Don`t you ever grab a goblin by its head!
A wise Anglo-Saxon once said: Don`t judge a book by its cover! Well, you`re well-advised to ignore this guy for once, because Tecmo`s Rygar is as bad as the cover suggests.
There are many horrible NES games out there and Rygar certainly is one of them, maybe one of the worst. Are you familiar with Rygar for PS2 (2003)? This Rygar is not that bad, actually it is kind of fun and the reason for me eventually purchasing the NES version. It has OK graphics, OK controls and even its own Britney (play and see yourself or see right here). Anyway, the Wii-port of 2009, because of the forced controls, sucked hard again, but this is not of our concern, I don`t play Wii. And PS2. Seriously.
As you might have guessed, Rygar (originally an arcade game) is a Jump`n Run, like many NES games are. But, and that´s the one good thing, no "pure" one. The game from time to time switches to a mappy Zelda-like upper world, where you see and control Rygar from a near-bird-perspective and have the possibility to enter caves for more Jump`n Run-areas etc. You also are able to upgrade your weapons RPG-style, even if in a very simple form.
Our hero Rygar is obviously inspired by Greek mythology. His principle weapon is the (presumably) godly Diskarmor, which is a chain-connected discus, which he can whip at his enemies (much like in the Castlevania series). It is called diskarmor, because it serves as a shield simultaneously. So far, so good, eh? But take a look at this screenshot:
There are many horrible NES games out there and Rygar certainly is one of them, maybe one of the worst. Are you familiar with Rygar for PS2 (2003)? This Rygar is not that bad, actually it is kind of fun and the reason for me eventually purchasing the NES version. It has OK graphics, OK controls and even its own Britney (play and see yourself or see right here). Anyway, the Wii-port of 2009, because of the forced controls, sucked hard again, but this is not of our concern, I don`t play Wii. And PS2. Seriously.
As you might have guessed, Rygar (originally an arcade game) is a Jump`n Run, like many NES games are. But, and that´s the one good thing, no "pure" one. The game from time to time switches to a mappy Zelda-like upper world, where you see and control Rygar from a near-bird-perspective and have the possibility to enter caves for more Jump`n Run-areas etc. You also are able to upgrade your weapons RPG-style, even if in a very simple form.
Our hero Rygar is obviously inspired by Greek mythology. His principle weapon is the (presumably) godly Diskarmor, which is a chain-connected discus, which he can whip at his enemies (much like in the Castlevania series). It is called diskarmor, because it serves as a shield simultaneously. So far, so good, eh? But take a look at this screenshot:
Do I get the Rolling Shield when I kill him?
Ok, maybe it doesn`t look as bad as you might have expected (except for the armadillos), but a fixed image (fortunately) cannot capture the overall-ugliness of this game.
First, concerning the graphics, it`s a game, which I would define as sprity. That oughts to mean that it hasn´t very sharp graphics like the Mega Man games, it`s more like Faxanadu or Sword Master. Of course, that isn´t necessarily a sign of bad quality, but I prefer my NES game supporting at least 720p (kidding). The levels aren`t that detailed, as well, which you can see above. Slowdowns, slow scrolling and several other bugs make an annoying game even more annoying. At least it`s colorful (not like Total Recall, for example).
Enemies range from awkward armadillos to humanoid lizards up to fire-spitting trunks, but nearly none of it is difficult to defeat. When you die, it`s mostly because you fall in one of the many abysses of the game.
Anyway, the worst aspect of Rygar is the music. I`m a huge fan of 8-Bit music and chiptunes and many NES titles provide great and catchy tunes (e.g. Duck Tales and Little Nemo, but above all, Mega Man). Comparing one of the mentioned games with Rygar is like comparing The Mars Volta and Bon Jovi (no offense). It`s difficult to describe the sound of 8-Bit music, so I`ll just say it sounds kind of...American. The complete soundtrack can be downloaded at Galbadia Hotel (Don`t you dare!).
The last thing I want to mention is that regulary, you will enter a cave sheltering an old man, sitting on a podium in meditating position.
First, concerning the graphics, it`s a game, which I would define as sprity. That oughts to mean that it hasn´t very sharp graphics like the Mega Man games, it`s more like Faxanadu or Sword Master. Of course, that isn´t necessarily a sign of bad quality, but I prefer my NES game supporting at least 720p (kidding). The levels aren`t that detailed, as well, which you can see above. Slowdowns, slow scrolling and several other bugs make an annoying game even more annoying. At least it`s colorful (not like Total Recall, for example).
Enemies range from awkward armadillos to humanoid lizards up to fire-spitting trunks, but nearly none of it is difficult to defeat. When you die, it`s mostly because you fall in one of the many abysses of the game.
Anyway, the worst aspect of Rygar is the music. I`m a huge fan of 8-Bit music and chiptunes and many NES titles provide great and catchy tunes (e.g. Duck Tales and Little Nemo, but above all, Mega Man). Comparing one of the mentioned games with Rygar is like comparing The Mars Volta and Bon Jovi (no offense). It`s difficult to describe the sound of 8-Bit music, so I`ll just say it sounds kind of...American. The complete soundtrack can be downloaded at Galbadia Hotel (Don`t you dare!).
The last thing I want to mention is that regulary, you will enter a cave sheltering an old man, sitting on a podium in meditating position.
Charlie did that to me
This, to my opinion, is the only highlight of Rygar, because the old man`s cryptic advice mostly tends to be very funny, containing mysterious words and phrases like "the entrance to Garloz" (s.a.). Furthermore, the same old man seems to live in every cave of the game at once. As I said, he is very very mysterious.
By the way, though the game provides a life bar, you only got one life, which is very untypical for such a game. Imagine The Legend of Zelda with only one life. If you`re dead, you`ll stay dead. No continues, Game over. So much for this review, too. Thank you for your interest.
By the way, though the game provides a life bar, you only got one life, which is very untypical for such a game. Imagine The Legend of Zelda with only one life. If you`re dead, you`ll stay dead. No continues, Game over. So much for this review, too. Thank you for your interest.
NEXT UNNESESSARY GAME: GHOST `N GOBLINS! COMING SOON! I SWEAR (A LOT)!
