Arcade Vertically Scrolling Shoot 'Em Up Review: Meta Fox

Meta Fox is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up arcade game developed by Seta and distributed by International Video Consumer Systems and Romstar.

This was the first fully working arcade cabinet I ever owned, way back in 2000 when I was 20. It is the reason that I used the name MetaFox on the internet for years. I still use that name, as a matter of fact, on projects for which I volunteer, such as in my work on the ScummVM wiki. That's why it took me a while to even consider to review this one. I've decided to do so now, as I'm fully confident that I can separate the game itself from my intimate history with the name in order to do as close to an unbiased review as possible.

Meta Fox is one of several vertically scrolling shooters in the vein of Capcom's 19XX series. Up to to players simultaneously take control of a plane flying over terrain or water. Planes will attack and ground weapons will also fire up at the red and blue player planes.

The controls are simple. Each player has an eight-way joystick to control the vertical and horizontal movement of their respective airplane. There are just two buttons. One fires bullets, which are unlimited. The other button fires a limited number of bombs. The bombs are especially useful as they will clear all enemies from the entire current screen.

There are upgrades that can be grabbed from some defeated enemies. P powerups will upgrade the primary weapon by increasing its power, the rate of fire, and the spread of the bullets fired in order to hit multiple enemies at once. There are also upgrades which allow players to carry and release more screen clearing bombs.

The graphics are what you'd expect from a game of its genre. They cover desert terrain, large swaths of water, aircraft carriers, and enemy targets like bases, tanks, and trucks. The bullet animations get bigger and brighter as the upgrades are gained, which really help to sell the bombastic presentation when paired with the sound.

Speaking of sound, this is the part that really elevates the game over many of its competitors. Everything is big and loud by design. The firing and explosion sounds are intense. The collect sound has a unique quality that keeps it noticeable while the soundtrack is playing. The soundtrack is where the game shines. The main song loop has a nice 1980s punk rock vibe that is just a blast to listen to. It gives a dash of adrenaline when it starts at the beginning of each stage. The really unique part is the song that plays during the final boss fight and the ending credits. It's a punk rock song complete with vocals from a female singer that has a voice reminiscent of Joan Jett or Nancy Wilson from Heart. 

Meta Fox is a fun vertically scrolling shooter. It isn't a classic of the genre as it is derivative of games such as Capcom's much more well known 19XX series with its graphics, gameplay, and powerups. The thing that takes it beyond mere clone territory, however, is its sound design. The sound effects are big and bombastic, especially paired with the fantastic punk rock soundtrack. It's that aspect alone that might entice you to give this one a try if you ever manage to come across it.

Final Verdict:

3½ out of 5

Action Game Review: Spider-Man

Spider-Man was an action game by Parker Brothers that was developed by one of the earliest female video game designers, Laura Nikolich. It was the first video game based on a Marvel Comics character and it was the first Spider-Man video game.

  
Spider-Man scales a building while defusing bombs set by his iconic enemy, the Green Goblin. The limitations of the Atari 2600 actually worked in favor for the game, as he doesn't climb up the wall but uses his webs to swing vertically and diagonally. This gives it an authentic Spider-Man feel and differentiates it from Nichibutsu's Crazy Climber, which was still fresh in the mind of gamers as it had only been released two years earlier.

However, its age and console limitations also limit the amount of sound produced. There is the whoosh of the web, clacking of the Green Goblin's glider, and explosion from the bombs. Beyond that, there is a neat chiptune track that plays at the start of the game. The limited sound doesn't really hinder the game that much, all things considered, as it's a classic arcade formula that works for the time period of the game's release.

Spidey has to avoid criminals that move randomly through the building, can be seen in windows, and can be captured. He can also capture them upon contact. There's an additional challenge due to the fact that the criminals in the window will cut Spider-Man's web if they come into contact with it. However, the web slinger can prevent himself from losing a life by slinging a web before he falls too far down the screen.

As Spider-Man gets higher up the building, he can defuse bombs set by the Green Goblin. The bombs are black until they change to red when they are about to explode. If Spidey defuses a red bomb in time to prevent its explosion, he will gain more points than the bombs that remain black. 

Just as he doesn't have to capture the criminals in the windows, he also can just avoid the exploding bombs. However, capturing criminals and defusing bombs will refill Spider-Man's web fluid. If this fluid runs out, Spidey will fall off the building and lose a life. The amount of web fluid left in his web shooters can be seen via a red indicator bar at the lower right of the screen.

