Every week Cyril Lachel comes down from his giant castle in the hills to provide the final word on all of the classic downloadable games and retro compilations. This is the Retro Round-Up, your official guide to the best (and worst) in classic gaming for the Nintendo Virtual Console, Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network. Join us as we shed some light on what games are worth your five or ten dollars, and what games you should avoid at all costs. For more information about these games (and retro gaming in general) we invite you to check out Defunct Games. This week we have a lot of games to talk about, so let`s not waste any precious time. Up first we have the first (and arguably best) Alex Kidd game, followed closely by Burning Fight for the Neo Geo. And then we hit the jackpot as GameTap gives us 14 (yes, 14) games to talk about. What are our favorites? Find out now when you read the final June episode of Retro Round-Up ...
Alex Kidd in Miracle World (Master System)
What Is It?
Years before Sega had Sonic the Hedgehog; they had two mascot characters that did their best to hold their own against the mighty Mario and Luigi. I`m of course talking about Alex Kidd and Wonder Boy. While Wonder Boy has appeared in numerous forms on the Virtual Console, so far Alex Kidd has been completely forgotten. That is, until this week. While this isn`t the first time Alex Kidd found his way onto the Virtual Console (see: <a href="http://www.defunctgames.com/shows.php?id=twidg-5" target="blank_"><b>This Week in Defunct Games from April 12, 2007</b></a>), this is the first time we have a reasonably good Alex Kidd game to talk about. To compare Alex Kidd to Mario or Sonic is silly, because this 2D franchise is more than just jumping on your enemies. Alex`s gimmick is that he has a really, really large fist, which is, of course, great for punching his enemies. He also finds himself in incredibly bizarre worlds that have him going from land to water to sky seamlessly. This adventure in Miracle World is Alex Kidd`s first outing, and as a first-generation Sega Master System game it`s quite an accomplishment. The graphics, while not spectacular by today`s standards, have a unique style and the action is fast and easy to control. It`s great to see Nintendo finally upload one of the good Alex Kidd games, hopefully this is just the beginning.
Does It Still Hold Up?
The graphics are sharp and the controls are good, but the one thing you`ll notice about this game is how difficult it is. You can earn extra lives, but this is not one of those games where you have unlimited continues and can mess up as many times as you want. This is a game where you really have to work at not getting hit by enemies, which can sometimes be difficult given your character`s short range attacks. If the game wasn`t so difficult I would say that it holds up well, but it`s that one thing that will keep a lot of players from getting the most out of Alex Kidd in Miracle World.
Is It Worth The Money?
Alex Kidd in Miracle World is not perfect, but it`s a fantastic light-hearted romp. Best of all, it`s a 2D platformer that hasn`t been ported to a lot of consoles and compilations. Fans of Super Mario Bros. will probably get a kick out of this punchy platformer, but the extreme difficulty will likely chase a lot of players off. At five dollars I say you should give it a go, even if you die a few times you`ll still want to go back through it and see where the Miracle World takes you.
Burning Fight (Neo Geo)
What Is It?
Burning Fight is basically SNK`s answer to Double Dragon. You pick from three diff...
