ReTrO-pLaYeR
08-13-2010, 08:32 PM
I had posted a thread about this unique NES game on another forum (which was a bit less sophisticated than the one here), and I decided I'd share with you guys. It's a review I did of a game that was reskinned for the western audiences, "Yo Noid", produced by Capcom in 1990. My assumption is that most of you posters would know plenty about this one, but given the criticism it's received recently- you might be unsure of whether or not you want to check it out. It's in no way a game for everyone, but hopefully I can guide some of you newcomers to collecting/ retrogaming to the ups and downs of this game in terms of quality.
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Marketing is an essential tool for all top-notch companies offering just about any specific type of service. It is often wired through the world of multimedia- television promotions, fliers, trailers and in a very rare case...a video game featuring the company's promotional mascot. "Yo Noid", released by world-reowned Capcom in 1990 was one of these few cases. But, beyond shoving the conception of eating a delicious Dominos pasta down your throat, you will be able to find "Yo Noid!" a decent (and possibly frustrating) action game.
You assume the role of the infamous "Noid"- an eerie (and seemingly pedophiillic ) man draped in a red rabbit costume. This creature was the facet of the Dominos advertisements in the late 80s, and had eventually bled into their 1990s commercials. "The Noid"'s primary goal is travel through various locations of the world, and challenge others of his type to a...pizza eating contest. Yes, there's no need to eye that sentence again...you duel through the art of pizza eating. Eventually, you will challenge the nefarious "Mr.Green" in yet another contest. But, before you reach this shady creature, you will need to traverse several levels of platforming insanity...
There are about a dozen rounds set in traditional settings. There's a cargo dock, cherry carnival, back alleys, sewage facilities, the platform-staple ice levels...you get the hint. As uniform with any other platform-action game, you are concerned with getting from point A to point B. Villanious characters litter the way, of course, and there's no shortage of Noid-annihilating saftey hazards. Thankfully, the Noid has to his arsenal a....Yo-Yo? There's no boot stamping or guns to be seen- only long range Yo-Yo whips. More traditionally, the Noid is also capable of utilizing magical spells. If he can crack open a scroll, he will be able to gain the power-up as seen on the said scroll's icon. These magical powers are devastating to every animating creature on screen, and as such will require you to collect small scrolls as fuel for the Noid's mojo magic. You may also find unusual objects encased in the scrolls, including pepper sprays and multipliers. These are incredibly advantageous in the anti-climitac pizza gorging contest- but you will need to assault invisible blocks in order to find them.
Pizza munching contest serve as "boss battles". Think of your typical "War" card-game with a few maniacal twists here and there. Each mentally-unstable man in rabbit costume has a number of cards to work with. They represent the single digit numerals. The goal of each turn is to produce a card with a higher numeral than your opponents. The Noid with a higher number on his competing card will eat the difference. For example, if your opponent picks a card displaying the numeral of "5", and you produce a numeral of "3", your opponent wins the turn and will eat (in this case) 2 pizzas. The multipliers you have collected in the action scenes will also be displayed, and you will be able to apply them to your chosen card to increase their original numeral. If you have discovered the pepper sprays during the platforming portions, you may also use them to infest your opponents pizzas- causing him not to earn any more points on his meter should he win the current turn. Once all of the blocks on your meter have filled up (or you have caused the opposing Noid to run out of playing cards), you will emerge the victor. However, should your opponent fill his meter first- you'll lose a life AnD be sent right back to the beginning of the stage. This is an unusally odd punishment, but as these contests are fairly easy- you should have no problems emerging as the superior player.
Although you will find the romp mildly entertaining, the frustration factor is at a mighty high. This is one of those "One hit kills you" titles that were commonplace in video games of this time. This normally wouldn't be problematic, except just about EVERYTHING can destroy the Noid. Nothing that doesn't take the appearance of a scroll or one of the Noid's crazy contraprations can be considered dangerous. A puff of smoke, for instance, is incredibly hazardous. There are also "rules" that need to be considered in each level. On the docks, the water level rises and lowers consistently. Should you hop on a platform when the water is just lurking beneath your sneakered feet, you will drown. On the ludicrously infuriating skateboard escapade, you can only dispatch enemies with the rollerblade of the Noid's skateboard. If you land on the enemy with any other positioning, you're dead- plain and simple.Although specific placements are widespread for this style of game and the decade in which it was released, it seems to have been taken to an extreme here. Cautious playing will be expected of you if you're in to see the game to the ending.
