I-Ninja (PS2, GCN, XBX) Retro Review

My New Year's resolution as a gamer is to get through some of my backlog. It seems I've started quite a bit early over my holiday break. That's just fine and dandy as long as I'm having fun! I-Ninja was one of the top games from the PlayStation 2 era that I wanted to try out, and I finally got the chance. The end result is two parts cool gameplay and one part disappointment.

Who you callin' cute?

I love the sixth generation of gaming consoles. I think one of the main reasons aside from it being the generation when I was in high school is that there was a great range of low, medium, and high budgeted games available to play. There was an immense amount of risks being taken, and the variety of software was like nothing we had every seen. All three consoles, the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Xbox (four if you'd like to count the Dreamcast, too) offered an amazing variety of games.

Since I was in high school, I didn't have the money to look into in a lot of games across the consoles and handhelds I had. However, as I've grown up and prices of sixth generation software has gone down, I've been able to invest money and time into games I had missed out on. One of these such games is a Namco-published game called I-Ninja. It always looked fascinating and fun to me, and while the gameplay really shines, some questionable design choices left me a bit flabbergasted and disappointed.

I-Ninja's story is as basic as basic can get. Upon attempting to rescue his sensei, our protagonist, simply referred to as Ninja, interacts with a special stone. It sets him off in a maddening rage, and he absentmindedly strikes down his sensei in the process. Quick to bounce back from a setback, Ninja's sensei informs him of a nefarious evil that is planning something horrid, and needs to be stopped. Ninja's sensei tags along Ninja's adventure, providing advice, level details, and comic relief. He and Ninja are pretty much the only two characters that get much screen time, as every other character is a one-off appearance that is over as quick as a sneeze. If you want character development, stick to your soaps.. or whatever you kids watch these days on your satellite radio or whatever.

"Yeah, I may look all cute and all, but I can
carve you up like a Christmas turkey!" 

Ninja controls exquisitely, and it's a total blast to play as him. He slices, he dices, he carves a mean steak-- okay, maybe that last one is stretching the truth a little. The point is that Ninja has two sword maneuvers to him, a standard slice and a rotating spin slash. Enemies can quickly bring up their guard, so it's important to not just mash on the attack button and expect to win. Instead, you should circle around their back, or wait for them to initiate the beginning of their attack animation to deal damage.

Besides being a killer ninja, our hero is quite nimble, too. He can perform a traditional double jump, he can twirl his sword in the air to cross small chasms and extend his distance from a jump, and he can throw shurikens and shoot darts out at enemies. Additionally, he's able to swing across gaps by hooking on to specific chain loops, wall jump, wall run, speed up walls, and so much more. Every move is available to Ninja at the beginning of the game aside from special moves like spells that improve attack and heal damage that are called upon by a tap of the direction pad in a given direction.

Okay. You're just showing off now!

Levels in I-Ninja are generally linear point A to point B deals. There is really no reason to scour these levels for secrets, as there are no other collectibles to be found besides the main one, Grades. These serve as each level's goal, having you perform a specific task to acquire them. While many are just "get to the finish", some are more interesting, like riding on top of an explosive barrel, avoiding flame jets, as you bring the barrel to a cage that it can destroy, netting you the Grade.

This level's mission is to reach the goal before this lit fuse
destroys the Grade at the end.

As you earn Grades, you become steps closer to upgrading your belt color, starting at basic colors like green, blue, and red and trying to get all the way to a black belt, though that is optional. When you belt is upgraded, so does your health, as well new doors in levels unlocking. Think of this like Super Mario 64's doors and their Power Star requirements. Instead of, say, 40 Power Stars to open a level door, instead you need a certain belt color or better to enter a level. This means that you can't just play normal levels once and never go back to them. You're forced to redo levels for different challenges.

This is annoying because many of the challenges that are available in levels after they are beaten simple feel like filler, something to artificially extend the longevity of I-Ninja. There are just so many times that I can play the same linear level with the only changed rule is that this time I have to kill so-and-so number of enemies, or this time I have to beat the level before the clock runs out. The latter is obnoxious, because some levels are six minutes long. If you fail at these, guess what-- you just wasted six minutes, especially if you did well the whole level and only messed up one costly jump.

