Kid Icarus

In the late seventies/early eighties, the Atari 2600 ruled the video game market, even though other consoles such as the Colecovision and Intellivision managed to do fairly well. But in 1983 the bottom fell out of the gaming industry, and video games seemed to be nothing more than just a fad. Thankfully Nintendo, a company that started out making playing cards and eventually arcade machines, decided to take a gamble and create their own console. In 1985 they released the "Nintendo Entertainment System." (known as the Famicom in Japan) Nintendo had the idea to allow third party development of games for their system, increasing the amount of games and diversity. Nintendo also made their own games. Super Mario Bros., The legend of Zelda, and Metroid were among their firsts. But one game has been over shadowed by the success of it's brethren. "He can jump like Mario, collect items like Link, and shoot enemies like Samus." Quite possibly the first video game to be labeled a Cult Classic, Kid Icarus is the game that Nintendo forgot.

Background: Kid Icarus was developed by Nintendo R&D1 alongside it's sister game Metroid. The game uses the same engine as Metroid and was released the same month. The reception of Kid Icarus, was relatively good and it is frequently mentioned as one of the best NES titles, though it failed to outshine the success of Metroid. So far only one sequel has been made, Kid Icarus: of Myths and Monsters for the Gameboy, even though fans have begged Nintendo for more. Kid Icarus 2 had been in development for the Super Nintendo, but was never released. Since then rumors of a sequel have sprouted up with the release of the N64 and Gamecube, but so far none have been confirmed. The latest rumor of a sequel on the Wii, seems inevitable to some fans with the release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, where Kid Icarus' protagonist, Pit, is a playable character. Supposedly the company Factor 5 is working on this unconfirmed sequel, and it will be released next year, though I wouldn't hold my breath.

Story: The story tells of a time when gods and humans coexisted in harmony. Angel Land is ruled by two goddesses, Palutena, the goddess of light, and Medusa, the goddess of darkness. Palutena shone light on the mortals and helped cultivate their crops, while Medusa destroyed their crops and turned the mortals into stone. Enraged, Palutena used her powers to turn Medusa from a radiant maiden, into an hideous beast, banishing her to the underworld. Medusa, angry at her exile and new form, created an army of monsters and attacked angel land. Turning it's residents into statues, and hiding the three sacred treasures (the only weapons able to stop her) in her three evil fortresses, Medusa becomes the ruler of Angel Land.

Meanwhile, Pit, an angel youth and captain of Palutena's guards, is captured and is being held in a dungeon in the underworld. Palutena realizing he is their only hope, uses the last of her power to free Pit and asks him to retrieve the sacred treasures from Medusa's gatekeepers. Pit agrees and sets off on his journey, armed with only his bow.

Gameplay: Gameplay is where this game really shines. Like mentioned before it features aspects of Mario, Zelda, and Metroid, but brings in it's own uniqueness that makes this a truly satisfying game. In the beginning of the game you start by climbing up the ruins of the underworld while fighting countless enemies. You could just run past these monsters making the game somewhat easier in the short run, but if you stay and fight them, you will gain experience to up your endurance and strength, making the game's final levels much more fun.

The game is broken up into four different levels; the first three ending with a fortress stage. Level 1 and 3 are both vertical, and you will have to climb up to the top to move on, being careful not to fall. Level 2 is your basic sidescrolling platformer, though I found this level to be the hardest in the game. The fortress levels are completely different from the rest of the game, and take on more of a Legend of Zelda feel, in that you can retrace your steps, your overall goal being to find the boss and defeat him. The fortresses are difficult, and feature enemies that will push your skills to the limit. Among these are the Eggplant Wizards, which turn you into a walking eggplant that cannot attack. If you get turned into an eggplant you will have to find the fortress's hospital to get the curse removed. These wizards usually roam the rooms near the boss, creating a frustrating situation when you have to backtrack to the hospital.

As you climb up to reach the top of the first level there will be sections where the platforms seem to lead you to a dead end on the side of the screen, but just walk into the side of the screen and you will appear on the other side. This adds to the enjoyment of the vertical levels, and I find this a very unique approach to designing a game. I do find it somewhat annoying that on some platforms, if you press down you fall through. I'm sure the designers planned this to make it so you could drop down onto another platform, but why just down, most games that have this "jumping down" feature use it by pressing down and the jump button. I don't know how many times I hit down to duck under enemy fire, only to fall to my death.

