Game Preview - Castlevania (Gameboy)

Castlevania (GB)

Today I am looking at Castlevania on the Gameboy, this isn't a full review as I haven't gotten to play it a ton yet but more just a peek at it.  Since the Gameboy is region free I have the Japanese version of this game.  Since the game is in Japanese and my Japanese knowledge is pretty limited (took a class in University years ago) so story wise I’m not totally sure what’s going on so I did a bit of research.  This game isn't just a port of the version that is on the NES but it has a different story. The game takes place 15 years after the first Castlevania Gameboy game.  Dracula has returned and he has kidnapped Chris Belmont’s son named Soleiyu and turned him into a demon.  Dracula uses Soleiyu’s powers to retake a human form so he can rebuild his castle.  So once again Christopher must face Dracula, but this time to save his son.   

When you first start the game there are four initial levels.  Each level has a unique theme like earth, crystal, plant and air and takes place in a separate castle.  The cool thing is you can complete them in any order you like.  So if you get stuck on one of the large trap rooms you can try out another one. Which kind of remind me of a Mega Man game or something like Bucky O'Hare.
  

If you play the Japanese version you will notice that the axe will be replaced with a cross, instead of making the arching motion the cross moves in a horizontal motion almost like a boomerang when it comes back to you.  Which makes it very useful as it can go through walls to kill enemies, so you can take them out before they even notice you.

My only complaint is I wish Christopher would move a little faster, he seems to be going pretty slow at times especially when you are trying to make a bigger jump or avoid an enemy. Other than that it’s a really fun game!  It looks really good for a Game Boy game even with the limited screen space and the music has been done very well.  I haven’t completed the game yet, but if I discover anything else I will let you know.

I’ll have to try it out on the Super Game Boy tonight and see how it looks on there.  I’m guessing probably pretty good, so even if you don’t have a Game Boy you can always get the Super Gameboy, play it on a Game Boy Advance or the GBA adapter on the Game Cube will play it too :D

So make sure if you get a chance to pick up this game definitely do so!  Especially if you are a huge fan of the Castlevania series on the NES or SNES, especially since it's not just a port of an existing game. Don’t forget that the Japanese version is still playable on North American Gameboy's as they are region free.  I’m so glad Heidi from Retro Gaming Blog told me about this game, now I just have to get the other 2 Gameboy ones in the series J

Power Hour Review - Final Fight (Famicom)

Welcome to the first “Power Hour”!  Thanks to my hubby for the name idea J  I have a lot of games so figure if I play them for at least an hour I could give my thoughts and feelings based on that first impression I got.  Plus it’s a lot easier for me to find an open hour in my schedule than a full day to dedicate to playing one game.  I’ll go over the usual things like graphics, sound, story, and controls and I will also talk about if this game within this first hour made me wanna play more or put it back on the shelf to collect dust.

The first entry for Power Hour is Mighty Final Fight on the Famicom.  It was released on both NES and Famicom, but the Fami version was cheaper to pick up so that’s the one I have.

Unfortunately I don’t have much of a personal history with the Final Fight franchise. I never played it as a kid but luckily I saw it featured on one of Nathan’s blog posts on videogamesarerad.com.  Wow I’m so glad I finally picked it up and gave it a try!  In my mind Final Fight is a better version of the original Double Dragon, from the 1 hour I put into it on Saturday.  Looks wise it reminds me of games like River City Ransom with the kind of chibi like deformed characters.  Then the experience point system is reminiscent of the one used in Splatterhouse and a better version of the Double Dragon one. 

The story is nothing really unique.  The mayor Metro City (Haggar’s) daughter Jessica, who apparently is so amazingly beautiful she gives the citizens the power to survive, and a villain (Belger, the leader of the Mad Gear Gang) decides he wants this beacon of light all to himself, how selfish! Apparently he loves her too.  Man when I see her she better be drop dead gorgeous, nothing like setting the bar for my expectations super high!  It’s a 1 player game, which kinda sucks but the game gives you a choice of three different characters, Cody, Guy and Haggar.  All three control very different so it really matters who you choose to play the level with, it’s not just a different looking sprite who is exactly the same.  Cody is a tough street fighter who is good with knives, Guy has great agility as he is descended from ninjas and Haggar is a hot tempered wrestler.

I really appreciate how they show exactly how many more experience points you need to level up, and how it makes a chime sound when you level up. The amount of experience points you earn is all based on what attack you use to finish off the bad guy.  The stronger attacks will earn you more points than using a weak one to finish them off.   Whenever the character gains a level they become more powerful and their vitality is increased. There are 6 levels in total.  When you start the game with Cody or Guy you start at the first level, but if you start with Haggar you are automatically started at  level 3.  As you gain level you will learn a new special attack when you reach Level 4.  Each character has their own unique attack that can be performed by pressing the directional pad left or right rapidly and hitting the attack button at the same time.

The game was made by Capcom and based on the catalogue of games they put out on the NES such as Mega Man you know at the very least the controls will be good.  They definitely don’t disappoint.  The controls are very easy to pick up on and it’s very easy to do combinations and pull off the moves each character has.  You can do flips, throws, punches, flying kicks, use weapons and special attacks.

The interactions you have with the bosses.  I have the Famicom version so I’m not totally sure what they are saying so when they asked me a question, but I would always answer hai (which is yes in Japanese).  After looking on YouTube I was apparently agreeing to bow down to them.  Despite this they still wanted to fight, you think they would be happy I was agreeing with them.

I like the variety of bad guys that you have to fight during the levels.  It’s not the same two bad guys you fight for the whole level.  There is a guy in a toque who looks like a bum who throws knives at you, some tough purple haired chicks with high heels, spiky haired guys, guys in capes and the usual huge buff dudes.  The level bosses are pretty cool too with a guy dressed as a samurai, long haired dudes with sunglasses and no shirt,  

In going through the levels you don’t get health energy from the guys you are fighting but from barrels that are being rolled at you.  When you break open the barrels sometimes it will drop food or things like meat that you can pick up and top off your energy, and other times you will earn a bunch of experience points to use towards leveling up.
This game is really good and it's addictive to play so you always come back for more!  I highly recommend picking this one up, you will not regret it!