• Review,  Video Games

    Review – Ganbare Goemon: Karakuri Douchuu

    Konami has had a severe fall from grace in recent years. In actuality, they’ve been in steady decline for a long time, but only recently have they demonstrated an actual derision of the video game market. It’s hard to believe that back in their Famicom heyday they were a machine, churning out great games at an unbelievable pace. A lot…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Mega Man X6

    From my perspective, the Mega Man X series has been in constant decline since the launch of the first game. Each game is just slightly worse than the last, and with X5, that decline seems to have picked up speed. Considering I count Mega Man X as one of my favourite games of forever, it’s sad to suddenly feel like…

  • 1990s,  Review,  SNES

    Review – Demon’s Crest

    This is the oddly named third game in the Gargoyle's Quest series. Demon's Crest ditches the more cartoonish aspects of the previous game and goes full horror. Firebrand is also a hot piece of toast, and people don't read this far down in these excerpts, do they? That would be embarrassing.

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Super Castlevania IV

    I don’t think I’ve really had the chance to hammer home the point that I absolutely love Castlevania, but don’t worry, those days will most likely arrive. Love bloomed late, however, as I never really played the inaugural game until I was in my twenteens. I did have one experience with the series, and that was back in my childhood.…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Castlevania: Bloodlines

    Don’t get me started on Castlevania. The original title stands as one of my favourite NES titles, perhaps even topping the list if I was forced to decide, and I don’t make that statement lightly or without due consideration. A few years ago, I did a deep dive into the more Metroid inspired titles — a corner of the series…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Gargoyle’s Quest II

    In the twilight years of the NES, Capcom made what are arguably some of the best action platformers of the time. Using lessons learned from their time designing Mega Man, games like Duck Tales and Yo! Noid were tight games that felt solid and satisfying. Even on their worst days, Capcom typically came along with something at least playable. Gargoyle’s…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Pocky & Rocky 2

    Pocky & Rocky and I go way back. I probably would have been 6 or 7 during the time I rented it and played it with my mom. It stuck in my mind for years until I was old enough to drive and buy insurance, so I looked it up to reconnect with it. That’s when I learned there was…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Gargoyle’s Quest

    Nintendo’s first cartridge based handheld, the Gameboy, was many things. It was influential, popular, long-lived, and absolutely ubiquitous. It was not, however, a very powerful system. Consider that the Atari Lynx was released later in the same year — a handheld with a full colour display and better graphical capacity — and you’ll see that the Gameboy lagged behind in…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Mega Man X5

    We’re starting this review off with some spoilers about Mega Man X3, because this is important. We need to talk about the series’ plot and this is the perfect place to do it. So, sit back and let me complain for a minute. At the end of the SNES trilogy of X games, there was always a text crawl that…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Pocky & Rocky

    In my youth, my mother would occasionally indulge me by joining in my favourite hobby. Off the top of my head, I remember diving into Donkey Kong Country, and playing endless amounts of Stunt Racer FX with her. Those were good times. Pocky & Rocky was one such game that we picked up a few times off the rental shelf.…