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Shrek 2 (GBA)
by JaniceGreen
Shrek 2; Gameboy Advance is a chance to make your favourite characters portable and re-live the film from many angles. We follow Shrek's fight for Fiona's father's blessing, and then a race against time to stop Fairy Godmother and Prince Charming in their plans to steal Fiona away from him.
The graphics aren't all that great, ... but they're still pretty remarkable for a game that was brought out in 2004. The sound is also adequate, and never quite cross that 'irritating and annoying' line most games of its time have. Interaction between characters is fluid and easy to keep up with.
The Gameplay;
You can play as up to a group of four characters, and all main characters are involved; Shrek, Puss In Boots, Donkey, Gingey and more! Also, each main character has the chance to play their own 'mini-game'. This involves finding a little leprechaun, such as hitting pumpkins with candy canes or jumping across a flame that constantly grows. There are five 'books' to complete, each containing a number of missions which are a good length, and also have coins to collect. For the more avid gamers, there is also the task of collecting EVERY coin possible, and completing your game 100%. What's more, after a certain amount of missions are completed new 'bonus' mini-games are unlocked, like; Ring Coliseum (21 missions), Floating Floor (31 missions), Cloud Maze (45 missions), Cage Drop (59 missions) and Crash Coliseum (70 missions).
Overall, the experience is highly enjoyable. I bought this game brand new in 2004 and spent quite a long time (being young and impatient) completing it, and yet after returning to it only a few days ago, now a good 7 years older, am still thoroughly entertained.
The only thing I think the game lacked (though I hate to admit such a good-hearted game has a flaw) is using the Fiona character more to its advantage. She is known in the films to have good fighting skills and knowledge in Japanese martial arts; however this is not enhanced as much as it should be in Shrek 2.
Despite this, I feel this game is a win-win for all ages, be you 9 or 99. It is available on Amazon, new, for around Ł20, which is quite cheap for a game nowadays, although maybe just a little steep for what Shrek 2 is. But, its price used varies, and can be bought as cartridge only for around Ł4, which I think is perfectly acceptable and would definitely recommend buying. It's easy to play, and yet challenging just when you're about to get fed up of wandering around defeating meaningless towns-people. Brilliant.
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Metal Slug Advance (GBA)
by Dentolux
As a fan of robotic gastropods I had no hesitation in picking up Metal Slug Advance for the GBA after spotting it at a local store. Once I started up the game I however discovered that the title had nothing to do with shell-less snails. I guess I should have known better, the box did after all lack any slimy mollusc artwork. Never mind ... though because what we get instead is a fine military themed side scrolling shooter for the Nintendo handheld. This "run and gun" baby plays a lot like the classic Contra/Probotector so get ready for a challenging bullet filled adventure not suitable for those of you with snail paced reflexes.
STORY
Metal Slug Advance is part of the popular Metal Slug series which was apparently all the rage in the arcades (you know those places packed with money guzzling cabinets that modern day consoles sadly killed off.) As with many shoot-em-ups the game is rather thin on plot. Apparently the evil General Morden has taken over an island used to train military recruits and it is now up to you to reclaim it. When the game starts you land on the beach, Saving Private Ryan style, rush ahead blasting anything that moves and take it from there. Not much of a story I grant you, but it's still deeper than what you get from the average Michael Bay flick.
PRESENTATION
The first thing that hits you when Metal Slug boots up are the wonderful cartoon graphics. The brightly coloured animated sprites make the game feel action packed and exciting as opposed to extremely violent had more realistic character designs been used (due to the destruction you cause and high body count you inflict.) The graphics are well detailed and fairly big in comparison to the screen size which is a positive, although it may not feel that way whilst playing as it makes you a bigger target for enemy fire. In spite of all the chaos that gets jam packed on screen, thanks to optimal coding by SNK, the fast paced flow of the game is never interrupted by stutter.
