Reviews

Wii Virtual Console Reviews

  • Review Mega Man 5 (Wii Virtual Console / NES)

    Can you ever have too much of a good thing?

    While the Mega Man series on NES system didn't change too much from release to release, Capcom did manage to keep coming up with new and more challenging ways to keep platformer fans coming back for more. Mega Man 5 didn't try to re-invent the wheel, but what it did do was bring eight brand new robotic...

  • Review Super Adventure Island II (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Adventure Island: Wonder Boy Edition

    Most people are aware that the original Adventure Island was in fact a slightly modified NES port of Wonder Boy for the Master System. Immediately after this, Wonder Boy became more of an action RPG-like series, while Adventure Island stayed a platforming series. That is, until the release of Adventure Island IV,...

  • Review Chrono Trigger (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    One of the truly greatest RPG experiences ever created

    Soon after Chrono Trigger appeared on the Super Nintendo in 1995, it quickly became regarded as one of the most unique and impressive RPG releases to hit the system. Not only was it developed by a who's who of some of the greatest role-playing designers in the industry, the finished product...

  • Review Super Adventure Island (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Back to basics

    The Adventure Island series started out with an almost exact clone of Wonder Boy, but as Wonder Boy became more of an action RPG rather than an action platformer, Adventure Island sequels stuck with the same formula as the first game and built upon it slightly with each release. In Adventure Island II and the later Adventure Island...

  • Review The Ignition Factor (SNES)

    It burns, but it doesn't crash

    Ask anybody to name some firefighting games and you'll be lucky if they name one. Despite the games about the profession generally being quite good, there's not many of them, and they're not very widely known either. The Ignition Factor is one of only two on the SNES, the other one being the more well-known The...

  • Review Mega Man X (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    X-ceptional

    Spinoffs in popular franchises have delivered historically mixed results over the years, but when Capcom spun the X series off of Mega Man, not only did they create a new line every bit as intense and engaging as the originals, but arguably even more polished and fun to a certain degree. And now, after a rather lengthy wait, Capcom have...

  • Review Adventure Island II (Wii Virtual Console / NES)

    Higgins returns

    The first Adventure Island was nothing more than a copy of Wonder Boy with some redone graphics. While Wonder Boy quickly became more of an Action RPG series, Adventure Island stuck to the platformer formula for a while before eventually following the same path. The general mechanics are still the same. Higgins' girlfriend has been...

  • Review Brawl Brothers (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    A marked improvement

    Jaleco released several beat 'em ups on the SNES, although you may not know that three of them are actually related. Exclusively in Japan, the games Rival Turf!, Brawl Brothers and The Peace Keepers were all part of one series called Rushing Beat, but for their North American releases they were retitled, and the story and...

  • Review Street Racer (Super Nintendo)

    Road to joy?

    On rare occasion, a game so revolutionary will appear that not only will it receive the usual much deserved critical acclaim, it’ll become responsible for the creation of an entirely new genre. Take Super Mario Kart for instance — the title single-handedly responsible for the birth of the console kart racer. Following its huge...

  • Review Final Fantasy III (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Still one of the best RPGs to come out of the 16-bit era

    What can you say about the Final Fantasy series that hasn't already been said a thousand times before? The titles have become one of the best-selling video game series in history and have been largely responsible for making the RPG genre so popular with fans across the globe. After having...

  • Review Bomberman Hero (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)

    Bomberman flies solo

    Apart from the very first game in the series, Bomberman has always been famed for its frantic, fast-paced, and, above all, fun multiplayer modes. Pretty much every single game starring the little guy has featured support for multiple players, with most of the Nintendo outings allowing four or five, and others like Saturn...

  • Review Natsume Championship Wrestling (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Puts up a fight

    It might seem strange that there has not been a single wrestling game on Virtual Console in the West so far, but when you really think about it, it makes sense. Almost every single wrestling title out there features the likenesses of real people, meaning it would take some serious effort and money to rerelease them. Games with...

  • Review S.C.A.T.: Special Cybernetic Attack Team ( / NES)

    G.O.O.D.

    Although it's now of course primarily known for its Harvest Moon games, Natsume developed quite a few unique, entertaining little titles in the past. We've already had a few rereleased on Virtual Console, and rest assured, S.C.A.T. can easily stand with the rest of them. If you're a Sega or Capcom fan, taking a glance at the game's...

  • Review 1942 (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    A relic best left forgotten

    Capcom's 19XX series is quite fondly remembered, for offering some unique and very solid gameplay over the five installments it has had so far. At least, that mostly counts for the later four, but not so much for the first. Although not as bland as Exed Exes, 1942 does not really offer too many novelties other than its...

  • Review Black Tiger (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    Ghosts 'n Goblins 'n Gimmicks

    In 1985, Capcom released the infamous Ghosts 'n Goblins upon the world. Still regarded as one of the most challenging games ever made, it was a smash hit and cost many players many, many quarters as they died again and again. Although it would get a sequel eventually, after two years, Capcom decided to make a similar...