There is a sense of graphical achievement in the game. For 1990, this appears as a game that could have been released a few years later (say, 1993). The sprites are bright and well defined. Numerous back-drops are brimming with life and detailed to a high extent. You will never encounter a dull moment with these back-drops, and slowdown is surprisingly minimal. The animations are also technically proficient- running at the usual amount of frames your typical 8-bit sprite. In my humble opinion, these graphics could rival the quality of those produced on the early-launch Super NES games should a few more colors had been added.
The chiptunes accompanying the action are fairly generic as far as NES standards go, but are suitable for each section of the game. An light, relaxing tune surrounds the carnival stages- while a fast paced and energetic theme will infest the skateboard stage. These tunes are certainly not memorable, but they do get the job done as far as setting the tone for the current level.
All in all, those willing to look past "Yo Noid"'s imperfections and marketing scheme will find a nice little gem of a game. I can only recommend it to seasoned players who have passed through numerous platformers. Newbies to the genre will find the specific hit-detection and overly tricky jumps to be excruciatingly painful. Any platforming-jockey looking for a true challenge will find a lot to like about this lost gem of the 8bit era.
Overall Ranking: 7.5/10
* Excellent Visuals
* Traditional, enjoyable gameplay
* High Challenge, very compatible for veteran players
- Boss Fights have the quality of stupidity, not to mention complete randomness. Victory does depend on strategy, but chance is also a contributing factor involved. Skill is always more valuable (and easier to attain) than just getting lucky and advancing further into the game.
- New players will find the game incredibly frustrating, and will probably stop at the third round
__________________________________________________ _
So, what did you think? I'm entering 9th Grade this year, and I really do want to become proficient (or. possibly, beyond proficient) at the writing trade. Of course, I know writing about 20-25 year old games (that simple, uneducated teenagers wouldn't even know about) isn't going to land it- but I am great at covering any topic. The only thing I consider myself poor at is spelling, but thankfully Microsoft Word can correct any misdemeanors in that field.
Please, do not go easy on me just because I'm a bit younger than all of you (although nobody online would really care, would they?). If it is shit, I want to know.
__________________________________________________ _________________
Marketing is an essential tool for all top-notch companies offering just about any specific type of service. It is often wired through the world of multimedia- television promotions, fliers, trailers and in a very rare case...a video game featuring the company's promotional mascot. "Yo Noid", released by world-reowned Capcom in 1990 was one of these few cases. But, beyond shoving the conception of eating a delicious Dominos pasta down your throat, you will be able to find "Yo Noid!" a decent (and possibly frustrating) action game.
You assume the role of the infamous "Noid"- an eerie (and seemingly pedophiillic ) man draped in a red rabbit costume. This creature was the facet of the Dominos advertisements in the late 80s, and had eventually bled into their 1990s commercials. "The Noid"'s primary goal is travel through various locations of the world, and challenge others of his type to a...pizza eating contest. Yes, there's no need to eye that sentence again...you duel through the art of pizza eating. Eventually, you will challenge the nefarious "Mr.Green" in yet another contest. But, before you reach this shady creature, you will need to traverse several levels of platforming insanity...
There are about a dozen rounds set in traditional settings. There's a cargo dock, cherry carnival, back alleys, sewage facilities, the platform-staple ice levels...you get the hint. As uniform with any other platform-action game, you are concerned with getting from point A to point B. Villanious characters litter the way, of course, and there's no shortage of Noid-annihilating saftey hazards. Thankfully, the Noid has to his arsenal a....Yo-Yo? There's no boot stamping or guns to be seen- only long range Yo-Yo whips. More traditionally, the Noid is also capable of utilizing magical spells. If he can crack open a scroll, he will be able to gain the power-up as seen on the said scroll's icon. These magical powers are devastating to every animating creature on screen, and as such will require you to collect small scrolls as fuel for the Noid's mojo magic. You may also find unusual objects encased in the scrolls, including pepper sprays and multipliers. These are incredibly advantageous in the anti-climitac pizza gorging contest- but you will need to assault invisible blocks in order to find them.
