The UKFF Retro Gaming Thread

[patiirc]

I suggest Super Fantasy Zone for the Megadrive Cheers.

 

Added,

 

Nice review and Welcome Back we missed yas!

 

PS can you put what version you played unless I missed it. in which case ignore is

Edited November 23, 2010 by patdfb

[FLips]

I suggest Super Fantasy Zone for the Megadrive Cheers.

 

Added,

 

Nice review and Welcome Back we missed yas!

 

PS can you put what version you played unless I missed it. in which case ignore is

 

I mentioned it was the Sega CD version. I'll make it more clear now though.

[patiirc]

I mentioned it was the Sega CD version. I'll make it more clear now though.

 

Cheers dude, I re read after and it did say my bad, nice and clear now, never know who could be watching

[patiirc]

Chuck Rock II: Son of Chuck (Mega CD)

 

Welcome Home, WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELCOME

 

Ah the return of Chuck Rock, A game that many will not get confused with Prehistorik even though their themes are the same and have similar game play. No, really, its true. Oh it's true

 

Prehistorik is aces

 

But this isnt about Chuck, or even Rik. No as the Doc says in Back to the Future" it's your kids". Well, erm, about your kid, but who knew right?

 

Since Chuck Rock 1 ended, Ole Chucky boy has been a busy-bee. he discovered how to make cars and has sprogged, there is some great exposition that tells people how and what has happened since the last game and how the new one has come about more of that here

 

Now, to me, that intro was very reminiscent of Cosgrove Hall productions style cartoons (Duckula, Danger Mouse etc). Also Gary Gritter, looks a bit like Borf from Space Ace? Take away the blue and the moustache and maybe, just maybe?

 

Back with the intro itself, the cartoon although well and good and taking advantage of the new hardware doesnt actually add much to things and the art style is not only different to the game, but its prequel as well, as such, despite it being really good and funny in places, like Gritter's attempt to build a new car. I cant see the point. Its willy waving for the sake of it.

 

Anyway eventually after some 4 minutes of intro we get to the title screen. On the Sega we get Chuck space Rock II and then Chuck Junior, coming on screen and then after a few bashes of his patented Bam Bam Club we get the screen shifting and we get a Son of Chuck thing. The Son is made from plastered up balloons. Its not a dino rock band of Chuck Rock ( but then that's not the best band on the Megadrive/Mega CD anyway. Rolling Thunder 2 is! Check out the band on the sound test )

 

So far so confused. Its impressive entry dont get me wrong, but it did elicit a bit of the 'WTF's?' I mean you have this great cartoon intro and then a really shit and confusing intro screen where you can choose hard normal game from the main screen and not the options. Without instructions and pissing about you may find that you have found an Easter Egg, easier game, bring it on. After some faffing I started the game and away hay we go.

 

The first thing to notice about the game is how colourful the game is, the platforms upon Chuck Jr is standing are a lush green and everything has lots of detail, the background has a bedrock style back drop. Chuck Jr's energy is portrayed as a Fantastic Max style milk bottle and you have a noumber of lives as well, at the top of the screen you have an impossibly large score indicator and so the game can begin.

 

CJR as, he will now be known differs alot from his dad, interms of movement and weapons and what he can do. The premise of the game is the same a stone age/Flintstones style platformbut that where it ends. CJR is a stubby so and so and has a club as a weapon, no more belly butting or flying kicks here. The club itself is labouriously slow to swing and takes mabe 1.5/2 secs to swing in full, it also has a crappy miniscule hit zone so unless you get things pixel pefect then CJR ois going to lose some energy. CJR also moves like a dead sloth stuck in treacle on an inmovavble object. Speed is definately order of the day, and reaction times are about as good as a punch drunk boxer who has been at the weed.

