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Poor Alex Kidd can’t catch a break. After losing his job as Sega’s mascot to Sonic, he’s been in the video game wilderness for years. With games like BMX Trial, it’s no wonder. A Paddle Control title, this racer is about as much fun as rubbing against one of the numerous cacti Alex has to avoid. There are better paddle games out there, so save your money.
One genre that seemed tailor made for the Sega CD was the digital novel, but even there, quality varied. Detonator Orgun tried to adapt its namesake’s weird story to game form, but it fell flat due to a lack of any real action and subpar presentation. It’s not a horrible adaptation, but there are better anime-based digital novels out there to play. Fans of the OVA might enjoy this one, but those looking for a great anime-based digital novel will enjoy Urusei Yatsura: My Dear Friends a whole lot more.
Girl’s Garden is mostly known for being the debut work of Sega legends Yuji Naka and Hiroshi Kawaguchi, but it’s also a decent little game that works well on the SG-1000. Young girls are definitely it’s target audience, but the gameplay and presentation are solid enough for everyone to have fun with it, regardless of age.
Sega innovated in several ways with 1982’s Zaxxon and created a solid and challenging shooter that has become a classic. However, some may not enjoy the lack of depth find the gameplay frustrating if they’re not using a control stick. If those are humps you can get over, then Zaxxon offers an enjoyable, albeit short, experience that exemplifies Sega at its creative best.
Buck Rogers is a sci-fi legend, but he hasn’t had much of a presence in video games. Sega tried to remedy that with its 1982 arcade shooter that sought to take advantage of the TV revival that was popular at the time. While visually impressive and fun, Planet of Zoom may be a bit too repetitive for extended plays. Still, shooting things is fun!