Super Turrican
Reviewed by TMC3
Your lone starship wonders aimlessly throughout space, when
suddenly, a distress call from the peaceful world of Katakis! The
files say that this world is mostly harmless, but the evil Machine
has taken over. It has imprisoned the citizens of Katakis, and it's
up to you to stop the evil!... Hmmm, sounds kind of familiar, doesn't it?
A lot of games from the 16 bit period had storylines similar to this,
but the story is not a really important element in this game. After all,
it falls under the "action" category of games, and that tells you right
there that it's going to be fast, explosion infested, and fun. Super
Turrican is all of these things. Now, on to the reviews!
Graphics 9.5 out of 10
The graphics in this game are beautiful. Your character, Turrican,
is well animated, and his weapons are great looking, too. The "Freeze
Beam" can be rotated 360 degrees, looks incredible, and is useful, too.
The name just about tells you what it does. There is even a weapon
that bounces off walls and ceilings at amazing speeds! The enemies
in the game are also well drawn. The third boss (stage 6) spins and
slides everywhere, firing lasers and trying to ram you! He even swells
up and gets bigger as you hit him. The backgrounds are well drawn, crisp,
and realistic-looking for a Super NES game. The first and second stages
take place in a blue mountain range, and the third is in a volcano. The
lava flows out of the volcanos in the background, making it all more
realistic. The second set of three stages is in a factory, which has
many steam vents that sometimes shoot awesome flames, and in at
least two of the stages there is some sort of chemical pouring all over the
platforms and catwalks. The chemical doesn't hurt, but it pushes
you along, also very realistic. The third set of three levels is in an
ice covered area (You just can't have these games without an ice
level or three!) that has even more interesting graphics. Parts of
the background scroll independently from you, and that gives the
stages a nice "windy" look. The second ice stage, however, just has
an ocean in the back, which isn't anywhere near as interesting as the
wind-blown, snowy plains of the first and third. The forth and final
set of three stages takes place inside the alien queen herself, and the
background even shakes and makes a weird noise every time the heart
beats. There is drool, acid, and body fluids dripping everywhere,
making it look more like the inside of an organism. The second stage
inside the queen has to be the best stage of all (if you're good at this
game). The background is flying by at amazing speed, and there is
even some sort of lightning in the ! distance. It's also the only forced
scrolling stage (meaning the screen moves by itself), making it unique
and also harder. In the end, there is a neat fading effect as the giant
holding the planet disappears.
Music and Sound 9.5 out of 10
The music and sound add a lot to the game. The bright, happy tune
of the first, easy stage and the fast paced tune of the "forced scrolling"
stage are only a few examples of how the music sets the mood for the
level. The volcano stage has a hard "hot" sounding tinge to it, and the ice
levels have music that puts a chill in your body. The factory stages have
music that makes you think of working, and the last stages' music
makes you feel as though you are almost at the end. To listen to the
music, put in the sound test code: Go to options menu, hold L, R, X, A,
the CENTER of the control pad, and hit select (with your nose if your
out of fingers) and just listen to the incredible music. The sound
effects are also very well done. The freeze ray sounds like flowing
electricity, which is exactly what it looks like, and the lasers and
volcano cannon sound good, too. The yellow weapon's sound sounds
like someone saying "boo boo boo boo boo" real fast, and sounds
pretty cool. Your last weapon, though, the one that flies out both
directions and kills everything, doesn't sound right at all to me. In my
opinion, it should sound like thunder, but it really sounds like...a loud,
broken kazoo or something. If it sounded better, music and sound would
have had a 10 out of 10, but it's little things like this that take it down
half a point. But, Turrican's voice sounds absolutely wonderful, when you
hear it the few times he talks. You get a feeling of determination when
he yells "One Up!" when you find an extra life, and relief when he yells
"Power Up!" when you find a healing heart icon. The music and sound in
this game is fantastic, and it deserves those high marks!
Game Challenge 5 out of 10
Sadly, this game is just too easy, except for stages 8 and 11, and
far too short. Twelve stages may seem like a lot, but each stage is
actually pretty short. There is a difficulty option, but all it does is
reduce the amount of lives you start with. Easy= 5 lives, Medium= 4,
Hard= 3. You get the same ending no matter what the difficulty. Most
of the enemies can be taken down with just a few shots, and some
can even be jumped on. The bosses aren't very hard, because they
always follow a set pattern of attacks. And, if you have a fully
powered up laser, you are nearly unstoppable. For an experienced
gamer, this game doesn't offer much challenge (I beat it the day I
bought it), but, for a casual gamer, this game is just right. Still too
easy? To add challenge, try finding all the diamonds and extra lives
in each stage. That makes the game extremely hard. Happy hunting!
Game Play-Fun 8 out of 10
Despite it's overall lack of challenge (if you don't care for diamonds
and 1-ups), this games comes through in game play/fun, and isn't
that what really counts? I love to blow away all those little enemies
for points, and I like trying to find all the 1-ups. Wandering around in
the stags is a lot of fun, since the enemies are so easy to kill. 1-ups
are everywhere, so you usually don't have to worry about a lack of
lives. I still think this game is fun to play, and it's been around for
six years! That has to tell you something. So, if you do pick it up and
play, chances are you won't put it down until you finish the game.
Frustration
The only truly frustrating level in the game would have to be Stage 11,
the forced scrolling stage. I like this stage now, because I've mastered
it, but someone coming to it for the first time will most likely lose
all of their lives. The reason for this is because the platforms you
must jump to are small and constantly moving. Another frustrating
thing about the game is the fact that you lose weapons power each time
you die. So, someone just barely making it out of Stage 11 will probably
be pulverized in stage 12 due to lack of power.
Replayability 5 out of 10
The only real reason to go back through the game is to find all the
diamonds and one-ups, but even then, the ending doesn't change. So
unless you really like shooting little guys for points and video
game music, or you like to take your time to explore, there is absolutely
no reason to play this game more than once. There just isn't. It's
really nice to forget about this game, then pull it out two years later
and play it, but most people I know aren't that patient. So, that's why
it gets a low score.
Game Value 8 out of 10
I bought this game for 15 bucks out of a pre-owned bin, but I'm
guessing it was 60 dollars or so when it first came out. The most
I would pay for it would be $45.00 to $50.00. If you are really in to
these kinds of games though, it's worth more than 50 dollars.
Annoying Factor: Bee Hives 10 out of 10
Those bee hives that produce those little bugs are the most annoying
things in the game! Destroy them at all costs! (Lasers recommended)
Ugly Boss Factor 4 out of 10
All bosses except for the last one actually look like they take care
of themselves. There is no rust on their bodies, or leaks, or drool,
or anything. The stage 6 boss looks a little weird, but is nothing
compared to the queen alien. Now she's just ugly. Kill her as quickly
as possible, please.
Overall 8 out of 10
This game, basically, has marvelous graphics, music, and sound, good
fun factor, a fair challenge when you consider trying to find everything,
and below average replayability. I don't mean to brag, but I am a very
experienced gamer, so the game may be harder than I think it is. I'm
sorry for any confusion this may cause. Super Turrican is a super game
for the most part, and I recommend you play it at least a few times.