Not only are many repeated trips to levels rather tedious, there are also levels that just grate on the nerves. I'm mostly referring to stealth levels, where you have to tiptoe and stay out of the sight of sentinel robots. One view on Ninja, and they teleport him back to an earlier part of the level. This also undoes any progress that you made after the most recent checkpoint. However, those levels still have a lot of fun to them. A level that doesn't, however, is one in the second hub of the game, where you have to man a turret, and we all know that turret sections are seldom not a slog. This one is a long four wave one, too, where one enemy ship that slips by your defenses means you have to restart it from the very beginning.

Ride the same explosive barrel, but this time...
DO IT QUICKLY! Egad! The creativity!

Aside from typical levels, there are special challenge levels which are unlocked by paying NPCs in each of I-Ninja's five hubs. These task players with quick platforming challenges like grinding on a series of rails or even going full Super Monkey Ball and having you control an orb down an obstacle-laden course. These earn you Grades for finishing them as well. Unfortunately, you needn't seek out many extra Grade opportunities outside of the ones required to beat the game, as the reward for 100%-ing I-Ninja is not worth it whatsoever, a battle arena against multiple enemies. That's it.

The bosses don't fare much better. Instead of playing to the game's strengths, its core gameplay, the slicing, dicing, and platforming of Ninja, the developers thought it'd be wise to throw in completely unrelated gameplay segments and tie them to the boss battles. The first boss is a clunky Punch-Out!! inspired affair, and the second has you piloting a submarine. None of these resemble anything out of what the majority of I-Ninja has you doing, and it's baffling to me that the developers had the awesomeness that is the gameplay, and instead of crafting clever boss battles using the game's traditional action-platforming mechanics, the developers shoehorned in alternate gameplay styles that simply fall flat. I get that games need variety, and that's a box you can check for I-Ninja, but when it's at a detriment to the game, there's a problem here.

One of the hub worlds of I-Ninja.

I-Ninja shows that the sixth generation of game consoles haven't aged as poorly as the one preceding it. Levels are full of interesting and impressive geometry, visual effects like explosions and debris are well done, and characters having a lot of personality to them in their animations and models. The music is a mix of rock, synth, techno, and other related genres. It sounds good, but I'm having trouble recalling anything from it. The voice work is enjoyable with Billy West doing his Stimpy voice as Ninja, which was a shock to the system, as his voice didn't really fit the cute looking Ninja at first. Meanwhile, the sensei delivers sage wisdom, usually mixing up metaphors to a humorous effect.

It's a damn shame that I-Ninja's brilliant gameplay and controls are overshadowed by the bizarre design decisions of the developers. They had a really great thing going with the excellent gameplay, but the need for so much filler, and quite frankly, moments where I felt my time was not being respected, bring the game down considerably. What would otherwise be a fantastic game to recommend wholeheartedly is dashed by inept boss battles that throw aside I-Ninja's stellar action platforming for gimmickry, a camera that doesn't always behave like it should, and repeating the same levels over and over again with slightly different objectives each time. ...Did I mention it's a damn shame yet?

[SPC Says: C-]

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams (GBA, Wii U VC) Retro Review

I like Klonoa. Here's a review of Klonoa: Empire of Dreams. Sometimes less is more with these pre-review spiels, no?

The big-eared feline double jumps onto the small screen

Although it wasn't Klonoa's first foray onto a handheld (the WonderSwan game predates it), Klonoa debuted on the Game Boy Advance with Klonoa: Empire of Dreams, a puzzle platformer with some ingenious design and plenty of brain-busting challenges. It's quite unlike its big brother console iterations, as those games have a higher focus on action rather than puzzles in their platforming. Not only was it a pleasure to see the series reach the Game Boy Advance back in the day, it's a pleasure for gamers and Wii U owners particularly to be able to get to play the series on the Virtual Console in digital form.

Anyone have some Pepto Bismol?
My friend's bloating up in here!

