Reviewed: 1999/10/4
Last modified 2008/2/20.
The overriding criteria is how fun the game is to play, although control, graphics, and sound are also taken into account. |
Screen shots courtesy of Video Game Museum, Shinforce, Rotten Tomatoes.
| Cal Ripken Jr. Baseball | Grade: D+ | |
| Publisher: Mindscape (1992) Reviewed: 2001/4/17 | ||
I'm from Baltimore, and Cal Ripken is revered in these parts. But I don't think Cal had much input into this game. Simply put, Cal Ripken Jr. Baseball is unsurpassed in terms of sheer mediocrity. It came out about the same time as Sportstalk Baseball, and frankly, there's no comparison. While it isn't particularly bad in any way, it doesn't have much to offer either. There are no major league teams or players (except Cal, of course), and you only get three fictitious stadiums. The graphics are dull, and all the players look the same (generic white guys - like Cal!). The pitching controls are simplistic (fast, slow, curve), and the exceedingly large outfield area allows too many balls to be hit into the gaps. It's hard to field the ball with your tiny players, and you'll need to use the dive button to snag anything that's not hit directly to you. Close plays result in a close-up "action window" - a nice touch, but if you blink you'll miss it! As far as the sound effects go, an umpire calls strikes, balls, and outs, but he has a bad case of bronchitis. At least after you hit a homerun you get to hear the "Bad News Bears" theme - I like that. The league mode provides a password to save your spot, and the homerun derby mode is unusual in that it scores points for hits other than home runs. Overall, Cal Ripken baseball is a fair but unremarkable baseball game. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Cal Ripken Jr. Baseball on Ebay, Amazon | 1 or 2 players |
| Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse | Grade: A | |
| Publisher: Sega (1990) Reviewed: 1999/10/4 | | |
You can't help but love this game. This is the kind of quality title that put Genesis over the top in the early 90s. The beautiful graphics, animation, and music are pure Disney. You control Mickey Mouse trying to rescue Minnie in this fun platform action adventure. Mickey can pounce on enemies or throw apples at them. The highly imaginative stages range from an enchanted forest to a huge toy room. Each offers its own unique challenges, and there are surprises around every corner. While Castle of Illusion is perfect for kids, it's also challenging enough to keep adults interested. It may be a bit short compared to modern games, but considering there is no save option (only continues) that's probably for the best. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Castlevania Bloodlines | Grade: B+ | |
| Publisher: Sega (1994) Reviewed: 1999/10/18 | ||
Castlevania was an insanely popular line of side-scrollers for the NES and SNES. After what seemed like an eternity, it finally arrived on the Genesis in the form of Castlevania Bloodlines. The game plays much like Super Nintendo's Castlevania IV, where you battle creatures of the night armed with a whip and other weapons. So how does this compare to its SNES counterpart? It's not quite as good, but still worth playing. The graphics aren't as detailed or colorful as the SNES version, but they still rate better than average on the Genesis. I found the controls to be a bit tricky when navigating the stairs, but other than that, this is pure platform heaven. I love the bosses, especially the wolf who shatters the windows with his howl. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Castlevania Bloodlines on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Chakan The Forever Man | Grade: D | |
| Publisher: Sega (1992) Reviewed: 2006/11/15 |  | |
Whenever I think about this game, that old Chaka Khan song invariably starts playing in my head ("Chakan Khan let me rock 'ya, let me rock 'ya Chaka Khan, let me rock 'ya that's all I wanna do.") Why are you looking at me like that? Anyway, Chakan is a dark platformer that's far too difficult and unforgiving for its own good. You assume the role of a skeletal figure with a large black hat. This "forever man" is doomed to an eternal existence unless he can defeat the world's supernatural evils. Chakan is armed with two swords and can employ a variety of power-ups including invisibility, invincibility, high jumping, and enemy slow-down. Unfortunately, the game is saddled with the most convoluted power-up system ever conceived. It involves mixing potions on a separate "Alchemy" screen, and I never fully understood it. Chakan's graphics exude a gloomy occult flavor, with surreal environments, hideous creatures, and a murky musical score. I like the premise, but the pieces just don't quite come together very well. Chakan's movements are stiff. He ambles around slowly and can't jump very far. This is problematic when you take into account all of the high-altitude platform jumping with zero room for error. There are no checkpoints either - if you die, you restart the stage. Adding insult to injury, you're constantly pestered by small, regenerating birds and bugs. While they're not hard to kill, Chakan's stiff controls make it hard to wield your swords with any degree of precision. The larger enemies look scary enough, but they're so poorly animated that they might as well be statues. It's especially lame how they just blink as you slash away at them. Chakan is not ideal for the casual player. Its difficulty is through the roof, and even the so-called "easy" mode is frustrating. I felt like I was in my own little personal hell playing Chakan. Only hardcore gamers who enjoy pain should attempt this one. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Chakan The Forever Man on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Chuck Rock | Grade: B | |
