Series Review: Mario Kart

To take me past 250 games reviewed in total, I thought I'd play an incredibly popular series that has both classic and modern instalments and is still going to this day. With a game from the series on nearly every Nintendo console since 1993 and almost 100 million sales in total, the Super Mario Kart series stands 16th on a list of all time best selling franchises.

Game: Super Mario Kart
Console: Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 21st January 1993

The earliest independently successful spin-off from the Mario platforming series and pioneer of the Kart Racing game genre, Super Mario Kart took Mario, his friends, and some enemies and allowed them to vent their frustrations through vehicular mayhem. The game features 8 different characters, racing on 20 unique tracks which are based off Super Mario World locations, with 9 items used to gain some sort of advantage over other players.

The player can choose to race in GP mode which consists of five laps, on five different circuits with points awarded for finishing in the top 4 positions. If players finish below this, they must retry the race until they attain at least 4th place and have a limited number of lives to do so. With 3 difficulty levels (50, 100 and 150cc), and 4 cups per difficulty level, there's a good amount of replayability for such a seemingly basic racing game.

When racing in one player mode, the screen is split into two halves; the top showing the racer's viewpoint of the circuit and the bottom showing more of an overview. In two player modes, the bottom screen is replaced by the view of the second player. The coins that a player has collected are shown in the bottom right and these make the kart go faster, up to a total of 10. The player's remaining lives and current position are shown alongside the number of coins.

The driving itself feels looser than in later Mario games; it's definitely a good idea to take your foot off the gas pedal if you're cornering (unless you plan to drift around corners). Overall it fits well with the age of the game and feels a lot easier to control than F-Zero on SNES, perhaps due to reduced speed. Players are able to jump over obstacles with the L and R buttons, as well as using them to initiate a drift.

There's a choice of two player modes; players can choose to race each other in both time trial and cup modes as well as battling to pop balloons in specially designed levels. The tracks featured in the game are imaginative and do a good job of evoking the feel of Super Mario World. Toward the end of the game there are some devilishly difficult tracks, including the first incarnation of the infamous Rainbow Road.

The items are what give competitive racing the edge over most racing games of the time; using green and red shells to slow your opponents down is incredibly satisfying and although the item selection is only small in this game, the core ideas are present. A lot of the features we see in Mario Kart games of the present day originated in this game.

Graphically the game is fairly impressive for the time, using Mode 7 graphics to emulate a 3D feel with only 2D components. The problem with this, however is that in some levels (particularly ice and lava levels) it's difficult to recognise items on the floor, as they appear flat. There's nothing more infuriating that being in the lead and crashing into a surface that doesn't appear to be in your way. The music of the game is generally enjoyable although not particularly notable.

Overall Super Mario Kart was a great start to the spin-off series, featuring enjoyable gameplay and ideas combining with good use of the technology of the time to produce a fast, fun and competitive experience. 100cc and 150cc difficulties can be fairly hard to win races on, and laps on most tracks are incredibly short, but other than these minor points, there's some good racing to be had.

Rating: 75/100
Grade: B

Game: Mario Kart 64
Console: Nintendo 64
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 24th June 1997

Four years after the first game in the series, Mario Kart 64 provided an updated look and feel for the games which is much closer to what we're used to from modern instalments. With fully 3D tracks came the ability to have changes in elevation, proper jumps and more complex obstacles such as walls and pits, even though the pre-rendered character sprites and items were still only in 2D. The game still featured 8 racers, replacing Koopa Troopa and Donkey Kong Jr. with Wario and Donkey Kong.

Making a change from Grand Prix races being 5 laps of a very short track, players now complete 3 laps of slightly longer tracks (although in some cases, the tracks are incredibly long). There are also 4 tracks per Grand Prix instead of 5. The 50, 100 and 150cc difficulty levels are retained, with an added Extra difficulty mode which allows players to race on mirrored tracks. Up to 4 players can compete in multiplayer modes, up from Super Mario Kart's 2 and Battle mode re-appears with many of the same ideas.

Driving definitely feels a little different from Super Mario Kart with more of a sliding dynamic to cornering and less places where it's necessary to take your finger off the A button. While this style of control is less precise, it works well with the analog stick of the Nintendo 64 and the 3D graphics of this instalment. The players view whilst playing the game in one player modes is slightly changed, as the map no longer takes up a whole half of the screen.

Grand Prix Mode is fairly easy on 50cc difficulty, 100cc can be challenging on the harder tracks and 150cc cranks the rubberband AI up to a level which is very hard to beat. On all levels of difficulty, the AI's programming means that they'll catch up with your kart quickly, even from shell and banana attacks. Another factor that increases the difficulty is the way that the character who is first (or second if you're first) in the ranking table after Race 1 of each Grand Prix will be your toughest competitor in the next rounds, securing victory in the Grand Prix overall for the AI unless you win at least 3 races and place well in the other race.

Most of the items from Super Mario Kart make a return in 64, with only the coins and feather taken away, and the Boo item re-purposed to steal an item from another player rather than turning the player invisible. New items that appear in Mario Kart 64 include the blue shell, which travels along the floor to halt the progress of the player in pole position (although not as devastatingly as in later installments), fake item boxes and multiples of pre-existing items such as bananas, green shells, red shells and mushrooms.

Battle mode is fun and arguably better than in the original, with the use of the new items and 4 player capabilities. There's 4 courses to battle on, as well as the ability to race without any AI players against other human players on any track from the main game. This is the first point in the series where the games feel geared towards the multiplayer experience as one player mode is plagued by the rubberbanding AI and hugely varied difficulty levels.

