SNES Game of the Week 118 - Clock Tower

[retr0gamer]

Going to have to comment on this one because this game didn't exactly enamour me. It looks great and even though they took the ps1 mm8 assets they crafted a very different game. The problem is it's not a very good MegaMan game. The 8 robotmasters and stages are mediocre but the real issues are with the end stages. They are just difficult and unfair. The boss gauntlet is linear with bad checkpointing. The final boss gauntlet though is aggressively unfair and poorly designed. It's nuts the game expects you to take on some very difficult bosses with no checkpoints. Even worse when one of those bosses takes forever to beat.

I mean it's nice that they gave us bass as well but even that can't paper over all the flaws in this game.

This is probably my least favourite MegaMan game I've played so far, even worse than MegaMan 4, MegaMan 2 (Gameboy) and MegaMan 7. I liked those games but this one made me furious.

It's a D from me.

[🧀Son of Suzy Creamcheese🧀]

I think this won't be much of a surprise, seeing as I picked this one, but I really like this one.

It's the light in the dark that is 90's Mega Man IMO*. The X games have flaccid level design, poor balance and don't use its new mechanics that much. The Game Boy games are cool, but they're Game Boy games. The mainline series hit its all-time low with 8, and 7 wasn't that interesting either. Even NES 5 and 6 are a bit too easy and phoned-in and not as good as the previous NES entries (btw, @retr0game, what's your problem with 4 specifically?).

Anyway, here comes MM&B, which has interesting, and challenging level design. You actually have to play these stages a bit and learn them instead of just boosting through them like the X games. Wow, it's almost as if that was the standard for the series back on the NES! There's the collectable CDs, which does kind of come down to "do you have the right ability for this", but it's a nice bonus, and it's kind of a shame 9, 10 and 11 don't really have any collectibles of any kind (I mean, as long as they're optional, so if you don't feel like returning to a stage and just treating it like a classic MM game, it's fine - it won't fit as well here as in, say, DKC). There's some mean parts here and there, but overall, I prefer some challenge that frustrates me once in a while over no challenge at all (as in the X games or MM5 and 6).

It's not perfect (what's with this era of MM's tendency to not give you all 8 stages from the start?), but I'm giving it an A. All things considered, it's one of the best in the series.

*Platformer-wise. The Legends games could be very good for all I know, but I have yet to play them.

[excelsior]

Playing as Bass just feels wrong to me. I can't unlearn playing as Mega Man. I need to put a bit more time in to jog my memory, but I do find it to be a bit drab. I mean, it's colourful, but in terms of play especially making use of the SNES hardware there's not much going on from what I can tell. It feels like a very simple, but more methodical game, which is fair enough, but it doesn't exactly scream excitement. I think this could have easily been a NES game.

[spanky]

This game had a bit of a mysterious reputation back in the day, I remember reading a blurb about it in an EGM and being downright FURIOUS there was a SNES Mega Man game that we were NOT getting in the west!

There is a lot to like about the game. A new playable character, branching paths, the music is pretty good, the CD library...Despite the amount of effort that went into the game it does really feel like a B-title to me. The challenge does get cranked up almost unreasonably towards the end of the game and Burner man sent me into fits. This isn't one of my favorites...but at the end of the day it's still a Mega Man game so it's better than 80-90 percent of the stuff out there. I'll say it's a B.

[dsparil]

Easily my favorite Mega Man, no question! I still think about how crazy people got over this game in the early emulation community when it came out. I remember playing through it constantly and then even a little more after the translation patch came out around a year later. Then in 2002 there was the double whammy of the GBA port with its legitimately slapdash translation and then the better Aeon Genesis translation of the original a few months later. It is arguably too hard, but that was on purpose at least. It was made as a hard game for younger kids with a hand-me-down SFC that had mastered everything else, and the team had a lot of fun making it. Shame that the sequel on WonderSwan (the original B&W not Color) isn't well known although that one does have some weird design choices like taking out boss weaknesses.

S

[retr0gamer]

Jun 8, 2023 5:38:01 GMT -5 🧀Son of Suzy Creamcheese🧀 said:

I think this won't be much of a surprise, seeing as I picked this one, but I really like this one.

