Genesis Reviews

Genesis Reviews

Spot Goes to Hollywood

Licensed games rarely work. Usually, the train wreck software that accompanies a movie is a total failure due to horrible gameplay or just an uninspired cash run banking on the property’s name (hello Transformers movie games!). Sometimes, however, developers get it right. Spot Goes to Hollywood was a game that showed signs that the industry was beginning to understand that justice could be done to marketing gimmicks, and it was successful enough to be released during two hardware generations at once. Though the isometric perspective might put off some gamers, this is definitely a neat little platformer that should definitely be played.

Genesis Reviews

James Pond 3: Operation Starfish

Genesis fans are well acquanted with Electronic Arts’ James Pond series. The Amiga-friendly fish had a total of four outings on Sega’s über console, the last of which was simply massive. Featuring over a hundred levles and a Super Mario World-like world map, it took Agent Pond on a mission to stop Dr. Maybe from crippling the world’s dairy industry by mining the Moon for cheese. Seriously. We have a full review of it for you, so please chedder out. Sorry, I had to try and slip at least one cheesy joke in. Ha! See what I did there?

Genesis Reviews

Rise of the Robots

Rise of the Robots will forever be known as a blueprint for poor game design pressed to silicon, and aspiring game designers need look no further when studying the perils of graphics over gameplay. A button-mashing nightmare that had no technique or fighting style at all, the entire experience was an exercise in frustration and usually left the player both exasperated and boiling with rage. The ironic part of all this? Rise of the Robots was ported to a zillion consoles and actually received a sequel. Note to Acclaim and Mirage Technologies: creating a second turd as an act of contrition for the first does not make things right; it makes a pile of turds.

Genesis Reviews

Chuck Rock

The Flintstones weren’t the only ones to rock the stone age! In 1991, Core Design and Virgin Games released a hit platformer called Chuck Rock for multiple formats, and the game was a massive hit. It boasted lush visuals, large and detailed bosses, and possibly the most unattractive protagonist this side of Boogerman. It was followed by an enhanced Sega CD version and the eventual sequel. We’ve a full review of the Genesis original for ya, so put down that Brontosaurus (Apatosaurus?) burger and read up!

Genesis Reviews

Syndicate

Syndicate was quite a popular title during Bullfrog Production’s run, which ended when it was gobbled up by Electronic Arts in 1995. Playing like the love child of The Matrix and Wall Street, the game tasks players with all sorts of nasty objectives, like assassinating rival corporations or brainwashing targets into obedience.