  • Review Exed Exes (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    Extremely excruciating

    We've seen a metric tonne of shoot 'em ups made available on Virtual Console already. With well-known classic games like the Gradius and Star Soldier series as well as lesser-known greats like Cho Aniki and MUSHA among them, there's more than enough good stuff available to satiate the desires of any fan of the genre. Because...

  • Review Ghosts 'n Goblins (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    The original quarter-eating monster returns

    Over two years ago, before Nintendo introduced the Virtual Console Arcade, Capcom released the NES port of Ghosts 'n Goblins on Virtual Console. Arguably the most well-known version of the game out there, it's infamous for being an incredibly challenging and, frequently, totally unfair game. While it would...

  • Review Magical Drop III (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)

    The pinnacle of the series

    With the recent release of Magical Drop II on the Virtual Console, Wii owners got the chance to experience one of the more enjoyable puzzlers available for the Neo Geo system and a game that's become quite popular among fans of the console over the years. Now SNK-Playmore has decided to up the ante and release the game's...

  • Review Mario Party 2 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)

    It's party time!

    The Mario Party series has become quite successful for Nintendo and has brought many gamers and their families together over the years. Nintendo, obviously still concerned over the taxing controls of the original Mario Party which caused more than a few blisters and hand cramps among players, have decided to skip straight to Mario...

  • Review Goemon's Great Adventure (Nintendo 64)

    A spectacular sidescrolling sequel

    When it comes to underrepresented genres on the Nintendo 64, the humble 2D platformer is perhaps the most neglected of all. Despite forming a cornerstone of the 16-bit generation, the genre suffered a spectacular loss of popularity as the N64, Sega Saturn and PlayStation ushered in an exciting new revolution in the...

  • Review Darius Twin (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Double the monotony

    The Darius series has long taken a backseat to some of the more prominent shoot 'em up series, despite featuring some absolutely amazing releases on the various 32-bit game consoles. Darius Twin still features much of the aquatic-themed shooter action of its brethren, but for some reason the game comes off feeling very...

  • Review Super Bonk 2 (Super Nintendo)

    Bonk's most enjoyable adventure yet

    If you've ever owned a TurboGrafx-16 or PC Engine, chances are you're quite familiar with our little caveman friend Bonk. Once these systems began to lose ground to Nintendo's Super Nintendo and Sega's Mega Drive (a.k.a. Genesis), Hudson decided to bring their prehistoric hero to some of the more popular platforms...

  • Review Mickey Mania (Super Nintendo)

    Mickey's been epic for years

    This December many Wii owners will be delving into the world of Disney Epic Mickey, taking a moment to appreciate Mickey's animated past with 2D platforming sections in that game which allow you to play through his classic cartoons. However, 16 years ago UK developer Traveller's Tales pre-empted Warren Spector's game by...

  • Review Super Bonk (Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)

    Bonk moonlights on the Super Nintendo

    After becoming a staple and mascot of sorts after 3 platformer releases on NEC's TurboGrafx-16 console, Bonk was given new life on the Super Nintendo system with the release of Super Bonk. The game went unnoticed for the most part, but it's gone on to become a bit of a cult favourite among Super Nintendo fans...

  • Review SonSon (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    A chimp off the old block

    Looking for an arcade game that resembles a side-scrolling Ice Climber in which you control a monkey that hurls fireballs at angry dinner plates? Then look no further! Capcom has seen it fit to release 1984's SonSon from its trove of arcade treasures, and while this isn't likely to be the game anybody was particularly...

  • Review Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    Commandon't

    General William T. Sherman is popularly credited with coining the phrase "War is Hell", but we don't think he ever got the chance to play Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando. If he had, he surely would have said, "War is kind of dull, and a little crappy." Originally released to arcades in 1985, Wolf of the Battlefield:...

  • Review Karnov's Revenge (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)

    Karnov should stick to side-scrollers

    To say that there were a wealth of Street Fighter 2 clones during its reign of popularity in arcades would be an understatement, but none were quite as blatant as Data East's Karnov's Revenge. In fact, the game was so similar in many respects that it drew the ire of Capcom, not to mention a failed lawsuit...

  • Review The Great Circus Mystery Starring Mickey & Minnie (Super Nintendo)

    Of Mice and Mystery

    Isn’t it strange that the same creatures that carry disease and caused the rapid spread of the Black Death in Europe back in the 1340s eventually became the world’s most iconic and recognizable characters? Clearly Walt Disney was doing something right when he thought up Mickey and Minnie Mouse, and Capcom was doing just as...

  • Review Magical Drop II (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)

    As intense as it is addictive

    We've seen a wealth of "falling object" puzzlers since Tetris hit the scene in the 80's, some better than others. Data East's Magical Drop introduced a few new tricks to introduce a fun puzzler experience into arcades that turned quite a few heads during the time. As a follow-up, the company created two...

  • Review Faxanadu (Virtual Console / NES)

    Zelda II's spiritual successor

    Not many people outside Japan are familiar with the Dragon Slayer series. Created by Nihon Falcom, the great minds behind Ys, the first game enjoyed a good deal of popularity and got many sequels, though unfortunately, almost all of them remained exclusive to Japan. The second Dragon Slayer game, Xanadu, actually...