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams is somewhat of a side-story for the Klonoa series. Waking up with no knowledge of how he got there, Klonoa finds himself in the Kingdom of Jillius. Without much in the way of probable cause (unless he went robbing a batch of convenience stores in his sleep), Klonoa is taken into the kingdom castle's throne room by a duo of royal guards. It turns out the Klonoa was dreaming during his sleep, which violated one of King Emperor Jillus's kingdom's laws, and hits him home personally as the Emperor suffers from insomnia.

Instead of locking Klonoa away and tossing the key, the Emperor gives him a task: defeat four turmoil-inducing monsters within the kingdom and his freedom will be honored. Given no real choice, Klonoa and his helpful bud Huepow head off to the first land posthaste.

Empire of Dreams tells its playful tale through still-frame scenes, brightly colored and full of character and charm. The brunt of the story bookends the meat of the game, its platforming and puzzling fun.

Kitty can't swim, so hit the button on the left
to raise and lower this body of water. 

As mentioned in the intro, Klonoa: Empire of Dreams is a mixture of platforming and puzzling. One might call it an adventure rather than a pure platformer, and that would be a fair conclusion to arrive at. Klonoa's trademark Wind Bullet allows him to grab an enemy and either chuck it forward or use it as a clever means to double jump. This gives Klonoa access to higher up areas that he otherwise couldn't reach. With his floppy ears, Klonoa is able to flutter them to hover shortly in the air.

Thanks for the lift, pal!

The goal of each level, or as the series calls them "visions", has Klonoa going through multiple rooms, using enemies and objects in the environment to progress. He's required to collect three star-like medallions in each level, which will then open the door to the level's exit. As an optional side quest, Klonoa can collect all of the gems in a level.

There's a multitude of different objects and obstacles in the various levels that Klonoa comes across. For instance, there's wind channels that will blow Klonoa high up into the air. However, he is unable to cross through them. Instead, he needs to grab a large block that will weigh him down, enabling Klonoa to either stop the flow of air completely or pass through.

I wasn''t going to play this level,
but then I "caved." Phil: master of bad puns.

There's also platforms that act like a balance beam, albeit seemingly unconnected to the eye. When pressure is put on one, the other rises. There's enemies that serve as time bombs, counting down as soon as Klonoa picks one up. Numerous puzzles and the progress that comes from solving them revolve around carefully situating various objects to allow a path for Klonoa to get the ticking time bomb enemy to its destination. In this case, a destructible block that is otherwise impenetrable.

Five lands make up Empire of Dreams, and each possesses around eight levels each, not including the ending boss fight that caps off each land. Not all stages are pure puzzle platforming. Two bonus levels appear in each land, one of which being a fast-paced hoverboard level and the other being an auto-scrolling pure-platforming affair. Both of these bonus levels are not needed to complete to beat the game, but they do offer a heavy twitch-based type of platforming that one doesn't get through the typical puzzle-based levels. Also, they are great to boost the longevity of the game!

This hoverboard would make
Marty McFly proud!

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams is the type of game that experts in the genre might not find much trouble with (though later levels do pose quite the challenge truth be told), but it's one that everyone else can not only engage their minds with but also their thumbs. As someone who would label himself as the type of gamer that's been around the block a few dozen times, Empire of Dreams was an engaging romp that plays like a dream and is designed well. It might not be as ambitious as the console entries due to obvious technical limitations, but that doesn't stop Klonoa's debut on the Game Boy Advance from being one worth one's time.

[SPC Says: 8.0/10]

Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (PS1, PSN) Retro Review

Time for a review of the retro variety with Klonoa's debut! Phil previously reviewed the Wii remake of Klonoa: Door to Phantomile in 2009 with his early review. A handful of years later, and he's at it again. This time Phil is reviewing the original game that hit the PlayStation One back in 1998. Is it better or worse than the Wii-make? Let's find out.

Is Klonoa's Game Good?

Well, Do His Ears Hang Low?

Poor Klonoa. It seems you're always overlooked by the gaming masses. It's a shame, too, as your games are seldom not an entertaining time. In 1998, the floppy eared feline known as Klonoa debuted in the gaming world on the original PlayStation with Klonoa: Door to Phantomile. Since then, Klonoa has seen various sequels and spinoffs, as well as a Wii remake of his first game. Is the Door to Phantomile one you should still want to open, even after all of these years?