Sound wise I would imagine that this portable version of Metal Slug compares favourably to the arcade editions or ports that have appeared on other consoles. The audio is crisp, clear and loud despite the limitations of the Gameboy Advance's miniscule speakers. They've managed to squeeze in loads of satisfying sound effects into the cartridge to go along with the action in the form of gun shots, enemy groans and explosions. The music that plays when playing a level blends well with the fast and furious gameplay as does the military tune you hear when navigating menus before starting a mission. In terms of presentation I have no complaints.
GAMEPLAY
Although not easy to master Metal Slug is one of those games that is easy to get into. All you have to do is move forward and shoot anyone that gets in your way. The d-pad allows you to walk left, right and crouch whilst the A/B buttons fire your gun and allow you to jump. Your humble pistol comes with an infinite number of bullets and you also get a limited number of heavy hitting grenades that can be tossed by hitting the shoulder trigger. It's also possible to stab people by pressing the fire button when close to them although be aware that getting into melee range is normally risky. As a former Contra player one thing that was hard to get used to was the inability to shoot diagonally. You can discharge your firearm straight ahead, up and down (via jumping) but you cannot aim at an angle so positioning yourself in the right place for an attack is very important.
The regular enemies you come across normally go down after being hit once, but enemy vehicles and the gigantic bosses found at the end of each stage take considerably more punishment to take down. To aid you in your cause you can find power-ups by freeing captured hostages who will drop different guns (including shotguns, lasers and rocket launchers.) The special guns have a finite amount of ammo so don't go too crazy with shooting as once the ammunition is up you have to go back to the pistol. Hostages also drop cards which provide various benefits ranging from information on the game's characters to equipable boosts that grant you special abilities or increase the clip of the weapons you find.
Aside from weapon power-ups there are also vehicles to ride in the game. The start of mission five for example allows you to take to the skies in a harrier jet which switches the action from run and gun to a side scrolling shooter (akin to something like R-Type.) It's also possible to ride in the Metal Slugs that give the title its name. In case you are wondering the Metal Slugs are tanks that come equipped with a cannon and rapid fire machine gun. The machine gun can aim in a 360 degree radius, but annoyingly only aims in the direction you are moving. I wish there was a better control scheme for the gun as there are times when you may want to drive forward and hit an enemy who is behind you. Still I suppose there is only so much you can do with the few buttons the GBA has.
SUMMARY
Metal Slug Advance is a great game which should satisfy the itchy trigger finger of gamers anywhere. The fiendish difficulty will have you cursing one moment, but seconds later you will be back on the battlefield trying to get past the spot you died in. It's one of those addictive games that makes you want to have one more go. The game is challenging, but not unfair so if you find yourself stuck keep practising and you will eventually make it. Even if you are not a natural at shooters you'll be surprised to see how well you can do once you start to memorize the spawn location of enemies and attack patterns of the bosses.
Although in games like these you can expect to die plenty of times SNK have tried to reduce the frustration that would normally scare off casual players. For a start you get an energy bar so getting hit once doesn't immediately kill you like in other Metal Slug titles. The levels also have a number of checkpoints so you don't have to start from the very beginning when you die. Additionally the cartridge has a save feature so you are not expected to clear the whole thing in one sitting. Shooting game veterans may scoff at these care bear features, but as someone who spent large portions of the game kissing dirt after getting sniped I welcomed the safeguards they offered.
The only thing preventing me from giving Metal Slug a perfect score are the length of the game and the lack of a multiplayer option. The main game is only five missions long so dedicated players can probably blast through it in a couple of sittings (I managed to get a week's worth of entertainment out of it by playing casually.) The omission of a two player mode is odd as the game has two playable characters to choose from. No co-op play didn't affect me personally, as I don't know anyone else who has the game, but I would imagine it would disappoint other players as these type of games tend to be more fun to play with a friend. Those cons don't however stop me from giving M.S.A a thumbs up... or at least I would if my fingers didn't hurt so much from bashing the fire button (mental note set the options to auto fire next time I play.)