 

So far then so not so good. The game itself was apparently designed at a younger audience than chuck hence the baby nature, however if it was designed for younger people then Why on earth did CORE make the game so brick hard. Spikes make you lose energy very quickly and its not always clear what the spikes are, especially on some of the Jungle levels where they blend in to the platform. The enemies have no unformity, and whilst its nice to see some humour such as men wearing dinosaur suits, or having hair peices etc, its often a case of not known what can and what cant kill you. In Chuck Rock 1 the distinction was easier to make. in CRIISOC not so as a result for much of the time, there isnt much of a clue as what the hell your are supposed to do.

 

Each level has multiple routes, if you can get to them. CJR can jump a miniscule amount, so how you are meant to reach some of these impossible platforms are beyond me. Also some of the enemies such as the Water spitting dinos and the banana throwing monkeys are incredibly cheap if you get cornered you can get killed very quickly without being able to do anything about it. On one level this is taken to extremes as it is physically impossible ( ive tried every way I can think of to get across the level without losing energy because the gaps are too big for CJR to jump, there are no stones to bash across (unlike Chuck, who could lift stones of different sizes, CJR can only bash them, after a few bashes the stones disintegrate) So you will lose energy, great way to play a game, not.

 

Moving on from that, There is little clue of who the bosses are and why you are fighting them. when you do get to one, its more a case of being randomly being plonked in a boss battle with no rhyme or reason. They are also tough and take a zillion hits to kill. This isnt fun, nor big, nor clever. Graphically they are impressive as is much of the rest of the game, but Im fighting this dinosaur, because? . The second boss is a Dinosaur that you have spent most of the level on the back of with additional being at sea effects ( its very impressive(. It is wearing a rubber ring and there is a gloriously and completely pointless bit showing some scaling where you have to get on a birds feet, you are given no clue that it wont kill you so for the first few times you may end up dying these are instant deaths irrespective of energy) the bird flies up a bit and then plomps you back down right where you left in the first place. The only difference is some giant green fish.. and you make the way to the end of the dinosaur eventually having to kill the thing you were riding on. Brilliant.

 

There are also some wierd mini games. Initially with no clue that this is a mini game you are set with a tree with a dinosaur and some fruit. You cant ride him and the fruit look too high to hit. they arent, your club can just about reach the fruit whilst jumpin and you have to bash it off the tree in order for the dionsaur to reach,. by the time you have worked out you need to hit the fruit off and for the dino to eat it for the bonus the time limit is up and its level over. No bonus this time dude. Groan.

 

The game is full of quirks and unfinished stuff in the Jungle their are some places where there are invisible platforms that dont go anywhere and throughout there are bits that it is impossible not to lose energy on. The whole thing seems like a tech demo for showing off ,more than agame which is a shame because CORE have some of the very best Mega CD games Check out Thunderhawk for example

Yes, that is running on a 16 bit machine!

 

One thing Ive not addressed is the music which is actually like the graphics, excellent. It has an Acid Jazz sound track that may not come across on EMU, it has no place in the game, but its professional, sounds real and is very clear as it should be here is a video showing the lush graphics the great sound and the shit game play addressing some of the issues Ive mentioned

. It also has some great humour one of the bosses is called Ozric Tentacles ( after the band famous for the Byker Theme among other things)

 

Overall, If you have the choice, play the Mega CD version of Chuck Rock over this the intro is more in keeping with the game despite crappy voice over

and Chuck is much much better than his son to play as a character

 

I try not to get disappointed with the games presented and there have been some ace choices. I will d/l the masters system and megadrive versions to see if there are any differences, but this is yet another platformer in the long list of platformers we have played that is shit

 

4/10 purely for the graphics and music and intro. I've not even mentioned why on earth there are billions of sweets laying about?

[Ron Simmons]

I try not to get disappointed with the games presented and there have been some ace choices. I will d/l the masters system and megadrive versions to see if there are any differences, but this is yet another platformer in the long list of platformers we have played that is shit

Try the Amiga version, I think it's excellent.

 

Overall, If you have the choice, play the Mega CD version of Chuck Rock over this the intro is more in keeping with the game despite crappy voice over

and Chuck is much much better than his son to play as a character

See, I always thought the first game was terrible, a major step down from the sequel.