| Publisher: Virgin (1991) Reviewed: 1999/12/6 | ||
This game is a trip! You control a pot-bellied, cartoon caveman who attacks by bumping his big belly into whatever prehistoric creature gets in his way. Chuck Rock has some hilarious animations, beginning with a caveman rock band on the title screen. The control is very responsive. You can easily bump, kick, pick up things, and throw rocks. You face many dinosaur adversaries (including some large bosses), but some of them actually help you on your quest. For example, a pteridactal might give you a lift over a canyon. The cartoonish graphics are not spectacular, but they are clean, colorful, and have a personality of their own. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Chuck Rock on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Cliffhanger | Grade: F | |
| Publisher: Sony (1993) Reviewed: 2008/2/20 | ||
I've enjoyed other versions of Cliffhanger, but this Genesis edition is the worst! It begins with some rather unimpressive comic book-style illustrations used to set up the story. Sylvester Stallone plays "Gabe", a mountain climber fighting both the elements and an army of fugitives in snow-covered mountains. Cliffhanger adopts the typical side-scrolling punch and kick formula, with thugs that blink and disappear when defeated. You'll find weapons like guns and knives, but the action is definitely shallow. I figured out that if you continuously swing the knife at the edge of the screen, you can kill many foes before they can even make an entrance! In one particularly harrowing stage you scale a cliff as snipers on ledges pump slugs into you from about six feet away. Naturally, you're also expected to make a series of obligatory "leaps of faith". But the worst aspect of Cliffhanger is its unforgiving avalanche stage where you have to run through an obstacle course of trees and rocks with a wall of snow bearing down upon you. It's not unusual to breeze through dozens of fights without a scratch, only to use up every last one of your lives on this single frustrating stage. Yes, you can continue, but that takes you all the way back to the beginning of the game! There's no password either! Cliffhanger's graphics are pretty mediocre, although the bass-heavy background music isn't bad. This Genesis edition is so fast and responsive that the SNES version almost seems sluggish by comparison. But when a game is this unforgiving, the added speed is just a detriment. Note: Despite what the box claims, this game is one player only. © Copyright 2008 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Cliffhanger on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Coach K College Basketball | Grade: B+ | |
| Publisher: Electronic Arts (1995) Reviewed: 2000/1/4 | ||
Everybody knows that college basketball is the best sport of them all, and this was the first college basketball video game for the Genesis. Electronic Arts basically took their NBA Live engine and changed the teams, courts, and some of the rules. There are 32 college teams, along with a few all-time greats, and the gameplay is fast and furious like the NBA Live series. For maximum mayhem, I'd advise you to turn down the fouls and go nuts. The crowd sounds like static, and the menu interface is slow and clunky, but at least you can take your team through a whole season and try to move them up the rankings. One cool feature is the ability to make the crowd wave their arms behind the basket during foul shots to distract the shooter. For some reason, players doing lay-ups appear to be holding their nose, and after performing a dunk, players point with their fingers to rub it in. Sometimes you can shatter the backboard, leaving the basket looking like a saggy condom. Actually, that's consistent with the porno music that plays during the option screens. The triplet blonde cheerleaders on the sideline don't have much school spirit - they never cheer! And be sure to check out the imaginative fans holding up letters to spell "T-E-A-M". This is a college basketball game that's as fun to laugh at as it is to play. © Copyright 2000 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Coach K College Basketball on Ebay, Amazon | 1-4 players |
| College Football National Championship | Grade: B+ | |
| Publisher: Sega (1994) Reviewed: 1999/11/6 | ||
Although their Joe Montana line of NFL games couldn't compete with Madden, Sega came back strong with a nice College Football game in 1994. This time, Sega dropped the side view in favor of the Madden style, 3D vertical field view. The game still has a unique look however, because the players are smaller and look more realistic than Madden. As with the Joe Montana games, the action zooms in close when the ball is passed or handed off, which really works well. You have 32 of the best college teams to choose from, and it's fun to take one through a regular season and try to attain the #1 ranking. There are a slew of game options and a wealth of statistics. This is one of the only games to take advantage of Sega's 6 button controller, but I wish they had incorporated a catch button. The game has a few other issues too. The play-by-play announcer from the Montana games is back, but he's mediocre, and it can be downright comical it hear him exclaim "he could go all the way!" as the runner gets stopped for two yards. Even more annoying is his use of the word "zip", as in "Florida State 7, Alabama zip". The playing field is so wide that sometimes you can't see all of your receivers. And while the player animation is good in general, after each play they stand around like soldiers, which looks really stupid. It's interesting to note that hitting the B button after any play causes your player to raise his helmet in triumph -- even if he screwed up during the play. Trust me, once you discover this "feature", you will be doing it constantly, and laughing out loud. Despite the silliness, this is a very good football game. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.| Check for College Football National Championship on Ebay, Amazon | 1-4 players |
