System Review: NES Classic Edition, Famicom Mini, and Shonen Jump Famicom Mini

This review was originally posted on the McMurray Internet Channel website on December 7, 2018.

Nintendo didn’t start the idea of the mini-console revival of classic systems. Atari and AtGames have been releasing their own mini-consoles for years. Nintendo did manage to turn the practice around. These were once seen as niche novelties, but they are now big business, with Sony and Konami also joining the trend.

I'll look at each of the mini-consoles available from Nintendo, Sony, and Konami, but first, let's look at Nintendo’s first Classic Edition offering, the miniaturized version of its classic 80s console, the Nintendo Entertainment System.

The system runs on an Allwinner R16 system on a chip. It has a 1.2 gigahertz quad-core Cortex-A7 central processing unit, a 500 megahertz dual-core Mali-400 ARM graphics processing unit, 256 megabytes of random access memory, and 512 megabytes of Flash storage.

This is obviously more powerful than the 1.79 MHz CPU on the original NES, so the games, powered by an emulator created in-house by Nintendo European Research & Development, run silky smooth. They are also much crisper than the original, as they are output at full high definition, but there is a cathode ray tube filter available in the options for purists.

The menu is easy to navigate, and looks clean and professional, as expected with a Nintendo product. Unlike the later Super Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Edition, the NES Classic Edition only includes one controller, a faithful remake of the original blocky NES controller. The controller has a Nintendo Classic Controller port, so this controller can also be used with a SNES Classic Edition, or a Wii or Wii U. The controller cable included is also really short, but extension cables and additional controllers are also available to purchase.

Both the North American and European/Oceania versions contain the same 30 built-in games. They include a great variety of genres and include classics spanning the entirety of the original lifespan of the NES. The games include Balloon Fight, Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, Donkey Kong (strangely the version included is the original 1983 port that lacked the factory level instead of the 2012 release, Donkey Kong: Original Edition, which included this level as well as the animation of Donkey Kong carrying Pauline between stages), Donkey Kong Jr., Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Dr. Mario, Excitebike, Final Fantasy, Galaga, Ghosts ‘n Goblins, Gradius, Ice Climber, Kid Icarus, Kirby’s Adventure, The Legend of Zelda, Mario Bros., Mega Man 2, Metroid, Ninja Gaiden, Pac-Man, Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream, StarTropics, Solomon’s Key, Super C, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, Tecmo Bowl, and Zelda II: The Adventures of Link.

There are two Japanese versions, which are the regular Famicom Mini and the Weekly Shonen Jump 50th Anniversary version. The Weekly Shonen Jump version is gold. Both contain built-in controllers as did the original Famicom. Otherwise, the hardware specifications on both of these are the same as the NES versions, but the games differ slightly on the regular version and significantly on the other.

The regular Famicom mini contains Balloon Fight, Bumping Sumo, Castlevania, Donkey Kong (the 1983 port that lacked the factory level), Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Downtown Nekketsu March: Let's Go to the Great Athletic Meet (later released in English as Downtown Nekketsu March: Super Awesome Field Day! in the Double Dragon & Kunio-Kun Retro Brawler Bundle), Dr. Mario, Excitebike, Final Fantasy III, Galaga, Ghosts ‘n Goblins, Gradius, Ice Climber, Kirby’s Adventure, The Legend of Zelda, Mario Bros., Mega Man 2, Metroid, The Mystery of Atlantis, NES Tournament Golf, Ninja Gaiden, Pac-Man, Super C, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2 (released as Super Mario USA in Japan), Super Mario Bros. 3, Yie Ar Kung Fu, and Zelda II: The Adventures of Link.

