Darkwing Duck
Reviewed by Michael Albright
Darkwing Duck was one of Disney's better attempts for the Disney
Afternoon. This show was almost entirely self-contained, except
one character (Launch Pad McQuack) was borrowed from Duck Tales,
Disney's best half-hour cartoon until Gargoyles came along.
The Title Character is a dark hero of the night, with one extraordinarily
long catchphrase (he could probably take a pointer from the tick).
Armed with his gas gun, he is set to clean up his hometown of St. Canard.
Graphics 8 out of 10
The graphics weren't astounding, but considering that the Super NES
had already come out when it was made, Capcom gets kudos for
putting as much attention to detail in as they did. All of the characters
are obviously who they're supposed to be (albeit kind of grainy).
The backgrounds are slightly repetitive, but you don't spend too long
with any one of them. Darkwing himself is not only a nice representation
of the character, but is even visibly smug, which is the character to a T.
The main problem is with the smaller villains. No level has more than
two different kinds of foot soldier. This makes fighting them awful
boring. But again, the levels are very short.
Music and Sound 4 out of 10
There's not much about the music. Standard Capcom fare for the
Disney games. It doesn't stand out, but it doesn't suck either.
The sound effects are minimalist, and not necessarily do they sound
like what they're supposed to be, but in those cases, they don't really
sound like much of anything.
Game Challenge 7 out of 10
Standard Capcom Disney game, again. The only real difference is that
it's kind of hard to use the gas gun's cooler features and keep up smooth
gameplay. This adds a level of challenge to the game. But once you over
come that, it's child's play. Some of you will miss Scrooge McDuck's
pogo bounce in this game, but again, that adds some challenge.
Essentially, by your first time through, you'll get the hang of it.
And I promise, unless you have younger siblings, you'll finish this
game in a single sitting.
Game Play-Fun 10 out of 10
Or 7 out of 10 if you didn't like Darkwing Duck. It's still a good solid
game, and its layout, nearly identical to Duck Tales, should satisfy
everyone. If you really don't enjoy this game, then go to work.
Frustration
Controls are, as I said, tricky to get the hang of. And no matter how
good at this game you get to be, you'll never be able to smoothly
switch weapons.
Also, some digitized voices would have been nice.
Replayability 10 out of 10
You'll want to play this game at least every six months. It's like
White Castles. You'll get a hankerin' that won't go away until you
play Darkwing Duck. Then, when you beat it, clean it and put it in a
dust free container so you can play it again in six months.
Matter of fact, I'm about due myself.
Game Value 10 out of 10
At the time, at least. I still say it's worth full price now, but I'd never
admit it when I go into Funcoland, and neither should you.
But yes, it's worth every penny. Go get your hands on this one, and add
it to your collection which is probably larger now than it was when
these games were new.
Overall 8 out of 10
This game is entertaining. Obviously designed for kids, it's probably
too hard for the ones who aren't very good at video games to begin
with. It'll keep your interest without making you throw your controller
at the wall.