No, this is not the Double Dragon game you are looking for. Yes, it is the one you remember as a kid on the NES and not the arcade version you wished it was at the time. More disappointing, however, is that it’s not the vastly superior Double Dragon II. Oh well, perhaps another day. Still, the original is a decent game, but with so many better brawlers out there, such as Double Dragon II and Final Fight, its fond memories are best left in the past.
Too often the big names of video games get all the attention. You see plenty of art created honoring Mario, Master Chief, Sonic, etc., but what about the unsung heroes? But some dedicated fans, such as Shuji Suzuki will not let the past fade away. His clay models have been featured as part of the I Am 8-Bit art exhibition, and the above is one of the more colorful ones based on Bubble Bobble. If you’re asking, "What is that?" You’re obviously too young to have played one of the iconic games of the NES generation, which somehow got forgotten.
Finally, King’s Knight! A game that will make you question, did Square really have something to do with this? It just seems so unlike the Square that has become known as a one trick pony.
KING’S KNIGHT
(NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 500 Wii Points)
In the kingdom of Izander, the fair Princess Claire has been kidnapped by a foul and insidious dragon, and it is the mission of four brave fighters to save her. Through five thrilling, fast-action stages, our gallant heroes-a knight, a wizard, a monster and a thief-will take on an army of incredible enemies. You must help them reach their goal, as you are now part of the team that will fight to free the princess from her imprisonment. Keep your wits about you, plan your strategy and set off on an exciting adventure. (more…)
In The Great Games column we look back at titles that have defined video games over the years and earned a special place in the history of the medium.
Sixteen years passed between the original Ninja Gaiden’s release on the NES in 1988 and the franchise relaunch on the Xbox in 2004. In those 16 years a lot of things changed in gaming, including the passage of three console generations and the arrival of 3D graphics as the norm. The one thing that did not change is Ninja Gaiden’s name standing for hardcore action.
Younger gamers may not be able to fully appreciate the way the gaming market used to work. Games arrived with little or no fanfare and were seemingly dumped onto the market. Yes, there were advertisements in magazines, but hardly the full media blitzes gamers are so used to today for even the most modest of releases. Amidst all this, a little game called Ninja Gaiden found a market. It probably didn’t hurt that it was very loosely based off a semi-popular arcade game (best remembered today for its Jason Voorhees look-a-like villains). (more…)
The Tall Stump is the equivalent of a never released NES game finding its way to the Internet. Everything from the graphics to the “over before you know it” story introduction scream NES, but not the gameplay. The gameplay is a weird mix of the old and the new. The collecting of items feels old, but the physics based puzzles feel new. A great platformer with a spin for fans of the genre.
Why do people enjoy taking modern titles and porting them to old consoles that cannot possibly handle their modern graphics and gameplay? Go figure. Still, it makes for interesting video, such as this one of Tekken 2 running on the original NES. What’s interesting about this title, unlike most such ports, is that it actually look playable, and sort of like a title that might have been released back then. That’s certainly a step up from most such ports.
Super Mario Brothers
It would be hard to make a list of the most influential games, anywhere, and not included Super Mario Bros. It isn’t that the game exactly did things that no one had ever seen before (though it did do those), it’s that it them altogether. The game features a certain level of cohesiveness rarely seen in games up to this point, and rarely seen since in many ways.
The levels were structured, but in a way that made sense. Drop into a pipe and you’re in an underground world, trying to get back to another pipe to get above ground. As you will note, every 2D Mario game since has borrowed this very basic seeming mechanic, but one that game the games a sense of “world” long before Mario had his own World.
Perhaps most intriguing about the game’s influence is how many games still try to copy it to this day, twenty plus years after its release. Consider that New Super Mario Bros. (DS) is most influenced by the original and World, despite most fans claim of the superiority of the third chapter. (more…)
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