11th January 2011, 6:08 PM
(This post was last modified: 12th January 2011, 1:02 AM by A Black Falcon.)
Gotten three more 32X games since then.
Knuckles Chaotix
Knuckles Chaotix... tough one to review, really. On the one hand it's a disappointing game with pitfall-free and enemy-light stages that you will only very rarely die in, and it has a lot of them too at 25 stages. That you play through each group of stages in random order, so there isn't much of a difficulty curve between the five worlds, only between the levels within each world, makes things worse. Also, the controls definitely take getting used to. Chaotix is a much slower paced game than the 16-bit Sonic games due to the unique two-characters-connected design; you will often have to charge one of the characters for a few seconds just to get up a ramp. That adds up to a much slower pace than 16-bit Sonic, meaning that the levels will take quite a while to get through even if they probably aren't actually longer in terms of distance. And importantly, the decision to make your partner choice semi-randomized and level order even more randomized, while original, was almost certain a very poor decision. The resulting flat difficulty curve is a significant reason why the game feels so dull, I think. It's not all bad, though. The bonus stages, which are done in full 3d, are just awesome, first, and almost are worth playing the game just to see. Also, once you get used to the controls, flinging yourself around on the spring that connects your two characters can be pretty cool. You really can toss yourself around, and exploring the levels is fun even if the challenge is quite lacking. Also, the graphics are good, and it's got some of that 16-bit Sonic charm as well. Overall I do think the negatives outweigh the positives, but the game's not a total loss, and it is original and unique; I don't know of any other games with the two-characters-connected design of Knuckles Chaotix.
Motocross Championship
Motocross Championship is one of the three racing games on 32X. Unfortunately, while Virtua Racing Deluxe is an incredible game, the other two aren't nearly as good. Motocross Championship isn't the worst game ever, but it definitely is a subpar, dull game that few people truly like. I wasn't expecting to like this, and I don't, but honestly, I was a little bit pleasantly surprised; while the game is boring, it's not quite as bad as I was expecting. The graphics, a mixture of 2d and 3d, look okay. The game shows its age for sure, but for a 1995 game it's not terrible, just a bit subpar. The game's also kind of fun, in a simple and repetitive way -- drive forward, make the turns, avoid the parts that make you spin out, attack other drivers, and win. It's an easy game, as long as you don't mess up; make a mistake and you will quickly fall behind, but learn the courses -- this won't take long -- and you'll do well without too much effort, in the easy difficulty at least. Obviously, it gets harder in the harder settings, but I'm not sure if the game is fun enough to be worth it. Still, for a simple, straightforward motocross racing game, there are plenty of worse options out there than Motocross Championship. Just don't expect much depth or complexity, it doesn't have it. It's mindless, but I find it mildly entertaining, even if it isn't very good objectively.
Virtua Fighter
Virtua Fighter is a fighting game classic, but it's never a series I've liked all that much. It's just kind of boring and not that fun, and the first two games aren't even really 3d, since there's no 3d movement buttons. The game is 2.5d with the polygons mostly for show. It's supposed to be "more realistic", but the result is that it's just not as fun. There are a lot of 3d fighting games that aren't very good, though, so for a mid '90s 3d fighting game it's not that bad. As for the port, it's a fine port, it's cool to see polygonal games running on the Genesis. :) Lower resolution than the Saturn version, but in some ways better than the original Saturn release. There's no saving though, unlike on Saturn, so it won't save your scores. This game's a decent technical achievement, but it's not something I play much. Of course, the same is true for all of the VF games I own.
Knuckles Chaotix
Knuckles Chaotix... tough one to review, really. On the one hand it's a disappointing game with pitfall-free and enemy-light stages that you will only very rarely die in, and it has a lot of them too at 25 stages. That you play through each group of stages in random order, so there isn't much of a difficulty curve between the five worlds, only between the levels within each world, makes things worse. Also, the controls definitely take getting used to. Chaotix is a much slower paced game than the 16-bit Sonic games due to the unique two-characters-connected design; you will often have to charge one of the characters for a few seconds just to get up a ramp. That adds up to a much slower pace than 16-bit Sonic, meaning that the levels will take quite a while to get through even if they probably aren't actually longer in terms of distance. And importantly, the decision to make your partner choice semi-randomized and level order even more randomized, while original, was almost certain a very poor decision. The resulting flat difficulty curve is a significant reason why the game feels so dull, I think. It's not all bad, though. The bonus stages, which are done in full 3d, are just awesome, first, and almost are worth playing the game just to see. Also, once you get used to the controls, flinging yourself around on the spring that connects your two characters can be pretty cool. You really can toss yourself around, and exploring the levels is fun even if the challenge is quite lacking. Also, the graphics are good, and it's got some of that 16-bit Sonic charm as well. Overall I do think the negatives outweigh the positives, but the game's not a total loss, and it is original and unique; I don't know of any other games with the two-characters-connected design of Knuckles Chaotix.
Motocross Championship
Motocross Championship is one of the three racing games on 32X. Unfortunately, while Virtua Racing Deluxe is an incredible game, the other two aren't nearly as good. Motocross Championship isn't the worst game ever, but it definitely is a subpar, dull game that few people truly like. I wasn't expecting to like this, and I don't, but honestly, I was a little bit pleasantly surprised; while the game is boring, it's not quite as bad as I was expecting. The graphics, a mixture of 2d and 3d, look okay. The game shows its age for sure, but for a 1995 game it's not terrible, just a bit subpar. The game's also kind of fun, in a simple and repetitive way -- drive forward, make the turns, avoid the parts that make you spin out, attack other drivers, and win. It's an easy game, as long as you don't mess up; make a mistake and you will quickly fall behind, but learn the courses -- this won't take long -- and you'll do well without too much effort, in the easy difficulty at least. Obviously, it gets harder in the harder settings, but I'm not sure if the game is fun enough to be worth it. Still, for a simple, straightforward motocross racing game, there are plenty of worse options out there than Motocross Championship. Just don't expect much depth or complexity, it doesn't have it. It's mindless, but I find it mildly entertaining, even if it isn't very good objectively.
Virtua Fighter
Virtua Fighter is a fighting game classic, but it's never a series I've liked all that much. It's just kind of boring and not that fun, and the first two games aren't even really 3d, since there's no 3d movement buttons. The game is 2.5d with the polygons mostly for show. It's supposed to be "more realistic", but the result is that it's just not as fun. There are a lot of 3d fighting games that aren't very good, though, so for a mid '90s 3d fighting game it's not that bad. As for the port, it's a fine port, it's cool to see polygonal games running on the Genesis. :) Lower resolution than the Saturn version, but in some ways better than the original Saturn release. There's no saving though, unlike on Saturn, so it won't save your scores. This game's a decent technical achievement, but it's not something I play much. Of course, the same is true for all of the VF games I own.
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