| THEKILLERJUNKER's Last 5 Game Reviews (view last 25) |
Jackal
07-27-16 12:54 AM
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Jackal NES Review
One of the best aspects of the 80s was its unapologetic sense of machismo, action, and adrenalin. Well, at least when it came to the decade’s action films. You got Terminator, Total Recall, Die Hard, Rambo, Lethal Weapon, Predator: the list could go on. These kinds of films would have made great games that could have been enjoyed by both moviegoers and gamers alike. But unfortunately, movie based games are terrible for the most part and sadly all of these movies suffered the fate of being butchered into horrendous excuses for games simply made to get a quick buck. But every now and then, you get a game that fills in the void made by all of the garbage titles. Jackal is one of them. Just look at that cover: a soldier eagerly shooting his machine gun ontop a jeep while his driver cheers him on as a helicopter flies past by. It doesn’t get any more 80s than that. This game, along with Contra, was Konami’s love letter to all of those great action flicks that the decade was responsible for. But is it as fun as when it came out? Or is it an outdated piece of pop culture? Let’s find out.
Graphics - 8
Surprisingly, the graphics for Jackal are pretty good. But then again this is Konami we’re talking about. This game came out at a time when the company was making critically acclaimed games nonstop such as Castlevania and Contra and it shows. The game has pretty good visuals for the time. And considering how it’s a 2-D shooter, that’s a bonus. A lot of the NES shooters like Tiger Heli and 1942 are alright games but they lack any pastiche and come off as dull and drab. While Jackal isn’t exactly a visual masterpiece it still shows a decent amount of effort to look pleasing to the eye. The character sprites all look good and the background is pretty well done... Read the rest of this Review
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Little Nemo - The Dream Master
07-09-16 09:44 PM
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Little Nemo: The Dream Master NES Review
It’s no secret that movie based games generally tend to end up awful. It’s been like that since the days of the Atari 2600 to the present; nothing’s really changed. But there’s an exception to that: what about games based off animated films and shows? Some of the best games on the NES and SNES were based off successful animated movies and shows. These included Disney’s Aladdin, Lion King, and Ducktales. The company responsible for these great games is the revered Capcom, a company famous for its many game franchise like Street Fighter and Resident Evil. Among these great movie titles is one of their earlier entries; Little Nemo the Dream Master. Believe it or not this game was actually a tie in to an already existingmovie; Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumber land. What’s that? You never heard of the film? Well it doesn’t help that this film bombed when it hit theaters back in 1989. With such a critical failure as this game’s inspiration, it's bound to be as disappointing as its film counterpart…..right? Let’s find out.
Graphics - 8
To be honest, my expectations weren’t all that high for this game initially. I ended up getting caught by complete surprise the moment I saw the story unravel. Not only did the story follow the movie closely, but the graphics give a great overall presentation. The characters look completely identical from the movie and the overall background and delivery is spot on and well done. And the best part is things only got better and better as I progressed throughout the game. Not only are the character sprites rather polished for an NES game, but the level design is some of the best I’ve seen on a plat former. Capcom made great use of the NES’ limited color pallet and it shows. This has to be one... Read the rest of this Review
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Rad Racer
04-24-16 09:00 PM
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Rad Racer NES Review
One of the most important aspects of any game, regardless of their genre, is if they can still be enjoyable years after their release. In most cases it’s a no brainer; many NES titles are still referenced and played after almost 30 years. Even systems like the Atari 2600 have amassed a cult following despite their primitive hardware and simplistic games. The reason I bring this is up is that most people can agree that some games have aged terribly. Sports games and especially racing games suffer from this. Ever wonder why there’s always a brand new Forza or Gran Turismo game almost every year? It’s because people strive for realism when it comes to these games. Even though it’s always enjoyable to play the newest racing sims, it never hurts to go back to a simpler time. Today we’re going to look at the great granddaddy of racing games: Rad Racer. Oddly enough this game was developed by Square, the same company that created one of the greatest gaming franchises of all time: Final Fantasy. With a company like that responsible for this game, it’s almost expected for the game to be a smash hit. Is Rad Racer as good as Square’s other titles? Let’s find out.