Graphically the game's tracks are impressive for the most part, and even the 2D character and item sprites are bearable. It's an improvement on the Super Mario Kart's ground based obstacles which were hard to see and thus avoid. The game also is better musically with some memorable themes which are remixed for stages in later games; particularly the theme for Rainbow Road.

Overall Mario Kart 64 is an enjoyable racer, just like its predecessor; there's good competitive action most of the time, and excellent multiplayer modes. Although there's less laps in this installment, some races last far too long, especially on Wario's Stadium and Rainbow Road, with the latter's 3 laps lasting around 8 and a half minutes. The difficulty is also a bit off with 50cc mode being far too easy, and 100cc mode a bit too challenging when the rubberband AI is factored in. It's a small improvement on the SNES version in my opinion.

Rating: 76/100
Grade: B

Game: Mario Kart Super Circuit
Console: Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 14th September 2001

The first handheld instalment of the Mario Kart series, Super Circuit plays like an updated version of Super Mario Kart featuring the same sort of 2D graphics for the tracks, with features of the game more akin to Mario Kart 64. With 20 new tracks as well as all 20 original tracks from Super Mario Kart as unlockables, it has the most playable tracks of any Mario Kart game. The same 8 racers return from the previous instalment and no new characters have been added.

The tracks, sprites and items are all in 2D, although there are some nice scenery and background effects which give the game an edge over the original. The items featured in the game are the same as those in Mario Kart 64, with the Golden Mushroom removed. Single player mode features Mario GP, Time Trial and Quick Play modes, and 2 Player is achieved through a Link cable. Surprisingly, Super Circuit can be played with others who don't own the game, and is one of only a few Game Boy Advance games to make use of this, although it's a stripped down version due to memory limitations.

Driving in this game feels like a mixture of both preceding games; the controls are fairly tight and it's less drifty than Mario Kart 64, but the circuits have a little more influence from the later game. It handles well on the whole and the difficulty issue with previous games has been fixed. 50, 100 and 150cc races are all potentially winnable, but with each rise in difficulty there's a steady rise in challenge also.

The tracks themselves could be a little more original; some of the new ones are based on courses from Mario Kart 64, and the game features all of the courses from Super Mario Kart. That said, it's still a lot of fun and  later games have indulged in classic cup features also. The game retains the 4th or better to continue dynamic in GP races, for the last time in the series, as well as the 9, 6, 3, 1 point scoring structure.

Graphically the game doesn't look great when inspected up close, but on the Game Boy Advance's small screen, there's not a whole lot wrong with it; in fact it can look pretty nice at times. There's a marked musical improvement also with funky basslines and some enjoyable music to race to. The voice clips are very similar if not identical to those used in Mario Kart 64, but with the same roster it's to be expected.

Overall Mario Kart Super Circuit is a great mix of features from Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64 which offers a whole host of new gameplay as well as all of the tracks from the original game. While I couldn't play the 2 player modes due to lack of a link cable I'm sure there's a lot to offer, and the ability to play others who don't own the cartridge themself is a bonus.

Rating: 79/100
Grade: B

Game: Mario Kart: Double Dash
Console: Nintendo Gamecube
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 13th November 2003

Double Dash, the first truly 3D instalment of the Mario Kart also changed up the formula and gameplay significantly. In this game two racers are in each kart; one to drive and the other to use items, the points system has been revised to reward the first 7 finishers rather than just the first 4, and players no longer need to retry races if they finish below 4th. There's a choice of 20 characters to play as, and a larger and more dynamic choice of karts, representing racer's individual styles and colours.

As with previous instalments of the series, the main GP mode features 50, 100 and 150cc difficulties as well as a mirror mode once all championships have been won. Players can choose to race as a team or competitively with up to 4 players (or even 8 with a LAN cable for Gamecube). Multiplayer Battle mode also returns with new courses and modes. Although all of the normal items which feature in the game were in Mario Kart 64, there are new special items which are individual to specific characters and are a good addition.

The controls for racing and using items are fairly similar to those in previous instalments, although they can now be separated out when playing co-operatively. There's an improved drift mechanic and the ability to shift the kart left or right when playing with a friend on your team. Driving in this game feels pretty tight, and the option to drift around sharp corners is an advantage. The difficulty is similar to other games in the series, with 50cc being incredibly easy, 100cc presenting a small challenge, and 150cc being willing to cheat you out of entire championships with items and AI finishing positions.

There's a real focus on multiplayer in this instalment of the series, even more so than before. I'd certainly recommend the Mario Kart games for parties and hanging out with friends than as a single player experience but if you can deal with AI that's geared towards beating you and using items to stop you from winning at all costs and take racing as a fun arcade experience then there's enjoyment to be had.

Graphically the game is huge improvement on everything before it in the series, with fully 3D tracks and karts which are more detailed than before. Musically too it's impressive and features some enjoyable track themes. Although there aren't too many new features in the game as a whole, the 2 person per kart dynamic works well and expands the two player gameplay.

Overall Double Dash is another slight improvement on past instalments, upgrading parts of the game like graphics and drifting, whilst removing the ability to hold items behind you in a game that's set the AI to target you above all other competitors. It's definitely better as a multiplayer experience but 100cc races in single player are also good fun.

Rating: 80/100
Grade: B

Game: Mario Kart DS
Console: Nintendo DS
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 25th November 2005

The 3rd best selling game for the Nintendo DS, Mario Kart DS introduced several features such as a single player mission mode, Retro Grand Prix, a Bullet Bill item and a Wi-Fi connected multiplayer mode. There are 12 playable characters, each with their own themed kart and a personalised version of the simple kart. The other available gameplay modes remain largely the same, with Grand Prix, Time Trial and Battle modes.

