A top down action game with high fantasy leanings featuring tile based layouts and cut graphics. It’s not out of the ordinary for the NES, but they’re the superficial charms that immediately piqued my interest with Arkista’s Ring. But there are a lot of charming games from the time that fall flat when held up to scrutiny. Where does Arkista’s Ring fall?
Conquering The Krion Conquest
The Krion Conquest is an anomaly. It’s a clear rip of Mega Man, sharing many visual cues and aping certain gameplay functions. By all rights it should be a good game – boasting cute, colourful graphics and killer bosses and decent music. But the North American release omits certain features that seem to have cast it in a negative light with a lot of folks. But The Krion Conquest is by no means a “bad” NES game. Sometimes frustrating, rigid, and unforgiving. But by no means bad by NES bad standards.
Dino Riki – NESventures in Prehistory
One thing you’ll notice as you pour over games libraries is that sometimes there’s this great premise or boxart or fascinating descriptions. The NES had its fair share of these, and I’m sure the prospect of dinosaurs caused plenty of us to rent Adventures of Dino Riki. It’s one of many games I would have rented for this reason, and it’s well over 25 years now. This is a game with a dubious reputation, and my memories weren’t exactly glowing. But I was curious if my thoughts about the game were from this disconnect of concept and execution, or if it was simply because it was bad.
Fire ‘N Ice ‘N Everything Nice
You would think that with the weather lately, I’d never consider playing a game called “FIRE ‘N ICE!” Am I right? HA HA! Some topical weather humour there for you!! Well, in all seriousness Fire ‘N Ice has long been one of my most wanted games. Recently I had the opportunity to get the Famicom version as part of a bundle, so I jumped on it. And so I finally had some version of Fire ‘N Ice in my possession.
The Legend of Zelda: No Sword? No Problem!
The Legend of Zelda is one of my favourite games – the first four entries are on the top. Each one has its own place in my heart, it’s own meaning and associated memories. They’re games I can play to this day and still get excited about every door, every key, every treasure, and every beast. These games are the spirit of adventure and discovery and exploration. My opinion of the Zelda series has had its highs and lows, but these are titles I can always come back to and have a good time. There isn’t much in the line of other media I get this excited talking about.
Continue reading “The Legend of Zelda: No Sword? No Problem!”
Four White Mages Challenge The Ages
I believe that, for all of its bugs, the NES version of Final Fantasy is the definitive version of the game. Sure, it’s archaic and half of it doesn’t work like intended. But it’s still a smartly designed game that can bite you if you’re not paying attention.
One of the best examples of the smart design is that the game can be completed by any party of adventurers – even solo efforts. One of the oldest challenges for Final Fantasy is to clear it with a party of that most squishable of classes – The White Mage.
AGROCAST Episode 3 – Getsu Fuuma Den
When something’s strange in the Underworld – who you gonna call? GETSU FUMA! On a very special Episode of the AGROCAST Krystle and I take on the famicom action game (with a couple of RPG elements): GETSU FUUMA DEN!
Legacy of the Wizard – Labyrinthine Odyssey
The NES to many kids was a gateway to adventure and discovery. We cut our teeth on the Zeldas and Dragon Warriors and many more. These games captured our imagination and drew us in. But one of the greatest adventures on the NES is not one of the biggest names. Think back – did you ever play a game called Legacy of the Wizard?
Continue reading “Legacy of the Wizard – Labyrinthine Odyssey”
NES Round-Up 2 – Ten MORE NES Games You Should Play!
Almost a year ago I posted a rapidfire list of NES games that I felt gave a decent cross-section of the console and that might not come to mind when you’re just starting out on the console. Well, I had a lot of fun with that piece and folks seemed to like it so here’s the sequel. Not quite the same, but hitting some sweet spots as well.
Continue reading “NES Round-Up 2 – Ten MORE NES Games You Should Play!”
Golgo 13: Operation NES
Golgo 13 aka Duke Togo – the world’s greatest hitman and sniper. He is perfect in what he does – never failing, never swaying from the course. I had early exposure to Golgo 13 in the mid 90’s with The Professional, but even before that I knew it as an NES game. Golgo 13 had two installments on the NES – Top Secret Episode and The Mafat Conspiracy and they tend to be fondly remembered by those who have played them. Personally it’s not a game I played much (if at all) as a child. I mostly remember being at my brother’s friend’s house and watching them play Top Secret Episode. But it was still deeply interesting, especially whenever it would enter a first person action sequence.
Indeed, these games are known for having mature (particularly by NES standards) themes and a great number of play styles. Vic Tokai crafted some ambitious games for Duke, but how many games have there been that have tried to do everything instead of doing just one thing well?
Well, since I have been feeling a resurging interest in Golgo 13 I figured it was time to finally clear these games…