy of Goku 3/Buu's Fury to completion, and that one is, believe it or not, great, and it plays very similarly to this one, albeit much better in every single way.

 2.0

Game #1297: Malice

 A tramp-stamp has never felt so awkward before. 

 Malice has a bad rep. When people talk about Malice, and considering barely anyone did at the time you can imagine just how little people would talk would talk about Malice now, it's often in a bad light. As for me, I remember playing this game when I was younger but didn't care too much about it, honestly, I was more interested in the story of its development, since as far as I knew it was an Xbox exclusive, and yet, I was playing it on PS2.

 When it comes to stories I tend to like them weird, and Malice is weird alright. It starts off with a giant dog-thing eating Malice's head, and she gets sent straight to hell. And she discovers that she's actually a goddess. It's a weird game alright, and it gets even quirkier, as Malice's weapon of choice is a giant club. I loved how quirky the game and its world are, and this is aided by the silly character models. I really liked it, and I liked Malice, the character, quite a bit. On the other hand, I found the mechanical guide calling Malice 'my dear' all the time was sorta creepy.

 The game is rather simple, as it's divided into very small stages in which you either have to bash every enemy or find every cog or keycard, sometimes both. Of course, there's platforming in-between, but save for a few dedicated instances of platforming challenges, it's usually all about bashing enemies. There are a few sections that are a bit different, like a very tedious stealth stage, and another one in which you must guide a tiny robot, but otherwise, it sticks quite close to its formula. It's a very brief game too, shouldn't take over 3 hours to beat.

 Every level has 5 Crystal hearts to collect, and you should, as there's no backtracking, and by every 10 crystal hearts that you collect you gain an extra hit point. By the end of the game you have about 15, which means the game is quite easy. As you advance through your giant club eventually turns into a giant lance, and you also obtain multiple spells. Some, like gliding, are useful to explore the environment, but you also get a spell for bonus strength, a must to make the boring bosses go by faster.

 I found Malice to be a perfectly palatable adventure romp. There's nothing ground-breaking about it, but I liked Malice, I liked how edgy she was at times, clearly a creature of the 2000's, and the art-style reminded me of Okage, albeit not as charming, but quite close! It was decent, it really doesn't deserve the bad rep it's got.

 6.0

Game #1296: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - The Cowabunga Collection

 Turtle soup has never tasted so good before. 

 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection is a collection of pretty much every single classic TMNT game Konami ever developed. Everything they made for the NES, SNES, Arcades, Genesis and the Arcade games are here, and it's oh, so good.

 Every game here can be swapped for its Japanese version, if you wish to check some regional differences such as Aska in the SNES version of Tournament Fighters. Pretty much every game offers some sort of Enhancement that can be toggled, from something as overpowered as God Mode, to something more functional, such as eliminating slow-down and sprite flickering or enabling Bosses in the Tournament Fighters. Pretty dope! As per usual with these collections, you get Save States, one per game, and a rewind function. They also went the extra mile with the "Watch" mode, in which the CPU plays the game for you... and you can drop in mid-watch and play the rest yourself at any time! About the only gripe I have is that you can't toggle options in the Arcade games.

 And before I get into the games, which are ordered in the order I played them, it's also worth mentioning that the game has a ton of scans, from ads of the games to the instruction booklets, so there's a lot to see in between games as well.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project

 I used to play this one a lot back when I was younger with my family, so I'm probably biased towards it. Regardless, it's a brilliant beat'em up, it has many distinctive stages and a lot of variety in the enemy department, thanks to color-coded Foot Ninja. It's 7 stages long, so it doesn't overstay its welcome either.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters(NES)

 I already wrote about this one a few years ago, and there's not much else I could say about it. It's a fighting game on the NES, of course it doesn't work very well... but considering the hardware? It's an admirable effort. And it IS a bit of fun.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall of the Foot Clan

 This one is very boring. It's a 2-D sidescroller in which you very slowly move to the right defeating everything that comes your way. All four turtles seem to play identically.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Back from the Sewers