Along your journey you will come across shops where you will be able to buy helpful items such as water of life and angel feathers. The water of life fills up your heath meter part way, while the angel feathers make it so if you fall, pit will start flying and you can save yourself from death. I did find it a bit strange though that hearts represent currency and not health. The first time I played this game I remember taking damage, and figuring it was no big deal since I was picking up so many hearts, and seconds later I would die. But I did figure it out and it didn't really bother me once I thought to look at the red meter instead of the number next to the heart.

Graphics: Not a lot to say here, since most NES games had the same look to them. The graphics are okay, but not quite as visually appealing as later NES titles such as Contra, or Kirby's Adventure. The background is a solid color, usually black, much like in Metroid or Super Mario Bros.. The enimies are all designed well, as is Pit, and the platforms are great, making the levels seem believable. Although some enemies glitch and appear in areas where they weren't supposed to, such as inside a wall or down a couple of platforms. The game does slow down from time to time when too many enemies are on screen, but speeds back up as you kill them.

Music: The music is pretty good for being in the 8-bit era. It does a good job of setting the mood for each level, like any good music should. Creepy when in the underworld, foreboding in the fortresses, and epic when facing Medusa. Again there isn't much to say here. Hmmm....oh the sound effects are pretty good too!

Originality: The game stems from a line of Nintendo games that saved the world of gaming, and takes aspects from each. At no point during the game did I feel bored, or unenthused. The story is loosely based on Greek mythology, and has nothing to do with the story of Icarus and how he flew too close to the sun. The game is diverse and doesn't fallow a pattern. The enemies are creative, even those Eggplant Wizards which I hate so much, and challenging. The third level even features metroids, and the Manuel says "These beings are thought to be from another planet." paying homage to the game's sister franchise. Overall this is a very enjoyable and unique game that has never been seen before, or since, and I would recommend this to anyone with an NES or a Wii with an Internet connection. (It's on the virtual console)

Overview:

Story: 3/5

Gameplay: 4/5

Graphics: 3/5

Music: 3/5

Originality: 4/5

Difficulty: Medium

Length: Average (about 2 hours, that was pretty good in those days)

Best Part: Putting on the Sacred Treasures and kicking Medusa's ass.

Worst Part: Getting turned into and eggplant (again)

Total Score: 3.4 Worth Buying

Conclusion: If your a Nintendo fan, this game is for you. It is a classic that represents the history of video games, and exemplifies the quality of Nintendo's first console. You won't be disappointed in this game.

Next Post Hint: From now on I will give a hint at the game I will review next so here goes, This game is unique, in that the only enemies you fight are bosses, otherwise there aren't any.

NiGHTS Journey of Dreams

Ok, so technically it's not a Cult Classic, but it is the long awaited sequel to one. Besides my job is not only to bring you the classics, but bring you the classics, their sequels, and games that are so unique that they scream play me. Besides, just because a game is popular dosen't mean it isn't a cult classic. So anyway on with my review of NiGHTS Journey of Dreams.

Background: It has been 11 years since the Saturn masterpiece, and the whole time fans have been begging Sega for a sequel. Eventually people got tired of begging for somthing they were sure they'd never recive, and with recent releases from Sonic Team that totally sucked, (I.E. Shadow the Hedgehog) some fans would rather keep playing their Saturn than have Sonic Team butcher another great game. But did you know that a sequel for NiGHTS Into Dreams has been in the works since the final days of the Saturn?

That's right a working title called "Air NiGHTS" was in early development. It was planned to be a direct sequel to NiGHTS Into Dreams, and used the tilt controls present in the Saturn's analog gamepad. Unfortonatly the project died with the Saturn, however the project started up again once the Dreamcast hit shelves, and as any gamer worth his salt will have already realized, the project died yet again along with the short-lived Dreamcast. Though it's thought that the motion controls for Air NiGHTS was salvaged to make Sonic Team's minor hit game Samba de Amigo. (Another Cult Classic I may review someday)

Yuji Naka, lead programmer of Sonic Team, was quoted in saying this when asked about a future NiGHTS release: "I know a lot of people love it and want us to make a sequel, but for us it's a really important game. Like the way Speilburg likes E.T. so much he won't remake it, I don't want to make another NiGHTS.” At this point pretty much all hope of a sequel was lost, now that Sega has stepped out of the hardware buisness, such is the fate of many Cult Classics. However, after years of rumors from various video game magazines, Sega Confirmed that a sequel was in the works on April 1, 2007.

Most people doubted the ligitimacy of this anouncment, since it came on April Fool’s Day, but the conformation stuck and on December 18, 2007, after 11 years of waiting fans finally received the game they had dreamed of since soaring through the skies all those years ago.