The Weekly Shonen Jump Famicom Mini version contains games based on the manga that appeared in Weekly Shonen Jump, with the exception of Dragon Quest. The games included Captain Tsubasa (released as Tecmo Cup Soccer Game in North America and Tecmo Cup Football Game in Europe), Captain Tsubasa Vol. II: Super Striker, Dark Myth: The Legend of Takeru Yamato, Heaven and Earth (released as Destiny of an Emperor in North America), Dragon Ball: Shenlong's Riddle (released in North America as Dragon Power and in France as Dragon Ball: The Secret of the Dragon), Dragon Ball 3: Goku's Story, Dragon Ball Z: Assault of the Saiyans, Dragon Quest (released in North America as Dragon Warrior), Famicom Jump: Heroes History, Famicom Jump II: The Strongest Seven, Fist of the North Star, Fist of the North Star 3 - The Creator of the New Century: History of the Dreaded Fist, Kinnikuman: Muscle Tag Match (released in North America as Tag Team Match: MUSCLE), Kinnikuman: Struggle for the Throne, Magical Taluluto: Fantastic World!!, Red Dragon King, Rokudenashi Blues, Saint Saya: Golden Legend (released in France as The Knights of the Zodiac: The Golden Legend), Saint Saya: Golden Legend - Final Chapter, and Sakigake!! Men's Private School: Game No. 1.

The regular versions contain the best selection of games, but the Weekly Famicom Jump version may be worth the price if you can read Japanese and enjoy the included selection of games based on various manga, or simply for the collector's value as the gold system does look nice. However, suffice it to say, whatever you choose it is well worth spending if you or someone you love is a fan of retro games.

Final Verdict:
5 out of 5

Arcade Maze Game Review: Pac-Man

This review was adapted from the original that was posted at Jupiter Beagle on September 28, 2008.

Pac-Man is a true classic. Pac-Man’s pizza-bodied visage is often used as an icon for gaming itself. Everyone has probably played Pac-Man at some point in their life, or if they haven't they at least know about it.

The premise is simple. You control a round yellow dot with no eyes and a mouth that is constantly opening and closing. You have to navigate a maze and eat all of the round pellets on the board while avoiding the four ghosts who are constantly roaming the board looking for a Pac snack to eat. You can turn the tables on the ghosts by eating one of the four large power pellets. This causes the ghosts to temporarily turn blue. Now, the ghosts run away from you and you are able to eat them before the large dot’s effects wear off. 

In the original Pac-Man, many of the enhancements that Ms. Pac-Man brought to the table are not present. The layout of the mazes never changes and the food items that you can eat in each stage after collecting a certain amount of points always remain at the center of the maze. The emulated versions from the Xbox 360 onward are my favorite way to play the game. 

All of the addictiveness of Pac-Man is there as most emulated versions use the true arcade version of Pac-Man. Thus, all of the tricks that can be pulled off in the arcade version can be pulled off in these versions. For anyone who loves Pac-Man but isn’t too good at it, there are tricks in the emulated versions that are not present in the originals. In some emulated versions, you can start from any stage in the game after you complete it once, and in other emulated versions you can rewind a mistake to try it again. 

Arcade purists may not like the fact that these emulated versions often have unlimited continues, but there were versions of Pac-Man in the arcades that had unlimited continues as well. In the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga Class of 1981 arcade game, Pac-Man can be unlocked by entering up, up ,up, down, down, down, left, right, left, right, left at the game selection screen and then choosing Ms. Pac-Man after hearing a series of dings letting the player know the code was inserted correctly. This version allows unlimited continues as well. The only difference is you have to enter a quarter every time you wish to continue. 

On the subject of achievements in the latest console versions, Pac-Man typically has plenty. In the Xbox 360 version, each fruit or item in the mazes gives you another achievement. If you go for all of them, you will be able to see each of the game’s cutscenes, which were one of the main draws of the game in the arcades when it first came out. The cutscene music is so catchy that it’s sure to stay in your head for quite some time. There are only three cutscenes in the original Pac-Man, and they all show the comeuppance of the ghosts in various humorous ways. 

There are three achievements in the Xbox 360 version, in particular, that are a little more challenging. One requires you to eat all four ghosts in the stage, while the other, harder, achievement requires you to eat all four ghosts all four times in one stage. The latter is quite hard, and all but the most diehard Pac-Man fan should find this one a challenge. 

The other difficult challenge in the Xbox 360 version requires you to get to level 21. After you get to a certain point in the game, the large dots no longer turn the ghosts blue, and the ghosts merely turn around when you eat it. Thankfully the feature offering unlimited continues is there for those of us without super Pac-prowess, so it’s not an impossible task. 