Grand Prix mode now contains 8 championships, with the addition of 4 Retro sets featuring remade courses from the previous games in the series. All of these are available at 50, 100 and 150cc difficulties. Completing a set of 4 Grand Prix at any difficulty will unlock different playable characters, karts and mirror mode, depending on which Grand Prix is completed. Players are also able to compete online via Nintendo WFC but I was unable to use this on my DS for some reason.

With the addition of the second screen, players have a slightly different view of the race, with the classic 3rd person rear viewpoint on the top screen and an overhead view displaying simple face sprites to represent players, but also highlighting upcoming items and hazards, and showing what items other players have aquired. It's possible to race whilst looking at either screen, although a combination of the two with more focus on the top tends to work best.

The racing is similar to that of Double Dash with a slight change in that players are able to hold items behind them for protection once again, and the D-pad is used to control the kart as there are no analog sticks on the DS. While the difficulty is also similar, 50cc mode is insultingly easy at times, but the other two difficulties are made harder by items more than the AI. In 100cc races, I was averaging 2-3 blue shells per race whilst leading which seems excessive.

Battle mode has been improved with 6 courses available from the beginning as well as 2 to unlock. There's also the option to play against AI opponents in Balloon Battle and Shine Sprite modes. The new inclusion of Mission Mode adds challenges for players to complete over 7 difficulty levels with a boss at the end of each. This adds some inventive single player gameplay outside of the Grand Prix mode, which the series was in need of.

One thing that the game does seem to be a little obsessed with is grading your performance. In every Grand Prix, you'll receive a grade from 3 stars to F for the time it took you to complete, regardless of your finishing position. In Mission Mode you're also graded on the time you take, irrespective of the fact that you've completed the objective. While there's no need to get the best grades to complete the game, it might annoy completionists that the standards for the best grades are very high.

Graphically Mario Kart DS doesn't look as sharp as Double Dash due to being confined to the small screen of the DS, but it's not far behind. I did manage to mistake a Goomba for a mushroom powerup at one point but that might say more about my eyesight than the graphics. The music of this game is almost exactly what you'd expect from having heard the soundtracks from the rest of the series. It's never mind blowing but it gets the job done.

Overall Mario Kart DS introduces some good ideas such as the new Mission mode and Wi-Fi based multiplayer, but can suffer at times from item induced difficulty with blue shells being far more common than in previous instalments. The inclusion of a retro Grand Prix makes for a good look back on the series, and makes for a large roster of well designed tracks. Also R.O.B the robot is included as the final unlockable, which made me smile.

Rating: 83/100
Grade: B

Game: Mario Kart Wii
Console: Nintendo Wii
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 11th April 2008

The final instalment of the series that I'll be reviewing is Mario Kart Wii, which has the largest roster of any Mario Kart game, with 24 characters in total as well as 32 tracks, 3 new items, 6 new battle stages and 5 karts and bikes for each driver weight class. Looking back to the first Mario Kart game, this is a huge expansion of options whilst keeping many of the same gameplay ideas.

The modes remain much the same as on the DS version of the game, with the exception of Mission mode, which has been removed; Grand Prix is the main single player event with 4 Grand Prix on all new tracks and 4 Retro Grand Prix which take stages from all previous instalments. Time Trial, Online races and Battle mode can also be played in single player with AI making up the rest of your team as well as your opponents, or with friends as an alternative to multiplayer Grand Prix and VS Race mode.

The biggest change in racing terms is the inclusion of bikes in the game; 50cc races are competed with only karts allowed, 100cc allows only bikes, and 150cc and Mirror Mode allow both karts and bikes. Players can control their kart with either the Wiimote, used like a steering wheel, Wiimote and nunchuk (using the nunchuk to steer and the Wiimote for accelerating) or a Gamecube controller to make things more similar to Double Dash (although the buttons are slightly different). Using just the Wiimote on its own can be a little imprecise, but the other two control methods both work well to give the player a choice of at least 2 ways to race.

Three new items have been added since Mario Kart DS; the first is a large mushroom, from New Super Mario Bros. which makes the users kart much larger and faster for a short while, the second is a POW! block from Super Mario Bros. 2 which causes all other racers to spin out and lose all speed, and the last new item is a Raincloud which makes the receiver small via a bolt of lightning after a short time, unless they manage to pass it onto another racer.

Another difference from previous versions is that races now consist of 12 competitors instead of 8, which makes for a slightly more chaotic experience. Items seem to dominate the racing more than the previous rubberbanding of the AI, and although the amount of times blue shells are used per race seems to have fallen from Mario Kart DS, there's plenty of use of the POW! blocks and lightning items. All of the difficulties in Grand Prix mode seem to have got a little easier, with 150cc and Mirror Mode being difficult but not impossible to come first on.

Online Mode makes for the most difficult challenge with a busy and alive scene even today, 6 years after the game's release. I was able to find a game with 11 other players within around 10 seconds and there was a mixed standard of ability. Players start with 5000 race points to their name and gain/lose points for doing well/badly in races. Due to Mario Kart's chaotic multiplayer nature, it almost feels as if this is what the series had been heading towards. I rarely won races online but they were all fun and tightly contested.

In addition to the online multiplayer, there's also local multiplayer for up to 4 players, with racing, balloon and coin battle modes. These are mainly team based, but the AI will fill any empty slots. With a good selection of battle courses and all of the circuits featured in the main game to race on, this makes for a rich local multiplayer experience to match the online and single player modes. Any of the battle modes can also be played purely against AI opponents in single player mode also.

Unlockables in Mario Kart Wii are slightly different to other games; some require staff time trial laps to be beaten, whilst others need specific star ratings in all Grand Prix of a certain difficulty. This means that players have to work hard to unlock every character, but does give the game some replay value. Whilst R.O.B the Robot isn't included in this instalment, there's plenty of new additions to the roster to give new choice to players.