Story: The story fallows closely with the pattern of the first game in which you take control of either a boy or a girl. Will Taylor and Helen Cartwright live in the city of Bellbridge. Will is an aspiring soccer player and Helen is a child prodigy of the violin. Will has a big game coming up and he is sad because his dad has to go away on buisness during this time. Helen has a big concert in which her and her mother are going to preform a duet. Helen feels she is good enough to play without anymore practice, and decides to go hang out with her friends, though she feels guilty leaving her mother to practice alone.

As with the first game, both Helen and Will fall asleep with heavy emotions that draw them into Nightmare. They both escape and end up at the fountain of dreams where they meet Owl, a talking owl that acts as your guide through the whole game. Owl tells each child about the Night dimension, and how it is divided by two separate worlds, Nightopia and Nightmare. NiGHTS makes an entrance and asks if the respective child would like to "Duelize" with him, there by sharing his body and allowing them to fly. Each child is hesitate, but agrees and the adventure to retrieve the four missing Ideya begins.

All of the story is told through the use of cutscenes, which are impossible to skip or pause. The story is rather good, and keeps the same style of it's predecessor, but the one downside is the voice acting, which is horrible. It's so bad that I find myself cringing half the time, or straining to understand what each character is saying. Luckily there are subtitles to help you out, but my biggest problem with these is there is no option to turn them off, so my question is why have voice actors at all when you're just going to have everything written down anyway. Not to mention the voice acting is so bad I wish I could turn it off and just read.

I must admit though, that some of the voices do the characters justice. NiGHTS sounds like a young boy or girl, that mirrors his personality. Reala and Wizeman's voices are perfect. Reala's voice is more manly than NiGHTS's and he has this way of speaking that gives off an aura of being cold and maniplative. Wizeman's voice is deep and slow, as if he where speaking through a long tunnel, it kinda reminds me of Sauron from Lord of the Rings. Overall though I'm not very happy with the way in which the story is told, (even though it is a good story) and I would probably dislike this game if it wasn't for the spectacular gameplay.

Gameplay: The gameplay is fun and keeps the series at it's roots while adding new challenges that make this a truly enjoyable game. Things are slightly different though. Instead of flying around collecting blue chips then flying into Mares and retrieving all four Ideya, each level is divided into five different stages. The first stage is always a chase level, you fly around chasing after a bird-like nightmaren. Once you catch him, drill dash into him to recive a key. This key allows you to move on to a different section of the stage and chase after another nightmaren; there are three nightmaren in each chase stage.

Next are the octopaw stages, octopaw is a octopus like creature that flies around creating rings in which you can fly through. When you fly though a ring or collect a blue chip you get 1 link, you have about three seconds to fly through another ring before the link counter resets. The object is to get at least 30 links to complete the stage, and you have five tries to do so. Two of the stages are challenges that vary from level to level and are more like mini games than acual stages. Occasionally you will have a platforming stage, where you play as either Will or Helen and try to find NiGHTS. You go around jumping up on to other platforms, shooting blue chips at your enemies, and solving minor puzzles. These stages aren't terrible, but they do take away the majestic feeling you get from the other stages.

The last stage of each level is always the boss. You face the boss first upon completion of the chase stages, but face a more powerful version of them in this one. Staying true to it's roots each boss unique and has a different strategy you must impose to defeat them. After the boss is defeated a cutscene is shown of the respective child receiving an Ideya. You return to the fountain of dreams and open a chest that contains a persona, a mask that allows NiGHTS to transfom into diffirent things. The game is set up like the first. Each child has three unique levels and shares the final level, but to get the true ending you will have to complete each stage with at least a C rank.

Like a lot of Wii games, you are able to choose between the Wiimote by itself, the Wiimote with the nunchuck, the classic controller or the Nintendo Gamecube controller. When using the Wiimote by itself, a cursor will appear on screen. NiGHTS will fly in the direction of the cursor, but you will have to hold down the A button in order to make NiGHTS go, and use the B button to drill dash. I find this frustrating and my wrist tends to get sore after about five minutes of holding the A button down. Using the nunchuk is a lot better. Since you have a thumbstick, you can push forward in order to make NiGHTS go, so you don't have to hold the A button down. If you really want to enjoy this game though use the classic controller or the gamecube controller, as they have thumbsticks, and shoulder buttons which allow for aerial stunts to be preformed like in NiGHTS Into Dreams. My biggest problem however is that my thumb tends to slip off of the thumbstick. Half the time I'm playing with the side of my thumb and I am forced to readjust in the middle of the game. The more I play NiGHTS Journey of Dreams, the more I wish I had my 3d controller. Maybe someday I'll hack into one for use on my Wii, I'll be sure to post instructions if I do.

