Respect and Retrospect- Retro Game Challenge Reviewed

Nostalgia is a powerful drug. It compels me to play every retro-themed compilation that comes along, both good (Activision Anthology) and not so good (the Tecmo Arcade Classics weren’t exactly timeless). So when I first got the chance to play Retro Game Challenge at E3, I feel in love. Instead of licensing a handful of 8-bit titles, the developers lovingly created eight new games unmistakably inspired by 80’s NES classics. Yet whereas most compilations offer the games themselves with a negligible amount of ancillary content, RGC has devotedly recreated the gaming culture of my youth.

Originally based on a quirky Japanese television program, the game’s guide is Game Master Arino. Arino is shown as a virtual head, floating in a sea of binary digits. His guidance and gentle ribbing may remind gamers of Dr. Ryuta Kawashima, of Brain Training fame. At the game’s onset, the Game Master transports the player to 1984, where you accompany a 10 year-old version of Arino through a variety of game challenges.

                                                                     Hey, isn’t that the Solomon’s Key sprite?

The game’s first challenge is to survive five levels of Cosmic Gate, which resembles arcade hit Galaga. Upon closer inspection, the game offers a considerable amount of supplementation to the existing shooting formula- weapon upgrades tempt the player with score boosting combos, while the elimination  of some foes open a warp gate. Every time one of Arino’s challenges are met, time moves forward, rewarding the player with a new magazine or new game.  Periodicals are dotingly filled with hints, cheat codes, and previews of upcoming games, making Retro Game Challenge’s imaginary world wonderfully realized and realistically detailed.

Diversity is one of RGC’s best strengths. Star Price recalls Hudson classic Star Soldier, with its wide playfield, weapon powerups, and mid-level bosses. Three variations of Robot Ninja Haggle Man follow the evolution of NES-era Ninja Gaiden series. Guardian Quest, the requite RPG, derives inspiration from Dragon Warrior II. Racing is represented by Rally King and its sequel, which invite comparison to the Rare developed, R.C. Pro-Am.  Each of the flagship genres popular during the Reagan years is represented in the collection.

                                                       MegaMan 9 has nothing on Haggle Man!

Each of RGC’s games is graphically authentic, presenting small, simplistically animated sprites that truly capture the essence of 8 bit gaming. While the imagined titles are regulated to the top screen, the bottom display of the DS that looks onto two children, who sit on the floor, captivated by the console and television before them. Watching the duo scamper across the floor to grab a cartridge or pull a magazine from the shelf added a bit of wistful charm to the experience.