Collection Review: Namco Museum Battle Collection

Game: Namco Museum Battle Collection
Console: Sony Playstation Portable
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 9th December 2005

As yet I haven't reviewed any Namco arcade games in my arcade reviews, despite them being a major force in the arcades. To remedy this, here's a collection of 16 Namco arcade greats, with a few updated versions included. I'll be going through the games one by one and giving them a rating and grade before reflecting on the collection as a whole.

Pac-man

Game: Pac-man
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1980

Pac-man is one of the, if not the most recognisible video game characters ever created. At the time it was released, Pac-man was one of the most inventive and interesting arcade games on the market, and since its release there have been many clones, inferior versions and imitators. It's not a game I've ever been particularly keen to finish (there are 255 levels after all) and after a while it can get a little repetitive, but there's no denying its effect on the video game market as a whole.

The version included on this collection controls very nicely, and everything seems to be very much like the original arcade game. A nice additional touch is the option to continue from the last level you got to, and settings to increase the number of lives given at the start of the game. Overall if you're looking to play Pac-man this isn't a bad way to do it, but it's never anything more than a yellow dude being chased around a maze.

Rating: 72/100
Grade: C

Galaxian

Game: Galaxian
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1979

There were many games derived from the concept of Space Invaders, after its release but few of them were of the quality of Galaxian. Adding a twist where ships broke from the main formation to attack the player directly brought far more movement and strategy to the game, and without any bases to hide behind players were forced to dodge attacks and enemy ships whilst reducing the number of enemies onscreen.

Other than that though, the two games are pretty much the same; once all the enemies have been shot off the screen, the main formation is refreshed and play starts again. Just like Pac-man though there's not enough variation between levels to keep players interested for very long. It's a good idea but overall a very average space themed shooter game.

Rating: 66/100
Grade: C

King And Balloon

Game: King and Balloon
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1981

After success with Galaxian, I assume Namco were asking themselves how they could make another game that was as good. It would appear that they chose to make the same game, essentially, replacing the enemy ships with balloons, and adding a king that needs to be protected from abduction by the aforementioned balloons. Players aren't penalised for being hit with enemy fire by a balloon, but will lose a life if the King ends up drifting to the top of screen attached to a balloon.

King and Balloon plays very similarly to Galaxian and while there are slight differences between the two games, they're not enough to distinguish it as a separate entity in my mind. If anything King and Balloon is slightly more frustrating to play thanks to the game mechanics involved with protecting something other than your own ship.

Rating: 60/100
Grade: D

Galaga

Game: Galaga
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1981

Another Space Invaders-esque game, Galaga takes Galaxian to its obvious conclusion; groups of enemies swarm in on-screen and add themselves to the group of invaders once they've shot at players a little. This is by far the most exciting and active version of this type of game, and provides more challenge than both the original Space Invaders and Galaxian.

With its bright colours and a nice explosion effect when players are hit by enemy fire or ships, Galaga is visually impressive for its time. Soundwise things are still rather basic, but that's to be expected for an arcade game released in 1981. One of the best changes is the addition of a challenging level which tasks players with shooting all 40 enemy ships in a bonus round for extra points.

Rating: 79/100
Grade: B

Rally-X

Game: Rally-X
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1980

Much like a motorised version of Pac-man, Rally-X sees players driving their car around a maze in order to collect items (flags in this case). Unlike Pac-man though, players must navigate through the maze themselves, with the aid of a map, and there are no power pills to help them overcome the cars chasing them. The controls are fairly difficult to master and getting your car to go where you want and pick up all the flags is a challenge in itself without considering the pursuing cars. Players are able to leave a smoke screen behind to confuse the enemy cars, but it's hardly ever an effective tactic.

Graphically the game is fairly bland with a Beige and Green colour scheme for its maze and simple blue/red cars for the player and enemies. Soundwise there's a little jingle for completing a level, but other than that it's pretty unimpressive. Interestingly Rally-X features as the load screen game for one of Namco's later games, so I'd played it before a little.

Rating: 46/100
Grade: D

New Rally-X

Game: New Rally-X
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1981

New Rally-X is much like Rally-X; there are some new features but essentially it's the same game. The colours change a little from level to level, and there's some challenging stages as in Galaga, inbetween the main levels. The controls are just as fiddly as before, and really there's no difference in the horrible handling of the game.

Rating: 47/100
Grade: D

Bosconian

Game: Bosconian
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1981

Bosconian is an interesting space shooter where players fly freely around space, attempting to destroy the green bases shown across the map by either shooting all 6 of their circular protrusions or their weak point in the center. In addition to these enemies, there are regular enemies and co-ordinated attacks from ships which are sent to interrupt player progress. Once all of the green bases are destroyed, the game moves onto the next round.