"My precious..."

Klonoa and his best friend Huepow, an animated water bubble that rests inside Klonoa's ring, live in Phantomile. One day, a spaceship crashes into a mountain. Klonoa and Huepow immediately investigate, eventually getting involved in a quarrel with Gladius, a nightmare spirit who wants nothing more than total destruction. While there is the typical good vs. evil story trope here, there's also some heartfelt and even somber moments in Door to Phantomile that makes for a story that stays with you after the Klonoa's quest is complete. Outside a few full-motion video clips, the story is mainly told through in-game scenes, where the characters speak in a fictional Phantomile language while text boxes display their words. All of these scenes can be skipped through if one feels the need.

Maybe someone hit the rewind button...

There's plenty of interesting ideas that separates Klonoa: Door to Phantomile from the rest of the PlayStation era platforming pack. For one, levels are modeled in 3D, but Klonoa and other characters move along a 2D plane. This 2-1/2D (or if you're more computer literate, 2.5D) gameplay means you'll be running around objects; get greeted by split paths, each meandering their own ways; and having multiple points where paths intersect, allowing you to access new areas. You can even interact with objects in the background and foreground, opening up some clever puzzles and secrets. It feels like a 3D world, yet you're running along a 2D plane the entire time.

Level paths curve, twist, and cross
one another to impressive effect.

The other concept that shows immense novelty is Klonoa's Wind Bullet. With a shot of the Wind Bullet, a gust of wind can pick up nearby enemies. These then are held above Klonoa's head. Through jumping up into the air and then pressing the jump button again, you can make Klonoa use the enemy as a means to initiate a double jump. This allows Klonoa to access otherwise impossible to reach platforms. Seeing as this move also throws the enemy downward, you can clear out enemies from above mid double jump.

Enemies nabbed by the Wind Bullet
will inflate up like a balloon.

Aside from using enemies for extra height, Klonoa can chuck enemies into other foes and objects. There's times where you will have to chuck an enemy into the background to activate a switch or destroy a piece of scenery to reveal a secret. This element of gameplay remains unique and very much innovative.

Such secrets include six Phantomillians that have been captured inside bubbles that are strewn about the game's levels, usually in hazardous areas or ones that are the road less traveled. Not only does rescuing all 72 Phantomillians unlock an extra level to check out, but Klonoa: Door to Phantomile possesses 12 relatively lengthy levels for its story. Still, the game won't last players for too long. Simply breezing through the game (although it does contain some challenge here and there) offers players but three or four hours of game time. However, Door to Phantomile is one of those titles that just begs to be played over and over again. It's the perfect length for that, right alongside Super Mario Bros. 3, Mega Man 2, and Sonic the Hedgehog, for instance.

Are you... Are you hovering over
the walkway? Based Klonoa!

Each second level of Door to Phantomile, or as the game refers to each as a vision, concludes with a boss fight. Most take place in a circular arena of some sort, and utilize the Wind Bullet mechanic in a lot of ingenious ways. One boss requires you to launch Klonoa up in the air with a spring and then toss an enemy into the boss's open mouth to damage it. Another takes place on a swinging log that moves backward and forward. When the log sways close to the player, that's Klonoa's cue to grab an enemy. When the log sways towards the boss, Klonoa needs to chuck the enemy forward into one of the creature's colored weak points.

If this boss and Klonoa kept circling the
arena, Yakety Sax would be a good song choice.

Obviously comparing Klonoa's first outing to games of today's standards would not be fair, so let's make note of the game's graphics compared to its contemporaries. Many PS1 era games that had 3D modeling oftentimes give me headaches after extended play sessions. However, Door to Phantomile isn't one of those games. While backgrounds, environments, and bosses are polygonal, other characters such as Klonoa and enemies are 2D sprites. This creates a lovely visual style that holds up pretty well. Door to Phantomile exudes charm from every orifice. Furthermore, the music of Door to Phantomile is memorable, offering many melodies and tunes that can easily be hummed as you play along. The gibberish voice acting applied to each character's speech is a cute touch, but when Klonoa screams, it can be a bit grating to the ears.

