Destinations Reviews Index Front Page

SNES Reviews: A-L Akaizukin Cha Cha Country: Japan Copyright Date: 1996 Developer: Tomy Publisher: Tomy Game Type: Adventure Number of Players: 1 Size: 1.5 Megabyte Rating: 50/100 If there are any action sequences in this game at all, I wasn't able to find them, despite wandering around for some time. It appears to be an RPG with nothing but towns, and while that might be amusing for young Japanese kids it's not much fun if you're an adult who can't read the text. Nice graphics, though. Albert Odyssey Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Strategy/RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 The graphics and audio are quite reminiscient of Zelda 3. (In other words, they're good.) The game is one endless battle; to journey to the next town your characters must fight their way across a hex grid riddled with monsters. The map endlessly scales and rotates during these battles, which can get annoying. Overall - good, but there's no guarantee you'll like it. Alcahest Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Overhead-View Adventure Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 The character animation is a bit awkward but the graphics are nice and the gameplay is decent. Only worth importing if you can get it cheap, though. Aretha II Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 Beautiful animesque artwork, lush scenery, and a semi-original approach to first-person battles where enemies can attack from the sides and the rear. But the gameplay is still hardly exciting and the enemy designs are lame. In the age of Wild Arms and FF7 this just isn't worth the trouble to import. Astroboy Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Platform Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 20/100 Awful graphics and frustrating gameplay. Stay far away from this one. Bahamut Lagoon Country: Japan Copyright Date: 1996 Publisher: Square Game Type: Strategy/RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: 3 Megabyte Rating: 90/100 An excellent RPG by Square. Movement on the battlefield is handled a-la Shining Force, but any hand-to-hand combat takes place in a Final-Fantasy style battle sequence. The art is reminiscient of FF3, and the special effects are phenomenal. Not as deep as Tactics Ogre but every bit as enjoyable. Worthy of import. Cotton 100% Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Side-View Shooter Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 A cutesy shooter featuring a witch on a broomstick as the main character. Lots of powerups, options which can fly in different formations, and overall decent gameplay. The graphic style doesn't totally appeal to me but it sure is colorful. Don't rush to import it, but it's worth a play, especially for Gradius fans. Crayon Shin-Chan Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Depth Movement Brawler Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 50/100 Based on the only anime series I know of with an exhibitionist hero. Several of your special attacks consist of mooning the enemy to death. (No I don't think the elephant impression is in this game, thankfully.) Your only main attack is to jump on enemies' heads, which is difficult in a pseudo-3D game. Colorful and cartoony but not worthwhile gameplaywise. Cross Dimension 0079 Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Isometric-View RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 40/100 A mech strategy game, vaguely similar to Shining Force. Virtually all of the battle menus are in English but of course all dialogue is Japanese. Strangely enough special moves can be accessed while attacking with Street Fighter-like controller commands. The gameplay is passable but not good enough to make up for the weak graphics. Cyber Police Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Depth Movement Brawler Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 40/100 Why import this game when we've got dozens of domestic brawlers that are equally lame? Poor animation, annoying music, and frustrating, repetitive gameplay. Doraemon 4 Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Platform Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 Shallow even for a platform game, but still fairly enjoyable. Older players will find it way too easy, though; this game is squarely aimed at young kids. Cute and colorful. Dragon Knight Country: Japan Copyright Date: 1994 Publisher: Bandai Game Type: Overhead-View Action/RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: 1 Megabyte Rating: 40/100 A Zelda clone with passable graphics and audio but weak gameplay. Not really worth your time. Dragon Quest III Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 A remake of the Famicom game with vastly improved graphics and sound. If you liked Dragon Warrior III for the NES but are sickened by the graphics now you should definitely investigate this, especially since you'll be able to navigate without knowing Japanese. Dragon Quest VI Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 Nice graphics, and of course any gamer knows what to expect of the Dragon Warrior/Dragon Quest series as far as gameplay. Worth importing. Dragon Ball Z 3 Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Fighting Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 50/100 Dragon Ball fanatics will no doubt love it. I didn't. Small