Pizza munching contest serve as "boss battles". Think of your typical "War" card-game with a few maniacal twists here and there. Each mentally-unstable man in rabbit costume has a number of cards to work with. They represent the single digit numerals. The goal of each turn is to produce a card with a higher numeral than your opponents. The Noid with a higher number on his competing card will eat the difference. For example, if your opponent picks a card displaying the numeral of "5", and you produce a numeral of "3", your opponent wins the turn and will eat (in this case) 2 pizzas. The multipliers you have collected in the action scenes will also be displayed, and you will be able to apply them to your chosen card to increase their original numeral. If you have discovered the pepper sprays during the platforming portions, you may also use them to infest your opponents pizzas- causing him not to earn any more points on his meter should he win the current turn. Once all of the blocks on your meter have filled up (or you have caused the opposing Noid to run out of playing cards), you will emerge the victor. However, should your opponent fill his meter first- you'll lose a life AnD be sent right back to the beginning of the stage. This is an unusally odd punishment, but as these contests are fairly easy- you should have no problems emerging as the superior player.
Although you will find the romp mildly entertaining, the frustration factor is at a mighty high. This is one of those "One hit kills you" titles that were commonplace in video games of this time. This normally wouldn't be problematic, except just about EVERYTHING can destroy the Noid. Nothing that doesn't take the appearance of a scroll or one of the Noid's crazy contraprations can be considered dangerous. A puff of smoke, for instance, is incredibly hazardous. There are also "rules" that need to be considered in each level. On the docks, the water level rises and lowers consistently. Should you hop on a platform when the water is just lurking beneath your sneakered feet, you will drown. On the ludicrously infuriating skateboard escapade, you can only dispatch enemies with the rollerblade of the Noid's skateboard. If you land on the enemy with any other positioning, you're dead- plain and simple.Although specific placements are widespread for this style of game and the decade in which it was released, it seems to have been taken to an extreme here. Cautious playing will be expected of you if you're in to see the game to the ending.
There is a sense of graphical achievement in the game. For 1990, this appears as a game that could have been released a few years later (say, 1993). The sprites are bright and well defined. Numerous back-drops are brimming with life and detailed to a high extent. You will never encounter a dull moment with these back-drops, and slowdown is surprisingly minimal. The animations are also technically proficient- running at the usual amount of frames your typical 8-bit sprite. In my humble opinion, these graphics could rival the quality of those produced on the early-launch Super NES games should a few more colors had been added.
The chiptunes accompanying the action are fairly generic as far as NES standards go, but are suitable for each section of the game. An light, relaxing tune surrounds the carnival stages- while a fast paced and energetic theme will infest the skateboard stage. These tunes are certainly not memorable, but they do get the job done as far as setting the tone for the current level.
All in all, those willing to look past "Yo Noid"'s imperfections and marketing scheme will find a nice little gem of a game. I can only recommend it to seasoned players who have passed through numerous platformers. Newbies to the genre will find the specific hit-detection and overly tricky jumps to be excruciatingly painful. Any platforming-jockey looking for a true challenge will find a lot to like about this lost gem of the 8bit era.
Overall Ranking: 7.5/10
* Excellent Visuals
* Traditional, enjoyable gameplay
* High Challenge, very compatible for veteran players
- Boss Fights have the quality of stupidity, not to mention complete randomness. Victory does depend on strategy, but chance is also a contributing factor involved. Skill is always more valuable (and easier to attain) than just getting lucky and advancing further into the game.
- New players will find the game incredibly frustrating, and will probably stop at the third round
__________________________________________________ _
So, what did you think? I'm entering 9th Grade this year, and I really do want to become proficient (or. possibly, beyond proficient) at the writing trade. Of course, I know writing about 20-25 year old games (that simple, uneducated teenagers wouldn't even know about) isn't going to land it- but I am great at covering any topic. The only thing I consider myself poor at is spelling, but thankfully Microsoft Word can correct any misdemeanors in that field.
Please, do not go easy on me just because I'm a bit younger than all of you (although nobody online would really care, would they?). If it is shit, I want to know.