Random Game O' the Day: Zoda's Revenge

[digitalpress]

Day 11.

Well, it was inevitable that the random game generator would turn up a game that I haven't had much experience with (I honestly don't know if I've even played it beyond grabbing a screen shot), so here's your opportunity to explain the game, what it's like, your opinions and observances, etc. Write your own mini-review here. If you enjoyed it, convince me to play it! If you didn't, tell me what went wrong.

DP Guide sez:

Zoda's Revenge: StarTropics II (Nintendo NES, by Nintendo) $5/R2
Designed by G. Takeda, M. Hatakeyama. One of the last Nintendo games produced, it could be found in discount bins for years after the system had been discontinued. Features battery back-up. Released 3/94. c1994 Nintendo. #NES-6C-USA.

[DDCecil]

I like the 1st Startropics waaaaaaaaaaaaay better.
This is the game that gave me game playing nightmares! Even though I finally beat it, the Camelot level sucked. It was too hard.

[gamergary]

I like this game i traded a copy of Mystic Quest for it buts its harder than the first StarTropics

[WiseSalesman]

I thought that the control and "stroy" of StarTropics 1 was better, and, although Zoda's graphics may be better from a technological standpoint, I thought the graphics of the first were more charming.

[Moose]

I agree that the second Star Tropics was much more difficult. The diagonal jump added a new twist though.

[badinsults]

Startropics was infinitely better. I lost interest in Zoda's Revenge after the first level.

[kainemaxwell]

The orginial Startropics was definity different- a Zelda-like rpg set in modern times...who'd thought it before Earthbound (or after?). Anyhow Startropics was quite enjoyable along with the "Tetrads"- obvious homage to Tetris.

Then came Startropics 2 to finish the story of the Tetrads and lost alien kids. And it was hard. The diaagnal jumping was different along with the weapons. To me it still feels like Startropics but also doesn't..mnaybe due to it's difficulty.

[Neb]

I have always really liked StarTropics, despite the fact that I am terrible at it. It very similar to The Legend of Zelda, and I might venture to say that it was better than Zelda in some ways. I liked the plot, the music, and the game play. I will always remember the "letter from your uncle" that was attached to the manual. I was at my friends house when we got to that part of the game, and when we had to put water on the letter to get an important message that let us advance in the game, we were freaking out. It was awesome. It might not seem like much, but that really drew me into the game.

When I first compared Zoda's Revenge to StarTropics, it looked a lot better. The graphics are much better, and you have more control over your character-- you can walk diagonally!!! But the more I played it, the less I wanted to play it. The difficulty level was much higher, and the story wasn't as good. And when I set foot into a dungeon, I almost always find myself jumping to my death due to the controls.

Zoda's Revenge isn't really a bad game, but it isn't the best one either. It's still worth a play, though...

[Anonymous]

747

[Kid Fenris]

Zoda's Revenge was fun as far as the gameplay went, but what was up with the time traveling? The original StarTropics was a goofy little tropical adventure, sort of an Adventure Island action/RPG, but when the sequel sent the player back in time to meet Sherlock Holmes and Cleopatra and Leonardo DaVinci, it was just ridiculous and hackneyed, like an episode of the Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventures cartoon.

[Charlie]

Damn the random generator! Here's from my review (I've got a ton of these things lol).
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Zoda's Revenge: Star Tropics 2
by Nintendo
Review by Charlie Reneke
Score: DUD

Zoda's Revenge is one of the biggest disasters on the NES. Star Tropics is my favorite NES game, and when a sequel was announced I nearly fainted. Then along came Zoda's Revenge, and I guess his revenge was to make the game shitty.

I hated pretty much every aspect of it. First and foremost, the jumping. Everyone seemed to hate the jumping of Star Tropics, but I liked it. It was unlike any other game. Sadly for me, everyone else seemed to complain about it. So it was changed so that you could do moving jumps at anytime, instead of when you wanted to jump across something (like in Star Tropics). This made jumping an extremely awkward experience. Once you get to areas with moving platforms, be prepared to cuss out loud and throw your controller, because cheap deaths will happen. It can't be avoided.

Next up, the weapons are terrible. Gone is the Yo-Yo that made Star Tropics so enjoyable. It is replaced by generic weapons such as an axe or sword. That sounds cool until you find out that you THROW these weapons instead of swinging them. Just plain stupid.

In an attempt to make the game somewhat 3-D, the caves in the game have elevated platforms that you have to scale. Although in theory this is a neat addition, the control is so poor that climbing these things will result in several failed attempts and a cheap death or two.

Most of the original Star Tropics' critics hated the game's off the wall storyline about rescuing your uncle from space aliens. Chances are, Zoda's Revenge will leave them longing for Mike Jones' uncle. This time around, this weird book has you traveling through time and fighting Zoda. You start in the stone age and from there go on to ancient Egypt. Following that are trips to meet Sherlock Homes (!) and King Arthur (!!). Gone is the island traveling action found in the original, replaced by boring backdrops and yawn-inducing dungeons.

The graphics of Zoda's Revenge actually aren't bad. The themes for each dungeon change to fit whatever era that Mike Jones is currently stuck in. And of course, when you beat the game you get a bright and colorful ending with graphics that highlight all the things that you saw. The music, on the other hand, has gotten so bad that you might want to just hit the mute button. The sound effects are incredibly generic and rarely seem to fit the action that prompts them.

Bottom Line
Star Tropics was an easy ***** classic, so what went wrong? Well, pretty much everything. The boring storyline and dungeons, the horrible play control, and the nails-on-chalkboard music all contributed to make Zoda's Revenge one of the worst gaming sequels ever. This DUDs for you!