 Another disastrous sequel to the previous game. It's pretty much identical, but each Turtle has a separate lifebar and you can swap between levels. The second to last level is a mess, you have to move up and right, and it's hard to know if you are making any progress. It's way cheaper than the first due to some honestly cheap enemy placement, as well as some sections having enemies respawning quickly and indefinitely. Not looking good for the Handheld TMNT games, to be honest.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: Radical Rescue

 Just as things were growing grim we get Radical Rescue, this one is a sort of Metroidvania. You start of as Mikey, and only Mikey, thrown into a large map. Your objective is to rescue the other turtles, by defeating bosses and collecting keys to open their cells. Each turtle has a unique ability to help with exploring the world, for example, Mikey can glide, Ralph can crawl, Leonardo can smash fragile block beneath him and... and it's Donnie, not Ralph, who can somehow cling to walls and climb them. The map is a bit hard to understand, since it doesn't show how everything connects, but you can add map icons, via game enhancements, to help you. This one is rather good, surprisingly so considering the two previous games, but it can get a bit tedious when it feels like you are trying to find your way someplace.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters(Genesis)

 I wrote about this one a few years ago as well and I hated it. I don't know if they changed something, but this time around it was much easier to get to the end... not that it matters, as the game is still not very good. The sprite-work is very subpar, the proportions are kinda wonky, the Turtles' heads just look wrong, and the animations should've had more frames of animation. And even if it's easier, the AI is still insufferable, and it can get downright unfair when the Triceraton can get over half of your life bar out of a grab.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(NES)

 I had never played this one more than a few minutes before. It's kinda interesting and kinda weird, because you get an overworld to explore, and it only turns into a sidescroller when you enter buildings or sewers. Each turtle has different range for their attacks and their own lifebars. It's not awful, but it hasn't aged very well, and you'll only get the most out of it using the built-in rewind and save states options.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game(NES)

 A port of the original Arcade game, it's similar to The Manhattan Project, which would come out later, but slightly not as good. The gameplay is basically identical, but Manhattan project has more interesting locales, enemies and sections, such as surfing. It has more stages than the Arcade original, but less attack animations and the graphics are, obviously, not as good.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(Arcade)

 The first TMNT game by Konami, it's pretty good. It's a by the numbers beat'em up game, so you know the drill, move right and bash everyone in your way mashing the attack buttons. The graphics are really nice, the game is very colorful and the sprites captures the look of the show quite well, even if it looks a bit rough at times. It's a bit weird in some ways, for instance, there are no grabs, but randomly, when mashing the attack button, you'll instantly grab the enemy, only applies to basic enemies, and throw it, for an instant kill. The game is so basic that it's probably more fun with other players, but I found it entertaining even though when I played it I had just finished the NES port, which could've made me grown tired of it, but it's better enough as not to feel like I was replaying the game again.

 Funnily enough, I went back to my original write ups of these two last games and... it turns out I preferred the NES version back then! But I was wrong!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time

 Another TMNT game I played but never too much of. Well, I finished it now, and it was a step up from the previous game. It has way better graphics, as the sprites look prettier and less rough now, the colors are brighter and now it features more baddies from the show. The game is more dynamic, as now we get more and better attack animations, and now the random-grab that happens sometimes as you bash on enemies may lead to different results, including throwing enemies towards the camera.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time(SNES)

 So, you'll be playing this game and thinking that it's a pretty good port... until you reach level 3 and you find yourself fighting the Rat King. Weird, this level had no boss in the Arcade version! But then, instead of going back in time.... you visit the Technodrome and fight Tohka and Rahzar, as well as an early bout with Shredder, and then, and only then do you go back in time. Yes, sire, this is an expanded version of Turtles in Time. There are a few new enemy types, and the move in which you throw enemies towards the screen can be done at will. Lastly, the game is a bit slower, but it's also less slippery, which makes it feel better to play. It sounds like very small additions and tweaks, but it all adds up to make it a better game, despite not looking AS good. But hey, in the visual department its pretty close as well! It has a bunch of bonus modes, like VS player, as well. 