In the end, the decision of whether to play Pac-Man rests on how much you like arcade maze games. Though, if you do, I’d say it’s worth the play even if you are a casual fan of the genre. 

Final Verdict: 

4 out of 5

Ms. Pac-Man Review

Platform Game Mega Review: Sonic the Hedgehog

This review was originally posted at Jupiter Beagle on October 2, 2008. A note about Sonic Origins was added on October 1, 2022

Sonic the Hedgehog brought speed to a genre that was previously all about exploration. The levels are laid out well enough so that exploration is still possible, but the game is built with the intention to run through courses at breakneck speed. Going into a roll by pressing down while running causes Sonic to go faster through loops and down hills. Sonic’s speed can be magnified by obtaining a shoe powerup, which increases Sonic’s moving speed exponentially. Sonic attacks enemies by rolling into them or jumping on top of them while in a roll. He will lose rings whenever he touches an enemy. However, there is no health meter in this game. Sonic’s health is gauged by the rings he carries. As long as Sonic holds at least one ring. As with the Super Mario Bros. series, 100 rings give you a bonus life. There are also invincible power-ups, much like Mario’s stars that make Sonic impervious to attack for a short period of time.

In most versions of the game, the lack of the spin dash that was introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is definitely noticed. However, there are some versions of Sonic the Hedgehog that have a spin dash, which helps a lot. No matter the version of the game, Sonic the Hedgehog still has my favorite levels of any Sonic game I’ve played. The layouts of the levels are very important in a platformer, and the level design of Sonic the Hedgehog is top-notch. There are several zones in the game, and most zones have 3 levels, with the third level being a boss battle against Sonic’s enemy Dr. Robotnik in one of his robotic contraptions. 

The bonus stages in this game are a little weird compared to later games in the series. Here, Sonic enters a bonus stage through a large ring whenever he has at least 50 rings when he reaches the end of the stage. In the bonus stage, Sonic is in a constant spin, and so is the bonus stage board. You have to guide Sonic to the chaos emerald in each stage, which is surrounded by breakable crystals. You also must avoid red exit markers that will end the bonus round immediately. When all 6 chaos emeralds are collected, the player will get the “good ending” upon completing the game.

Sonic the Hedgehog was released on a lot of systems. The game is just about equal on each system, other than control issues due to the limitations of some systems. The newer releases have savestates, or in some cases, save points where the game is automatically saved at the start of each level. This ability to save is a feature that is greatly appreciated for this game. In the original, you had to restart the game completely if you run out of lives and continues. The game also had to be restarted if somehow the power on the Sega Genesis game console was turned off. It’s nice to not worry about leaving the console on to take a break from the game for a while. 

Sonic the Hedgehog on the Xbox 360 is one of my favorite versions. The game is presented well. The sound emulation is well done. The music is faithful to the original, and the sound effects sound good. There are many options for the graphics display. The default setup has the screen at the original aspect ratio with blue borders around the screen where the television screen size surpasses the game’s resolution. The blue borders really stand out and made me sick while playing. Thankfully, these blue borders (called wallpaper by the game) can be turned off, and the borders will be plain black. Even better, in my opinion, is the option to stretch the screen to match the size of your television. There is also an option to smooth the graphics. The smoothing and screen stretching is my favorite combination. This makes Sonic the Hedgehog look wonderful on an HDTV.

In modern versions, most achievements in Sonic the Hedgehog are quite evenly paced. There are quite a few easy achievements, which are given for completing the game’s zones. There are also a few harder accomplishments, such as completing a level (as well as one for the entire game) in a certain amount of time. Other accomplishments seem hard, but with the save state system, even the achievement to complete the game without dying can be completed easily. There is nothing stopping Sonic fans from trying these accomplishments without saving and loading, however.

Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the best pure platformers. If you are a Sonic fan or a platformer fan, you owe it to yourself to try this one out.

Addendum: Tails and Knuckles are additional playable characters in the 2011 remake for Android and iOS as well as the 2022 Sonic Origins compilation for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. The Sonic Origins remake has a spin dash as well as a slightly modified drop dash from Sonic Mania that does not allow a change in direction before hitting the ground. It also has the ability to play the game in high definition without a status bar. In the high-definition mode, there are no lives, so the player can play without having to worry about having enough continues. 

