Revenge of the Ninja (Mega CD / Sega CD review)

Developer: Telenet Japan, Wolf Team

Publisher: Renovation, Sega, Wolf Team

Released: 1994

 

Revenge of the Ninja is a Full Motion Video (FMV) game that was first released in the Arcades in 1984.

 

You play as a trainee ninja called Hayate and your mission is to defeat the evil wizard Lougi and rescue Princess Terri from the castle. It consists of 18 stages and instead of controlling the action directly you watch a movie and press buttons at the indicated time. It clearly takes inspiration from Dragon's Lair (1983, Arcades) especially the boss that traps you around a pillar and forces you to jump and duck to avoid being squashed by its gigantic claws. There's many fun moments such as the ride down the rapids where you dodge boulders and time your jump through gnashing teeth. Other highlights include an intense scene in a mechanical warehouse with its cogwheels and travelators, and a mid-air battle with a fire-breathing creature while you desperately hang onto a burning rope. The controls are very responsive throughout and the required button timings are fair, giving you a good chance to react. However, similar to Time Gal (1993, Mega CD) there is some trial and error due to multiple choice areas that only have one correct path. There's also the same issue of poor checkpoints after losing a life meaning you need to contend with an immediate input command with no real prior warning. While 18 stages sounds lengthy they're all very short so the game can be beaten in around 20 minutes. There's certainly limited replay value but at least the stages are randomised each time you play for a bit of variety. The FMV isn't full screen and while it does an adequate job of displaying the action the frame-rate is low. Some of the music tracks are good but unfortunately they repeat too often.

 

Revenge of the Ninja isn't the most inspired FMV game and takes too many cues from Dragon's Lair but it's well crafted with good stage design and solid controls. More stages would have been welcome but what's here is engaging and varied, making this one of the better examples of the genre on the Mega CD.

 

 

 

Random trivia: In 1997 the game was re-released in Japan (along with Time Gal) on both the PlayStation and Sega Saturn.

Road Avenger (Mega CD / Sega CD review)

Developer: Wolf Team
Publisher: Wolf Team, Renovation, Sega
Released: 1992

Road Avenger (also known as Road Blaster FX) is a Full Motion Video (FMV) arcade game.

The game consists of nine stages and it revolves around quick-time events so you don't control your car in the usual sense. Essentially you're watching a movie and your job is to press the button displayed on screen at the correct time. It sounds boring but it's anything but. The action is non-stop and incredibly hectic meaning you'll struggle to find time to blink. Every stage is a white knuckle ride and it's a rush blazing along at high speed while carnage is going on around you! The video is choppy, probably due to the compression that needed to be done in order for it to work on the system. As a result it can be difficult to tell what's going on in the cut-scenes as well as in hectic stages near the end of the game. The graphics still look good though and despite the compression artefacts there's barely any pixelation. The video even takes up the majority of the screen which is uncommon for an FMV title on the Mega CD. The gameplay is generally forgiving so if you accidentally press the wrong button you'll still have plenty of time to correct your mistake. In the last two stages you only have a split second to make the right choice and there are parts that require memorisation rather than straight-up reactions. The in-game music is barely audible and I honestly couldn't tell you what each track sounds like. The developers purposely lowered the BMG volume so you can hear the different audible notes that tell you whether to press the Brake or Turbo button. You can use the visual aids on screen but I found that reaction times are much better when listening for audio clues.

Road Avenger is a standout gem in the Mega CD library - the idea of an entire game based around quick-time events might sound dull but give this one a try and you'll be surprised how intense and engaging it actually is.

Random trivia: The director of Road Avenger also worked on the arcade version of Double Dragon. The keen eye among you might notice that the famous intro to Double Dragon features the same red sports car in the background!