Graphically Mario Kart Wii is the nicest looking of the games I've reviewed in the series, with crisp stylised locations, characters and karts in full 3D, with bright and vibrant colours. There's a good sense of speed throughout the game which adds to the feeling of chaos within races. The soundtrack is enjoyable also, with many new tunes as well as remixes for the Retro Grand Prix stages. Voice clips and other sounds are good and help to add a sense of personality to the racers, especially those who haven't been in the series before.

Overall Mario Kart Wii is in my opinion the best game of the series so far as it expands the racing experience to 12 players at a time, has a great online experience and single player offline Grand Prix, and loses the blatant rubberbanding AI of previous instalments to make way for a more balanced approach. While races can get chaotic with the use of many items one after another and the new items being fairly powerful, I think this is the way Mario Kart was intended to be.

Rating: 87/100
Grade: B

As you can see from the fact that I've given every Mario Kart game in this review some kind of B grade, all of the series titles are enjoyable 'pick up and play' racing games with an element of luck as well as skill. Whilst the idea of rewarding those in later positions with better items may not seem appealing to hardcore racing game fans, it's a nice way to even up the stakes when playing with friends or anyone who hasn't played the games before.

As for the difficulty of each title in the series, many people seem to have their own opinions on which is hardest. Having played each of the games in succession, I'd say that this order is about right for difficulty of winning the 150cc Grand Prix races with any ranking;

Mario Kart 64  (most difficult)
Mario Kart: Double Dash
Super Mario Kart
Mario Kart DS
Mario Kart Super Circuit
Mario Kart Wii  (easiest)

With so many games sold across the entire series, it's safe to say that most people have played at least one of the titles. Just like discussion of which is hardest, an intense debate rages over which game is the best, which begs the question; which is your favourite Mario Kart game, and why?

Game Review: Project Rub

Game: Project Rub
Console: Nintendo DS
Developer: Sega
Release Date: 16th November 2004

Project Rub, or "Feel the Magic: XX/XY" as its known in America is a minigame collection released by Sega which tells the story of a main character who falls in love with a girl and resigns himself to making her notice him, asking her on a date and then saving her from a crazy kidnapper multiple times. Each scene of the story has 1-3 minigames that must be completed in order to progress, with heart points awarded for winning and taken away for failure. Once the correct amount of heart points has been attained, players can move onto the next scene.

The story of the game is fairly surreal and humourous with many of the minigames depicting crazy situations, including removing goldfish from a man's stomach, playing a few frames of 10 pin bowling with people at a bus stop as the pins and distracting security guards with cats while you sneak into a secret base. Each of the minigames must be completed a number of times before progressing; the more complex ones require just one try but other games take up to 5 repeats of increasing difficulty to pass.

Between each scene, the story is laid out in a 4-koma style comic detailing the rough idea of each situation. While the plot isn't something that stands out as brilliant, these fit well with the surreal minigames and go a little way towards explaining why we're doing what we're asked to. Tapping in the correct place on the comics will reveal a "rub rabbit" and unlock new outfits for the female love interest.

The game makes heavy use of the touchscreen on the DS as well as a having few games which are based around the microphone feature. There's good variation between touchscreen games; requiring players to tap, rub, steer, and paint their way to success, although with each game needing to be repeated a number of times, you could argue that Warioware Touched! has a better variation for a minigame collection on the DS.

The touchscreen games are well made and work very well, with responsive controls and enjoyable gameplay elements. I only had trouble with one boss battle where letting go of the screen and touching it again caused the main character to lose a life from walking into part of the boss. The microphone based games are a little less responsive; at one point the game was on full volume and heard itself, thus failing the level for me. There's also a level where you're asked to make as much noise as you can which seems impractical when you consider that the game is on a handheld console. If you're in any public place, the last thing you'll be wanting to do is shout at your DS.

The final few levels seemed to be a little out of sequence with a "last" boss battle showcasing some of the most difficult gameplay of the game, followed by an incredibly easy "final" battle where you rub the screen quickly for a while, followed by a touchscreen/microphone combination game which is fairly difficult but nowhere near as the "last boss" battle. In this way the game seems to fade out rather than going out with a bang.

Graphically Project Rub is fairly simple and uses shadowed figures of characters without any facial detail to represent its characters. The environment and other objects are fairly nicely drawn and overall the game retains a comic style. In terms of music, there's only a few tunes featured in the game but they fit well with the style and are quite enjoyable if a little repetitive.

Overall Project Rub is a refreshingly quirky minigame collection that makes good use of the features of the Nintendo DS, but can become repetitive when you're asked to repeat games on increasing difficulties. There's not a whole lot of replay value despite "Hard" and "Hell" modes being included, as it's exactly the same games, but harder and the entire game can be beaten on normal difficulty within 3-5 hours depending on your skill level. It's definitely worth a play but there's also better minigame collections for the DS in Warioware Touched, or Rhythm Heaven.

Rating: 78/100
Grade: B

Game Review: Sega Classics Collection

Game: Sega Classics Collection
Console: Sony Playstation 2
Developer: D3 Publisher/Sega
Release Date: 22nd March 2005

In 2003 Sega struck a deal to work in conjunction with D3 Publisher (who produced such titles as The Sniper 2) to produce "3D AGES" budget remakes of classic Sega titles which would sell for 2500 yen. This meant that what would have been a rather strange collection of Mega Drive and arcade classics became a series of remade games, in 3D for the PS2. Sega can't have been particularly happy with the outcome as D3 Publisher 's involvement ended after 15 of the 33 games in the series, but 8 of the games they did help to make made their way onto the Sega Classics Collection.