Klonoa: Door to Phantomile is a PlayStation One classic that any platformer fan should not go without. It's charming, it plays great, it features a gameplay mechanic that is still novel to this day, and it welcomes you to play through it multiple times every now and then. Although the gaming world and even Namco Bandai have turned their collective back on the character, I'm still enamored by that long-eared cat with the power of the wind. Me-wow! ...Forget I just said that.

[SPC Says: 8.5/10]

Pac 'n Roll (DS) Retro Review

Pac-Man is a character that has seen some mileage. While he's nowhere near as popular as in his arcade days, we at SuperPhillip Central still have fond memories of the old dot-muncher. We recently looked through our Nintendo DS archives and found this intriguing title featuring Namco's mascot, Pac 'n Roll. This might not be the most interesting or recent game out there, but for our sake, just roll with it.

Let the Good Times Roll

Within the first year of the Nintendo DS' launch, Namco had two unique Pac-Man titles for the system already released. The first was a proof of concept turned game in Pac-Pix, while the other, the subject of this review, was Pac 'n Roll, a game that fans of Super Monkey Ball or Marble Madness will find a lot to love about. As for everyone else, Pac 'n Roll will allow its players to have a ball.

The story of Pac 'n Roll has Pac-Man and his friends turned into spheres by a galactic ghost with a craving for rock 'n roll, Golvis. Capturing every Pac-Person besides Pac-Man, our hero is helped by a fairy that watches over Pac-Land to escape from Golvis' grip, allowing him to come with a plan to rescue his friends and make Golvis' plan end on a sour note.

Pac 'n Roll is pac-ked with intriguing level ideas and stage concepts. Pac-Man will be rolling down hills, navigating moving platforms, bouncing up with the help of jump pads, riding down chutes and passageways, negotiating hairpin turns, catching a ride on lifts, carefully adjusting Pac-Man's weight as he rolls along a seesaw-like platform, avoiding enemies and obstacles, and much more.

Each level tasks Pac-Man with gobbling up a certain number of dots. These dots open up gates that block the player's progress until they have gathered enough dots to pass through. Although it is not mandatory to nab all of the dots in a given level, doing so will reward the player with special challenge stages (some funner and less frustrating than others) as well as diamond gems to expand the replay value of the game. There's also hidden gems in each level to find, opening up more in the way of levels.

Challenge comes in the form of hazards, both environmental and from enemies. Obviously, falling off a level is a hazard onto itself, but there's also enemies to worry about, each taking off a sliver of Pac-Man's health when tangled up by them. These enemies are the tried and true ghosts that Pac-Man knows all too well. However, in Pac 'n Roll, once these ghosts have been eaten, through consuming a power pellet, they don't reappear until you leave the level. The only exception to that rule is with the game's boss battles, each having you take on Golvis in a different venue. These battles require Pac-Man to eat three power pellets to make Golvis vulnerable, allowing our hero to run into the boss and damage him. This takes three times for every battle save for the final encounter.

Pac-Man has the ability to change costumes through rolling over different varieties of chocolate, thus giving him some headgear to wear. For example, the knight helmet makes Pac strong and slow, making him sink in water like a brick and not be pushed around by strong winds. Conversely, the winged Pac-Man costume, having Pac don a Robin Hood-esque cap, allows Pac to move around levels much faster than normal, skim across water, and glide. However, strong winds blow Pac-Man around like a piece of paper in a tornado. Rolling over the right transformation chocolate depending on the upcoming dangers is paramount to progressing in Pac 'n Roll.

Pac 'n Roll features a unique control scheme that is not only creative but quite intuitive, too. The top screen displays the game world while the bottom shows a closeup version of Pac-Man. Through swipes of the touch screen over the enlarged ghost devour-er, you control which direction Pac-Man rolls through the game's levels. Faster swipes mean a faster Pac-Man. Sure, all of this could be done with a trackball, but what kind of handheld system these days would have such a device?

Sometimes Pac will need to get up steep inclines or bust through blocks. By holding the stylus on one edge of the touch screen and then quickly drawing a line to the opposite edge, Pac-Man will perform a speedy charged boost in the direction of the swipe. All this combined with the ability to manually rotate the camera with the directional pad, and moving Pac-Man around the game's levels is a usually simple task.