Update March 23, 2022: Sonic Origins will be getting an expansion called Sonic Origins Plus. It will be released as a full game and as downloadable content for the original compilation on June 23, 2023. This version includes Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles as playable characters. It also will add Amy Rose, with animations based on her appearance in Sonic CD, as a playable character. As this is the latest version of the remake, this will be my preferred way to play this game.

Addendum October 8, 2025: There is also an arcade version for the Mega-Tech System. This version is identical to the Genesis version, except there is a time limit in place where the game will quit when time runs out. Another arcade version for the Mega Play adjusted the game to use credits for lives rather than a time limit. The latter is also included in M2's Sega Ages version of Sonic the Hedgehog for the Nintendo Switch.

Final Verdict:

4½ out of 5

Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit) Review

Visual Novel Review: Detective Pikachu

This review was originally posted on the McMurray Internet Channel website on February 15, 2019.

Detective Pikachu is a spin-off from the very popular Pokémon series.  A shorter, download-only version of the game, titled Great Detective Pikachu: Birth of a New Duo, was released in 2016 only in Japan. The full game was released worldwide in 2018.

The game stars a boy named Tim Goodman, who is looking for his father Harry, the latter of whom was in a car accident two months prior and vanished mysteriously. He meets his father's Pikachu, who is confused. The same incident that caused Harry to mysteriously disappear also changed Harry's Pikachu. Now, he has the ability to be a capable detective at the cost of his ability to conduct electricity. He also no longer acts like a normal Pikachu, as he has developed quirks such as eating sweets and drinking coffee.

Tim discovers that he can communicate with Harry's Pikachu, who talks to him in a gruff voice. Since both of them want to find out what happened to Harry, Harry's Pikachu, using the deerstalker cap Harry gave him as inspiration, declares that he will help Tim out as the "Great Detective Pikachu". Interestingly, the duo discovers that Harry's Pikachu cannot talk to other humans, and Tim cannot talk to other pokémon, including other Pikachus.

However, Harry's Pikachu can talk to other pokémon, which is helpful since pokémon sometimes see things that humans do not. Tim and Pikachu have to talk to everyone they meet, gaining useful information. They have to use that information to gain new lines of questioning and to collect evidence.

Overall, it's a straightforward game that's aimed at children, but the mystery surrounding Tim's father's disappearance and the sudden change in Detective Pikachu's behavior help keeps players motivated throughout. Plus, the deep-voiced voice actor of Detective Pikachu, as well as the contrasting cute animations, keeps it entertaining. After the movie, people will probably be expecting Ryan Reynolds as Detective Pikachu, but it's still worth checking out to see from where the ideas for the film were generated.

Final Verdict:
4 out of 5

Point and Click Adventure Review: Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space - Moai Better Blues

This review was originally posted on the McMurray Internet Channel website on March 2, 2019.

The second episode of the second season of Telltale's Sam & Max series takes the weird and wacky and rolls with it, creating a memorable episode with equally memorable characters and situations.

This episode takes Sam and Max to Easter Island where they meet arguably the weirdest set of new characters seen up to this point in Telltale's take on the duo. Of course, oddness usually equals goodness in the world of the Freelance Police, and that is certainly the case here. The new characters are presented, scripted, and voiced excellently. There are also some characters who return from Season One, and their interactions with the new characters are some of the best and most memorable parts of this episode. Plus, this is the episode that gave us Banang, which became a recurring gag in Telltale's games right up to their unfortunate majority closure and assignment in 2018.

The puzzles are equally as memorable and are among the best of Telltale's games up to this point. They are strange but have a weird logic to them that oddly works in the twisted world of Sam & Max. The portal puzzles remain one of my favorites throughout the entirety of Sam & Max. They took a while to figure out, but once I put my mind to the strangeness of the world, I figured them out right away. I've loved them for their weirdness ever since.

Jared Emerson-Johnson and Bay Area Sound are also at the top of their game in this episode. The island setting allows them to get their groove on, with a mix of tropical island beats and the jazz undertones that the series has always been known for, going right back to the original LucasArts adventure game. The voice work is also top-notch, with both the returning and new cast delivering some of the best performances so far.