Graphics: There really isn't much to say in this category about a game from this generation. Graphics really aren't important to most gamers anymore, seeing as you can pretty much bet that a game is going to have good graphics now a days. NiGHTS Journey of Dreams is very colorful and lifelike and gives the same sense that you are in a dream as it's predecessor. The CG cutscenes are great, but the in game cutscenes are rather choppy and look just like any run of the mill game.

Loading times are the worst; even slower than the Saturn, but I do have to say that once the loading screens are over, the game is really loaded. I can't even once think of a time when the game slowed down or hiccuped. The background is pleasant to look at, and has a lot of depth, but sometimes the foreground gets in the way and there will be a couple seconds where you can't see where you're going. Though the worst thing is that you will get stuck occasionally, and will have to start button mashing to get free. This happened to me after about five minutes of gameplay, and happen to me three more times before the game was over, though the first time was the worst. Overall the game's graphics are good but seem to be unfinished, but what can I say, this is defiantly the best game Sonic Team has made in the last five years.

Music: The music is superb, really setting the mood for what is happening. Dreams Dreams is used very often during the game and cutscenes. 4 different versions of the legendary theme song are used. One for each child's ending credits, a remixed version for the final level, a slower more emotional version for the true ending credits, and you even get to play the song in one of Helen's stages by flying along score lines, having to hit the notes in time with the beat. The remakes of Dreams Dreams are good, but a little more pop culture-e than the original, though they get the job done and fit in well with the rest of the game.

Originality: Yet again there isn't much for me to say that hasn't already been said. Of course the game is original, it's the sequel to one of the most original games in history. NiGHTS Journey of Dreams does a good job of staying away from those video game cliches that are in every game, such as having to have a fire and an ice level, or having to save a princess.

Overview:

Story: 3/5

Gameplay: 4/5

Graphics: 3/5

Music: 4/5

Originality: 4/5

Difficulty: Easy

Length: Short, about 3 hours

Best Part: It's a sequel to NiGHTS Into Dreams, duh

Worst Part: Voice Acting

Total Score 3.6 Worth buying

Conclusion: NiGHTS Journey of Dreams may not be for everyone, but it is defiantly better than no sequel to NiGHTS Into Dreams. Gamers who purchase this game will receive entertainment and joy that few games today offer, and fans of the Saturn classic will not be disappointed.

NiGHTS Into Dreams

First of all welcome to the Cult Classic Gamer page. My Aim is to break away from the status quo, and dig deep to find the video games that live in the hearts of the few, but dwell in obscurity to the many. So for my first review I thought I'd show you the perfect example of what a cult classic is with none other than NiGHTS Into Dreams on the Sega Saturn, a console that in its self is a cult classic. Enjoy!

I won't lie to you and say that I played this game as a kid, because I didn't. Growing up being a Sega fan wasn't easy. No one I knew owned a Saturn (let alone a Genesis) and by the time the new millennium rolled around I jumped ship to Nintendo. A couple years passed and I got a Gamecube, my first game being Sonic Adventure 2: Battle (though I was stunned and somewhat angry that Sonic now resided in the house of Mario) . There while raising the cute little creatures known as chao, pronounced "chow", I fist learned of NiGHTS, as chao taking his likeness and name passed my poor little Chaos. Who is NiGHTS I thought a few times but eventually came to the conclusion he was a Sonic character I had never heard of.

Jump a few months ahead when Sonic Adventure DX came out. I enjoyed this game so much, but while in the pinball like world of Casinopolis I see a dancing "Jester" and I knew it was him, but just shrugged it off. Then again he appeared in Sonic Riders as an unlockable character. Now I had to know just who he was, and what I found turned out to be better than I could imagine. NiGHTS had his own game on the Sega Saturn, a system I remember begging my parents for but never received. Jump to the year 2009, when I managed to score a Saturn on eBay with my own copy of this beloved game.