characters, poor graphics, and a split-screen fighting game just doesn't work. Maybe if you liked X-Men: COTA... Fighter's History 2 Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Fighting Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 40/100 Only released for Super Famicom. More of the same from the first, though the characters seem somewhat improved. Has a much stronger Japanese flavor than the original. Final Fantasy V Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 90/100 Although I have reason to hope that we will never again miss out on a Final Fantasy game (American audiences wouldn't stand for it) it is regrettable that this is one of the games Square chose not to port. Although it doesn't offer many graphic improvements over FF2 its battle system is considerably deeper than any other FF game, including FF7. If you're a true fan of the series it's worth importing and wading through the Japanese text. Emulator users Fire Emblem 4 Country: Japan Copyright Date: 1996 Developer: Nintendo Publisher: Nintendo Game Type: Strategy/RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: 4 Megabyte Rating: 85/100 The sluggish pace may turn off all but the most hardcore strategy buffs, but this game has some real depth, and nice graphics and tunes round it out nicely. It'll take a while to master if you can't read Japanese, though. Fist of the North Star 6 Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Fighting Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 40/100 For a time I managed to convince myself the Game Boy version was pretty cool thanks to the nice graphics. Now I know nice graphics don't make up for lame gameplay, especially if the animation is lousy. Gokukyou Parodius Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Side-View Shooter Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 A whopping 11 "ships" to choose from, each with its own set of weapons. Hilarious stages and bosses. And all the slowdown of Gradius III. If you can put up with that last part and you like Gradius you'll love this game. Great Battle III Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Depth Movement Brawler Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 Kamen Rider, Ultraman, and others in a colorful and cute but ultimately boring beat-em-up. Definitely not worth importing. Great Battle IV Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Platform Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 I like this a lot better than its predecessor. The four characters each have their own set of special abilities. You can switch between them at will, and you'll need to in order to clear the stages. A mix of Contra and Lost Vikings with cute graphics and passable gameplay. Great Battle V Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: 2D Platform/Crosshair Shooting Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 Very much like GB4, except that half the stages are crosshair shooting a la Cabal or Nam 1975. It's easy to get stuck in some places for several minutes until you figure out the obscure solution to a puzzle or the weakness of a boss. Not bad but not worth importing. Hebreke's Poppoitto Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: Puzzle Number of Players: 2 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 How can a game like Dr. Mario be made more challenging? How about adding "viruses" that move around while you play? Cute characters, nice control, and good gameplay. My only complaint is with the bland colors. Lennus II Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 The original Lennus was released here as Paladin's Quest, and this features the same cool, unique art style and the same unusual crosspad-only interface. But Paladin's Quest wasn't for everybody and neither is this. Light Fantasy II Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 80/100 A pleasant mix of Final Fantasy and Shining Force with cute and colorful graphics but not much in the way of special effects. A good game but you'll have to decide if it's worth figuring out an unfamailiar menu system in Japanese. Live-A-Live Country: Japan Copyright Date: 1994 Publisher: Square Game Type: RPG Number of Players: 1 Size: 2 Megabyte Rating: 80/100 The battle system is a bit difficult to figure out with all the text in Japanese, but it's passable. Not much in the way of graphics, either. The game really shines when it comes to the the story, though. You choose one of several characters, each with a completely different storyline. (The caveman's scenario is both hilarious and romantic at once and has no text whatsoever.) Not my first choice for import but it's not bad, either. Luna Strike Country: Japan Copyright Date: N/A Publisher: N/A Game Type: War Sim Number of Players: 1 Size: N/A Rating: 70/100 Similar to Military Madness for the TG-16, which is a great game, but unless you read Japanese (kanji, not kana) you'll be completely lost in all the menus. You may want to settle for Panzer General on the PS.

Archaic Ruins is not connected or affiliated with any mentioned company in any way. The opinions of Archaic Ruins do not reflect the views of the various companies mentioned here. Companies and all products pertaining to that company are trademarks of that company. Please contact that company for trademark and copyright information. Reviews © 1997/1998 Jay McGavren. © 1997/1998 Archaic Ruins