Reviews

TurboGrafx-16 Game Reviews

  • Review Cratermaze (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Cratermaze is a comical action game set in a parallel world

    Cratermaze started out life as a Doraemon game but presumably because the franchise wasn't known so well in its native Japan then Hudson thought that changing the sprites might make it make it more attractive to the American audience. So basically you play a little chubby dude who floats...

  • Review Galaga '90 (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Galaga in the 90s

    This game started out life as Galaga ’88 in the arcades and saw a conversion to the Japanese PC Engine under the same name. Understandably in the two years it took to get released in North America the name needed incrementing so it didn't appear too out-dated but the excellent gameplay remains intact. Sequels to classic games...

  • Review Drop Off (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Brave five rounds of haunting, nightmarish dreams

    Drop Off is a paddle and ball game like Atari’s classic, Breakout. There is nothing bad about making a game like Breakout, games like Arkanoid did an excellent job of just that. The innovations in that game made for an addictive game experience. It’s a shame that the same cannot be said of Drop...

  • Review Devil's Crush (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Shoot the ball onto the board with the Devil Shooter

    After the wonderfully wacky Alien Crush you would have thought developers Compile would have struggled to create an even more unhinged pinball simulation - but you’d be wrong! Devil’s Crush improves on its spiritual predecessor in almost every way possible. Firstly, the ball physics –...

  • Review Silent Debuggers (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Oh bugger

    'Silent Debuggers' has to rank as one of the greatest names ever for a videogame. The first few minutes might convince you that this is a great game too. The funky intro music really sets the scene with style along with some nicely drawn anime style scenes. Welcome to the world of the debuggers, a duo of fearless bounty hunters tasked...

  • Review Air Zonk (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    A fun shmup

    Air Zonk is a horizontally scrolling shoot-em-up with the cuteness factor cranked up to 10 in much the same way as Konami's Parodius. Hudson essentially took the Bonk character and renamed him Zonk for this one which makes the game even stranger. Perhaps they felt it wasn't appropriate for a caveman to be jetting around in the sky...

  • Review Dragon Spirit (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    A fantastic world of adventure unfolds in this vertical-scrolling shooter.

    Throughout the history of shooting games we've faced a hell of a lot of alien rebels and futuristic baddies. The 2D shooter seems to lend itself to these situations - but it's always nice to see a company try something fresh and new. The PC Engine/TG-16 blast-a-thon Dragon...

  • Review China Warrior (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    China Warrior is a side-scrolling action game that was released around the same time as the TurboGrafx16 in Japan.

    When the PC Engine was first released in Japan, China Warrior (or 'The Kung Fu' as it was known in the Land of the Rising Sun) was put forward as a showcase for its graphical prowess. Technically the first game on the system (it was...

  • Review Bloody Wolf (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Rambo on the TG16

    Anyone familiar with Ikari Warriors, Mercs or Capcom's Commando will instantly recognise this style of run n' gun action. Yes it's another Rambo clone! That's not such a bad thing - guns, explosions and death is what we all want from our retro games right? The action is viewed from a pseudo overhead / side-on perspective which...

  • Review Dead Moon (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    This side-scrolling shooter includes a total of six scenes spanning areas from Earth to the moon.

    Those naughty aliens! At least this time they had the sense not to try and invade the planet Earth. They are just intent on wrecking the moon instead rather annoyingly! As a solo starfighter pilot it is your job to put an end to this intergalactic...

  • Review World Sports Competition (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Feeling sporty?

    There won't be many gamers out there that remember this one most likely. World Sports Competition is a game based on the Olympic Games, but without the official license. As to be expected the games are represented as a series of mini-games which you and up to four other friends can take part in. All the usual Olympic events are...

  • Review J.J. & Jeff (Wii Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Two bungling detectives on a crazy adventure

    The PC Engine (Japanese name for TurboGrafx-16) has always been a console to attract weird games. If you've ever played Toilet Kids and Photograph Boy then you will know what I mean. This particular game started out life as Kato Chan & Ken Chan in Japan, aside from the characters being changed to...

  • Review Blazing Lazers (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Blazing Lazers is a vertical-scrolling shooter that was praised for surpassing the limitations of the hardware of its time.

    Originally released in Japan as Gunhed, Blazing Lazers was one of the most heavily featured titles in the original TurboGrafx-16 adverts, and with very good reason. Considering the age of the title (it was originally released...

  • Review Ninja Spirit (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Ninja Spirit is a side-scrolling action game that amazed the gaming world with its precision graphics and quality game play.

    While it would be easy for someone to dismiss any ninja action title that doesn't have the name Ninja Gaiden or Shinobi in the title, doing that would cause you to miss a little-known, but outstanding ninja action title...

  • Review Ordyne (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    A colourful shmup

    For those who have never come across this gem in Namco's history Ordyne is a cutesy horizontal scrolling shoot-em-up in the vein of Konami's Paradious. It's a lot more obscure than it ought to be as in fact it was quite a novel game at the time. You're cast as Dr. Yuichiro Tomari, a brilliant and eccentric research scientist who...