Graphics - 7
For 1987, the graphics aren’t too shabby. The two cars you have, a Ferrari 328 turbo and a Formula 1, both look pretty good in the game. You also have a couple of opposing racers to worry about. For the time the game shows a really nice and relaxing colour scheme. The clouds actually shift to whatever side your car turns which I find to be pretty cool. But by far, the best tracks take place during the night where it’s pitch black and all you see is a city ahead. The game really looks nice in the night themed stages and it really shows that the NES was a pretty capable system. It also mentions the compatibility with 3... Read the rest of this Review
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Superman
03-26-16 09:42 PM
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Superman NES Review
Superheroes have always been a gateway into worlds of awe and wonder ever since their origin in the 1930s. There has always been a persistence of fascination in these characters and for good reason. They represented what we all want to be; flawless beings with powers and abilities beyond the realm of reality. They’re among the biggest cornerstones of pop culture. And they’re everywhere scoring huge in comic books, movies, and TV Shows. Unfortunately, Superheroes and video games don’t mix (for the most part at least). Superhero games in general tend to be a mixed bag ranging from classic titles to god awful excuses for a game. This has been evident since the age of the NES. Sunsoft’s Batman is one of their best titles for the system. Games like SIlver Surfer and LJN’s Spiderman tend to be average if not a tad bit mediocre. Then you have the just plain awful; any of the X-MEN titles for the NES and so on. The question is where does Superman fit in all of this? Is it among Batman as the only good superhero game on NES or will it bomb along with X-MEN? Let’s find out.
Graphics - 3
If there’s any early indication on the overall quality of this game it would be the graphics. But before we go after the graphics, let’s look at the game’s cover. Notice how Superman looks; very muscular and confident looking as he should be. I bring this up because he looks absolutely NOTHING like he does in the cover. Why is he so pathetic looking? No wait, better question, why does everyone look like a bobble head?!?! Seriously; on the cover and even the title screen Superman’s a normal looking human. But in the actual game, he’s reduced to a midget. And in the subway, everyone’s much taller. Not to mention this game got its proportions all wrong; telephones are as big as human heads, fir... Read the rest of this Review
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Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse
11-12-15 06:40 PM
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Castlevania III NES Review
When I first played the original Castlevania on the NES, I couldn’t think of a more difficult and frustrating game. Sure it was fun and addictive, but its steep sense of difficulty made it one of those games that you wouldn’t play as often as let’s say Super Mario Bros. But, it was still a fun game. So fun, that it became a success for Konami. The game soon spawned a sequel that would get savaged by gamers and critics alike for being too cryptic, easy, and plain boring. So Konami gave the franchise one more try on the NES with Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. What they got was easily the best game in the trilogy. Instead of following Castlevania II’s structure, Konami went back to the first Castlevania game, took everything that made it a great game and multiplied it several times. The game had better graphics, more replay ability and a better atmosphere. But Konami also upgraded the difficulty and it shows; this is easily the most challenging of the Castlevania trilogy and today, we’ll see if that statement still stands after almost 30 years after its release.
Graphics – 8
As mentioned before, this game improved on everything that made the first great, and the graphics are no exception. The game gives you a good demonstration of what the NES could accomplish. Each level fits the game’s theme of horror perfectly. Some levels give you a gothic atmosphere, like Frankenstein’s cellar, while other levels are shrouded in mystery, like the forests. The enemies are also well done. Most of the enemies are from the first two Castlevania games but better like the skeletons, the medusa heads, and the hunchbacks. But they gave the monsters an overall better design. They also gave better animations on the monsters, bosses, and characters you play as. The bosses are also entirely new and fresh; it’s nice to see that Konami didn’t rely on the first two games for designs too much. You see insp... Read the rest of this Review
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