This episode is an excellent example of a Telltale at the top of its adventure game-making powers. It's a fun, and funny episode, with excellent music, excellent music, and excellent puzzles. It's well worth a play for anyone who is even remotely curious about Telltale's earlier adventure games.

Update March 16, 2023: There is now another way to play the game. Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space Remastered by Skunkape games does update the game to the latest version of the Telltale Tool. It also has improved lighting, high-definition graphics, and a remade title song. Because of changing views on various culture-related issues, Bosco has a new voice actor. Because the new Bosco fits the game well, and the script changes are minor, this is now my favorite way to play the game.
 

Final Verdict:

5 out of 5

Beyond Time and Space (Season Two) Episode 1 review

Beyond Time and Space: Episode 3 review

Arcade Platform Game Review: Donkey Kong Junior

This review was originally posted on the McMurray Internet Channel website on December 19, 2018.

Donkey Kong Junior is the first game that pits Mario as an enemy to the player character. The latter is the titular Donkey Kong Jr., who must rescue his father from Mario, who has caged the gorilla due to his repeated attempts to steal Mario’s girlfriend in the previous game.

As this game stars a primate, there is a lot of climbing involved. Donkey Kong Jr. must climb up vines, ropes, and chains while avoiding the obstacles Mario sends after him such as crocodiles and electrical sparks. He will climb slowly when transcending a single vine, but if he climbs two at once, he will move faster.

The level design is quite well made in this game. It’s still a single screen, like its predecessor, but there are now much more varied obstacles than before, including trampolines and chains that raise and drop in height. Because of this level of variety, I recommend this game even more than the original.

Like the first game, Donkey Kong Junior was ported to many different systems, including the Atari 2600, Intellivision, Colecovision, Atari 8-bit computers, Nintendo Entertainment System, BBC Micro, Commodore-64, VIC-20, Coleco Adam, Famicom Disk System, and Atari 7800.

Also like the first game, outside of the original arcade version, the NES version was the most accurate of the versions. This version was emulated on the Nintendo 64 (in Animal Forest), e-Reader, Game Boy Advance, GameCube (in Animal Crossing), Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, Famicom Mini, and the NES Classic Edition.

The game is a classic that deserves to be played by everyone. The best version remains the original arcade release, which was finally officially emulated in its entirety by Hamster as part of its Arcade Archives line on the Nintendo Switch on December 21, 2018.

Final Verdict:
4 out of 5

Donkey Kong Junior

Super Mario Kart Review

Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong Review

Donkey Kong 3 Review

Mario

Donkey Kong review

Mario Bros. Game & Watch Review

Adventure Game Review: Hector: We Negotiate With Terrorists

This review was originally posted on the McMurray Internet Channel website on February 22, 2019.

Straandlooper's first episode of Hector: Badge of Carnage was originally released without Telltale's involvement for iOS, after which Telltale got the publishing rights, ported it to other platforms and helped make the other two episodes in the season.  Even without Telltale's involvement, however, the first episode still has plenty to make it worth playing.

The game is a raunchy comedy game, set in an English town called Clappers Wreake. That sentence alone sets the tone of the episode, as there are innuendos everywhere, plenty of taboo subject matter, with a dark, distinctly British sense of humor aplenty. The game follows a crooked cop named Hector and his naive partner, as they attempt to stop a terrorist and rescue the hostages. The episode title is perfectly succinct, as Hector will negotiate with the terrorist to satisfy all of his twisted demands.

The game is presented as a classic two-dimensional point-and-click adventure, and there are plenty of inventory puzzles to work out.  Some of them go to weird (and sometimes unsettling) lengths, but they all fit within the tone of the game. The voices are all performed by one person, which is amazing, as they are all very memorable.  The music isn't quite as memorable, but it does fit the tone of the game nicely.

The first episode is mostly a setup for future episodes in terms of story, as it's mainly a fetch quest to fulfill the needs of a terrorist. Once Telltale becomes involved the story begins to shine, but this first independently produced episode still has a lot to offer and is a necessity if you want to enjoy the full story. If you enjoy raunchy British-style comedy, you'll likely enjoy this game.

Final Verdict:

3½ out of 5