At the top of the building, Spider-Man has to stop Green Goblin's plan. He has set several small bombs as well as a large super bomb. Spider-Man has to stop a set number of enemies and bombs until the super bomb has its fuse lit. Once Spider-Man successfully avoids the Green Goblin and defuses his super bomb, the level ends. 

Because it is a game from the early 1980s, the point of the game is to earn as many points as possible, as it is designed like an arcade game. Once the Green Goblin is defeated, Spider-Man will have to climb a building with faster enemies and bombs. The levels continue until Spider-Man loses all his life.

Spider-Man is a solid first outing for Marvel's resident web head. The arcade-style gameplay is fun and challenging, and the use of his webs and web fluid is well thought out and works perfectly in sync with the source material. There are limited sound effects and music, as the latter is restricted to the beginning of each level. It's not a classic, but it's not a dud. You can still a fun time playing it for a quick game fix today. That's the real test of time, and Spidey definitely passes the bar. 'Nuff said!

Final Verdict:

3½ out of 5

Arcade Platform Game Review: Popeye

Valentine's Day is here, so what better arcade game to celebrate the day than Popeye? It is the arcade game that Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto was finally able to create after the plans to make a game based on the Popeye series earlier fell apart and was reworked into Donkey Kong. The Popeye we did receive doesn't quite reach the heights of Mario's premiere, but does have its own charm.

The graphics capture the look of the characters quite well. The sprites are large and expressive, and the animation is well done. This is especially true of the animation of Bluto reaching under a platform to try to knock Popeye into the water. That's still the image that immediately pops into my head decades after the game was released. It's just that well animated.

Like the Popeye comics and shorts that inspired it, Popeye tries to earn the love of Olive Oyl while avoiding the aggression of the competitor for Olive's heart, Bluto. Olive Oyl throws out hearts, and Popeye catches them. When the hearts completely fill up the Popeye-tagged house at the top of the playing field, the game will go to the next level. Other levels swap out the hearts for other items such as musical notes, and letters spelling out the word help.

There are three unique levels that repeat at higher difficulties as the game goes on. These include the docks, a village, and a pirate ship. These three levels will include some of the secondary characters from Popeye media including Swee-Pea, Wimpy, and the Sea Hag. It really is a visual treat for fans of the Popeye franchise.

Popeye has several ways to fight back against Bluto. He can punch an object that will drop on top of his nemesis. The most fitting way to fight back is using the spinach cans that appear on the side of the platform, much like the hammers in Donkey Kong. When Popeye punches a spinach can, the famous Popeye the Sailor Man music will play in chiptune format, Popeye will turn red, and Bluto will run away. When Popeye connects his fist with Bluto, the latter will bounce around the screen and fall into the water.

Other than the theme song, there is a song that plays over each level. It is a simple, innocuous tune that doesn't become annoying when it plays on repeat. There is also a small four or five note tune that plays when Popeye collects an item that Olive is dropping. Beyond the music, there are also sound effects including a deep sound when Bluto jumps, a popping sound that plays when Popeye hits objects with his usual non-Bluto obliterating punch, a sweeping sound when Bluto is trying to knock Popeye in the water, and a clip clop sound for Popeye's steps.

Popeye is a cute little arcade game that didn't reach the classic status of those starring Mario and Donkey Kong. Even though it isn't as well known as its arcade brethren, Popeye is still a fun little game with its own charms. The large detailed sprite work matches the look of the characters well, famous characters from the Popeye series make cameo appearances, the classic theme song is translated to chiptune format well, and the new music and sound effects work well alongside the other elements of the game presentation. If you get a chance to play it, chances are you will find the game fun for a play or two.

Final Verdict:
4 out of 5

Action Platform Game Review: Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti

It's Friday the 13th, so what better video game to review than one that is part of a series inspired by the film named today's date. Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti is a parody of Namco's 1988 beat 'em up inspired by American slasher horror films, Splatterhouse. It took the bloody concept to an overly cute level and somehow, against all odds, made it work.

Wanpaku Graffiti was developed for the Family Computer as a spoof of the original Splatterhouse. It was developed by Now Production, who would go on to work on the series proper for the remaining two games of the classic trilogy. The game has an anime style vibe to it, with crazy situations and characters that are presented in a cute chibi, or super deformed, style.

