Messages

Thank you vorpal.  I put a lot of stuff online and I don't how or how often any of it's used.  I could be changing lives or just blowing into the wind.  It's nice to see a positive reaction.

Its to add gameplay.  Remember this was made when platformers were just breaking out of 16 bit.  If you're a programmer or designer you've got all that space on a CD you didn't have on a cart that even super rich graphics and music don't fill up.  So let's just make the game itself a whole lot bigger.

Casper (Casper)
Friendly ghosts aren't that useful, next time let's go with Beetlejuice.  This is one of those "keep your partner alive games" that gets so grating.  Casper gets max jumping since he's always floating but his maneuverability is poor and you have to work to keep him damage free.  His versatility is max since almost all his weapons are tools and he can just float right through walls.  Casper's offense is bad though.  Each of his weapons only damages a certain kind of enemy, using weapons drains health, and his accuracy is garbage.  Speaking of draining energy Casper's defense is totally bizarre.  As I said using weapons, or tools, drains his health.  Overall he can't take a lot of hits and his invincibility maneuver also drains health.  He has to consume wisps (health) all the time and items that are made to raise your score also increase your HP.  I guess it's fitting in a way since he's a ghost that his health system would be backwards.  He seems like he should be unstoppable but in the end he's just a pillow.  Finally there's Kat, whom you have to keep safe throughout the game.  She could be useful like Flute but no she's just a stone around Casper's spectral neck.  The design of this game feels rushed.  Casper sure would be a strange export and I wouldn't recommend him.

Josephine (Kendo Rage)
Is this based on an anime?  Jo is a great character, she's fast in both movement and attack.  Her stats seem to be even for her game though but even with overall average jumping and maneuverability she moves around really quickly, faster then most characters.  Her offense is her strong point since she's got a variety of multidirectional attacks.  The only thing holding her back from max offense is her lack of screen clearing attacks.  Not counting the fact that her offense is defensive her defense is bad.  She's not very damage resistant and her HP runs out fast.  Her versatility is decent.  She can swim and chop through some objects.  With slightly better defense Jo would make for an outstanding character.  She'd be a great export to most other platform games.

Ellen Ripley (Alien 3)
Samus would be proud of Ripley.  To bad this game sucks.  Ripley's stats are great.  She's a good jumper and a solid maneuverer being able to dodge most aliens and land where you want her to.  Her offense is great too.  She starts with all her weapons and they all do a lot of damage.  They run out of ammo fast though and can be tricky to aim.  Ripley's versatility is a little better then average and is boosted somewhat further by the game giving her just what she needs when she needs.  More then anything else though her defense is spectacular.  She can take hit after hit just like Samus and even when an alien KOs her she gets up fast with little ill effect.  She only gets one life though so don't die.  She'd kick major ass in any other game, it would almost be like cheating. 

The Beast (Beaury and the Beast)
How not to build a super maneuverer.  Beast's design is a failed attempt to build a max ability character.  His jumping is great, greater then it should be, but only if he's moving.  His defense is high and his offense is usually one hit kill but he makes an easy target and his attacks miss easy.  He's got a special move that boosts his versatility but it's not often used.  All these things are poorly woven together.  Beast's maneuverability problems are kind of a hallmark of his failed hero design.  He's fast but then he has stuck to the ground syndrome.  He doesn't slide but an automatic quick step recovery move he does makes you fall off ledges more often then it saves you.  And when he quickly needs to get off a crumbling or moving platform he can't do it in time.  His other abilities also subtlety fail but with his maneuverability it's most obvious.  Maybe his game is just too hard for him but it seems like all his stats are a little askew.  Probably a bad export, maybe good for twitchies?

I'd just place the overlapping areas off to the side on the same map in kind of a bubble with some kind of indication about them.  There's no need to tear up the whole thing to squeeze them in where they should be.

Milon (Do-Re-Mi Fantasy)
None of the musical games I've ever played have really been about music.  And this one is no different, but at least it's got a great character.  On the surface Milon might seem like a push over, and defense wise he is since he can only tolerate three hits max.  But he's remarkably quick and can out maneuver almost any enemy, so his maneuverability is high.  His jumping is greatly boosted by an item that turns his falls into glides, think Dixie Kong, so he's great there too.  His offense is somewhat strange though.  He can jump on enemy heads to stun them and turn them into platforms, or he can shoot bubbles at them then give them a hit to send them flying.  Since Milon is an item using character his versatility slowly grows and by the end of the game it's pretty good.  In total he's a little strange since he's so surprisingly quick and his offense seems to be a subsidiary of his defense.  He be a wild card outside of his game, which is why I'd totally export him.