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Classic NES Series: Donkey Kong (GBA)
by Dentolux
Classic NES Series: Donkey Kong is a GBA port of the vintage arcade platformer that originally appeared on the Nintendo Entertainment System back in the eighties. It was a huge hit back in the day which is no surprise as it was created by the legendary Shigeru Miyamoto (the genius behind Mario, Zelda, Starfox and F-Zero.) These days ... Donkey Kong, the game's title character, is one of Nintendo's most popular gaming heroes but in this outing the giant ape is the villain of the piece who has to be thwarted by Jumpman (who these days is better known as Mario.) Gripes who would have known that primate bashing is part of a plumber's job description.
STORY
There's no cut scenes in this game, but judging from the action you can extrapolate that a gorilla named Donkey Kong is running amok. Just like human males, it seems like apes have a thing for pretty girls. Kong has snatched Pauline (who shares more than a passing resemblance to Princess Peach) and it is up to Mario to rescue her by overcoming three levels which tests the player's platforming skills. An ape named Kong snatching a damsel sounds like a King Kong rip off so I wasn't shocked to learn that Universal Studios sued Nintendo over this game. Unfortunately for the film maker that court case didn't go too well as Universal themselves have previously argued that King Kong was a public domain character. My what a waste of legal fees.
PRESENTATION
In terms of graphics and sonics this appears to be a perfect port of the NES original. Everything is left untouched which, given the price of an average Gameboy Advance cartridge, is a disappointment. By all means include the NES version of the game, but why not also offer a modern translation with improved visuals and audio like other remakes do? As far as retro games go the graphics are decent although not up to the standard of NES releases that appeared later in the console's life. My only complaint is the solid black background that makes the levels feel rather gloomy. Donkey Kong is bare bones when it comes to music and sound effects. The noise that Mario's squeaky shoes make whenever he takes a step is what most gamers will remember. It's loud, annoying and a poor choice of footwear for anyone trying to sneak up on a gal abducting monkey.
GAMEPLAY
The objective of the first two levels is to climb up to the top platform where Pauline is being held against her will (women don't seem to like being groped by hairy guys.) The opening stage is fairly easy and has Mario using ladders to ascend the scaffolding Donkey Kong has planted himself on. Some precise jumping is required to leap over the barrels Kong throws down and you have to act fast as a living fireball (complete with cartoon eyes) is "hot" on your heels. In a worse case scenario you can grab Mario's trusty mallet to smash the barrels, but be aware that whilst wielding the weapon you cannot jump or go up the ladders.
Stage two was the toughest one in the game in my opinion. Donkey Kong has given up on barrels and now spends his time hurling bouncing trampolines which are trickier to avoid. The level also features elevators which can be a pain to traverse. When jumping across Mario has a nasty habit of dying if the moving platform he lands on is positioned slightly lower than the area he is jumping off. Thankfully that issue was rectified in future Mario games. I cannot imagine that his career as a platform game superstar would have taken off had he continued to perish whenever toppling from a height of two inches.
At last we reach the final level were Donkey Kong gets taught a lesson. To triumph Mario has to walk over a number of yellow blocks that are holding up the platform Donkey Kong is on. Stepping over a block makes it vanish and once all the blocks are gone the structure collapses which results in Kong plummeting down to the ground head first. Mario then gets to reunite with Pauline for a quickie before the game loops back to the first level. Not too taxing as far as final levels go. I think most players can finish it on their first go providing that they don't get surrounded by the fiery enemies that patrol the area.
SUMMARY
Donkey Kong is fun whilst it lasts, but unfortunately it doesn't last long. You may need a few tries to overcome level two, but once you master it you can complete the whole adventure in a few minutes. This is a short game that is inexplicably missing a level from the arcade version. If you consider the size of other NES titles I am not sure why they had to cut a level from this version of the game. My assessment of Donkey Kong, as with most of the NES Classics Series, is that the core game is fun but not worth the original retail price. If you ask me Nintendo should have released the NES Classics Series as a collection on one cartridge to make it more worthwhile. Do they really expect me to pay full price for a short monkey themed platformer? They must be bananas.
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