James Gordan
Volume 2 of the Namco Museum Archive contains ten other classic NES games, plus an 8-bit bonus game to make it look like it’s been on the console all along. A bit like sequels that do not do justice to the original, this compilation is slightly shorter than the first part in terms of fun games. Of course, it’s all subjective, depending on which games you want and whether you’re nostalgic for the games included in the game, but for the most part, I can say with certainty that the first game is a much better choice for me and perhaps for someone I would recommend the games to. That doesn’t mean there are no fun options, because there are. Then let’s do it.
This package seems to have put a strange emphasis on shooting the game. The one who put Namco on the map in the early 80’s is the Galaga, and the NES port is included in this list. I know a lot of people who like that arcade card. It’s a kind of evolution of space invaders, where different enemies fly around the screen in different patterns before taking their place at the top of the screen where you can blow them up. Although I can appreciate it for what it is, even in my youth the game has never elicited much response from me. Maybe it was my first meeting with someone else who wanted to deprive me of another game, and it always insulted me in the wrong way. But if you liked that guy at the slot machines or on the NES, you definitely spend time with him.
Another shooter, and perhaps one of the first autoscrollers of this type, is the Xevious, but in this collection you get an improved Super Xevious . You fly in an airplane and have to shoot down the enemies flying around the screen and drop bombs on the ground below you to destroy the targets. The concept is great, but there’s not enough room to play, and frankly, after five minutes I was bored. There are several semi-cooled power systems, including buying another ship to connect to the main ship and getting updated bombs, but the game seems quite simple and musical. to music. You might want to mute it.
In 1984 the slot machines were released in the Galaga sequel, which was called Gaplus. This game never made it to the NES, but it’s listed here as a bonus gate! I’m sure fans of the arcade version and collectors will be interested to see it in the collection. It plays very similar to Galaga, but is a good alternative for fans of the series.
Battle City is a tank game in which you try to destroy your enemies before they eliminate you or blow up your base. The concept is very similar to the Atari 2600 Battle , which contained a game called Tank. There are many playing cards, each with its own layout and increasingly complex landscapes. Some levels will have bushes to hide behind, which can make it very difficult to tackle enemy tanks, while other levels will have other obstacles, such as water. They have to destroy 20 enemy tanks before they can conquer the scene. Some of them throw bonuses that can give you a shield or even destroy all the enemies on the screen at the same time. What seems at first sight an unusually simple game turns into a strategic game along the line, and the opponent gets smarter at every turn. The lack of background music and simple graphics make this game at its best, but there is a fun level builder with whom you can make jokes to play with a friend.
Mappy-Land – A game that came to the NES in the West thanks to Taxan. This is a strange 2D scrolling action platform tool where you play the role of a mouse that has to collect different objects on all levels. This trampoline offers access to different levels. It’s a cartoon and it’s fun to play in a short time, but there are much better NES games like this that don’t stand out.
Dig Dug II is included in the kit. It’s funny, when I was young I knew everything about Dig Dug and I played on many consoles and computers and of course on slot machines, but until the last few years I didn’t even know there was a sequel! We played the Warp Zone podcast, and I was very surprised that the game was so different from the first game. You still have a handy air pump, which you can use to catch your enemies with a spear, blow them up and blow them up. But this time you’re not really digging into the layers of the ground, you’re standing on the ground and you’ve got a drill bit that you can use to cut off segments of the scene so they fall into the sea and the enemies shoot out in one fell swoop. I give the developers the honour of trying something so unusual, but in the end, it’s not so much fun to play.
If you read my review of Namko Museum Archives Volume 1, you know that Dragon Buster was somehow entertaining to play, because it reminded me of the basic elements of Zelda II. Well, Dragon Buster II is here, and what happened? At first glance, I like the isometric graphics, because they have improved compared to the first game, but in the real game there is much to be desired. I like that this time you have a bow and arrow so you can throw arrows on the screen, which by the way can bounce off the walls and hurt you. Some of these labyrinths have surprisingly few enemies, many of which can be quite large.
They use a kind of war fog system in which only a small part of the passage is visible with the eclipse of the other areas. As soon as you enter these areas, the darkness disappears and you show what is there. The main part of the game consists of going to these places to break through a maze where you will encounter one or two monsters, plus extra arrows to help you repel them. Next, the game goes to a map of Overworld where you can walk and get a special object, such as an axe, with which you can clear the forest and reach a new area. Since there’s hardly any music in it, he’s a real idiot. But, hey… …we can finally play here! Hooray!
