Test your skills!
I don't know if you all noticed, but it has been quite a long time since I have made a review on Vizzed. I have been trying to decide what to review, and I realized what better than the game that is currently the one for this month's high score competition? Aldynes: Mission Code for Rage Crisis is a game for the SuperGrafx. Because it seems that very few people have played on a SuperGrafx (let alone owned one), this game couldn't more fit the definition of diamond in the rough. If you like automatic side scrolling games and you want a real challenge, pick up this game here on Vizzed, strap yourself in, and get to playing!

Graphics: 10
For those of you who are not familiar with the SuperGrafx system, the games graphics tend to be on the same level of the Super Nintendo.That being said, Aldynes takes the graphics capability to the max. If I had to pick one thing that really does it for the graphics score, it would be details details details. This game has a LOT of them. This is already apparent with the first level on the surface of a post apocalyptic Earth, and it portrays it beautifully. You have a background of different levels of sky ranging from high altitude, clouds, smog filled areas, and an endless wasteland of destroyed buildings. Levels after that all take place on a mechanical alien planetoid, and every single level is so unique and just as detailed (sometimes more) than the first level. One problem I often see with games like this is repeat backgrounds or a lot of outer space-like sections. The developers did not take that easy route with this game. What is better is that the sprites are just as well done as the backgrounds. You have a variety of enemy types, many of which are completely unique to the level in which you see them. But the sprites that get a special recognition is the level one boss. This massive thing is decked out with the graphical details. They didn't just focus on the parts that you need to worry about. They even throw in spinning blades, blasters, and different armor types that serve no function as far as the game is concerned. Also, the colors are  very solid and contains a great use of shading, giving it a more rounded look. Lastly, the movements in this game are so fluid and free, so you will not get ticked off by losing due to glitchy controls or laggy movements.
 
Sound: 10
We all know that it really isn't the graphics that make the game. Unless you are a person who likes to play with their speakers muted, graphics just seem empty without some good quality sound to back it up. Aldynes has this in spades. This is another pattern of the SuperGrafx. If you play more games, you will see that they seem to really focus on making epic music for their games, and Aldynes is one of the best I have heard. There really aren't many ways to describe the music other than epic. It is always fast paced, action vibed, and appropriate to the look of each level (each level has it's own music). The only repeat music you hear is the boss music, but with how good it is, you won't care. Along with the music, the sound effects are just as appealing. The sound effects for this game are exactly what you would expect. *Whoosh*, *Zap*, *Boom*, *Zing*, *Crash*, etc. Pretty much every action other than moving has it's own sound effect and there is a great variety to keep it from getting irritating. Even if the sound effects were lacking (which they are not), the score would still get a 10 with how great the music is. 

Addictiveness: 10
If you have read my past reviews, you know that I like games that are long, have a well developed story, have a variety of things to do, etc. Aldynes is short, not heavily story based, and the core game play never changes. Why is this a 10? Aldynes may be short, but the difficulty on this is incredibly tough. The difficulty of this game actually makes the game longer than what it haves to be. now, I should point out one thing. You have a limit on lives, but your continues are infinite, so you do not have to start over when you die. Using this feature can make the game short, but I'm writing this review while playing where I reset the game if I lose all my lives, restarting the game. Anyway, this game is extremely fast paced and requires your undivided attention. If your eyes catch something else for even a brief moment, you are likely dead. That is how fast paced this game is. The difficulty of this game makes you die pretty quickly if you haven't memorized the entire level. But the fast pace of this game makes it easier to be willing to play the game from the start again and again (assuming you aren't cheating by using your unlimited continues). Even though the core game play doesn't change, you will have to have a different strategy for about 3-4 specific parts of EVERY level because they are constantly throwing something new and more difficult your way. There are few games I have played where I could die halfway through 10 times in a row and still be willing to play again from the beginning. That is why there is the high mark in this category.