The plot is kept simple, as it should be for a game inspired by 1980s slasher films. The game's hero is Rick, an axe-wielding man wearing a hockey mask in the same vein as Jason Voorhies from the Friday the 13th film series. A giant living jack-o-lantern known as the Pumpkin King picks up Rick's girlfriend Jennifer off the ground and floats away with her, which sets the game in motion as Rick follows after her.

While Splatterhouse was a beat 'em up game, Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti is an action platform game. Rick jumps across the terrain and slashes at cute enemies like tiny zombies or vampires with his giant axe. He can also pick up shotguns with limited ammunition at various parts of the game. After Rick defeats more enemies, his maximum health will increase, giving him a better chance of getting Jen back. There is a counter at the top of the screen which lets Rick know how many enemies he has to eliminate in order to improve his health.

As a game for the Family Computer, there is quite a bit of chiptune music available. The sound hardware has a timeless sound to it, and some great music has come out of Nintendo's venerable 8-bit machine when given to talented composers. That is certainly the case here, as Anna Puruna and Masakatsu Maekawa have created some fun music that fits the silly vibe of the game very well. The usual hit, slash, and lighting effects produced by Famicom games of that era are also present, and go a long way to make the game an entertaining experience.

Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti is an example of a game that sounded like a weird idea on paper, but actually turned out to be fantastic in practice. Cute graphics and a slasher horror-inspired game should not mix, but I'm happy to say that they do work extremely well. The music and sound effects also add to the experience, as does the fun level design. As a Famicom game from the 1980s, there is a password system in place rather than a proper save system that would have required battery-backed RAM back in the day. Luckily, the game has been re-released through emulation on the first Namco Museum Archives compilation, so save states are now available. Even better, now is the best time to play the game as the re-release gave the game its first English localization, which let this game make its way out of Japan officially for the first time.

Final Verdict:

4 out of 4

Arcade Maze Game Review: Pac-Mania

Pac-Mania was the tenth video game in the Pac-Man series. It had a combination of factors that made it unique as it never was directly replicated following its release, so it this is a game retains its own place in the Pac-Man pantheon.

It was developed by Namco and distributed to arcades by Namco in Japan and Atari Games in North America in 1987. It followed the General Computer Corporation-developed maze arcade game Jr. Pac-Man from 1984 and the Namco-developed platform arcade game Pac-Land from 1984 that was based on the 1982-1983 Hanna Barbara animated television series

As the game that directly followed both of the aforementioned games, Pac-Mania included aspects from both of them. It included the scrolling mazes that were introduced in Jr. Pac-Man, but this time they scroll both horizontally and vertically. The larger mazes also allow the addition of more ghosts to the mix. The usual four colors return, with three more colors joining them. The traditional ghosts include the red ghost Blinky, the pink ghost Pinky, the cyan ghost Inky, and the orange ghost Clyde. Sue, the ghost introduced in Ms. Pac-Man as the orange ghost, is presented as purple.

As a platform game, Pac-Land was the first game in the series that allowed Pac-Man to jump. Even though Pac-Mania is a return to the maze genre, he has the ability to jump here as well. His jump is difficult to master as it is delayed and floaty by design, since it doesn't need the precision of platform game jumping. Once you get used to jumping, however, it becomes quite convenient to jump over ghosts that aren't activated as the standard edible blue after eating a larger power pellet. To counter Pac-Man's new jump ability, there are now two new ghosts. They are a green ghost named Punky and a grey ghost named Spunky. They are bigger than the regular ghosts, but it is still possible to jump over Punky if Pac-Man times his jump correctly. However, it is impossible to jump over Spunky.

The bonus items once again sit below the ghost gate as in the original Pac-Man. Most of these award the usual bonus points from fruits, but there are two special colored power pellets that give additional affects. If Pac-Man eats a red pellet, the point total for eating the ghosts will be doubled. If Pac-Man eats the green pellet, Pac-Man will temporarily receive a boost in speed.

Beyond the gameplay changes, the presentation also saw a stark change from previous games. The mazes are now laid out isometrically with a 2.5 dimensional presentation. Because the edges of the mazes can now be seen, the graphics make good use of this additional half a dimension. Mazes take on various shapes such as interconnecting Lego-like bricks, mazes that look like neon tubes, pyramid blocks, and cubes. The cutscene breaks also make a return, in a fittingly comical manner.