Jonathan Harker (Bram Stoker's Dracula)
This game is essentially a bad Castlevania.  It seems like one of those games that was supposed to be 8 bit but ended up 16 instead.  Jonathan has horrible defense and dies quickly and frequently.  His offense is just as bad, making you think you're playing Lagoon, running out of what little ammo you can find almost immediately.  His jumping and maneuverability are perfectly average, and his versatility is more or less not there.  He feels like a Bitmap Brothers reject, don't export him.

Whizz (Whizz)
Magic mushroom downing rabbit stars in only 3D SNES platformer.  Whizz is indeed the only 3D platformer on the SNES, and it's pretty boring.  Ratings can still be applied though.  Whizz isn't much of a jumper but he can surprise you since he's so fast.  Unfortunately he's a little too fast costing him maneuverability and lives.  His offense is average at simple but effective.  His defense is a strange combo of vulnerability to combos along with a good amount of HP which balances out.  He has no real versatility but all the tools in his world balance this for him.  This game could have been made by someone on mushrooms.  It could also be the inspiration for Sonic 3D Blast.  Don't export Whizz.  He can't handle the harsh requirements of standard 2D platforming.

Harry (Hammering Harry)
Not completely sure what's going on in this game.  Harry is a funny character.  He's got great offense, swinging his upgradable hammer around in all directions.  In fact he's only just shy of max offense since his special moves are overly difficult to use.  Also like many characters his weapon provides a versatility boost.  His defense is good too since he can take quite a few hits and upgrade this and that.  His jumping will surprise you.  More then once I thought I couldn't teach ledges above me but I was wrong.  He only falters in his maneuverability being a little slow and not reacting when you want him too.  He's a great character though.  Quick and dangerous he'd do great in other games.

Michael Jordan (Michael Jordan Chaos in the Windy City)
Michael is great.  I'll say it right now, he'd be great in almost any other game.  Michael can jump almost three times his own height and has a screen clearing spinning jump.  His versatility is just short of total due in no small part to his Mega Man style weapons.  Weapons, different kinds of basketballs, which give him incredible offense like homing, elemental, exploding, or multiplying shots all at great speed.  His defense is naturally high with expandable HP.  Michael's only slip is his slipping on landings which lowers his maneuverability to normal.  Overall a great character.  Play this game now.

Packy and Marlon (Packy & Marlon)
This is one of those product pushing, disguised as educational, games about diabetes.  I shouldn't say much here since I can't clear a single level of the game without dying in a diabetic coma.  I'm just not sure how to keep the little elephants alive.  They are clones of each other gameplay wise.  They jump poorly but make up for it with an albeit weak gliding ability.  Their maneuverability is standard.  Their offense is low damage but but their rate of fire and variety of weapons brings them back up to a normal rating.  Their defense is slightly better then average.  Their versatility is perfectly average.  They'd be as weak in any other game as they are in this one.

Alex Murphy (Robocop Vs. the Terminator)
Now this is how Robocop should be.  Slow yes but lots of power.  This Robocop is slightly more maneuverable then the last so his jumping is a little better.  A decent invincibility period and a lot of health give him above average defense.  He's versatile with the ability to swing from hand rails and his weapons can destroy some objects.  Of course his offense is where he shines as the game allows him several different devastating guns.  In fact the only reason he lacks a max offense rating is that the terminators are so damn tough.  In any other game Robocop would destroy most bosses in seconds.  And it would be lots of fun to see how he'd handle being in another game with so much force and so little speed.

Alex Murphy (Robocop 3)
GOD AWFUL.  Really bad game featuring a really bad character.  Robocop is a total brick with no maneuverability and almost no jumping ability.  Not that it matters since there's almost no platforming in this platform game.  Being Robocop he does have great offense but he runs out of ammo fast and then your dead.  His defense looks great from the outset but he has no invincibility period so combos take him down fast.  He has no versatility at all.  His terrible game is almost perfect for him since it's just straight forward beefcake butchering.  ...Anything more from me here would just be a rant so I'll stop now.