Physics play an important part in Pac 'n Roll, and thankfully the physics at work in Pac-Man's world are very much serviceable and work like one would expect them to. Slopes will push Pac-Man down them if he stays idle on them, ramps will allow Pac-Man to catch some air, and so forth. This makes for a game that is very enjoyable to play, offering quasi-realistic physics and hazards to keep things fresh.

The biggest issue with Pac 'n Roll is that the main story can be completed in less than three hours. That's going through all six worlds, but to be fair, the sixth is simply a series of encounters against Golvis. Collecting gems and dots on every level opens challenge levels to try to overcome, but nowadays a game so short would not pass in the retail space. Pac 'n Roll feels perfectly suited as a downloadable game rather than a full retail release.

Pac 'n Roll looks relatively nice as a first-year Nintendo DS release. The 3D engine used works wonderfully. The frame-rate is always locked at a steady 30 FPS, the camera is far enough away from the action that textures aren't viewed as heavily pixelated. As for sound, the music matches each world, but unfortunately, most of it is forgettable, even though all of a world's levels play the same tune. It would have been nice to have more variety. The gibberish heard in the still-frame scenes from characters is cute at first, but it eventually does get grating.

For those looking for a fun way to pass the time and those that enjoy titles like Super Monkey Ball, Marble Madness, or Kororinpa: Marble Mania, Pac 'n Roll seems like an obvious pick to add to one's DS collection. It works on Nintendo 3DS systems, after all. Whether you want to play in short bursts, which is possible as the game saves after every level, or long, extended gaming sessions, Pac 'n Roll is a great demo turned full game that makes great use of the Nintendo DS's unique hardware. The game runs (or is it rolls?) a bit on the short side, but the experience is entertaining enough to play through multiple times.

[SPC Says: 7.0/10]

Star Fox: Assault (GCN) Retro Review

Our first review for the last month of 2013 is one of the retro variety. There is no rhyme or reason as to why we are picking now as the time to talk about Star Fox: Assault. Perhaps we're just itching for a new installment like many of you are. Regardless, here is our review of Star Fox: Assault for the Nintendo GameCube.

What does the Star Fox say? "Report in."

Star Fox: Assault features ten unique missions spread across the Lylat System. Unlike Star Fox 64, the missions are played in a linear structure, with no alternate methods to complete missions to take alternate paths to the final showdown. This time around the threat to the entire Lylat System comes from an insect-like menace known as the Aparoids, wishing to occupy the entire universe through assimilation of each and every planet and star around. Team Star Fox, now back together (with a change in lineup, as Peppy is now behind the scenes and Krystal is now a member), heed General Pepper and Corneria's cries for help.

Space combat? All right!

Fans who were disappointed that Star Fox Adventures did not have much in the way of the famous on-rails sections the series is known for might be in for a rude awakening with Assault. Of the ten missions mentioned, only three of them are played in the traditional on-rails formula that made the series so loved to begin with. There's still charging up your shot to home in on a group of bogeys, taking them all out in one blow for bonus points, plus there's points given for defeating a whole squadron of enemies, too. These sections of the game are the most chaotic, and that's in a good way. Flying through space with a gigantic fleet of ships surrounding you, bobbing and weaving through asteroids, and saving your squadmates are all actions that make these classic sections feel so awesome and are the best part of Star Fox: Assault.

Now we're flying high in Fortuna?
That's cool, too!

Instead, however, the majority of what players experience is several missions within a large arena, many of which allow Fox to alternate between being on-foot, being in a Landmaster, and/or being in an Arwing. The switching between vehicles is seamless, offering a quick change without interrupting a mission's flow. While the on-rails levels feel superbly polished and well done, the types of missions that take place mostly, if not entirely, on the ground feel more shoddily thrown together. That said, it was very gutsy of Namco to take the series away from its airborne roots and force the series to try something remarkably different. Though these aforementioned ground sections aren't the most graceful, their appearance do liven the overall package of Star Fox: Assault considerably.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. What is
this bait-and-switch?

