Kid Ice
07-28-2004, 05:45 PM
I had been on the lookout for this one for a while and finally picked it up today. I wanted this one since it is the only comp to date to include Tapper. No proper review for this one on DP (I had argued its existence with someone in the chat room a few weeks ago), so here's my two cents:
the interface - a ring of arcade machines, like the Playstation version. When you choose a machine, it spins so you can see its side art. The process of choosing a game takes a little too long, and you can't change over to a different game in the pause menu like you can in the Namco cart. Music = bad.
Spy Hunter - controls poorly using either the D-pad or the analog stick to drive. Really frustrating, I moved on fast from this one.
Tapper - after years of emulating, boy it looks ugly on a TV. Maybe my N64 just has a bad video connection. Anyway, it's all here; the goofy animations, the obnoxiously loud music between levels, the "pick the can" segments, etc. You have to push the buttons quite fast in this game, and the N64 buttons aren't quite up to the task. Stick to emulation.
Defender - if you're a fan of controlling this without using thrust and reverse, you will love this one. If (like me) you strive for authenticity, you can map the button commands to any button except the shoulders. This I found annoying...I would have liked to use the D-pad for up/down and the left shoulder button for thrust. I settled for using analog for up/down, the z-trigger for thrust, B for fire and A for reverse. Like I said, it controls very well just using the d-pad for left-right-up-down like the 2600 version, but if you miss the thrust-fire dynamic, you may have to compromise.
Robotron - the default setup is d-pad for movement and camera buttons for fire. The alternatives are worse; the analog stick is worthless for firing or moving because it's not fast enough. Funny, this game controls perfectly on GC Treasures.
Sinistar - You know what? This game just sucks. Yes, the Sinistar himself is cool and the voice is neat and all that. Otherwise, this one is a real turd. Took me 4 or 5 comps to figure that out. Oh, and the voice is way too quiet in this version.
Joust - This is normally the game on the comp that I don't play. I haven't enjoyed this one since the Atari 800 version...until today. Maybe I never gave it a chance, what with it being outshined by Robotron and Defender on all the other comps. Joust was the only game on the cart I really got in to.
Stargate - Not on this cart. Why not?
Video Trivia - That's right, there's videogame trivia on the cart. You answer 15 questions, with 3 choices each. Almost all the questions are derived from the video segments on the Playstation Williams disc; those segments do not appear on this cart. Stupid. Also there are at least three questions based on the default high scores. Stupid. If you answer incorrectly, you get the buzzer sound, but it does not give you the correct answer. Stupid. Which is OK, because you will know all the answers after playing this 4 or 5 times since the pool of questions seems to max out at about 40. Stupid. When you're finished, the game makes a comment on your performance; based on my experience there is a total of 2 comments. Stupid. The comments; "Well, these games are more than 20 years old" and "You must have spent a lot of time in the arcade when you were a kid" (should read - "You must have spent a lot of time watching the video interviews in the Playstation version"). Stupid. You get the same comment whether you get 12 or 15 correct out of 15. Stupid. Nuthin' special for getting all 15 correct either...no hidden game (SUCH AS STARGATE), bonus questions, trophy, or anything like that.
Overall, a bit of a dud. Decent cart versions of Joust and Defender, if that's what you're looking for. This one really brings out the limitations of the N64 controller. I was about to say there's no such thing as a bad comp, then I remembered Activision Classics for the PSX. This one's a joyride compared to that garbage.
the interface - a ring of arcade machines, like the Playstation version. When you choose a machine, it spins so you can see its side art. The process of choosing a game takes a little too long, and you can't change over to a different game in the pause menu like you can in the Namco cart. Music = bad.
Spy Hunter - controls poorly using either the D-pad or the analog stick to drive. Really frustrating, I moved on fast from this one.
Tapper - after years of emulating, boy it looks ugly on a TV. Maybe my N64 just has a bad video connection. Anyway, it's all here; the goofy animations, the obnoxiously loud music between levels, the "pick the can" segments, etc. You have to push the buttons quite fast in this game, and the N64 buttons aren't quite up to the task. Stick to emulation.
Defender - if you're a fan of controlling this without using thrust and reverse, you will love this one. If (like me) you strive for authenticity, you can map the button commands to any button except the shoulders. This I found annoying...I would have liked to use the D-pad for up/down and the left shoulder button for thrust. I settled for using analog for up/down, the z-trigger for thrust, B for fire and A for reverse. Like I said, it controls very well just using the d-pad for left-right-up-down like the 2600 version, but if you miss the thrust-fire dynamic, you may have to compromise.
Robotron - the default setup is d-pad for movement and camera buttons for fire. The alternatives are worse; the analog stick is worthless for firing or moving because it's not fast enough. Funny, this game controls perfectly on GC Treasures.
Sinistar - You know what? This game just sucks. Yes, the Sinistar himself is cool and the voice is neat and all that. Otherwise, this one is a real turd. Took me 4 or 5 comps to figure that out. Oh, and the voice is way too quiet in this version.
Joust - This is normally the game on the comp that I don't play. I haven't enjoyed this one since the Atari 800 version...until today. Maybe I never gave it a chance, what with it being outshined by Robotron and Defender on all the other comps. Joust was the only game on the cart I really got in to.
Stargate - Not on this cart. Why not?
Video Trivia - That's right, there's videogame trivia on the cart. You answer 15 questions, with 3 choices each. Almost all the questions are derived from the video segments on the Playstation Williams disc; those segments do not appear on this cart. Stupid. Also there are at least three questions based on the default high scores. Stupid. If you answer incorrectly, you get the buzzer sound, but it does not give you the correct answer. Stupid. Which is OK, because you will know all the answers after playing this 4 or 5 times since the pool of questions seems to max out at about 40. Stupid. When you're finished, the game makes a comment on your performance; based on my experience there is a total of 2 comments. Stupid. The comments; "Well, these games are more than 20 years old" and "You must have spent a lot of time in the arcade when you were a kid" (should read - "You must have spent a lot of time watching the video interviews in the Playstation version"). Stupid. You get the same comment whether you get 12 or 15 correct out of 15. Stupid. Nuthin' special for getting all 15 correct either...no hidden game (SUCH AS STARGATE), bonus questions, trophy, or anything like that.
Overall, a bit of a dud. Decent cart versions of Joust and Defender, if that's what you're looking for. This one really brings out the limitations of the N64 controller. I was about to say there's no such thing as a bad comp, then I remembered Activision Classics for the PSX. This one's a joyride compared to that garbage.