*This is a new type of review I wanted to try out, instead of playing a long game through, I'll play the first few levels of a simple games and judge the gameplay, graphics and sound. This allows me to make reviews easier and faster and will avoid spoilers, hope it turns out good.

    I am starting the review by saying I love Ristar on the Genesis, it is one of my all time favourite Genesis games. So when I heard there was an 8-bit Game-Gear version, I had to see it. I wanted to see if it still could keep the fun and charm of the orginal, or if the downgrade would ruin this fantastic game, fortunately for me, the developers knew what they were doing.
  
     First thing that I noticed is the graphics, while they did lose some detail from the Genesis version, they look very good for the Game-Gear. The sprites are well done and detailed, the backgrounds look great, the animations on the sprites look good, and it is one of the best looking games on the systems. The graphics are a little blurry and pixelated, but this is still one of the best looking 8-bit remake of a 16-bit game. The game is a 2d platformer where you use your stretching arms to climb, swing and attack, it's pretty simple but it sure is fun. The levels all have their own gimmicks and obstacles, it helps keep the game feeling fresh and sets it apart from many other platformers from its time. There are some things that can be found in almost every level however, these are the treasure chests and the swinging poles. The treasure chests are pretty simple, they give health, lives and bonus points, nothing too special. The swinging poles allow you to spin around the pole and launch yourself at high speeds, this is one of the more important items and it is found at the end of every level to earn bonus points, and it can also be found at other locations throughout the game as well. Now everything I described about gameplay can be said about the Genesis version, you are probably wondering what is different for the Game-Gear version, well let's talk about that. The levels have been changed quite a bit, many have been taken from the Genesis version, but they are rearranged from the original, there are also some new levels are well, they are fun enough but the Genesis levels are better in my opinion. I also found the swinging pole to be more powerful in this game, perhaps it's just me but it seems to launch faster and farther than the original. The bonus stages have been completely redone and now only appear at the end of the levels. The game has also added collectable stars all throughout the levels, I don't know why they did this, but it doesn't really add anything to the game, or bring it down in any way, it's just kinda there. The sound is mostly remixed from the Genesis version, and its pretty well done, the tunes are nice and sound surprisingly well with 8-bit, the original music in the game is fine, but forgettable though.

    This game is not as good as the Genesis game, however as it's own game it does very well. It has some amazing graphics for it's system and is just as fun to play, it lacks some great levels from the Genesis and many graphical details, however it holds up quite well as it's own game. If you are looking for a fun Game-Gear game, or are craving more Ristar action after playing the Genesis version, this is a great game and is worth a play.

7.8/10