The 8 games that were included in the collection are; Columns, Outrun, Golden Axe, Virtua Racing, Monaco GP, Fantasy Zone, Bonanza Bros. (inc. Tant-R), and Space Harrier. Whether or not you're familiar with these titles, they had a fair amount of success in arcades and on home consoles, both in Japan and abroad. When I purchased this game, I wasn't aware of the fact that D3 publisher had been involved (although I could tell that the games were updated version), nor had I played many of the original versions of them. Having done so now, I'll be comparing these updated versions with their original counterparts and passing judgement on the collection as a whole.

Columns

The Mega Drive version of Columns was an exercise in puzzle game simplicity, with a concept loosely based on Tetris, which involved matching up coloured gems to clear them from a "well". Players could play endlessly, or solve puzzles in Flash Columns Mode to uncover a particular gem at the bottom of a well. The 3D Ages version included on the Classics Collection has Endless Mode, Vs. CPU and Vs. 2P. In Endless Mode, players are allowed to use either "classic" visuals which look less detailed and generally worse than the original game, or "updated" visuals (as above) where the gems spin so that they're in 3 dimensions.

In Vs. CPU Mode, story based cutscenes play inbetween stages, mapping the theft of the columns gems. At the end of each cutscene the player is challenged to a round of Columns by different characters, and the further the player progresses, the longer each character will last in a battle to outlast the other competitor. As the game level goes up for both players and the enemy, it becomes harder to stay in the game. Vs. 2P mode plays like a single level of Vs. CPU, with two players as you'd expect it to.

Overall there's not been much added to the game save for the storyline in Vs. CPU mode which is repetitive at the best of times. The removal of Flash Columns Mode and the apparent downgrade in graphics don't do the game many favours either. I don't see many reasons for this game to exist when the original Columns plays and looks nicer, but if you've not got a Mega Drive it's something that you can make do with.

Rating: 5/10

Outrun

Possibly the best known of the games featured on this collection, Outrun is a straightforward checkpoint driving game where the goal is to reach the end of the race as fast a possible. Originally an arcade title, the game features a timer which counts down as the player attempts to reach the end. Although beating the timer was difficult it wasn't impossible in the early versions and driving well would usually leave enough time to get to the next checkpoint.

The handling on the 3D AGES version of this game is the first thing seasoned players will notice. It's very stiff and even if set to "sharp", it feels as if you don't have full control. Where later games in the series would allow you to drift, this version simply has a tire smoke effect, should you attempt anything like that. Arcade Mode features the regular setup of one stage, branching out to reveal 5 finish lines over the course. Arrange Mode features rival cars and a diamond stage setup, and Time Attack Mode seems to be much the same as Arcade Mode, but on either track.

The music is the most enjoyable part of this version of Outrun, with both the original soundtrack and arrange versions included. Other than that, poor graphics and controls really let the game down and make it almost impossible to finish a course in any mode, even with the maximum amount of time on the clock at the start. If you're looking for a more enjoyable version, I'd suggest Outrun 2SP.

Rating: 5/10

Golden Axe

Golden Axe is one of the most famous Fantasy Beat 'Em Up games of the Mega Drive era (and there were a lot). You play as one of three characters and beat the stuffing out of lots of enemies who eventually lead to bosses. It's the classic Beat 'Em Up formula. In the 3D AGES version of the game, an introduction story cutscene has been added and the stages have been elongated somewhat.

Although the original game only had two attacks, magic and a jump button, the updated version feels like it suffers from a lack of moves from the outset, as well as difficult 3D positioning of enemies and whether or not your attacks will hit them. The stages sometimes end randomly after you defeat the last of the enemies in an area and other times there'll be bosses. While it follows the same sort of route as the original, the stages end up being so long that they're boring.

The graphics and music are pretty mediocre and give off neither the retro charm of the original game nor wonder at the improvement that an updated game should have. All in all you're better off playing the original Golden Axe if you want any sense of personality from the game.

Rating: 3/10

Virtua Racing

Using 3D polygonal graphics on the Mega Drive, Virtua Racing was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. Unfortunately though, by the time the 3D AGES version was released, games like Gran Turismo 3, Project Gotham Racing and countless other titles had taken the racing genre a lot further. The graphics on the new version have been updated to reflect the arcade version but it's nowhere near impressive.

The controls and handling feel very retro in that the car is mostly controlled via sliding around corners after braking slightly. Grand Prix Mode gives the player 6 courses to race on and some unlockables for winning although it's far too easy to win nearly every race. Arcade Mode and Free Mode offer fairly short single race/practice experiences and the Two Player Mode is a nice addition.

While this is a pretty solid version of the original game, it's nothing much compared to newer racers. There's sporadic bits of music when the player passes through a checkpoint but not otherwise, and overall it seems very thrown together. If anything this game highlights both the mediocrity and redundancy of the collection as a whole.

Rating: 6/10

Monaco GP

The term "classic" may be stretched a little when used to describe the original Monaco GP arcade game by Sega. A top down racer where the crashes would often occur between the player and racers in front of them due to lack of any sort of view ahead of the car, it also made some of the most horrendous noises to ever come out of an arcade machine. For some reason this was the second game to be released as an updated standalone version.

Arcade Mode tasks the player with accruing 20,000 points before a timer runs out. There's a choice of tracks and cars but all of them will usually find the player crashing into other cars on the track due to the lack of view and the fact that many of the CPU cars get entangled in crashes even without your help. There's a choice of classic or updated controls but both feel pretty poor and gameplay doesn't improve from one to the other.