A game I’ve never played before in this anthology – Mendel’s Palace. I know this has to be said in the October episode of the Warp Zone podcast, and it was broadcast in the United States by Hudson Soft. It’s interesting to note that Game Freak is mentioned as the developer on the title screen. I came to this game without understanding the mechanics, but I left it with pleasure. It’s a single-screen puzzle that doesn’t resemble the adventure of the Cycle Cube and Lolo.
Here the whole plane consists of squares, and these squares can be drawn/rotated, sometimes opening a star or other energy source underneath. Without instructions and without knowing it in advance, I realized that if you draw a tile while the enemy is standing on it, it will be pushed back. It took another minute or two before I realized that if you do this while they’re near the wall, they’re going to hit the wall and be destroyed. You determine the room after all enemies have been killed, but strategically you want to try to collect all items first to get more points. It has a two-player cooperative mode, which I think makes the game even more chaotic! In the end, I spent most of my time on this game, and even though it’s not exactly a great game for the NES, I played it with a lot of fun and I see myself coming back and playing it again. A little gem I wasn’t expecting.
Pac-Land – The game that was never released in the United States, but eventually became available thanks to this collection. Wow, that’s a weird franchise take! It reminds me of modern racing games where you try to run through stages and avoid enemies and obstacles. Originally set in arcades, this game actually precedes Super Mario Bros., and it shows that in peaks with strange controls and a strange choice of gameplay. For example, to move Pac-Man to the right, press and hold the A button, and to move to the left, press and hold the B button. To jump, press the d-pad (or it does the same in both directions). The graphics are bright and colorful, but such a flat polygon looks cheap in the background. As you progress through the game, levels of fruit appear, which you can collect to earn points. Soon the game turns into a real jump’n’run with very difficult jumps and the immediate death of many. The music is instantly recognizable if you’ve ever seen an animated film from the 80’s, but it lingers and soon gets old. As the first game of its kind, it deserves some praise, but as someone who’s never played it before, I found it rather boring after several levels.
So far, the games have been pretty bad to a little good, but the last two in the collection are good to great. One of my favorites is the Legacy Master. It was quite an adventurous game on the NES, especially in the early years, and it’s always fun to come back and play. It has a high level of difficulty and the graphics are quite simple, but the soundtrack is rocking (thanks to Yuzo Koshiro), and I like the ability to play different characters with different powers. Originally published in the US by Broderbund and developed by Falcom, which still makes Ys games! Are there better games like this now? Of course, but those who grew up with the game will certainly appreciate it, and even beginners will find something to their liking if they use it at this stage.
The newest game in the collection is the Rolling Thunder, released in the United States by Tengen. This is a classic side-scrolling action game that many people lovingly remember. He has some pretty big sprites and super smooth animations. You can jump from the highest parts of the levels, and everywhere you go there are several doors that you can open and hide. You start with a rifle to destroy enemies in one or two shots, and you can move on to a machine gun. This game does not offer much variation, because it is based on an arcade game designed for your cabin. Later sets like Capcom code name :. TheViper offers a better concept, but still has fans after all these years and is still very repeatable today.
This collection has the same characteristics and problems as the first one. It’s great that you have a few saved slots for each game and even the ability to go back and fix a mistake you’ve made. However, the lack of customizable buttons is a real headache, and I’m not a fan of the permanent menu in the lower left corner of the screen. While I was thinking about it and writing this review, I even found a way to get rid of the boring text that explains how to rewind and access the system menu. To do this, press ZL, then go to Settings, select Wallpaper Settings and then press X (or the top action button if you are playing with a Joy-Con), which activates and deactivates the information window. Could they have hidden the lake? However, there is one possibility, and I’m glad about that.
Finally, the archives of the Namco Museum, volume 2 , do not offer the same level of fantastic games as the first. This is mainly because the original has a great 8-bit disastrous Pac-Man Championship Edition which is just too much fun to ignore. He takes and forgets more in his choice of effects, and is reduced to his personal preferences. I don’t think they’re as old-fashioned as the first collection, but if you grew up with them and played with them, this collection obviously costs time and money. For me it was more mediocre than great, but it was worth considering!
The Namko Museum Archives Overview of Part 2
- Graphs – 7/10
- The tone is 8/10.
- The course of the game is 5/10.
- Late appeal – 6/10
6.5/10
Final remarks : EXPLANATION
The archives of the Namko Museum, part 2, contain a series of more eclectic games that have found little resonance with the majority of the public. However, it is useful to check if you have a history with the names included in it, and some are still very repeatable.
Craig has been working in the video game industry since 1995. His works have been published on various media sites. He is currently editor-in-chief and contributes to the Games Age.
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Simon Leonard