It's the light in the dark that is 90's Mega Man IMO*. The X games have flaccid level design, poor balance and don't use its new mechanics that much. The Game Boy games are cool, but they're Game Boy games. The mainline series hit its all-time low with 8, and 7 wasn't that interesting either. Even NES 5 and 6 are a bit too easy and phoned-in and not as good as the previous NES entries (btw, @retr0game, what's your problem with 4 specifically?).

Anyway, here comes MM&B, which has interesting, and challenging level design. You actually have to play these stages a bit and learn them instead of just boosting through them like the X games. Wow, it's almost as if that was the standard for the series back on the NES! There's the collectable CDs, which does kind of come down to "do you have the right ability for this", but it's a nice bonus, and it's kind of a shame 9, 10 and 11 don't really have any collectibles of any kind (I mean, as long as they're optional, so if you don't feel like returning to a stage and just treating it like a classic MM game, it's fine - it won't fit as well here as in, say, DKC). There's some mean parts here and there, but overall, I prefer some challenge that frustrates me once in a while over no challenge at all (as in the X games or MM5 and 6).

It's not perfect (what's with this era of MM's tendency to not give you all 8 stages from the start?), but I'm giving it an A. All things considered, it's one of the best in the series.

*Platformer-wise. The Legends games could be very good for all I know, but I have yet to play them.

MM4 is the one that I remember the least about. Frogman is an absolute joke of a boss. The level design and robotmasters seem phoned in and just versions of what came before. It just felt phoned in after the first 3. The megabuster slows the game down and lessens the utility of the sub weapons. And then there's the music, which is pretty good but ruined by the mega buster taking over a sound channel when being charged.

I definitely don't hate it, removed from the Megaman series it's a top tier NES action game. It's just my least favourite NES megaman.

Megaman and Bass on the other hand infuriated me.

[spanky]

I agree with retr0gamer's take on MM 4.

The game is built around the Mega Buster and as a result all the enemies in the game, including the bosses have had their HP cranked up. They seem to do a lot more damage too. I also HATE how the passwords only take you as far as Dr. Cossack's castle. I know this is less of a problem in the age of save states, but it always used to drive me crazy. I didn't like the Doc Robot stages in MM 3 either but you could at least bypass them with a password. The Robot Master designs and the music are both pretty weak here but I'll admit the game does look great. As far as the second NES trilogy goes, I think 5 beats 4 on all fronts and 6 at least has a fun gimmick.

[ommadawnyawn2]

Sad to say this is one of the weaker entries in the series to me, although I didn't beat it as Bass so I should probably give it another go. Not being able to move and shoot feels wrong in a MM game though.
It does move a bit faster than MM8, but it still feels kinda slow at various points and whatever good points it has isn't really new or is minor besides the added playable character. Most of the time when it tries something different it feels worse or underdeveloped compared to previous games. For example making 4 levels playable at a time could be good for the difficulty curve but seems pointless considering the uneven difficulty, and simply having the right character or item to get to something is less interesting than having to use them skillfully to get to it (I also don't like backtracking in a game with (mostly) linear levels where you always start in one end of them and can't move backwards to previous segments while in the level either). Then again I don't care about the CDs, so that's a chunk of the game that's lost on me but I keep being reminded of throughout.
And yeah the game is more frustrating than usual, which the devs seem to have known considering the high frequency of 1-ups as a quick fix.

While I can't really fault how the game looks, the music isn't as memorable overall (it also has a weaker tengu man theme).

It's a C. 

[retr0gamer]

I think King Tank is the single worst boss battle in any megaman game I've played. And the fact you have to repeat it if you die is next level nonsense.

[excelsior]

OK, I've put more time in. I'm really sorry to have to say it but I hate this game. I don't even think you need to wait until the late stages to find the frustration, it's right there from the start. Awkwardly placed enemies in Mega Man are a regular thing but here they're spongey to the point of tedium. The stages are really bland and unambitious. The stage selection is confusing as hell - I thought the levels you could select branched like in Darius based on the visuals on this screen, but it's just a bizarre way to gradually unlock standard robot master stages. Why? How does this compliment Mega Man's rock, paper, scissor influenced power up system? Also, I don't think I've played another Mega Man game where the soundtrack stood out to me for being poor. Not every track of course, it's very much mixed. But some tracks grate to the point I have to turn the volume off. The only thing going for it are the vibrant visuals in my mind. It's slightly better than Lost Vikings for that reason, but not enough to save it from the bottom grade. Sorry.


