thepolkapunk (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} thepolkapunk) wrote,@ 2005-01-29 11:54:00 |
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Video Game Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time
For the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been around since the 1980’s, and have had rather cyclic popularity, competing with the likes of Power Rangers and Pokemon. Their initial comic book spawned multiple TV shows and movies, action figures, assorted memorabilia, and of course, quite a few video games. One of my favorites is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time for the SNES. Though I still get a great deal of enjoyment when I take this cartridge off my shelve, I question as to whether people who are not fans of the original TMNT will have much fun with this game.
TMNT 4 was released in 1992, thirteen years before this review was written. Video game technology has obviously jumped leaps and bounds since then, but back when this game was released the graphics and sound were top notch. A port (with improvements) of an arcade game by the same name, TMNT 4 was a prime example of the technical prowess of the SNES. The turtles were faithful recreations of their animated counterparts in the glory of 16-bit pixels, the music was a series of toe-tapping remixes of the TV shows theme song, and there were even frequent bits of voice littered throughout the game. Back in 1992 you could not ask for a more polished game. Games today completely blow every technical aspect of TMNT 4 out of the water, so the rating of this game boils down to nothing but the gameplay.
The setup is simple. Shredder, the turtles’ arch nemesis, has stolen the statue of liberty. You have to beat up him and his army to get it back. Commence the beating. Before starting, you select which of the turtles you wish to use. Their attack powers, weapon lengths, attack speeds and walk speeds vary from turtle to turtle, but they are all fairly balanced, and picking one is more of personal preference (but most people will swear by Donatello, who has the longest reach of all the turtles).
TMNT 4 was created back in the simple days of video games, before the time of complex button combinations that had to be memorized. The gameplay is fast and frantic, but a little easy and short-lived (the game can be completed on hard mode in less than a half hour). If you stand still for a second, you’re either getting yelled at by the computer to move on, or you’re dead. Swarms of foot soldiers will descend upon you, although no more than four on-screen at a time. Thankfully, you can take along a buddy for help. The arcade version allowed for up to four people to play cooperatively at a time, but on the home system this number was chopped down to two. Still, a buddy playing along can help you out of any jam you might get yourself into. The game also has a 2-player competitive mode, but it pales in comparison to the fun you can have playing cooperatively.
The turtles have a handful of moves they can execute, although at its core, the combat in the game is rather simplistic, especially when compared to today’s beat-‘em-up games. This is not, however, a detriment; it is actually this games prime attraction. At no point do complex controls or frustrating gameplay get in the way of fun. The level design is rather bland, and frequently has the same background across the entire level. Most of the time, you’ll be too busy beating up the foot clan to notice this, but it can make things a bit more boring than they would be otherwise. Two levels put the turtles on vehicles, one of which uses the impressive SNES mode 7 graphics. This serves to add a little flavor to the game, but these levels play almost identically to their on-foot counterparts. The most memorable part of the game is the first battle with shredder. It takes place from his perspective, and the only way to inflict damage upon him is to throw enemies towards the camera, a nice effect accomplished with SNES scaling.
As fun as this game is to play, many will find it too simplistic to enjoy. Still others will not even consider picking it up, since it does not possess the 3D graphics of modern games. Of course, not everyone will ignore a quality game because of it’s age. There is a good chance that if you’ve ever enjoyed this game in the past, you will still enjoy it now, and many people who enjoy quality gameplay will get a kick out of this game whether or not they even heard of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It is still possible to find used copies of this game online or in used video game stores. Perhaps there are even unopened copies here and there. I am giving Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time a Buy rating if you are a fan of the turtles or quality classic games. If, however, you are only interested in modern 3D games, you’d best Pass it by.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time gets 42 thumbs up.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time
For the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been around since the 1980’s, and have had rather cyclic popularity, competing with the likes of Power Rangers and Pokemon. Their initial comic book spawned multiple TV shows and movies, action figures, assorted memorabilia, and of course, quite a few video games. One of my favorites is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time for the SNES. Though I still get a great deal of enjoyment when I take this cartridge off my shelve, I question as to whether people who are not fans of the original TMNT will have much fun with this game.
TMNT 4 was released in 1992, thirteen years before this review was written. Video game technology has obviously jumped leaps and bounds since then, but back when this game was released the graphics and sound were top notch. A port (with improvements) of an arcade game by the same name, TMNT 4 was a prime example of the technical prowess of the SNES. The turtles were faithful recreations of their animated counterparts in the glory of 16-bit pixels, the music was a series of toe-tapping remixes of the TV shows theme song, and there were even frequent bits of voice littered throughout the game. Back in 1992 you could not ask for a more polished game. Games today completely blow every technical aspect of TMNT 4 out of the water, so the rating of this game boils down to nothing but the gameplay.
The setup is simple. Shredder, the turtles’ arch nemesis, has stolen the statue of liberty. You have to beat up him and his army to get it back. Commence the beating. Before starting, you select which of the turtles you wish to use. Their attack powers, weapon lengths, attack speeds and walk speeds vary from turtle to turtle, but they are all fairly balanced, and picking one is more of personal preference (but most people will swear by Donatello, who has the longest reach of all the turtles).
TMNT 4 was created back in the simple days of video games, before the time of complex button combinations that had to be memorized. The gameplay is fast and frantic, but a little easy and short-lived (the game can be completed on hard mode in less than a half hour). If you stand still for a second, you’re either getting yelled at by the computer to move on, or you’re dead. Swarms of foot soldiers will descend upon you, although no more than four on-screen at a time. Thankfully, you can take along a buddy for help. The arcade version allowed for up to four people to play cooperatively at a time, but on the home system this number was chopped down to two. Still, a buddy playing along can help you out of any jam you might get yourself into. The game also has a 2-player competitive mode, but it pales in comparison to the fun you can have playing cooperatively.
The turtles have a handful of moves they can execute, although at its core, the combat in the game is rather simplistic, especially when compared to today’s beat-‘em-up games. This is not, however, a detriment; it is actually this games prime attraction. At no point do complex controls or frustrating gameplay get in the way of fun. The level design is rather bland, and frequently has the same background across the entire level. Most of the time, you’ll be too busy beating up the foot clan to notice this, but it can make things a bit more boring than they would be otherwise. Two levels put the turtles on vehicles, one of which uses the impressive SNES mode 7 graphics. This serves to add a little flavor to the game, but these levels play almost identically to their on-foot counterparts. The most memorable part of the game is the first battle with shredder. It takes place from his perspective, and the only way to inflict damage upon him is to throw enemies towards the camera, a nice effect accomplished with SNES scaling.
As fun as this game is to play, many will find it too simplistic to enjoy. Still others will not even consider picking it up, since it does not possess the 3D graphics of modern games. Of course, not everyone will ignore a quality game because of it’s age. There is a good chance that if you’ve ever enjoyed this game in the past, you will still enjoy it now, and many people who enjoy quality gameplay will get a kick out of this game whether or not they even heard of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It is still possible to find used copies of this game online or in used video game stores. Perhaps there are even unopened copies here and there. I am giving Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time a Buy rating if you are a fan of the turtles or quality classic games. If, however, you are only interested in modern 3D games, you’d best Pass it by.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles in Time gets 42 thumbs up.