The graphics have improved from the 1979 original arcade game, but only slightly. Overall this is a pretty baffling inclusion on the collection as a whole. It doesn't control well and even if it did, the concept isn't particularly fun. In my view this is the worst game on the collection.

Rating: 2/10

Fantasy Zone

Fantasy Zone is a brightly coloured shoot 'em up which was released in arcades and on the Sega Master System. The game maintained a high level of difficulty which could result in the player losing a life in the opening seconds of a stage, or as they came out of the in game shop. The aim of the game is to destroy all of the bases in each stage and then fight the boss.

There are two modes to choose from in the 3D AGES version; arcade and normal, although the only difference between them seems to be stages in which the player can chase the boss, once they have defeated it for coins. This means that normal mode gives far more coins than arcade mode and thus is slightly easier. The controls and gameplay are fairly good and feel close to that of the original game. The changes that have been made to the game work well and help to improve the overall gameplay.

The music in this version is also enjoyable and although the shop doesn't have as many weapons to purchase as that of the original game, the unlockables and extra features included in this version almost make up for that. While it's not an absolutely perfect version of the game, it's a good attempt and can be enjoyable even for Fantasy Zone fans.

Rating: 8/10

Bonanza Bros

Bonanza Bros. is a shooting platformer where you're tasked with stealing items from casinos, mansions and banks (if the Japanese storyline is to be believed), or tasked with 'recovering evidence' from crooked casinos and banks (if the western storyline is correct). In the 3D AGES version it's the latter, at least according to the storyline that flashes up before the game begins.

The simple controls of the original game translate well onto the PS2 and it's generally pretty fun, although only because the original concept was. The difficulty level can be a bit extreme at times (even when set to easy) but with some observations and logic skills it's not too much of a problem overall.

The graphics of the game are probably the best update of the collection as the game was in a cartoon style originally and now looks sharper. Unfortunately it does feel like only the graphics have changed and it may as well be the Mega Drive version of the game in your console, in terms of gameplay.

Rating: 7/10

Tant-R

Bonanza Bros. also includes somewhat of an oddity on the collection; the puzzle spinoff game Tant-R. Using the characters and style of Bonanza Bros. it tasks players with solving timed puzzle minigames in order to catch bad guys. Each boss is followed by an increasing number of henchmen, each of whom the player must pass 4 minigames to defeat. The final stage when the boss is reached consists of steering a plane through a steady stream of bombs to collect balloons, and possibly another life.

The minigames are varied and fun, ranging from counting the number of people on a train to stopping a speeding car from flying over the edge of a cliff. Although the games do repeat every now and then when playing story mode, if you're new to the puzzles they can still be a lot of fun. There's also a 2-4 Player Mode included to turn the minigames into competitive battles for points.

Overall this seems to be one of the most compelling arguments for picking up this game. As Tant-R was only released in Japan, its the only real completely new game to western gamers on the whole collection. It's also fun and doesn't take itself too seriously; the concept works well and the puzzles are challenging and well designed.

Rating: 8/10

Space Harrier

The original Space Harrier was a fun shoot 'em up which featured hordes of enemies flying towards you, all guns blazing. The enemies were strange characters and shapes and the levels were bright and colourful, sometimes to the point of being painful to look at. While the brightness of the levels may have been toned down a little for the 3D AGES version, the enemies are still as brilliant and wacky as ever.

The game controls nicely with the d-pad and you're allowed to fire as fast as you like with the square button. Some power-ups have been added to make things slightly easier as the original games could be punishingly difficult at times. This seems to have tipped the balance a little too far onto the easy side of things but it's fun to be able to progress further into the game.

Graphically there could have been many improvements but once everything's moving at speed it's a lot less of an issue. There's only one mode of play in the title but I can't see any other way of playing Space Harrier, so it's not too much of a problem. In terms of enjoyment, this is the pick of the bunch for me.

Rating: 9/10

Final Thoughts

I very much doubt that Sega Classics collection was ever intended to be released in this way when the project was begun; had Sega not stopped their deal with D3 Publisher, these games may have remained as budget Japanese PS2 titles only. Because of this, the collection seems to lack focus with some games seemingly more altered than others. The graphical updates are also pretty inconsistent from game to game; Virtua Racing seems to be slightly worse than it's arcade version, yet Bonanza Bros. looks great.

Overall the only reasons to pick this collection up would be having an interest in playing Tant-R, as it was never released in Europe or America, or having a real interest in the Space Harrier series and wishing to play an updated version. Otherwise you may as well seek out a Mega Drive collection and try the original games that these budget versions were based on. The term classic seems to have been applied loosely to a few of the inclusions, where other games would have been much more worthy choices.

Rating: 64/100
Grade: C

Game Review: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Game: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Console: Nintendo DS
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: 31st March 2006

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is a visual novel which follows rookie defence attorney Phoenix Wright through his first five cases. Originally released as a Game Boy Advance title in Japan, Phoenix Wright: Attorney on the DS features an extra case in addition to the four from the Japanese version, as well as adding touch screen and microphone functionality. Although it's fairly easy to tell that the original game wasn't designed to use all of the DS's functions to their full potential, the final case makes far more use of the device's capabilities.

As the game is a visual novel I won't be looking too deeply into the details of the cases featured, as this would potentially spoil parts of the game for those who haven't played it. Each case begins with a defendant who seems to be almost certainly guilty of a crime and you're then tasked with collecting evidence relating to the crime and cross-examining witnesses to prove your client's innocence. The cases featured get more complex and last longer as the player continues through the game.

Of course the trial system has been somewhat simplified for use in the game; set a little way in the future, trials in Japan now have a limit of 3 days before a verdict must be reached, to prevent lengthy court proceedings from clogging the justice system. At times this can mean that events are a little harder to believe and that you'll need incontrovertible evidence to get your client off the hook but since the game basically provides you with it, it's not really a problem.

