Yes, I'm well aware that my last posts were old posts that I never got around to finishing or publishing about my time playing The Lost Levels. Believe it or not, this playthrough is still a bit in my mind, so I might come back at some point to finish it. For now, let's get to what's fresh:
The first TMNT game for Game Boy!
That's right - The Cowabunga Collection came out yesterday, and I scooped it up. The last game I bought brand new right away at full price was the Switch version of Live A Live. Despite the glut of new software, I seem to gravitate right to the old stuff. Maybe that says something about my age, but I won't overthink that!
The collection is very well put-together. This isn't a review of it. Instead, I decided I wanted to write down some things that I was thinking while playing the first Game Boy game for the series, TMNT: Fall of the Foot Clan (GB).
The short answer of whether you should play this one or not: Yes. I wouldn't suggest buying an actual cart for it unless you are a collector or have strong nostalgic value for the game. It's worth trying out in the collection, however.
What I Enjoyed:
- Konami's wonderful chiptune music. The first stage song is the TMNT theme song from the original cartoon, and it's catchy. The other songs haven't gotten into my head, but I enjoyed them while I played.
- Stage select! While this game is short, I loved being able to choose which stage to start from. I ran out of turtles right at the beginning of the Technodrome, so it was nice to pick up almost where I left off with a full team. The only thing you lose is your score by doing this. I'll leave the judgment out of whether you want to replay the entire thing following a game over.
- Game style. The game was a weird hybrid of a simple platformer and a simple beat em up. Nothing was too hazardous, and most enemies died in one hit. It made me feel quite powerful compared to more "damage sponge" enemies you'll see in other games.
- No turtle was useless! They were all pretty much the same gameplay wise, but I have to say, watching Mikey spin his nunchucks while walking on a Game Boy screen is really satisfying. Just ignore the fact that otherwise they walk like they're 80 years old, not teenagers trained in ninjitsu.
- Short game length! It took about 30 minutes give or take to beat this one, and that included getting one game over and restarting near the end. It was long enough for me to get into it without the game overstaying its welcome.
- Bosses that were the opposite of damage sponges. Seriously, every boss takes like 5 hits and are mostly easy to dodge. You're mostly making sure you don't take contact damage.
- Your turtle is way too big. The platforming segments scroll vertically which means you're going to fall in at least one lava pit and take a bunch of damage.
- The game claims to have bonus games scattered throughout. Somehow I missed every single one. I had to use a code to try out a bonus game. Thankfully I did not really need whatever prizes they give you.