The sound also matches the upgraded visuals. The eating and dying sound effects are joined by jumping effects, but the standout is the music. Pac-Land had a pleasing loop of the Hanna-Barbara Pac-Man theme song, but this game gives some variety to match each of the levels. It's the pinnacle of sound design for the maze side of the Pac-Man sequels.  

Pac-Mania is a game that takes everything about previous Pac-Man titles and builds upon them. The 2.5D isometric graphics, fun sound effects, and pleasing music really make this game a joy to play. The jumping aspect leaves a bit to be desired, however, as it is not as responsive as those in the Pac-Man platform games. That's the only aspect that brings the score down a bit, but it's not enough to keep it from being one of the best Pac-Man maze games ever produced. 

Final Verdict:

4½ out of 5

Arcade Motorcycle Racing Game: VS. Excitebike

VS. Excitebike was the second game in Nintendo's Excite series, releasing to arcades on the VS. System on December 5, 1984, one day short of a week after the release of the original Excitebike on the Family Computer, the Japanese version of the Nintendo Entertainment System.

The game is graphically identical to Excitebike, taking place on a two-dimensional plane with obstacles such as jumps, hills, and mud. It contained the two-button control set up with a regular accelerator button and a turbo button. The turbo button causes the bike to overheat, but switching to regular acceleration or running over an arrow on the track will cause the bike to cool down.

It contains the same motor running sound effects, jumping sounds, and overheating sounds as the original, as well as the catchy music played at the beginning of the tracks and when a race is won, as well as the downbeat music played when a race is lost.

As it was released for the VS. System, the biggest addition this game added was the ability to play a game for two players, connected through the arcade hardware on two separate screens. Because it is an arcade game, the design function of the original game has been removed. To make up for the lack of the ability to create custom tracks, the total amount of tracks has been increased from five to seven. The game also alternates between playing on tracks with one player or many opponents, playing trough all seven tracks twice rather than having a selection between modes at the beginning of the game.

VS. Excitebike is an interesting follow-up to the original Excitebike that adds two tracks not seen before. The Family Computer Disk System port of VS. Excitebike, which is substantially different enough to the arcade game to deserve its own review, is the best way to play the original 8-bit trilogy of sorts. However, now that VS. Excitebike is available to officially purchase for home use, it might be worth checking out if you enjoyed the original game.

Final Verdict:

3 out of 5

Arcade Fixed-Screen Shoot 'em up Review: Space Invaders (Color Version)

The color version of Space Invaders was released in 1979, the year after the release of the game. In the early days of the video game industry, sequels weren't well defined. That's how you ended up with tons of variations of Pong, or games that had the hook of added color. You also sometimes received updates like the color version of Space Invaders, where the game was different under the hood but the cabinet artwork was unchanged.

The original Space Invaders was a completely black and white affair, although some arcades would add a filter over the monitor that would add green and red sections to simulate color. The color version, on the other hand, added a near rainbow of colors. There are now five colors, alongside white. The colors are the green and red of the filter, plus yellow, cyan, and magenta.

It matches the colors of the marquee, as a matter of fact, giving the game a unified feel that upped the whole presentation. In an era where black and white graphics were the norm, a monitor full of color would definitely be a big draw. Since the gameplay remained as addicting as always, it was a good way to get people to the cabinet in an era where keeping up player interest was key.

The primary addition to the game code outside of the addition of color was another that would bring people to the cabinet. Arcade games were all about playing to get the high score, and this update allowed for even higher scores than before. Whereas the original had a limit of four digits, the color update raised the maximum amounts of digits in the score to five.

People who are familiar with the original Space Invaders will also notice that the bases now have numbers on them. This has no real meaning to the game outside of cosmetics, but it will provide the base of the true sequel to Space Invaders, Space Invaders Part II aka Deluxe Space Invaders or Space Invaders Deluxe, which was also released in 1979.

The color version of Space Invaders was a mere stop gap between the first game and its sequel, but it is an interesting footnote in the history of the video game industry. It retains all of the same addicting gameplay of the original and makes it a bit more pleasing with a splash of color. In that sense, it is really just as worthy of a game as its two or four-toned predecessor.

Final verdict:

4 out of 5