Background: NiGHTS Into Dreams was created by Sonic Team, the development team that created Sonic the Hedgehog and later killed him. NiGHTS was developed to give the sense of flight by using three dimensional graphics combined with two dimensional gameplay. The overall effect was enhanced with the use of the 3d controller, the first to feature a thumbstick, though Nintendo likes to take the credit. Though NiGHTS was loved by fans and critics alike, it failed to shine in the shadows of Super Mario 64 (released a month prior) or Crash Bandicoot. (released four days later)

Story: Nightopia is the realm in which human beings go to when they dream. The evil Wizeman the Wicked is the ruler of Nightmare where all nightmares reside. He seeks to control both Nightopia and the waking world. In order to do this he creates henchmen called Nightmaren to carry out his evil deeds. Two of these Nightmaren are created to be much more powerful than the rest, and are given the ability to think and act for themselves NiGHTS and Reala. Reala remains loyal to Wizeman unlike his sibling, NiGHTS, who rebels against his master and is punished by being locked up in the Ideya palace. Ideya is the form in which our personalities take when in Nightopia, each human has five Ideya of varying colors. By stealing this, Wizeman gains power. However he is unable to steal the red Ideya that represents courage.

Clairis Sinclair and Elliot Edwards are two children from the city of Twin Seeds. Each of the children have a nightmare and are forced to flee to Nightopia. There the Nightmarens steal their Ideya and they meet NiGHTS who is imprisoned in the Ideya palace. Since Claris and Elliot poses the Red Ideya they are able to free him, and NiGHTS tells them of Wizeman's plans. The three then set out to retrive their stolen Ideya and defeat Wizeman.

Gameplay: At the start of each level Wizeman's henchmen steal four of the five Ideya the child possesses an locks each up in a seperate "Mare". The first thing you must do is head to the Ideya palace and free NiGHTS. Then the object is to fly around and collect 20 blue chips to defeat the Mare. You use the 3d controller to fly using the thumbstick, and by pressing either the A B or C buttons you can do a drill attack that sends you spinning quickly through the air to defeat your enemies.

When you have enough blue chips you need to fly inside of the Mare, destroying it from the inside out. Once you defeat the mare you will retrieve an Ideya. With this you can return to the Ideya palace and and move on to the next Mare, or you can fly around some more and collect gold chips to increase your score, but don't take to long because you can only fly for so long until you change back into a kid and fall, losing all of your chips. You will then be forced to run from an egg shaped alarm clock, if it catches you, you will wake up and the game will be over.

You earn a grade for each separate Mare, and you must have at least a C in every level in order to play the final level. You are scored on the amount of gold chips you collect and how fast you were, and a number of other things, such as how many bonuses you collect or the number of aerial stunts you preform.

Boss battles play very much the same way except you don't have to go around collecting chips, instead you take the direct approach and attack, though each boss has a slightly different strategy you must use.

Graphics: The Sega Saturn's biggest competitor was Sony's Playstation, which was a more powerful machine. However NiGHTS Into Dreams show that even though the Playstaion was more advanced, the Saturn could still hold its own. Flying around and taking in the lush beauty of your surroundings is why NiGHTS is so majestic. Every detail has been taken into consideration, making you feel as if you were in a dream. The colors and shading really bring this game to life making it look like it was on a much more powerful console. Rarely, if ever, does the game slow down to load, truly this is a work of art. Pixel Perfect.

Music: The music is positively outstanding, fitting in perfectly with the scenery, and setting the perfect mood for which to enjoy it. The sound effects are original and not stock, leaving a feeling of satisfaction when you collect that last blue chip or fly through that last ring. The game's theme song is call "Dreams Dreams" and once again fits in perfectly with the overall package. The fact that during the ending credits you are rewarded with this beautiful duet sung by a boy and a girl, (representing Elliot and Clairis) is enough to make you want to cry tears of joy all over your controller.

Originality: Sonic Team set out to prove they could make games that broke away from the traditional platformer genre and hedgehog based games. They did just that and so much more. You can tell that a lot of hard work went into this game and that the developers actually cared about the project, something that almost never happens with today's "Make it and hope it sells" attitude. A lot of love went into crafting this masterpiece, and a lot of love has been returned as a result.

Overview:

Story: 4/5

Gameplay: 5/5

Graphics: 4/5

Music: 5/5

Originality: 5/5

Difficulty: Medium

Length: Too damn short, can be beaten in under an hour

Best Part: Flying though the air in your own little dream world.

Worst Part: Starting the game over for the 85th time because it's too damn short!

Total Score: 4.6(Worth Every Penny)

Conclusion: If you have a Sega Saturn you should buy this game, if you don't have a one, get one, you won't regret it. NiGHTS Into Dreams is a timeless cult classic that is still as magical today as it was the day it was released. I like to think that this game was made not for the general public who continue to buy the same old, same old, repolished in a different package, but for those like me, who strive to be different. Those who play video games not to escape life, but to enhance it. The few people that fallow their passions and never let go of their dreams.