Most trials run for their full three day length and gameplay alternates between sections where you're collecting evidence and information on the case, and courtroom sections where you use the evidence you've collected to disprove testimonies made by witnesses. Controls for both parts are simple and mostly touchscreen based; when collecting evidence players can examine their current location, move between locations, talk to characters who happen to be at their current location and present evidence to them. When in court players scroll through the current testimony and can either press the witness on their statements or present evidence to show contradictions.

The timeline of events for each case slowly unravels as the trials progress and at times you'll feel more like a detective than a defence attorney. A lot of the time it's unclear what exactly has happened with regards to the crime until the case is almost over, but all plot twists are plausible and generally well written. There are some intertwining plotlines in the first four cases which form the original game's overarching story, as well as a hugely complex final bonus case which stands alone in terms of story.

One of the game's best features is its eccentric cast of characters; lawyers, witnesses, defendants and even minor characters all have interesting ways of expressing themselves and really bring the game alive. Watching a witness's demeanour change from calm to disbelief in court brings a sense of achievement in your own deductive skills despite the game's fairly linear progression.

The controls translate well from the Game Boy Advance original game to the DS; there's a choice between using the buttons and the touch screen most of the time, and while its easy to see how the controls were mapped on the original version, some things do feel easier with the touch screen function. As the final case was a DS extra, there's a lot more use of the touchscreen to rotate pieces of evidence, uncover fingerprints and undertake other forensic tests, as well as more use of the microphone which was previously only used as an alternate way to declare an objection or press witnesses.

Although there was no graphical update from the Game Boy Advance game, Ace Attorney still manages to look impressive with stylised visuals and detailed character models. Musically the game uses certain themes for specific parts of each case, but it's generally enjoyable and suitable for the situation. The only real criticisms I can find with the game are small aspects like attempting to navigate between locations in complex cases.

Overall as with most visual novels, Phoenix Wright emphasises story over most other gaming elements but manages to pull its complex and twisting cases off well. Only the most seasoned of visual novel haters could find a reason not to play this.

Rating: 84/100
Grade: B

Mega Drive Racer Head to Head: Super Monaco GP vs Super Hang On

Game: Super Monaco GP
Console: Sega Mega Drive
Developer: Sega
Release Date: 4th January 1991

Since the release of the SNES, everything, including Sega titles seemed to have the prefix 'Super'. 'Super Smash TV', 'Super Fantasy Zone' and 'Super Thunder Blade' to name a few. The two games I'm reviewing today are no exception, adding the prefix to denote that these games are a sequel of sorts in their respective series. First up is Super Monaco GP (or Sega Grand Prix as the title seems to say) which is based on Formula 1 racing, allowing players to compete both in an arcade mode and a full season of races as well as practising on any circuit.

The racing itself  is fairly typical for the era and reminiscent of Outrun with harsher corners and higher speeds. It can be difficult to steer through slalom corners and small mistakes are punished heavily. There are three types of control which increase in difficulty but also affect the car's performance. The easiest and worst performing allows the player an automatic gearbox, a four speed manual gearbox and better performance is afforded to players who choose 'Type B' controls, and 'Type C' gives brave players a 7 speed gearbox and a significant performance increase.

Arcade mode takes place on the Monaco track and after a short qualifying lap pits the player against 14 CPU opponents in a knockout race. After each checkpoint is passed, the required position increases until either the player is knocked out, or has achieved a podium finish. Overtaking opposing cars is fairly easy although the type of controls chosen also makes a big difference as the CPU racers can also vary in performance.

World Championship mode sees the player compete for two seasons; gaining the best car and winning the championship through good performance and outperforming rivals in the first year, and beating the seemingly unbeatable rival based on Ayrton Senna in the second year. With 16 tracks to race in each season, the game does a good job of simulating the real F1 championship of the time. Not only are the tracks based on their real world counterparts but there's some nice scenery on the horizon on most circuits too.

Graphically the game isn't bad at all; whilst you can see a lot of pixels, it makes a vast improvement on the racing games of the previous generation and features some nice 3D style effects, despite everything being technically 2 dimensional. There's not a lot of music in the game and most of the time, the car sounds are the only thing you'll be listening to. They're pretty good although tyre squeal could use a little improvement and the voice over the radio is in terrible quality, with more white noise than actual speech.

Overall Super Monaco GP is a mixed experience; there's a decent arcade mode featuring fast paced gameplay and Championship mode simulates the experience of the Formula 1 season pretty well for the time, but small mistakes can ruin an entire season or arcade race and the rival mechanic is innovative but flawed at times.

Rating: 62/100
Grade: C

Game: Super Hang-On
Console: Sega Mega Drive
Developer: Sega
Release Date: January 1991

Hang-On started life as an arcade game complete with tilt controls which the player sat on a motorcycle shaped seat to play. Super Hang-On, its sequel was also an arcade game before coming to home console. On the Mega Drive version of the game there are two game modes; Arcade Mode and Original Mode. Arcade mode gives players a choice of 4 different courses; Africa, Asia, America and Europe, which ascend in difficulty and length. Original Mode allows players to upgrade a bike from scratch and get sponsors whilst racing against a rival.

The overall racing view is fairly similar to that of Super Monaco GP, save for the fact you're on a motorcycle; the road appears to come at you, rather than your bike moving along the road. Falling off your bike can have the same disastrous consequences as crashing too, if not even more so as its almost impossible to get to the next checkpoint in arcade mode once you've fallen off the bike.

