As in most things, hits come and go.
Music, fashion, and video games all have their peaks and valleys. However, The
Classics always resurface for new generations to sample and possibly enjoy.
Namco has been around
for five decades. No, they have not been making strictly video games in all that
time, but their largest impact to the digital crowd was made in that genre. It’s
almost impossible to find someone, young or old, that has not heard of
"Pac-Man.". However, those same people may not be familiar with other Namco hits
such as "Rolling Thunder" or "Galaga ’88." To take care of that, Namco has
released "Namco Museum: 50th Anniversary" for various platforms, including Xbox.
In the 12-game collection, you get
the most known and popular titles to hit the arcade. In addition, there are two
bonus games you can unlock (with high scores): Galaga ’88 and
Pac-Mania. While not nearly as well known as the rest of the pack, these are
more "modern" updates of classics from the past. Among the game that are
immediately available, you get Dig Dug, Pac-Man, Ms Pac-Man, Pole
Position (1 & 2), Galaxian and Galaga. Being a huge fan of
Galaxian, this was a major coup for me. For some reason, I have always
preferred it over the sequel of Galaga.
The games are duplicated perfectly
in every detail – good or bad. The sights and sound are 100% arcade quality.
Given the timeline for most of these, that is not too hard to do with the power
of a modern platform system. The only puzzle here is: What makes this
different from the Namco Museum release from a just a few years ago? The
selection seems to be identical. Maybe I am missing something, here?
As mentioned, the games are exactly
reproduced here. Although you can adjust the way the game is displayed on your
screen, everything is perfectly in order. I can almost smell arcade pizza when I
play. You select your game through a arcade-floor environment that blasts
classic 80s tunes in the background. I think they probed my tiny brain to see
exactly what songs I hated the most in that decade – and inserted them into this
game. These ditties from yesteryear play as you browse the rotating assembly of
behemoth arcade cabinets. Once you make your selection, you insert your coin
(select Start) and begin. There are instructions in the mini-manual, but
most of the games are self-explanatory.
Like always in these old games, I
struggle with the joystick controls – or lack thereof. It is hard to emulate a
limited-direction stick with a modern controller. In the arcade, I can dominate
a Ms Pac-Man machine. On a platform, I can barely play it. There are only four
directions to move in, but I cannot get the pad to realize that. It’s maddening.
If you can get used to the controls well enough, these games are very fun to
play. Though I could never reach a suitable comfort level on some of my
favorites, I got enough from the remaining games to entertain myself for a
while. I discovered some games that I barely saw when they were in the arcades.
I never played Mappy much, but here is my chance. Now I know why I
didn’t play it. That’s not my kind of game, but I know some people that loved
it. There’s something for anyone in this collection, though I think they’re
being stingy with the "museum." For a collection that already exists, I would
have liked to see more games. I am still scratching my head over the whole
thing.
Graphically, its a nice thing to
look at. All of the colors and crude animations are brought to life faithfully.
Some are almost comical by the standards of today’s games, but I recall when
these games were cutting edge. Pole Position was amazing when it was new.
Although the physics are…. well…. non-existent, its still fun to look
at.
The sounds are simple and effective.
They didn’t have much to work with at that time, but made the best of what they
had. There is even "voice" on some of them. Again, not very good, but a nice
attempt for the day. The music in the arcade, when browsing the games, is loud
and clear – in stereo. The selection is small, but it’s CD-quality music. Once
you enter the actual game, however, you are submerged into the mono world of
clunky sound, music and blips. I think a modern cell phone has better audio
quality.
It is a very tired collection, and
sadly familiar. I can see re-issuing monster hits like Pac-Man and Galaga, but
to recycle the other games and not offer more new classics is just a crime. A
money-grabbing waste of space. That may seem harsh, but it’s reality. I really
studied what was different or special about this collection versus the 2002
release, but I came up blank. I don’t have the other one here to compare side by
side, but that’s my semi-educated conclusion. If you never touched the old
release, this will be new and fresh – for old games. Otherwise, stick with what
you have and hope that they dig deeper in their "museum" for future collections.
This museum needs a new curator!
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Gameplay: 6.0
Some of these games are terrible to play with modern joy pad controls.
Neither analog or buttons made some of them any easier to play. These
four-direction games require quick movement, and the controls don’t allow that
speed. It causes abrupt endings to otherwise good gaming. Otherwise, some of
these games are excellent to play. Regardless of their graphic limitations or
other modern short-comings, they rely on good design and clever gameplay.
Graphics: 6.5
The visuals are as nice (or bad?) as their original debuts from long ago.
Every little clunky detail is reproduced faithfully for new generations to
discover. The colors are limited, but nice, nonetheless. Although you can adjust
how they take up your screen, I find the default configuration to be the
most appealing to look at.
Sound: 6.0
The sound is really subdued in this collection. Even though some of them
existed in stereo cabinets, they all sound mono here. Aside from the
arcade environment with full stereo tunes blasting away, the music and blips are
clunky and empty to the ears. Galaga doesn’t sound as bright as it did in the
arcade. Its as if they dumbed-down all of the games so none stood out as
superior to another.
Difficulty: Easy
The games are easy to learn and play. Some are very hard to master, but most
have appropriate, gradual increasing difficulty.
Concept: 3.5
This is a old collection with new packaging. There’s nothing new or fresh
about it. I can’t figure out how this is different. Some old games are
re-released at a lower price point – but labeled "Classic" or similar packaging
(such as my "new" copy of the original Halo). Not this one. This is just
tossed out there in hopes that no one realizes that it’s been done before.
Overall: 5.0
This is a good collection, but it’s old. Not in the good, classical meaning
of the word. Old as-in, repeat. It’s been done before, and done well. There is
no reason to have this unless you never touched the original Namco Museum. Some
of these games will translate well to younger players that weren’t born when
they first debuted, but many will not be good for them. Even the blind love for
nostalgia made me overlook how bad some of these games are. Some were just no
fun to play because the controls were so horrible. Like Ms Pac-Man as
previously mentioned, my old favorite Dig Dug was not worth playing
because of the terrible translation of the controls. I was too frustrated as he
froze motionless as I struggled to make a quick move in the opposite direction.
I did not tolerate this insanity for long. Unlocking the two dimmed games is not
that hard. The High Scores are not too difficult to reach. Again, no real reward
for the work it took to achieve that goal. More Pac-Man… yay! <yawn>