  • Review Shockman (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    It's been two years since Arnold and Sonya were made into Shockmen.

    Shockman is actually the second game in the Japanese ‘Schbibinman’ series. The first title never saw the light of day outside of Japan sadly, it was basically a fun platform action game along the same lines as Mega Man. It’s sequel Schbibinman 2 was released in North America...

  • Review Battle Lode Runner (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    This upgraded edition to the famous Lode Runner series includes a 5-player versus mode.

    Lode Runner is strange little title - it's been around for ages, has a cult following but never really seems to break through to the mainstream. This Turbografx 'Battle' edition was produced by Hudsonsoft and graphically is a step up from previous versions, which...

  • Review Bonk's Revenge (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    I love a good bonk!

    Hudson struck gold with Bonk's Adventure, following its success a sequel was inevitable and we couldn't have asked for a much better follow-up than this. In addition to the usual headbutting caveman antics our hero can now swim up waterfalls (?!!) and swing around on poles.  To vary things a little from the former game the...

  • Review Bravoman (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Bravo, jolly good show - NOT!

    It must first be understood that Bravoman isn't to be taken too seriously. The game was created as a parody whose sole purpose was to make light of the many different "superhero" games created over the years. Most Turbo fans will tell you that the game is a semi-sequel to the Keith Courage in Alpha Zones game...

  • Review Dragon's Curse (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Wonder Boy by another name...

    Those of you that used to own a Sega Master System may experience an unshakable feeling of deja vu when playing Dragon's Curse (known as Adventure Island in Japan) - because it's pretty much the exact same game as the Master System Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap! The history of the Wonder Boy franchise is complex and...

  • Review Splatterhouse (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Ah Splatter J!

    Heavily inspired by the Jason Voorhees character from the Friday the 13th films so popular in the 80's this game is a hockey mask wearing, butcher knife wielding gorefest! For those who aren't familiar with the game it is basically a 2D scrolling fighter. Unlike it's contemporaries like Double Dragon (and it's Megadrive sequels) the...

  • Review Double Dungeons (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Double the dungeons, but half of the fun!

    Dungeon crawlers became quite popular back in the early 80's on many of the personal computers like the Commodore 64 and Apple II series of computers. I actually owned an Apple IIc computer and played many of the popular titles like the Wizardry and Bard's Tale series myself. It's probably the main reason...

  • Review Chew Man Fu (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Fried rice and egg rolls are in danger!

    This is no doubt a game that not many will be familiar with. I think an award should go for best named game 'Chew Man Fu'. The Japanese release was called 'Be Ball' so for once the western name is much more fun! Basically this is a puzzle game where you have to push large coloured balls around the screen; the...

  • Review New Adventure Island (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Move over Wonder Boy

    The Wonder Boy and Adventure Island games have seen releases on just about every 8 and 16-bit console you can think of, not to mention a few remakes on some of the more recent systems. Having said that, if you want to play the best the series has to offer, you need only download New Adventure Island on the Wii Virtual Console to...

  • Review Vigilante (TG-16)

    Brave the streets of New York City in this side-scrolling beat-'em-up

    Essentially Vigilante is a modernised version of Irem's classic Kung-Fu Master. It's the usual damsel in distress routine. Your gal Madonna is thrown in the back of the baddies truck and whisked away. It is your job to go through various stages to finally rescue her from her...

  • Review Soldier Blade (TG-16)

    A fun shooter in the Star Soldier tradition

    One thing that can be said for sure is that if you owned a TurboGrafx console you would never be in short supply of shoot-em-up games! For anyone who is a big fan of the genre it is great news that Hudson has brought one of the most respected games of the genre to the Virtual Console. Soldier Blade is a...

  • Review Moto Roader (TG-16)

    The action in this racing game is viewed from above and features rotational controls.

    Every once in awhile you come across a game that just makes you scratch your head and wonder what someone was thinking when they let a game like this actually get released. After the success of RC Pro-Am and Micro Machines on the NES, overhead racers began to gain...

  • Review R-Type (Wii Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    This is R type of game!

    R-Type is widely considered one of, if not the greatest shooters every created. But kick off any conversation with a shooter fan about R-Type and you're likely to get a 10 minute rant on how excruciatingly difficult the game is. Over the years, shooters have come and gone. Some have been good and some have been bad, but in...

  • Review Military Madness (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)

    Strategic lunacy!

    Also known as Nectaris in Japan, this game was a cult hit when it was released in the US many years ago. It wasn't a massive seller but positive reviews made sure it got a decent reception from gamers 'in the know'. For anyone who has played Advance Wars on the GBA you will know exactly what you are getting here. It’s a...

  • Review Alien Crush (TG-16)

    Alien Crush is a fan-favorite pinball game that features a sinister sci-fi theme.

    It's easy to dismiss Alien Crush as "just another video pinball game," but those who do so will be missing out on an outstanding Turbografx-16 game. While it is a pinball game at heart, Alien Crush somehow takes a great Alien theme and manages to craft a...