Playing as Fox in the ground missions turns Assault into a third-person shooter. In wide open areas it's quite easy to mow enemies down, switching between weapons with nudges of the C-stick left and right, and creating a string of combos that boost your score as long as you keep killing foes without the score gauge emptying. More powerful ground enemies must be dealt with with either a charged up blaster shot or heavy fire, as a blaster shot or machine gun rally alone won't even make a dent through their shields.

Regardless, the problem with these ground missions is that even with three different control methods, aiming, especially at faraway targets is rather bothersome. There isn't a feeling of tightness in the aiming controls, making Fox susceptible to enemy attacks while you're trying to get a respectable shot in. Sure, Fox can sidestep enemy fire, but aiming is already difficult without moving. Just imagine how cumbersome it can be while on the move! Furthermore, it's all too easy to fall off structures-- sometimes even the levels themselves-- while dodging attacks. Despite the issues with the ground combat and missions, I still found myself enjoying them overall.

Seriously, you guys, where's my on-rails action?

One issue that is brought about through technical limitations stems from draw distance issues. This is most noticeable when one of your fellow Star Fox crew members is in desperate need of help due to a bogey being on their tail. (And trust me-- this will happen a lot, and annoyingly so.) Since the enemy that is on top of your troubled teammate won't come into view until Fox is close enough to the target. This means going far across a given map to rescue your fellow flyer and having multiple homing shots miss their mark because the target disappeared due to draw-in issues.

This is sort of more like it....

Another issue with Assault is its length. Star Fox games were never known for their long duration, but the problem with Star Fox: Assault is that, unlike other games in the series, there are no branching paths. As stated, you just go through the ten missions and then the game is over. This takes but a few hours, if even. Still, each mission can be played in one of three difficulties, and medals can be earned for hitting certain scores. An unlockable version of the arcade classic Xevious can be enjoyed through getting all of the silver medals, for instance. Outside of that, there are five hidden flags in each mission, requiring some ingenuity and patience to uncover.

For those looking for any semblance of true longevity in their Star Fox games, you should look towards the multiplayer mode. As this is a GameCube title not called Phantasy Star Online something, Assault's multiplayer is local only, with no bots available. Still, what there is of the multiplayer is quite fun, giving players both simple and complex maps to decimate up to three other players in. Maps are unlocked through story progression as well as through playing set amounts of battles. The latter is a bit annoying, as only players who will delve into Star Fox: Assault's multiplayer for the long haul will most likely see every unlockable there is in this mode. The multiplayer offers flight and/or ground-based combat with a wealth of options.

Okay. Well, I can understand the need for
ground combat in multiplayer.

With all of the havoc and carnage that happens in the various missions of Assault, it's amazing that the frame-rate holds up so consistently. It's just unfortunate that Star Fox: Assault does not look better graphically than it does, as Star Fox Adventures looks more impressive and that game was older than Assault by four years. When it comes to sound, some of the voice acting comes off as major cheese, and not in a good way like Star Fox 64. Still, the majority of the voice work is absolutely serviceable and not very grating overall. The soundtrack is simply put-- glorious. It features plenty of classic Star Fox themes as well as plenty of new compositions, most of which are performed by a full orchestra. It was music (and awesomeness) to my ears.

This is technically on-rails...
Oh, you teases, Namco.

As a game in general, Star Fox: Assault is an enjoyable experience. As a Star Fox game, Assault features exceptional flight-based missions and passable but disappointing ground missions. All in all it's a shot that just missed its mark. If it were a bogey taking aim at the Star Fox crew, it wouldn't have even put Slippy Toad out of commission. Still, that notwithstanding, you can do (and Namco could have done) a lot worse than Star Fox: Assault.

[SPC Says: 8.0/10]

Pac-Man World 2 (PS2, GCN, XBX) Retro Review

Phil here. I got excited with the announcement of the Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures, as I have always enjoyed Namco's Pac-Man. It made me want to try out a previous Pac-Man platformer with Pac-Man World 2. Boy, was that a mistake. Here's my retro review of the game.

"Pac" It Up, Boys. We're Done Here.

The PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Xbox generation brought with it an astonishing amount of platformers, both 2D and 3D. For someone like me, it was one of the best generations because of that. Though popular in the 80's, Pac-Man never really gained the same amount of popularity and as much of a legacy that Mario, Sonic, Mega Man, among other mascots have acquired. Pac-Man never truly went away, but his games weren't the big events that his contemporaries had. Namco wasn't willing to put the yellow sphere with arms and legs to rest as he appeared in non-maze game form with multiple platformers. Pac-Man World 2 is but one of these, and it's one that will make you want to play the NES port of Pac-Man. It's pretty bad.

Pac-Man World 2 starts off with a batch of Pac-Man's rivals, the ghosts, picking cleaning the Magical Golden Fruit that rests on an ancient tree in the center of Pac-Village. Little do they know that by doing this, they have awakened a diabolical evil that slumbered below. Pac-Man once again enters the fray to visit six different worlds to beat up the boss holding onto each of the six Magical Golden Fruit.

The worlds in Pac-Man World 2 for Pac-Man to explore are highly varied, though they rely greatly on established level tropes. These range from forests to icy mountains to plundering the depths of the ocean. Each world has about five or so levels to complete in them, including a brain-dead boss battle. I say this as the way to beat the boss of each world is literally shown to you via dialogue. I know the game is meant for kids, but kids aren't that stupid nowadays, are they?

If you can imagine this game looking any worse,

please do. These are bullshots.

Each main level is laid out in a rather linear way. You must get from Point A to Point B without dying by losing all your health or falling down a pit. There are numerous fruit, gold tokens, and Pac-Dots to collect, all optional, but help get you towards that prestigious 100% completion percentage for each level. The only drawback here-- and it's a big one-- is that if you die, all of what you collected needs to be gathered again since your last checkpoint. The issue here is that the placement of checkpoints is not consistent. You might have upwards of five minutes to redo and collect everything all over again, and there's no guarantee you'll succeed as the levels can be quite challenging.

With a Power Pellet, Pac-Man is unstoppable

against these otherwise impenetrable foes.

However, it's not that the level design is what makes Pac-Man World 2 challenging. No, instead it is because Pac-Man controls as tightly as a pair of 2XL pants on a 98 lbs. girl. That is to say, not well at all. You never truly feel in control of Pac-Man in a genre where tight controls are paramount for a precision jumping-based platformer.

The blue B-doings will bounce Pac-Man 

high into the air, perfect for crossing large distances.

Then there's the camera, which does everything in its power to get caught on geometry and make awkward angles that make carefully leaping across chasm to chasm an effort in irritation. Sure, you can use the right stick to try to fight with the camera, but it will be a futile battle as the camera always seems to do what it wants to do.

To those wonder if there's any resemblance of the old Pac-Man arcade games to be found in Pac-Man World 2, there actually are. In every non-boss level there are hidden Galaxians that will transport Pac-Man into Maze Mode, where you get three lives to collect all Pac-Dots while avoiding the four ghosts pursuing you. These are honestly a good bit of fun, and it's a shame that more of Pac-Man World 2 couldn't play like this, as the 3D platforming just doesn't work well and feels incredibly unpolished.

This second installment of the Pac-Man World series feels pretty cheap in the presentation department. Cut-scenes are as grainy as a bowl of a General Mills cereal, there's a good amount of slowdown, horrible camera angles, and eye-ruining jagged graphics. The only saving grace of Pac-Man World 2's presentation is the music, which consists of some rather catchy tunes. However, even then, most the levels of a given world are just the same melody with different instruments, so there is repetition to be had.

Lava or leave it.

Yes, these bad puns are free.

Pac-Man World 2 is an abysmal 3D platformer that struggles to keep the player entertained for very long before they enter a bout of immense frustration. The controls are too sloppy for the careful platforming Pac-Man World 2's levels require, the camera might as well be controlled by the ghosts as it is just another enemy to contend with, and the overall presentation just feels incredibly cheap. What is disappointing and aggravating is that there was a lot here that could have made for a good game had these aforementioned issues been addressed and/or given more time to stew in the proverbial pot. As it stands now, Pac-Man World 2 is one Pac-attack that you can gladly skip out on.

[SPC Says: 4.0/10]