Ranking - F

Edit: Just realised this game has gotten every rank possible and no two people have ranked the same. Talk about divisive.

Revised comments:

So I put on my big boy pants to give this a better chance (not literally - it's too hot for pants right now). I switched over from playing handheld mode to TV which gives me a better view of the action and a better controller. I've also ended up with two games concurrently; one as Mega Man and one as Bass. The suggestion does seem that you play as both in order to collect the CD's and see a few dialogue segments. On the difficulty front - I'd say it starts off easier with Mega Man and then Bass surpasses him once he gets a few abilities under his belt. There is some BS found throughout though there's usually a life to be collected before the most obnoxious sections. The end game stages are beyond me in terms of beating without save states. Actually I resorted to using them a few times before standard bosses. The reason being one of my bigger annoyances in the game, that your abilities drain too fast, meaning there's only one attempt at a boss really, making lives seem a tad pointless. It would make sense for your powers to recharge on death here (I know this is how it works in Mega Man, but I don't remember the abilities draining so quickly for the most part). I still think the game would be better off with a traditional Mega Man stage select - there's times when you're not taught how to deal with certain enemies in the 'correct' place with this set up, and it doesn't allow for freedom and experimentation. It does kind of guide you to which ability should be used on a boss though. The bolt power ups unlock too slowly and require too much grinding for my liking. They are a nice (necessary) addition. I can see why these aren't power ups located in stages since the CD's fill that exploration role (and I do like seeking those out), se I don't know what a better answer is. Perhaps if you could switch characters within one save file you would pick up more bolts naturally as you would beat each stage with both characters? 

Anyway, my opinion has changed significantly as I've grown to mostly like it. I just have too many niggles, and the late stages are just too difficult for me to be as generous as I'd otherwise like.

Ranking - C

[personman]

Gave this a go and finished it today. Ommadawn pretty much hit the nail on the head for how I felt about it. It's just completely milquetoast with a really, really really awful choke point at the second King Stage thanks to the dumb check points and like retr0 said one of the most poorly made bosses in the series. In fact a good number of the bosses are just flat out bad. I didn't hate it and it has its moments but otherwise it feels like a fan game with all the rough edges you'd usually expect with such a thing.

I'll say C as well. I have more detailed dumb thoughts on it but I'll save that for the finish thread.

[excelsior]

• Publisher - Atlus
• Developer - Horisoft
• Genre - Action
• Initial Release - June 8 1993

The year is 2998 and the Earth is hopelessly polluted. Mankind's last chance for a clean planet rests in the hands of Dr. Bruford's plan to use radiation to trigger a change. Only, something goes horribly wrong! Dr. Bruford is mutated and begins an evil quest, for world domination!



Enter the Run Sabers. Cybernetically advanced humans with the raw power to level cities! As Allen, use the Thunder Sword to create concussive waves of energy! As Sheena, wield the Ice Sword to slam a blizzard at the mad doctor's forces. Team up for non-stop action that is guaranteed to put your skills to the ultimate test in this futuristic adventure saga!

  

  

[excelsior]

We've had a run of big name titles for this thread for a while now, so I thought it was past time to get to a few small to mid range releases. Run Saber was a lesser known action platformer at the time, though I suspect those here will be familiar with it. Basically, it's a Strider clone in it's core gameplay. It never reaches the height of its inspiration, but due to the lack of Striderlike games or even pure hack n slash action games on SNES this does have a deal of novelty. The real attraction is the two player simultaneous option, as it's a little unremarkable without, but playing in co-op automatically increases the fun. It's a short and sweet (enough) game for anyone who wants to give it a try.

Ranking - C

[retr0gamer]

Might give this a good go. I've always liked it despite it being a bit middling. The two player coop is a nice addition. It could have been a poor man's strider but it has that Atlus weirdness.

[spanky]

YESSS good choice! I love Run Saber. I bought the game at a Funcoland around 2001 or so. I remember old magazine reviews treating it like a somewhat average game but I was left very impressed by it. Very fun and fast gameplay with many different ways to attack, 2 player mode, lots of bosses, and some interesting environments, my favorite being Tong City with it's neon signs, polluted skies and cool music. This might be sacrilege to some but I think I

SPOILER: Click to show

like it better than Strider

. Objectively it's probably a B but the game has some intangible quality with me that pushes it to an A.