[patiirc]

I try not to get disappointed with the games presented and there have been some ace choices. I will d/l the masters system and megadrive versions to see if there are any differences, but this is yet another platformer in the long list of platformers we have played that is shit

Try the Amiga version, I think it's excellent.

 

Overall, If you have the choice, play the Mega CD version of Chuck Rock over this the intro is more in keeping with the game despite crappy voice over

and Chuck is much much better than his son to play as a character

See, I always thought the first game was terrible, a major step down from the sequel.

 

Will see if it works in Lemon, then.. What was wrong with the first game, Ive got Snes, Amiga, Megadrive and Mega CD versions all of which I really enjoy

[Ron Simmons]

Will see if it works in Lemon, then.. What was wrong with the first game, Ive got Snes, Amiga, Megadrive and Mega CD versions all of which I really enjoy

I played the second game first, and when I eventually did get to try the original I found it almost unplayable. Musically it was inferior, the "belly attack" made enemy killing tough, Chuck Rock was pretty sluggish, graphically it wasn't as fun...

 

I just didn't like it. It shows how much of a difference the nostalgia factor can make to both of us, perhaps!

 

Our big challenge, I think, is finding a platformer we all enjoy. I'm contemplating nominating Sonic Triple Trouble as it's a lesser known Sonic game that's fun, but it'd be nice to find something a bit less franchised that's good fun for all of us!

[patiirc]

Initial impressions are that the Master System version pisses all over the MCD and Megadrive version from a great depth, because its playable which is something the club is more responsive and the levels seem more structured and less pants.

 

Will check the miggy version in a mo

[Mike Castle]

Our big challenge, I think, is finding a game we all enjoy. I'm contemplating nominating Sonic Triple Trouble as it's a lesser known Sonic game that's fun, but it'd be nice to find something a bit less franchised that's good fun for all of us!

Fixed

[Ron Simmons]

Our big challenge, I think, is finding a game we all enjoy. I'm contemplating nominating Sonic Triple Trouble as it's a lesser known Sonic game that's fun, but it'd be nice to find something a bit less franchised that's good fun for all of us!

Fixed

Hahaha!

 

I think I might be onto a winner with Simon The Sorcerer II actually, and if I nominate Rodlands at some point I think people will enjoy that too.

 

My nomination after that will either be Mcdonaldland (or MC Kids) for the Amiga and NES, or Sonic Triple Trouble for the Game Gear. Anyone have any preferences?

[patiirc]

Our big challenge, I think, is finding a game we all enjoy. I'm contemplating nominating Sonic Triple Trouble as it's a lesser known Sonic game that's fun, but it'd be nice to find something a bit less franchised that's good fun for all of us!

Fixed

Hahaha!

 

I think I might be onto a winner with Simon The Sorcerer II actually, and if I nominate Rodlands at some point I think people will enjoy that too.

 

My nomination after that will either be Mcdonaldland (or MC Kids) for the Amiga and NES, or Sonic Triple Trouble for the Game Gear. Anyone have any preferences?

 

Whatever you want dude, its your choice...

[Ron Simmons]

OK, well I'll go for the less risky option.

 

Add Sonic Triple Trouble (Game Gear) to the list of upcoming games...As with Simon, you can work other people's choices around it.

[Mike Castle]

After Skweek I may go for an even older Amstrad game... Roland In The Caves.

 

Hey, if I had to put up with that shit as a kid, you lot can put up with it now .

[Ron Simmons]

After Skweek I may go for an even older Amstrad game... Roland In The Caves.

 

Hey, if I had to put up with that shit as a kid, you lot can put up with it now .

Skweek I'd heard of, but what's Roland In The Caves all about?

[Mike Castle]

 

Enjoy... or not XD (No, I wont seriously put you all through that abomination of a game, you actually get a glimpse at the main screen after he dies the first time... just look at that god awful control set-up!)

 

That was one of the games packaged with the Amstrad (Not one of them was any good), and it was pretty much a crap shoot as to where you would land each time you jumped, and that fucking bird always followed you around.