Virtual Console Roundup
Metal Slug, Cho Aniki, Puyo Puyo 2, Break In.
Puyo Puyo 2
- Platform: Megadrive
- Wii Points: 900
- In Real Money: GBP 6.30 / EUR 9 (approx)
If there's anything that reveals the whole Hanabi Festival as a rather shoddy façade, its games like this. Puyo Puyo 2 may never have technically received a European release in its original form, but it's grossly misleading to present it as some sort of desirable import title considering the gameplay has formed the basis of a great many puzzle games before and since.
It's another block-dropping game, except in this case the blocks are blobs and they come in pairs rather than different shapes. As is traditional for this sort of game, you have to join up four or more of the same colour in order to make them disappear, preferably causing a chain reaction and smothering your opponent in unusable grey blobs.
Sounds familiar, right? The concept is really only a slight evolution of the original Puyo Puyo which is already familiar to European eyes. That same game was basically rebranded and re-released over here as Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine and Kirby's Ghost Trap, both of which are already available on the VC for 800 Points. Suddenly, that 900-Point price tag for this rare "import" seems a lot less justifiable.
Admittedly, Puyo Puyo 2 isn't exactly the same as its predecessor and no doubt there'll be some obsessive fan of the series already thrashing their bloody finger stumps against the keyboard in protest at my glib dismissals. It is a perfectly serviceable game in its own right, but with two incredibly similar games already available twice on the VC for less points, the fact remains that there's little here to warrant a purchase.
5/10
Break In
- Platform: TurboGrafx 16
- Wii Points: 700
- In Real Money: GBP 4.90 / EUR 7 (approx)
Aaaand here's another title that makes me wonder what this whole Hanabi business is really all about. Once again, this is a game that we never got to see on its original release - but as the game is an English-language pool game it doesn't quite come wreathed in the sensual smoky cult allure you'd expect. It's no Cho Aniki, that's for sure, and definitely not a game that will have many of us marvelling at the foreign wonders we missed out on back in the olden days.
What it is, is a surprisingly deep and robust simulation of the ol' green baize and balls pastime, with a wide array of rules and game styles to choose from. The gameplay is much as you'd expect - set up your shot, add a little backspin, set your power and away you go. The 2D graphics don't really show it off very well these days, but the physics are as realistically solid as you'd expect from Naxat Soft, better known for their pinball games.
On top of the variety of gameplay options, there's also the addition of a coach - selected based on a series of cartoon avatars - and before each shot you can call on them for advice. For the truly desperate, or simply lazy, the coach will even show you exactly where to aim for the best chance of pocketing a ball.
Break In is the sort of game that I can see a lot of people skipping straight past because the screenshots look boring and old 2D pool games are usually crap. This certainly isn't crap, but I can't quite bring myself to declare it a particularly wise investment either. Feel free to mutter your own grumbles about the ludicrous 100 point price hike here. Regardless, it's an above-average game of its genre, and one that is worth a look for the truly devoted billiards buff.
6/10