The arcade mode is by far the most enjoyable as players are given a decent bike and can jump straight into the action, speeding through entire continents in a matter of minutes. While the gameplay is fairly simple and only really consists of steering your bike along the roads whilst avoiding opponents it can get addictive, and with tight time constraints there's no time to waste. Of course one mistake can spell failure but it doesn't take long to get back to where you were, even on the longest stage.

Original mode starts you with a slow and heavy bike which handles terribly, on which you must beat a rival to progress. As you win races, you gain sponsors and are allowed to upgrade the bike, which is a slow process. Personally I got too tired of the bike's poor handling when compared to the bike in arcade mode to want to continue.

Graphically Super Hang-On isn't as impressive as Super Monaco GP, especially at high speeds when the sides of the track seem to flicker by. The bikes and details on the horizon are nice from a distance, but can seem a little strange up close. The selection of music is good with a choice of 4 tracks to accompany racing, and a few other themes here and there. The engine noise and other effects are also of a good standard.

Overall Super Hang-On is more fun to play than Super Monaco GP due to its pick up and play arcade style and simplistic tracks. Riding through different locations is fun in the arcade mode and although challenging, it has a good difficulty. Original mode is less enjoyable although it does give the game some replay value and depth. With good music and fun gameplay this arcade classic is definitely worth a look.

Rating: 68/100
Grade: C

Game Review: Super Mario 64

Game: Super Mario 64
Console: Nintendo 64
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 1st March 1997

The first 3D platformer in the Mario series, and one of the earlier 3D platformers in video gaming, Super Mario 64 introduced a lot of new concepts to the series and to gaming as a whole. The most immediately noticeable of the additions, aside from being in 3D is the camera control mechanism. Players can rotate the camera and zoom in and out on Mario using the C buttons and R button respectively. This gives players far more freedom when exploring courses and trying to complete objectives.

Instead of having worlds and levels as featured in previous Mario games, Super Mario 64 has courses which feature objectives, the completion of which earns players a star. There are 6 objectives for each course, as well as a star for collecting 100 coins in any given level. Counting bonus stars that are hidden around the castle there are 120 to collect in total, however only 70 are required to fight the final boss of the game.

At the start of the game Mario receives a letter from Princess Peach informing him that she has baked a cake for his consumption. Upon arriving at the castle however, Princess Peach is missing and Mario is told that he must collect stars to restore power to the castle. All of the true boss fights in the game are against Bowser and as plots go, it's pretty thinly held together in the same way the original Super Mario Bros. was. Perhaps it'd be nicer to have an incentive that's more appealing than cake to spur Mario on through 15 courses.

As more stars are gathered by Mario, more courses as accessible. With 7 stars available on each main course, it's not particularly difficult to amass the required number of stars to beat the game (in fact it's possible to win without even entering 5 of the courses). This isn't to say that the objectives given are easy but there's certainly no shortage of them.

The courses themselves are nicely varied featuring water, snow, lava and more complex concepts such as time passing inside of a clock at differing speeds, enemies and items of differing sizes, and a few others. On each of the 15 main courses there's a lot to explore and gameplay feels far less linear than that of the 2D platformers in the series. To access each course the player must jump into paintings around Princess Peach's castle, some of which will take a little finding.

Objectives are given a title on the pre-course screen which can help the player get an idea of what needs to be done. In some cases it'll be obvious and other objectives will take a little more searching. In the same way, the amount of time and skill needed for each objective can vary greatly; from climbing to the top of a simple mountain to reaching and defeating a mini-boss. An impressive feature of the objectives is that hardly any are recycled from course to course, save for finding the 8 hidden stars.

Mario is controlled via the analog stick only on the N64 controller which gives far more control over his finer movement than a d-pad would be able to. Combined with the camera controls, this gives the player far greater scope to explore the levels and tackle platforming challenges put before them, especially in three dimensions. While the camera control doesn't always work as needed, it's not very often that you'll find yourself in a tricky situation camerawise.

In addition to the analog control, Mario also gains some new moves in this game. Wall jumping, backflips, and long jumping are just a few of the new manoeuvres which not only make good use of the N64 controller but are easy to pull off and compliment the level design to bring new challenges to the player. By the time you're ready to face the final battle, it'll feel as if you're able to see Mario through any parkour based challenge imaginable.

Unlike previous games of the series, Mario can take a decent amount of hits from enemies before losing a life. The power meter drains different amounts depending on the enemy you take damage from, and proving it's not something that can kill you in one hit Mario is able to collect coins to nurse himself back to health. One situation in which this system is a little weak is the water levels, as the power meter doubles as an air meter. Rising to the surface to breathe can cure any damage that Mario has taken, making water levels much easier.

Many enemies from previous games feature in Super Mario 64; Goombas, Shy Guys, Boos and others all make an appearance and work in a similar way to previous installments. There are even friendly Bob-ombs who will prepare canons to help you on your way. Power-ups also return in a way; once certain switches have been pressed Mario is able to get a new cap and turn into a flying, metal or "vanish" version of himself. Certain stars require the player to have unlocked these caps to reach them.

Graphically the game is impressive for the era and feature nicely styled 3D designs of previously 2D parts of the Mario universe. From a modern standpoint some of the textures can look a bit pixellated or blurry at times but overall it's bearable. Musically Super Mario 64 excels with many different course themes and variations on previous themes from the series. The voice acting is also generally good, although its mainly Mario's clips that you'll be hearing.

Overall this is a great example of a 3D platformer, even 17 years after its release. With many courses and secrets to explore and discover, imaginative objectives and level design and a great soundtrack, there's only a few minor issues which can be counted against it. Perhaps a little to easy in places, with occasional camera issues and a sense of a game that's finding its feet in a new world of games it's still well worth a play.

Rating: 87/100
Grade: B