Interestingly there are synthesised voice samples which warn players of attacks and imminent time limit expiration, but they're very low quality, owing to the age of the game and aren't of much help to players. As ships shoot both in front and behind the direction they are facing, it's difficult to get used to shooting enemy bases in Bosconian, and on the whole it's pretty underwhelming, though a good original idea for a space shooter.

Rating: 62/100
Grade: C

Dig Dug

Game: Dig Dug
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1982

Dig Dug is an interesting arcade game based on digging to drop stones onto or inflate enemies before they can move through the earth and catch you, or escape without allowing you to score any points from them. The game is fairly fun but a little easy if you're not looking to score the maximum amount of points possible, since dropping stones on enemies scores more points than inflating them, or letting them escape. Whichever way you choose to finish enemies off, the round ends when there are none left onscreen.

The characters and visuals are cute and contribute to the feel of the game, with colourful backgrounds which change every couple of levels. As Dig Dug moves across the screen, some music plays which is impressive for 1982, even if it does stop and start suddenly with the character's movements. On the whole it's an interestingly different take on arcade games for the time as space shooters were the norm.

Rating: 65/100
Grade: C

Dig Dug II

Game: Dig Dug II
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1985

Dig Dug II takes place above ground, in more of a ToeJam and Earl looking environment. where players effectively play the same game as in Dig Dug, but without any digging or rocks falling on enemies. This simplification of the game actually improves the experience, as there's no messing around with trying to score the maximum amount of points by digging the entire cave out before dropping a rock on every enemy. Perhaps though, the game could have used some new powerups of some sort to spice things up.

The sound and graphics aren't as appealing as the original game, and this makes the overall experience less memorable. Of the two games, it's a toss up between nostalgia, characters and visuals and gameplay and level progression. Personally I preferred playing Dig Dug II as it took far longer for me to get bored. I think perhaps if there had been a Dig Dug III marrying all of the best elements of both games, then that'd be the perfect version of this type of game.

Rating: 70/100
Grade: C

Xevious

Game: Xevious
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1982

A fairly straight forward shoot 'em up, Xevious plays very well for the era it was released, and indeed even today. Players have bullets for shooting enemy ships and bombs to shoot enemy bases, but there are some obstacles in the game which neither are effective against and so must be dodged. The continue feature on the collection is handy as there are some difficult moments where players must defend themselves from air and ground attacks whilst dodging obstacles.

Graphically the game is well detailed, though its use of grey can be somewhat excessive when all obstacles, enemies and the player's ship are onscreen and all coloured grey. There's some nice music both on the title screen and behind gameplay, though it's not particularly complex. Overall this is a shoot 'em up ahead of its time, which could easily have been (and was) expanded upon to make a true classic.

Rating: 78/100
Grade: B

Mappy

Game: Mappy
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1983

Players control Mappy, a micro policeman mouse who is retrieving presumably stolen goods from the house of a criminal cat. The lines of defence for the cat are 5 small pink mice and the big red cat himself. Players use trampolines to boost themselves up onto higher levels and collect items. There are also doors which can be opened to stun the chasing mice, allowing Mappy to put some distance between them and himself.

With bright colours, interesting items to retrieve, 15 levels, and multiple house layouts, Mappy is far less likely to get boring than other Namco titles. While the concept is simple it's a pretty fun title, and the fact that Mappy can't be harmed whilst bouncing on a trampoline makes for some interesting strategy descisions in complex house layouts. Overall for 1983 it's a nice little arcade title, and something that I'm glad to own on Famicom.

Rating: 73/100
Grade: C

The Tower of Druaga

Game: The Tower Of Druaga
Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco
Release Date: 1984

Another maze style game, The Tower Of Druaga sees players controlling a Knight around a complex network of passageways in order to find a key and the a door, to let themselves down onto a lower level of the dungeon. Armed with a trusty sword, players are able to stab anything that gets in their way, but it's not always effective, so its usually best to mash the buttons a little for more complex enemies, like a bit of a swordfight.

While there's not much else to this game, and the graphics are pretty boring, the music is top notch and saves the experience from being simply average. With a good run of luck, players can make it down quite a few floors before being thwarted by enemies. It can be slightly frustrating to go down a long pathway only to find that it's a dead end, but I suppose such is the nature of mazes.