| College Football National Championship II | Grade: B- | |
| Publisher: Sega (1995) Reviewed: 1999/11/6 | ||
| Check for College Football National Championship II on Ebay, Amazon | 1-4 players |
| Columns | Grade: B+ | |
| Publisher: Sega (1990) Reviewed: 2001/1/31 |  | |
In the late 80's Tetris was "the game", and every reputable game console (or computer system) had to have a version. Not wanting to miss out on the puzzle-game frenzy, Sega introduced Columns, a Tetris clone with its own twist. Columns of three gems descend from the top of the screen and you need to line up three or more of the same color to make them disappear. You can't turn the stack sideways, but you can rotate the order of the gems. It sounds simple, but once you get going, quick and strategic thinking is required. Unpredictable chain reactions inject excitement into the game. Columns won me over in a big way. Unlike Nintendo's cartoonish incarnations of Tetris, Columns has an Egyptian theme. There isn't much to see graphics-wise, but the soft, soothing organ music makes the game feel like a religious experience. There are plenty of options including a nice two-player simultaneous mode. The controls are a little TOO responsive, making the columns tricky to line up precisely. But the relaxing, addictive quality of this game cannot be denied. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Columns on Ebay, Amazon | 1 or 2 players |
| Combat Cars | Grade: C | |
| Publisher: Accolade (1994) Reviewed: 2005/8/14 | ||
Talk about deja-vu! This little-known title plays almost exactly like Rally Chase, a Neo Geo game I reviewed just a few weeks back. Combat Cars is an arcade-style overhead racer, though the "combat" aspect leaves much to be desired. Steering is hard because you can't see much of the track ahead and the courses tend to twist and turn every which way. Most tracks have very narrow stretches, forcing you to constantly adjust your direction to avoid the walls. Memorizing the tracks is really the key. But my main beef is how only two of the eight cars have respectable weapons (shotgun and missiles). Most others just drop stuff behind them, like smoke, oil, and mines - weak! One car's so-called "weapon" is a freakin' turbo boost! C'mon now! Maybe windshield wipers should be considered weapons too! After each race, you are given the opportunity to upgrade your vehicle at the shop. The bikini-clad babe on the shop screen looks pretty hot except for those blood-red eyes - is she a zombie or something? Combat Car's graphics are not very exciting. The tracks are set at a beach, a harbor, and snowy mountains, but the static scenery lacks detail. A split-screen two-player mode is included, but its graphics look distorted, and there are no computer racers. The one (and only) thing I truly love about the game is the music. The pulsating, high-energy dance beats are just terrific, and I would surely include them on my video game mix tape, if only I had one. When all is said and done, Combat Cars is worth a spin but that's about it. © Copyright 2005 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Combat Cars on Ebay, Amazon | 1 or 2 players |
| Comix Zone | Grade: A- | |
| Publisher: Sega (1995) Reviewed: 2000/5/21 | ||
Comix Zone is an extremely original and visually impressive game which immerses you in a comic book world. It's probably one of the coolest games I've ever seen on the Genesis. The idea behind it is that the comic's author has magically switched places with the book's villain. Your hero moves from frame to frame and page to page as a large hand draws new villains for you to fight. The remarkable graphics are nearly comic book quality, with bubbles of dialog that appear every so often. Gameplay involves fighting monsters, picking up objects, and opening new areas. The game also features some kick-ass music and multiple pathways. The biggest problem with Comix Zone is its lack of continues. One misstep off a ledge and it's game over, no matter how well you've done up to that point. Still, I think this is a highly underrated game. © Copyright 2000 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Comix Zone on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Contra Hard Corps | Grade: C- | |
| Publisher: Konami (1994) Reviewed: 2007/10/18 | | |
