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Sega Genesis
The game: Sonic 3D Blast
Its cost: 800 points
 
 Lucas DeWoody – Sonic 3D Blast was the first Sonic game produced after Sonic 1-3 level designer Hirokazu Yasuhara left Sonic Team. Seeing as the team was going through a massive restructuring and a true 3D sequel was years away at that point, Sega decided to farm out for a quickie sequel from talented UK studio Traveler’s Tales as a hold over. What came from that is Sonic 3D Blast, essentially the worst of the core Sonic games on Genesis. The gameplay is isometric (three-quarters perspective) with Sonic running across hilly landscapes and loops like you expect, but the goal is to find and bash all the enemies and capture all the Flickies trapped inside to take them to the goal ring. Each and every stage follows this formula. The concept is original, but very repetitive, yet the developers managed to squeeze every last ounce out of the formula. Jumping and running is hindered thanks to the isometric viewpoint (analog control would have really helped the game, but it was too far away at that point), and Sonic feels awfully slippery. The game’s speed also takes a considerable hit because of the mechanics. 3D Blast uses pre-rendered visuals with its isometric perspective (possibly Sega’s response to Nintendo’s Super Mario RPG, released around that period). This was rare back in the day and looks very cool, but the Genesis’s low color palette (64 max) hurts the 3D illusion much like it does in Vectorman. Still, you can’t help but drop your jaw at the outstanding FMV opening. It looks like pixilated fuzz, but remember—this was the 7.6 MHz Genesis. For those limitations, it’s unbelievable. The music from Jun Senoue (Sonic Adventure) is outstanding and there are some truly legendary tunes mixed in there with some merely cool ones, but no stinkers. Being the worst Genesis Sonic game doesn’t mean 3D Blast is a bad game. It just can’t live up to that extreme standard set by the preexisting classics because its formula is so different. Still, different isn’t bad and Sonic 3D Blast can give you a lot of fun as long as you are not comparing it to something it isn’t. Be aware though, this is the older Genesis version and there was a far improved Saturn port released later (better visuals and music plus 3D bonus stages).
 Fun and original concept, Isometric visuals; Awesome music; First “3D” Sonic game
 Repetitive gameplay; Slippery controls; Doesn’t live up to the high Genesis-era Sonic standard; Saturn version is better
Nintendo Entertainment System
The game: Wrecking Crew
Its cost: 500 points
 
Lucas DeWoody – Wrecking Crew is one of those obscure NES launch titles from R&D1 that nobody remembers because it was overshadowed by Super Mario Brothers. Understandable, yet unfortunate is that turn of events because what you have here is an excellent little 8-bit arcade style action/puzzle game that stars Mario and Luigi in their blue collar “pre-hero” days as construction workers. You wander around with Mario trashing doors, walls, ladders, pipes, columns, blocks, and more. You can also smash bombs and set off chain reactions that clear tons of debris and rack up lots of points. While you work, Spike the foreman (who served as the basis for Wario) wanders around trying to knock you off the buildings. Other enemies include fireballs, monkey wrenches, and eggplant enemies. You can trap some enemies and defeat others, but Spike is just someone you’ve got to avoid. Keep an eye out for the golden hammer (as seen in Super Smash Bros. Brawl), for it will let you bash enemies Donkey Kong style. Being an action/puzzle, you’ve got to keep on your toes to stay alive early on, but the puzzle design will really start to kick in as you progress and force you to plan your maneuvers carefully but quickly. It’s a simple yet genius design. The game comes with 100 stages which should be enough to keep you busy, but if you have no life and manage to clear them all, a stage editor is included, and in this VC version you get a new perk. Like Mach Rider before it, a Famicom Disk System style save feature has been added to the game—a feature the original game was meant to have, but ultimately lacked. You can now build your own custom level designs with the included stage editor and save them for later play. The replay value just tripled. The graphics are simple, but if you can look at Super Mario Bros., then you’ll be perfectly happy with what’s here. The music is likewise limited, but what you’ve got is catchy—just like you’d expect from Hirokazu Tanaka. There was also a drastically different (but equally enjoyable) 16-bit sequel released exclusively in Japan for the Super Famicom at the very tail end of the machine’s lifecycle. Here’s hoping we see it domestically someday. In the meantime, treat yourself to one of Mario’s most obscure (and earliest) spin-off games and enjoy the random destruction of that golden hammer.
Great concept; Tons of stages and stages editor with new save feature; Two-player simultaneous option; Random destruction is awesome
You’ll find completing all 100 stages far harder than it sounds; Gets repetitive in long sessions
TurboGrafx-16 CD
The game: Super Air Zonk: Rockabilly Paradise
Its cost: 800 points
 
 Lucas DeWoody – Super Air Zonk is a bit of a contradiction, so let’s look into what makes this sequel both superior and inferior to its predecessor. Rather than just a straight TurboGrafx-16 hue card sequel to the original 1992 Air Zonk, this baby was developed for the TurboGrafx CD add-on in 1993. While the gameplay mechanics in Super Air Zonk are identical to the first Zonk, you’ve got brand new levels, new locales, new assist characters, new enemies, and a Redbook audio (you guessed it…Rockabilly) soundtrack. Sadly, there are some problems that crush the game’s potential. This CD sequel omitted parallax scrolling which takes away the depth of field illusion created in the first game and makes the entire experience look flat and lifeless compared to the original and more akin to a launch title. That’s a big gripe for a game released in the last stages of the console’s life when things should be at their peak. On top of the scale backs, the action in this sequel is way slower and less frantic than that of the original with fewer enemies on screen, smaller sprites, and plainer scenery. Fortunately, your control over Zonk is spot on and the sense of humor is intact. So really, the sequel is a considerable step down from the original classic Air Zonk. You loose parallax scrolling and get a little less content, but you do get a Redbook audio Rockabilly soundtrack that ranks up there with Earthworm Jim in terms of zaniness. Whether that’s worth 900 points (200 more than the original) and a ton more save blocks on your Wii (because of the CD audio) is up to you. There would be less to complain about had the two games been originally released in the other order, but Air Zonk does so many things that its “super” sequel doesn’t that it is impossible to recommend this over the original. Bonk fans will still find lots to love, but others should just migrate to the superior (and cheaper) prequel as it is by far the better deal.
Fun accessible shooter with manageable difficulty; Awesome soundtrack; Great controls
Visuals are two years behind the game’s predecessor; Game speed is greatly reduced; Fewer enemies and nerfed challenge
some images courtesy of vgmuseum.com
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