Story: 6
It always seems that when a game is getting strait 10s, you eventually run into categories that break the trend. Story and depth do it here. For the story, I had to read the instruction booklet online to get what the story was. Before I start that, I'll explain what you get before the game starts. You see a military base get bombed, 3 ships escape, and they fly to a mechanical sphere in space. Before the first level starts, you see your pilot in the cockpit. That's it. The story, according to the instructions is this. The world is entering a global depression in the year 2020 AD. Suddenly, aliens completely invade the planet without warning and without a known reason.The League of Nations works with NASA to make the Ortega, a space fighter under the project name Aldynes. A random pilot gets killed during the invasion, and his military girlfriend, Hiroko, finds the hidden base containing project Aldynes. She flies one of the ships out to get revenge on the aliens for her boyfriend's death. The first level takes place on the Earth's surface, and the remaining stages take place in different depths of the alien mechanical planetoid (basically a mother ship). The story is actually really good, but you have to read the instruction manual to get it. If you go by the game's cut scene alone, you get so little. The ending doesn't clarify anything, so that docks it in points.

Depth: 7
Depth is the other downfall to this game. Even though your strategy has to constantly change, which makes it fine for difficulty, it doesn't change the fact that the core game play is the same all the way through from beginning to end of the game. What is also a shame is that the power-ups are not numerous. There are only 4 different weapons (excluding your starting one), and one of them isn't even seen until level 5. One of them only has use in a couple parts of the game. Another one serves pretty much no purpose compared to the one you will most likely use. You get upgrade capsules that make those weapons stronger, you get a speed boost that makes you maneuver quicker, and you can get up to 4 pods to help you. That is about it. It would have been nice to have some kind of power bomb like other games in this genre give you. Some 1-Ups would be nice too.

Difficulty: 10
The difficulty of this game depends on how you decide to play. You can take the simpleton's way and just put your infinite continues to use and just keep going until you finish the game, or you can restart the game when you lose all your lives like a real gamer. But even if you do the first method, you start the level over, with absolutely no upgrades, so that still makes this game super difficult, and 2 bosses in particular are insane. If you take the hard core method, this will be one of the hardest (if not the hardest) game you could play. This game's difficulty is mind blowing. The levels get to the point where you have at least 15 enemies bouncing all over the place above, below, in front, and behind you while all shooting at you. If you get hit ONCE, you lose a life. What is worse, if you lose a life, you re-spawn at a checkpoint in the level with all of your upgrades and helper pods gone. After level 3, surviving long enough to get much of any upgrades to be able to put up a fight is pretty much out of the question. So if you die in level 4, reset the game unless you plan on using your continues. Battletoads for the NES doesn't know the meaning of the word difficult when compared to this game. It literally took me over 3 weeks to be able to complete this game without save states and without dying once after the third level. So if you want some bragging rights on Vizzed, finish this game on high score mode without using a single continue.

Overall: 9
Overall, Aldynes: Mission Code for Rage Crisis receives a solid score of 9/10. To recap, the game has amazing background and sprite graphics that are highly detailed, solidly colored, well shaded, and various. The music is absolutely splendid and the game has all the sound effects you need for a game like this. The game is fast paced but highly addictive. The story is good, but only if you have the instruction manual handy. The game doesn't really offer a variety of game play. Lastly, the game is one of the most difficult games out there, so test your skills. You won't be disappointed. 
  Graphics 10   Sound 10   Addictive 10   Depth 7   Story 7   Difficulty 10

Overall 8.9    Graphics 10    Sound 10    Addictive 10    Story 7    Depth 7    Difficulty 10

Test your skills!   rcarter2
I don't know if you all noticed, but it has been quite a long time since I have made a review on Viz...
  Graphics 10   Sound 10   Addictive 10   Story 7   Depth 7   Difficulty 10
      Review Rating: 4.4/5     Submitted: 04-18-12     Review Replies: 8

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