Extreme-G
Publisher: Acclaim Entertainment
Developer: Probe Entertainment
Release Date: October 1997
Best Feature: Looping Tracks
Faster than a speeding bullet! It's Extreme-G, a futuristic racing game on N64 based about blazing speed and combat. It pits players against some incredibly tough challengers along twelve amazing, rollercoaster-like tracks. Prepare to ride on these bullet-shaped bikes while traversing ancient ruins, lava pits, dusty deserts and more. Driving is insanely difficult to master, far more so than its closest competitor on the scene, Wipeout. It requires perseverance, but your hard work will be rewarded. Racing at 60 frames per second is one thing, and the shooting spree is another. Use electromagnetic pulses and locking missiles to take down computer rivals or choose the four-player battle mode for arena-style play. Super fun with the techno background sounds, too. The quirky Blade Runner-like aesthetic is sadly hindered by poor draw distance.
Chameleon Twist
Publisher: Sunsoft
Developer: Japan System Supply
Release Date: December 1997
Best Feature: Tongue Platforming
Now here's a true experimental oddity. Published by Sunsoft and developed by Japan System Supply, Chameleon Twist is a bizarre 3D platformer for the Nintendo 64. The reptilian hero has an intriguing weapon unlike anything seen yet: His tongue! Like Yoshi taken to the extreme, this tongue can be used to lasso on bits of scenery and swing, winch, and catapult himself from place to place. This tongue-based mobility system is way more fun than boring old running and jumping. This one is aimed at beginners, if the overly cute graphics and bouncy, repititious background tunes were not a dead giveaway. Baddies are scaled-up sprites rather than actual polygons - for shame! Our only genuine complaint is the shoddy camera. Unmovable angles tend to make it a rough quest to even locate platforms. A fun rental at the most.
Mace: The Dark Age
Publisher: Midway
Developer: Atari Games
Release Date: September 1997
Best Feature: Brutal Fighting
Mace: The Dark Age made it to N64 courtesy of Midway and Atari. Pasted from the halfway decent arcade fighter, this console port is only slightly less, er, decent. Hardly awe-inspiring. Though, by order of default, it is the best fighting game on the system. Its graphics are lovely, with mostly original character designs, fair polygons, and a pleasantly gritty medieval feel. Visuals are vibrant, and the 3-D arenas with destructible items and various objects to toss around in the ring. However, the frame rate stinks to high heaven, and the animations are woefully sluggish. The control system borrows heavily from the fighter gene pool, with fast button-led combos and half-circle D-pad moves of SF 2 and Soul Blade fame. For its faults, it's still rather fun to play tournament-style among a group of competitive friends.
Armored Core
Publisher: Sony CE
Developer: FromSoftware
Release Date: October 1997
Best Feature: Mechanical Chaos
Those who have dreamt of thwarting the scum of the universe may do precisely that in Armored Core, a third-person mech shooter by From Software. A calamitous war has nearly decimated mankind, and corporate sponsored war machines fight for what is left. Players take on the role of a mercenary tasked with varied missions to earn cash rewards, later used for upgrades. Customize your mech with unique weapons, colors, patterns, and insignia - a staggering number of combinations to suit your particular needs which make for an immersive sci-fi experience. Mission types are basic fare with minimal variety, though intensive gameplay keeps the action fun. AC's polygonal graphics are adequate for PS-X, as is the mostly responsive albeit complex control layout. A splendid pick.
Tomb Raider II
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Developer: Core Design
Release Date: November 1997
Best Feature: Full-Length Adventure
Tomb Raider II marks the return of our favorite gun-toting dame in a sequel that builds splendidly on its foundation, albeit without fully capturing the original's charm. Lara Croft is back with tons of new moves and the same iconic blue-and-brown outfit - a bit less jagged and pointy this time. Oh, and her ponytail now flies around in the wind. Joy. Graphics otherwise remain about the same with textured polygons and realistic locales that span the Great Wall of China and the foothills of the Himalayas. Lara will require all tricks at her disposal, ponytail included, to discover the lost Xian Dagger. Climbable walls give additional depth to certain levels, as does the inclusion of fast-moving vehicles. Best of all, players can now save the game at any point! An awesome adventuring title.
Fighting Force
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Developer: Core Design
Release Date: November 1997
Best Feature: Gameplay Throwback
Who didn't love bashing street punks bloody as in the old Genesis days? Translating it into 3-D, well… The main objective in such a conversion is retaining the fine-tuned elements of control and playability. Core triumphs in this realm, taking to heart the lessons learned from the brawlers of yore. Design-wise, stages and enemies have appealing visuals, and the four playable characters set themselves apart from the rest. The major flaw in this package is it suffers from repetitive combat just the same as its predecessors. As wide a range as the moves may be, and even with neat destructive environments, the 3-D makeover does little to remedy the problem many have with this genre. Players searching for a solid, old-school arcade brawler ought to look no further than Fighting Force.
Marvel Heroes
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: October 1997
Best Feature: Comic Mayhem
Capcom's Marvel Super Heroes is the second comic book fighting game to make it to Saturn. Its overall look and feel closely resembles Children of the Atom. It does make a certain step forward by including the Infinity Gems, key items which enhance player abilities with extra speed or armor. Huge, detailed character sprites reach close to the coin-op original. This Saturn conversion takes advantage of VDP1's sprite-handling capabilities to bring the arcade action to console. With the 1MB RAM cart in tow, players will notice additional frames of animation to add to the fluidity. Expect some jerkiness with or without the cart. Gameplay balance is admittedly uneven, overtly favoring Spider-Man and Juggernaut over the rest of the roster. That said, Heroes retains a fun combat system with all sort of combos and high jumps.
Fighters Megamix
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Sega AM2
Release Date: May 1997
Best Feature: Tons of Fighters
Sega's Fighters Megamix is finally out on the Saturn, the compressed combination of Fighting Vipers and Virtua Fighter 2. A total of thirty-four unique fighters are included ranging from the mighty to the scrawny. Thankfully, no underworld side-plots or doomsday prophesy to distract from the meat of the game. Just good ol' fashioned butt-kicking from all corners of the Sega sphere. And on that front, all fighters move with finesse and grace thanks to motion capture technology, encompassing striking blows and aerial moves with stunning realism. The game merges multiple fighting engines, blending Fighting Vipers' flashy power hits with Virtua Fighter's tactical combat. Side-step evasion adds a purpose for 3-D movement, and eight configurable control layouts make mastering combos and reversals intuitive.
Crusader: NR
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Realtime Associates
Release Date: December 1996
Best Feature: Cool Story
Those yearning for a Diablo-like experience on the Saturn may be tempted to delve into a game like Crusader: No Remorse, but this portover has some real issues to work out. In Crusader, your character, a specialized soldier, has joined a resistance group seeking to topple a corrupt world government. Players' missions will include recovering secret data, blowing up targets, and rescuing prisoners, all while engaging with enemies in action-driven combat sequences. Visuals are unspectacular with blurred backgrounds and poorly-optimized animations, yet this title's true downfall is the wholly frustrating control scheme. This is not an accessible point-and-click affair. Rather, in either of the two control options, you will find limited movement and immense difficulty when aligning your shots. Good luck staying alive.
About Snapshots:
|
