Category: NES

Ninja Gaiden

Saying that Ninja Gaiden is not enjoyable would be a lie. As far as action-platformers go, it presents one of the most original set of gameplay mechanics of the era thanks to how it matches Ryu’s wall-climbing ninja abilities with basic but satisfying combat. Additionally, the way it balances good storytelling with action is a very rare sight for the genre, especially when the library of the NES is considered. Yet, it has to mentioned that the amount of satisfaction one will be able to get out of the game is strongly related to their tolerance for irregular enemy-spawning, which often threatens to undermine the great work that was done in terms of level design and vaporize it into sheer frustration. If players are able to look at that problem as a rough edge of the era, they are sure in for a treat. If that is not the case, Ninja Gaiden is still worth a look for its originality, but the journey may not last long on account of perceived unfairness.

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by Matt

Contra

One could say that eight stages are not enough; that its high difficulty, which surpasses the already elevated standards of the time, makes it nearly unpalatable for a modern audience; or that its gameplay is too simple compared to what some classics of the console pulled off. These are all valid arguments, but they simply highlight Contra’s nature as an arcade title that was ported to a home console; as such, those are not necessarily flaws, but features that were planned from the start. And the fact they exist as part and parcel of the package leads to the only verdict that could be reached given the game’s numerous qualities: Contra is not universally appealing, but to those who love products of its kind, it is hard to find a better experience on the NES as far as its niche is concerned.

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by Matt

Faxanadu

The fact the NES’ library was not rich with adventure games means there is not much weight in saying Faxanadu is one of the system’s best examples of the genre. However, that somewhat lonesome position in that niche makes the title much more special, because not only was it among the few courageous enough to navigate the console’s limitations to aim for a gameplay style that thrives on a large scope, but it also succeeded in its goal with flying colors. Even if it exhibits a few rough edges of the era, Faxanadu is an elegant and carefully designed journey that perfectly balances openness and focus. Therefore, when it comes to grand quests, a player could hardly do better as far as the NES is concerned.

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by Matt

Duck Tales

As the first fruit of a collaboration that would go on to yield bright platformers and adventure games, Duck Tales was a very positive sign of what was to come. With it, Capcom used the wisdom of its talented development team to turn a famous Disney property into a very engaging gaming experience, and it is not hard to understand why the title not only succeeded in its time, but also remained beloved long after that era. After all, rather than settling for a competent but forgettable design, the studio perfectly translated the cartoon’s charm to pixels while sprinkling it with refreshing gameplay ideas. The result is one of the NES’ finest hours and a project that would go on to serve as an example for anyone trying to use popular television and movie characters as the inspiration for a game.

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by Matt

River City Ransom

The highlight of River City Ransom is undoubtedly how the game grabs the well-established beat ‘em up formula that was prevalent in consoles and arcades of the time and manages to transform it quite boldly. The replacement of guided linear progression with a simple but effective open world is a radical departure that yields an adventure where punching and kicking are accompanied by exploration and even some backtracking. Meanwhile, its RPG elements turn the repeated beating of enemies into a far more engaging activity, since fighting leads to the upgrade of stats that are much needed for the heroes to be strong enough to rescue the damsel in distress. Therefore, while the fun fighting mechanics of River City Ransom guarantee its position among the best beat ‘em ups of the NES, the game’s successful experiments put it in a level of its own inside the genre when it comes to uniqueness and innovation.

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by Matt

StarTropics

As a hybrid between the adventure and RPG genres, StarTropics was a pretty unique concept for the time, and the fact it uses a greater focus on story and more advanced dungeon design concepts to expand upon a few areas of The Legend of Zelda formula makes it easy to see why some fans often point to it as a franchise that was undeservingly left behind by Nintendo on the NES days. Contrarily, its punctual annoying design quirks, its irregular controls, its big gameplay overlap with a more popular property, and its birth towards the end of the system’s lifespan as a somewhat dated product might explain the reason why it was abandoned. Yet, when it is all said and done, there is some quality and fun to be found in the package, and although those may not come in large enough doses to make one desperately wish Nintendo had kept the property rolling, they should be sufficient to allow players to appreciate StarTropics for what it is: a charming quest with some nice ideas that still has its place as a legacy title.

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by Matt

EarthBound Beginnings

As it stands, however, EarthBound Beginnings is merely average. In its best moments, it comes off as a rougher – yet charming – outline of a concept that would find its full maturity in the Super Nintendo; at its worst, though, it is badly hurt by spikes in difficulty that make a lot of its combats seem unfair and by an absence of direction that can easily cause one to get lost in its pleasantly vast and open world. Due to those shortcomings, the game becomes worth it only to those who are huge fans of the saga or to RPG lovers who can take the constant grinding without being overcome by frustration or boredom. Without those thorns, EarthBound Beginnings could have been thoroughly lovable in its strangeness and heart; with them, it becomes a quirky and moving tale that is obscured by a lack of much needed polish.

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by Matt

Kid Icarus

Without so many sources of overwhelming frustration and points that reveal technical inconsistence, Kid Icarus could have been hailed as a classic upon its original release and still hold that status until the present day. As it stands, however, it is a game that, albeit good, has to be tackled with patience and willingness to overlook its rough edges. Its mixture of platforming and shooting is remarkable, and it is even more engaging due to how the adventure offers rewards to those who are efficient in the killing of enemies. Additionally, its gameplay variations, which include dungeons of The Legend of Zelda inspiration as well as stages that scroll sideways and upwards, keep it fresh and entertaining all the way through. Because of that, although it is understandable the franchise was kept for so long in a limbo, it is also slightly sad Nintendo temporarily abandoned the unique formula, in both gameplay and mythological theme, they uncovered with the title. Just like it deserved a shot at modern stardom with a new installment, Kid Icarus also deserves to be played by a contemporary audience; even if not everyone will make it to its end, the game has enough quality and flexibility to hold some value to a wide and varied public.

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by Matt

Metroid

Given it has a remake that gets rid of nearly all its frustrating issues and that makes its adventure, which is in essence quite good, accessible and fun to modern gamers, revisiting the original Metroid is only really justified by the curiosity to catch a glimpse of the franchise’s start in its pure state. Those who choose to do so, will be able to witness how an NES game was able to succeed in creating an astoundingly immersive atmosphere inside a technically limited scope, and they are bound to find the game’s mixture of action and non-linear exploration to be engaging to a certain point. Nevertheless, they are also likely to come across a myriad of issues in presentation and design that severely harm the overall experience. Metroid is a strong game, and it is certainly one of the system’s most alluring efforts, whether one takes into consideration the franchise it spawned or not; however, time has not been too kind to it, as it has amplified the problems that existed on the day of its release and brought new shortcomings to light.

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by Matt

Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link

The Adventure of Link is a game with some good intentions, as it actively tries to correct some of the faults of its predecessor while attempting to – and to a point succeeding in – taking the franchise to grounds that considerably expand its gameplay. It is, however, a pretty big shame that its heart is so thoroughly corroded by a myriad of design problems that at times act against the joy of exploration that is such an integral part of the series and that, in other occasions, make frustration emerge from every single corner. Those used to the brutal difficulty featured in many titles of the NES era may be able to see through the fog and catch a glimpse of value in Link’s second quest. Everyone else, though, will be tremendously disappointed by what they find. And given Nintendo itself has opted not to revisit some of the good ideas carried by the game, which in turn transformed it into a major oddity within the saga, following suit and staying away from it might indeed be the wisest choice.

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by Matt