 Having played both versions of the game to completion... now I get it, I understand why people prefer this version over the Arcade original.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Hyperstone Heist

 Weight and speed of the SNES version, but you can't do the grabs on command. But... what is this? After an intro sequence that is similar, but different, to the one from Turtles in Time, the first stage starts off in the sewers, completely new, then you move up to the streets, Turtles in Time's second stage, but instead of ending on a boss... you move back into the sewers, where you'll meet TiT's Pizza aliens. Eventually you fight Leatherhead, who uses the same sprite as in the SNES version and fights exactly the same way. But afterwards it turns into a different game. New environments, new bosses, similar gameplay. Stage 4 is a bit lame, as it makes you fight every boss you've fought again. I'd say it's superior to the Arcade TiT, but not as fantastic as the SNES port.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters(SNES)

 I wrote about this one before as well, it's an absolute gem of a game, it looks way better than the other Tournament Fighters versions, and it plays leagues better as well, with responsive controls and decent gameplay. It's a hell of a game, and I'd say the best game in the collection, although that may vary depending on your tastes.

 The Cowabunga Collection is a fantastic collection for any Turtles fan or anyone who played and enjoyed beat'em ups back in the day. There are plenty of bells and whistles to make replaying these oldies more enjoyable, which should be a must, but considering how some collections skimp on the features... yeah, it does everything right, and the games themselves range from mediocre to great, mostly on the latter camp.

 9.0

Game #1295: Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hinokami Chronicles(Switch)

 Time for a rerun.

 Well, considering I already wrote about Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hinokami Chronicles, I'll keep this strictly about the port and not the game itself.

 So, what's in the cart? You get the entire game, dual audio and everything, as well as all the free DLC, which is nice, since you don't depend on a patch to get the 6 demons. The bonus characters are nice 'n' everything, but it's still very skimpy roster. Even though Kanao won't get to fight until the final arc, which is a long way from being animated, they could've given her some sort of provisory moveset. I mean, they made Murata a playable character, as well as the two kids from the beginning of the series, and they barely fought if at all. But at least it's a better showing than the game was at launch.

 ...that said, I really don't like what they did with the demons. Unlike Slayers, who fight in pairs, Demons are by themselves and they get an extended moveset and more HP to make up for that. I think that's lame. I should be able to fight with Slayers by themselves or make up Slayer/Demon character pairs. I understand being faithful to canon, but there are better ways to do it. Naruto Ultimate Ninja didn't prevent me from fighting Sasuke as Karin, so what gives? It's a horrible idea for videogame, fun should come first.

 On the technical side, the game looks fantastic, and it ones up the PS4 version in another way, besides content, as their is absolutely no input lag. You press the button, the action happens on the screen. 

 Coming back to The Hinokami Chronicles wasn't half bad, the game does a really good job at adapting the first season of the anime. It's a shame that the character roster is still a bit of a sour point, and I really don't like what they did with the demons, but hey, it's a great port of the original game, that even surpasses it in some way.

5.5

Game #1294: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Shredder's Revenge

 No Turtle Soup for you!

 As if it wasn't clear enough that beat'em ups are back in vogue, now we get Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, a gorgeous pixelated 2-D beat'em up that plays homage to the beat'em ups of olde. 

 The game has two ways of being played, a more traditional Arcade Run and a Story Mode. Both games have the same stages, but in Story Mode you don't start off with all your moves or maximum health gauge, instead slowly obtaining those as you defeat enemies, as some sort of very basic RPG element. There are also some basic sidequests that involve you finding items and NPCs... for more experience points. About the only gripe I have with this mode is that each character must be leveled up separately.

 The game does a lot with very little, you have your basic attack string, an anti-air by pressing attack+jump, two different aerial attack buttons, you can dash, you can grab enemies(And throw them towards the screen!) and an energy gauge that lets you use super moves or Radical Mode, which makes you faster and stronger for a little while. The super gauge refills as you land attacks or by using the taunt. In co-op, there are a few extra moves not mentioned in the how to play bit, since we were landing some sandwich-shell-attack against enemies sometimes, and you can also share HP with your partner or revive each other!