This could have been "the game", but Contra Hard Corps is ruined by a difficulty level best described as impossible. This side-scrolling shooter pushes the Genesis hardware to the limit with dazzling scaling and rotation effects, voice synthesis, two-player simultaneous action, and even some morphing! Contra's first stage clearly demonstrates the highs and lows of the game. There are some slick in-game cut-scenes, like a truck plowing through enemy robots, and a massive lumbering robot unleashing destruction in the distance. Unfortunately, the game's checkpoints fall before these sequences, so you end up having to watch them over and over again! I mean, they look great and all, but I'm not getting any younger here! Hard Corps' difficulty is off the charts, and even the first boss keeps coming back in different forms long after you thought he was defeated. I would have not gotten much further than the first stage if not for my Game Genie cheat device. The Genie let me play through the entire game, but I lost countless lives in the process, making me wonder how in the hell Konami could think three lives was sufficient! You'll fight aliens while hanging off a helicopter, riding on a speedboat, and latched onto the side of a rocket! In one of the more imaginative scenes, a scientist uses a pair of transporter pods to combine creatures (a la The Fly) to create new monstrosities for you to fight. It's quite poetic when his final creation ends up eating him! Hard Corps' rotation effects are put to good use in bosses that come apart and reassemble themselves into new configurations (like Transformers). In one "virtual" area, you fight constellations come to life. Besides the difficulty, another issue is how the game seems to degenerate into a series of lengthy boss battles. The graphics are generally good, but the lame explosions are just a bunch of red balls flying everywhere. The soundtrack is decent, but Hard Corps' voice samples are high-pitched, as if Alvin and the Chipmunks recorded them. Upon completing the game, a pitiful "ending" shows your soldier giving the thumbs-up along with the message "Good job!" Contra Hard Corps is a technical tour-de-force, but what good is that when you can't enjoy it? © Copyright 2007 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Contra Hard Corps on Ebay, Amazon | 1 or 2 players |
| Cool Spot | Grade: B+ | |
| Publisher: Virgin (1993) Reviewed: 2005/8/11 | ||
One of my favorite Genesis side-scrollers, Cool Spot has aged extremely well. I remember my old buddy Steve bringing this over my house in 1993, and all my friends just loved it. Cool Spot stars the "red dot" with sunglasses who was formerly the 7-Up mascot. Despite being essentially an interactive soft drink commercial, this game is irresistibly fun. Each stage challenges you to collect suspended red dots while avoiding or shooting marine creatures and bugs. Spot walks slowly but can leap a great distance, and I love his ability to shoot bubbles rapid-fire in all directions. The action gets pretty hectic at times but there's never any sign of slowdown. The first stage places you on a sunny beach, where you'll contend with sand dunes, beach chairs, and crabs. The bright, colorful graphics and outstanding reggae music effectively put you in the mindset of being at the beach on a hot summer day - it's great! The second stage takes place on a dock where you climb ropes and wooden planks Donkey Kong Junior-style. The next few stages take place in less-inspired indoor environments, but they do contain interesting toys like miniature versions of the robot from Lost in Space (the old 1960's television program). Fun bonus stages take place inside a green bottle of 7-Up, where you bounce around on (and in) bubbles trying to collect as many red dots as you can. With tight controls, stylish visuals, and a kick-ass soundtrack, Cool Spot should win over just about any Genesis fan. © Copyright 2005 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Cool Spot on Ebay, Amazon | 1 player |
| Crue Ball | Grade: B | |
| Publisher: Electronic Arts (1992) Reviewed: 2001/6/7 | ||
Remember back when rock music was cool? Motley Crue was so big in the early 90s that they even had their own video game! This attractive pinball game has a rock and roll theme and some of the heaviest music the Genesis can crank out. Three Motley Crue songs are included: Dr. Feelgood, Livewire, and Home Sweet Home. These are fair renditions, but don't expect too much from the Genesis audio. Flashy graphics and head-banging music help make this game strangely addicting. The large ball moves smoothly and realistically, and the table has several stacked areas, each with its own set of flippers. Centipedes, statues, and walking skulls provide moving targets. Make your way to the top of the table and you progress to the next level, which causes the table and music to change. There's more variety here than your average pinball game, and the difficulty is just right. Unfortunately, the Motley Crue songs are limited to the later levels, and you'll have to endure some pretty generic rock tunes before you get that far. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Crue Ball on Ebay, Amazon | 1 to 4 players |
| Cyborg Justice | Grade: F | |
| Publisher: Sega (1993) Reviewed: 1999/12/6 | ||
Sega had some good ideas for this one, but Cyborg Justice just didn't come together very well. This is a fighting game where you create your own robot warrior using a variety of body parts and weapons, and take him through the single-player mode or go head-to-head against a friend's creation. It sounds interesting, but Cyborg Justice just isn't any fun. The moves are frustratingly hard to execute, and you'll get pummeled if you try to do anything fancy. That's too bad because some of the moves, like pulling off your opponent's arms, are pretty cool. And even if you do manage to pull off a sophisticated attack, the damage it deals is minimal. It's also tough to tell what's going on during the heat of battle because the robots all look the same and easily get bunched up. And the bouts go on for way too long. Add in a lousy audio track and terribly boring backgrounds, and the game starts looking like the train wreck it is. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.| Check for Cyborg Justice on Ebay, Amazon | 1-2 players |
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