21st March 2015, 2:49 PM
Game Boy
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Maru's Mission - This is a fun, but easy and somewhat buggy, platformer. This game is in the Ninja Jajamaru series of games from Jaleco, though it doesn't play much like the other Jajamaru games I have, a Famicom platformer and a Famicom RPG. This is one of the only games in the series to get a US release. It's okay, but yeah, WAY too short and easy. You have a sizable healthbar in this game, can get refills from most enemies, can shoot across the screen, and can jump higher than the screen as well. This game has decently nice graphics, but it's short -- there are only six levels, each made up of two somewhat short sections followed by a boss. Levels are very easy; only the bosses present any challenge, and even there it's only some of them that do. I had the hardest time with Medusa, the boss of the third or fourth level. I probably should have died there, and you get only one life and no continues in this game so that would mean start over, but instead my health started turning into letters -- 0S1, 0HI, things like that. I eventually won with 080 health left, but I don't know what happened there... I've died a few times in the first level and get game over when health hits zero, as you should. I should play again to that bossfight and see if it happens again. Medusa was tricky because the fight is in a small cave and you've got to use a shield to bounce back her shots, instead of just shooting the boss to death like normal.
Otherwise the game was easy. It is reasonably fun, though. It's probably worth getting for a couple of bucks if you like platformers. The game does have some nice visual effects, there's a bit of variety, and more. There are a couple of sections in between levels where you fight sharks underwater, for example. Interestingly, your spears go upwards slower than down, as if there's really gravity! It's kind of cool. Also, you can walk on the ceiling in some cave areas. This consistently happens in many levels, so I have to think it's intentional, but with that other bug I can't be sure. Either way, I like it! Metal Storm is awesome.
Oh, and the dot for the Romania stage looked like it was in Russia, or something. Wasn't even close to Romania. It clearly was supposed to be Romania, though, as you fight Dracula. On that note, the story has you having to rescue your kidnapped girlfriend, of course. Zero points for plot here. There are short conversations with each boss before and after you fight them, though, which adds a bit to the game. You start in Japan, travel to four places elsewhere around the world, and then go back to Japan for the last level because that's where she was all along. Heh. Those bosses telling Maru where to go next (where she's supposedly being hidden) after you beat them were such trolls... :p
So yeah, okay but easy and possibly buggy game. It was fun stuff anyway.
Xbox 360
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Dead or Alive 4 - I'd beaten story mode some time back, but went back to the game recently and now got all the costumes too. Great game! I really like the DoA series, the fighting is better than most 3d fighting games.
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Maru's Mission - This is a fun, but easy and somewhat buggy, platformer. This game is in the Ninja Jajamaru series of games from Jaleco, though it doesn't play much like the other Jajamaru games I have, a Famicom platformer and a Famicom RPG. This is one of the only games in the series to get a US release. It's okay, but yeah, WAY too short and easy. You have a sizable healthbar in this game, can get refills from most enemies, can shoot across the screen, and can jump higher than the screen as well. This game has decently nice graphics, but it's short -- there are only six levels, each made up of two somewhat short sections followed by a boss. Levels are very easy; only the bosses present any challenge, and even there it's only some of them that do. I had the hardest time with Medusa, the boss of the third or fourth level. I probably should have died there, and you get only one life and no continues in this game so that would mean start over, but instead my health started turning into letters -- 0S1, 0HI, things like that. I eventually won with 080 health left, but I don't know what happened there... I've died a few times in the first level and get game over when health hits zero, as you should. I should play again to that bossfight and see if it happens again. Medusa was tricky because the fight is in a small cave and you've got to use a shield to bounce back her shots, instead of just shooting the boss to death like normal.
Otherwise the game was easy. It is reasonably fun, though. It's probably worth getting for a couple of bucks if you like platformers. The game does have some nice visual effects, there's a bit of variety, and more. There are a couple of sections in between levels where you fight sharks underwater, for example. Interestingly, your spears go upwards slower than down, as if there's really gravity! It's kind of cool. Also, you can walk on the ceiling in some cave areas. This consistently happens in many levels, so I have to think it's intentional, but with that other bug I can't be sure. Either way, I like it! Metal Storm is awesome.
Oh, and the dot for the Romania stage looked like it was in Russia, or something. Wasn't even close to Romania. It clearly was supposed to be Romania, though, as you fight Dracula. On that note, the story has you having to rescue your kidnapped girlfriend, of course. Zero points for plot here. There are short conversations with each boss before and after you fight them, though, which adds a bit to the game. You start in Japan, travel to four places elsewhere around the world, and then go back to Japan for the last level because that's where she was all along. Heh. Those bosses telling Maru where to go next (where she's supposedly being hidden) after you beat them were such trolls... :p
So yeah, okay but easy and possibly buggy game. It was fun stuff anyway.
Xbox 360
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Dead or Alive 4 - I'd beaten story mode some time back, but went back to the game recently and now got all the costumes too. Great game! I really like the DoA series, the fighting is better than most 3d fighting games.