 While the game is about 2 hours long, which is slightly longer than what you would expect out of a game like this, it's filled to the brim with stuff. There's a total of seven playable characters, sadly Casey Jones must be unlocked by finishing the game, all of them have unique animations, even the four turtles, and there's a ton of enemy variety, with large bosses and all sorts of colored Foot soldiers with different weapons. Environments are quite distinctive too, and if you've played TMNT beat'em ups back in the day you'll probably spot tons of references. I'm only disappointed that this game is inspired on the worst version of the Ninja Turtles, the ones that are little more than a walking joke, but what can ya do? Hopefully, if they even make a sequel, they go for the much superior 2003 version. A man can only dream.

 Shredder's Revenge is a ton of fun, but if you don't like beat'em ups you might not 'get it', which is totally fine. The game does a perfect job at paying tribute to the genre, while still standing out thanks to good it looks thanks to all the work that went into making SO many sprites for so many characters and enemies, as well as the tight gameplay, that while very basic, allows for some simple, enjoyable enemy-bashing.

 9.0

Game #1293: Arcade Paradise

  Arcade Infernum

 Equal parts mini-game collection and laundromat simulator, Arcade Paradise was a surprisingly good... until it broke. 

 I purchased the game thinking it was just a collection of retro Arcade-style games, but it wasn't. As I waited for the game to arrive, I learned that you actually had to take care of an Arcade and buy new machines and my interest for the game waned a bit.

 Then the game started, and you're actually given a laundromat to take care of. You have to go through rooms collecting garbage, and you can't pick up everything since the bag gets full, and dump it into the dumpster next to the building. You also have to remove chewed gum from walls, through a timing minigame, and clean the toilet if it gets stuck. You have to hold down the A button to put clothes inside a washing machine, wait three minutes, the hold down A to take back the clothes, move to a dryer, and hold down A to place it there. Three minutes later, take it out. And you need to to it quickly if you want the most money. To get money from the Arcade Machines, you have to go from hopper to hopper, and you can't use the money until you place it in a safe.

 I thought the whole game was a big joke and this laundromat simulation would stop after the first day. It didn't. But eventually I got into the groove and I fell in love with the game. After a while, the Arcade Machines will make enough money so that you don't need to do the laundry anymore.... but it was fun. I'd sneak in some game time, playing the numerous Arcade games, while waiting for clothes to wash or dry. And as you play, not only do you earn money to buy more machines and upgrade the room, but you'll also get tasks, tasks that rewards you with pounds, another currency, which you can buy for upgrades: Make days last longer, get someone to remove the money from the hoppers for you, let you dash, etc. I know it sounds tedious, but it's a load of fun.

 And what's even better, not only are there a ton of games, but they are also fun. Sure, none of them could stand by their own, and sure enough, some may feel a bit janky... but they are fun. And each one has a set of goals, fulfilling the goals makes them more popular, and thus, helps them generate even more money. The progression feels so good. The game is SO good.

 It's a shame it's a buggy mess. A few times, after pausing the game, it simply froze. Sometimes it'd just freeze after a day. And you can only save between days.... and then it happened. I had invested over 10 hours in the game, I adored it... but the game crashed on the day I received a new arcade machine. Upon restarting the game, the tutorial telling me how to place new machines popped up and the game froze again. I restarted the game and... this time it didn't freeze, but I noticed that I lost all my arcade machines and my room expansions. I was devastated. I almost gave up right then and there.... but, I didn't lose all my pounds, and I had some money saved up, plus, the game was so much fun... fine, let's get everything back again.... except that there was a tiny issue now. I had an extra Arcade Machine. Whatever, I soldiered on, and then I got the new machine.... the game just crashes now, 'cause it doesn't know what to do since there isn't enough room for a new machine. And I can't buy the room upgrade until I've gotten every Arcade Machine... basically, my file is ruined.

 The game is brilliant, it is, I'd give it a 9.0 or so, because it's a blast. But all these crashes? My ruined save file? Inexcusable. 

 4.0