Rating: 68/100
Grade: C

Dragon Buster

Game: Dragon Buster

Console: Arcade

Developer: Namco

Release Date: 1984

An early hack n' slash arcade title, Dragon Buster lets players quest through short dungeons with various nasties and mini bosses, accumulating fireballs, spells and other powerups in order to defeat the big dragon at the end of each level. As the rounds continue, there are more and more locations and dungeons to go through, and things get tougher since players only have one life bar and no continues. 

While the hit detection can be a little iffy, generally the controls and features of the game are pretty tight. Graphically the game features more detail than many arcade games of the time, and the progression through the game, and battle system are well ahead of their time. With good music and some intense boss battles, Dragon Buster is reminiscent of Golden Axe and similar games which came later. 

Rating: 76/100

Grade: B

Grobda

Game: Grobda

Console: Arcade

Developer: Namco

Release Date: 1984

Grobda is a fairly difficult tank shooter deathmatch where players compete with a number of other vehicles to be the last man standing. With a laser shot and a shield, competitors must strategize their movements around the play area to best defend themselves and give opportunities for attack. Often rounds are fast paced and there's little time to react as lasers fly everywhere, but with 99 rounds of increasing difficulty it'd be very hard to complete fully. Luckily there's a level select on the menu in this collection version.

Graphically there's not much to look at; there's a different background every 5 rounds or so and a few different enemy vehicles but the gameplay is the main draw of the game. There's some nice musical accompaniment to gameplay but unfortunately very little time to actually enjoy it with the short and frantic battling that tends to occur. Ultimately it might have been a little more fun to have less damage done by each hit, resulting in more strategy an a slower overall game pace, but Grobda is fun nonetheless.

Rating: 71/100

Grade: C

Motos

Game: Motos

Console: Arcade

Developer: Namco

Release Date: 1985

Yet another fairly unique arcade concept from Namco, Motos is best described as "that game where you try to push other people off stuff". Players control a small ship which can be powered up by collecting force or jump powerups, and attempt to force all enemy shapes off the playing grid. Different enemies will react differently; some are active in trying to force players off and others are far more passive; opting instead to circle the player in the hopes that they'll confuse themselves. 

This is certainly one of the more enjoyable games on the collection, and there's good replay value as the levels increase in difficulty and different strategies are applied. While the chequered grid isn't much to look at, there's some nice music which accompanies gameplay, and I was all too busy trying to force my enemies out of bounds to notice any graphical shortcomings.

Rating: 78/100

Grade: B

Rolling Thunder

Game: Rolling Thunder

Console: Arcade
Developer: Namco

Release Date: 1986

Rolling Thunder is a classic Run and Gun game where players attempt to make their way through an enemy base, populated by maskers who are all different colours, representing the way in which they attack, and the amount of hits they can take. Initially players only have a standard issue pistol with which to defend themselves, for which more ammo can be obtained from behind marked doors. With an upper and lower path to choose from and swap between on most bits of each level players can also strategise their movements. 

While playing, more enemies are likely to come out of the doors placed along the route, so it takes a little getting used to not standing right in front of doors initially, as contact with an enemy will drain the life bar by half, and getting shot will drain it fully, leaving very little room for error. In later levels players can aquire different guns, and switching between upper and lower levels becomes more important. 

While it may seem very simple in concept, with just one button to shoot and another to jump in addition to basic movement, the game is far easier to pick up this way, and the difficulty and challenge level can be raised far faster as there's not much to get one's head around. Graphically the game looks pretty great for the era, and there's some nice music to accompany play.

Overall Rolling Thunder is my favourite inclusion on this collection, and a great arcade game. It can get a little difficult after a while, but with enough practice any level and challenge can be overcome. There was a sequel to Rolling Thunder which was also pretty good, and versions of the two games have been released on the NES and Mega Drive respectively.

Rating: 88/100
Grade: A

In addition to all of the above arcade games, Namco Museum Battle Collection features updated arrange versions of Pac-man, Rally-X, Dig Dug and Galaga. These vary in quality from simple graphical updates for Rally-X and Dig Dug to better, more fleshed out games for Pac-man and Galaga. They're a nice addition to the collection even if they're essentially the same thing as their arcade counterparts. 

As there's no other goodies included on the collection, all that remains is to say that the overall user interface is pretty good, and easy to navigate at the option to continue on most if not all of the games is appreciated, since arcade versions of some of these games tend to be a little harder than their console counterparts.

The range and variety of games included is pretty good, even if a couple felt like they were thrown into the mix to bulk up the number of games included. All in all it's an interesting trek through Namco's Arcade history and a good counterpart to the Capcom, Taito, Midway and SNK collections all released around this time also. 

Collection Rating: 74/100

Collection Grade: B