Metal Storm (NES review)

Developer: Tamtex
Publisher: Irem
Released: 1991

Metal Storm is an action-platformer that was re-released by Limited Run Games in cartridge format in 2019.

Playing as an M-308 Gunner, your mission is to enter the battle station Cyberg and unlock the self-destruct device on the powerful LaserGun that's currently pointing towards Earth. The B button fires your gun and power-ups can be collected that include a Shield Force (deflects bullets) and a Power Beam (increases the width of your shots). Gravity can also be flipped by pressing Up + A together, and if the Gravity Fireball power-up is active when travelling through the air you'll damage all enemies in your path. The gravity feature is perfectly implemented and creates some interesting gameplay in terms of you strategising on its usage, particularly as you can use it to move enemies to a more advantageous position for yourself. It does take a little while to adjust to the unconventional controls, but once you do it's so much fun pulling off more advanced techniques such as the Jump and Flip (launch off a ledge and then activate reverse gravity to reach the underside of the platform) and Distance Flip (again, using gravity to reach higher platforms); these give the action a neat puzzle-like element where you need to figure out how to manipulate gravity to reach a certain platform. The level design is expertly crafted to showcase your abilities resulting in some playful and intriguing gameplay. The bosses steal the show thanks to their clever patterns, though I do wish there was a more epic finale rather than you only needing to plough through the same foes you've already beaten. The difficulty curve is spot-on and I like how a password system is available to continue your progress.

Metal Storm employs an innovative gravity mechanic and encases it within top-tier level design that constantly shifts gears to challenge the player. Add to this the rock-solid controls, inspired boss battles and perfect difficulty and you're left with a title that can hold its own against any other action-platformer on the console.

Random trivia: Irem published numerous games on the NES, including the excellent Kickle Cubicle (1990).

Kickle Cubicle (NES review)

Developer: Irem

Publisher: Irem

Released: 1990

Kickle Cubicle is an action-puzzler that was first released in the Arcades in 1988.

 

Your quest is to rescue the Fantasy Kingdom residents and restore the four palaces that have been hidden by the Wicked Wizard King. Each level is timed and tasks you with collecting all the Dream Bags by freezing enemies, pushing ice blocks to make platforms, and using pillars that act as defensive barriers. Garden Land and Fruit Land do a great job of easing you into the action and there's tons of clever ideas to test your mental agility, such as deploying ice pillars to deflect cannon balls while slowly circling to collect Dream Bags. There's also some great moments where you bounce frozen enemies off hammers to make platforms in different areas of the screen. It simply never rests on its laurels and continually throws new enemy types, hazards and gameplay mechanics at the player. Cake Land ups-the-ante by introducing Koopa Troopa wannabes that spin around the screen, and spikes that break blocks upon impact. What I love is that some levels revolve around pure action rather than puzzle, such as having to follow a set path while dodging blocks bouncing on springs. Toy Land bundles everything together into some tough puzzles, but thankfully it's never so hard that mere mortals can't beat it! Minor criticisms are that there's perhaps too many levels per world (between 16-17 each) and the four themes don't cater towards their specific names. The bosses are very similar, but it's still enjoyable throwing blocks at them and dodging their attacks. Once you've beaten the game, 30 Special levels are unlocked; the difficulty is sky-high but they provide a good challenge for experts.

 

Kickle Cubicle is an exceptional game that successfully blends action and puzzle elements into a beautifully crafted adventure. Every level is exquisitely designed and the balanced difficulty curve, uber-cute characters and top-notch gameplay make this an irresistible title that every NES owner should experience.

 

 

 

Random trivia: In the Japanese version, players could select the order in which they tackled the game's four worlds.

Hammerin' Harry (NES review)

Developer: Irem
Publisher: Irem
Released: 1992

Hammerin' Harry is an action-platformer that was only released in Europe and Japan (under the title Daiku no Gen-san).

You control Harry who uses his trusty hammer as his form of attack and to block enemy projectiles. There's only five levels but the game does feature some diverse locales such as a Construction Site, a Waterfront and a Mansion. Smashing boxes reveals useful items you can pick up including a Large Hammer that dishes out twice the damage, a Chili Pepper that gives your swing an arc and a Lightning Bolt that destroys all enemies on screen. The collision detection is patchy and sometimes enemies will walk right through your hammer attacks. This makes the game harder than it needs to be and you'll die numerous times while wondering what on earth just happened! The bosses are far easier than the preceding parts of the levels though as they have clear attack patterns that can quickly be exploited. In fact, if you still have the Large Hammer it's possible to forget about skill and simply button mash to rapidly drain their life bar! After each level you take part in a Bonus Round; these are timed and task you with defeating as many enemies as possible in an effort to earn extra items. One of these mini-games reminds me of the barrel round in Street Fighter II Turbo (1993, SNES) and they're an adequate diversion. The rest of the experience isn't much fun though with below average gameplay and little personality. The graphics are nicely detailed but there's lots of flicker and slowdown in the final stage which can result in instant death due to the game ignoring your button presses. The music is pleasant and there are a few voice samples that sound fairly clear.

Hammerin' Harry has the makings of an interesting action-platformer but unfortunately it doesn't have the refined gameplay to match its nice visuals. There's really not much about it that stands out and despite its initial promise it's actually a very forgettable game.

Random trivia: Other games in the Hammerin' Harry series were developed for the Game Boy (1991), Super Famicom (1993) and even the Sony PSP (2008).

Vigilante (Turbografx-16 review)

Developer: Irem Corp.
Publisher: NEC
Released: 1989

Vigilante is a side scrolling beat-em-up game that has many similarities to Irem's 1984 Arcade title Kung-Fu Master.

You play a martial artist who must travel through five levels to defeat The Skinheads and rescue your girlfriend Madonna. Your journey will take you through New York City Streets, The Junkyard, a Bridge, a Back Street and a Construction Yard. Working your way from left to right you have to take out the constant stream of enemies attacking you from both sides using punches, kicks and flying kicks. You'll also want to look out for the special nunchucks that appear as they allow you to dish out punishment at a faster rate. There aren't many different enemies but some require strategy rather than straight-up brawling. For example, the ones in yellow tops have batons and they'll quickly kill you unless you duck and use your low kick. Learning these patterns is key to being successful in most parts of the game. The levels are short and when you get to the end you'll face a boss. These are devoid of imagination and each one is generic and boring to fight. The gameplay as a whole is unremarkable - not to mention repetitive - and once you're familiar with the enemy types you can breeze through all the levels in 15 minutes. The action only takes place across one plane; this means can't move towards the foreground or background and it seems almost archaic by 1989 standards as this was the same year that Final Fight and Golden Axe were released in the Arcades. The background graphics are excellent though and perfectly convey the level settings with some nice parallax scrolling. The music is distorted and the voice samples are scratchy and difficult to decipher.

Vigilante isn't necessarily a bad game but it's just very limited and outdated given its release schedule. If it would have had more variety it could have been semi-decent but in reality it arrived 3-4 years too late to be considered an acceptable gameplay experience.

Random trivia: This version of Vigilante was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console in 2007, as well as on the Wii U Virtual Console as a Japan-only exclusive in 2015.