The original first and second parts of the series were both released simultaneously in 1986. The guys from SNK had a brainstorm and decided to take a little rest and make the game in two or three years so as not to clog the market with conveyor belt products. So, it’s 1989 (don’t forget that we are traveling back in time). The end of the 80s was important for the gaming industry because it gave players many beat em ups (Final Fight, Golden Ax, River City Ransom, Splatterhouse, etc.).d), excellent games based on animated series (DuckTales and Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles) and unusual strategies (SimCity and Populous). And the time, which is considered golden for games of the “beat ‘em up” genre, could not pass by SNK. They tried to play on this field by converting the series known as "shoot ‘em up" into something completely different. Previously, Ralph and Clark (the main characters of the game) ran through the jungle and fantastic locations with guns at the ready, but now they are trying to hit enemies with cabbage soup with their bare hands. In addition, looking at the success of the first part and the gaming community’s ignorance of the second, they also returned the main characters back to planet Earth of the 20th century. And they didn’t return in vain, because the presidential candidate is in trouble! The mighty South American knights had the task of rescuing his dear daughter/son, who had been kidnapped by terrorists. Will we save her/him?? How much the game has changed and what it has lost/gained by changing the genre. You will learn all this after my battle with this wild and unapproachable hero of old action movies.
ME VS IKARI WARRIORS 3: THE RESCUE
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
Gameplay: Since I told everything about the plot in the prologue, let’s move on to the key features of the game. There are few of them, when compared with the previous parts of the series, and they look more like rudiments. Essentially, you must, as in any standard beat em up, go from the beginning of the level to the end, beating all opponents to the point of insensibility. Having changed the genre direction, the game tried to follow the path of well-known projects at that time like the aforementioned Final Fight. It turned out terrible, I’ll explain why. From time to time you are given the opportunity to shoot as in the classic parts, but these are only moments and are mainly related to the bosses of the game (there is only one, but it is repeated – a tank). Enemy soldiers are coming at you with knives, grenades or bare hands. You knock them out and move on. Heroes can beat enemies with their hands, feet, jump, and also hit while jumping. The beating process was done extremely poorly. The hero has very few lives, the hitbox (kill zone) does not work correctly and the advantage is always on the side of the enemies. They hit faster, more accurately and stronger. It won’t be difficult for them to knock out the hero in a couple of seconds. In a good beat-em-up we have a chance to escape the trap of “endless beats”, but here for some reason this is not the case. The further into the jungle the worse it gets. Enemies become stronger and it is almost impossible to knock them out. In order to defeat one enemy at the last levels you need to hit 15-20 times (!). Usually the enemy will fall to the ground at least once so that the main character can change position or give his fingers a rest, but not in this game.
You can sometimes pick up barrels from the ground and throw them at enemies, destroying everyone (instant death). Sometimes enemies can grab you from behind and then you have to break out of the adversary’s grip by twisting the stick like a crazy spinning top. A funny game element that, in theory, only slows us down and nothing more. And time plays an important role in the game. The stupidest innovation hangs from above and indicates how soon some very dangerous enemy will come to us. If the countdown reaches zero, the heroes will be sent to the beginning of the level and forced to replay everything again. Problems with this counter will only occur if the player plays well (!!). If you fall and lose health, it will reset and start counting from the very beginning. Therefore, it is more convenient to lose and waste your money than to play like a super professional. And the controls are no better, so unresponsive that you sit and cry. As if other problems are not enough for the player.
Cover of the DOS version of the game. It is made with dignity and colour. In addition, thanks to small details, you can understand what awaits us in the game and what it is dedicated to. The faces are a bit weird, but it doesn’t bother me that much.
And this is a poster for the American version of the arcade game. Everything seems to be done beautifully and interestingly, but until you notice the faces of the main characters. These savages with tousled hair, embittered by the whole world, are supposedly not saving the son of the future president, but hunting mammoths. Although, considering that in the game you can destroy a tank with your bare hands, I think that such an outcome is quite acceptable.
The Japanese poster for the arcade version of the game greets us with scarlet color and flight from a helicopter. And also a blunder. Look at the hero who towers over the scene with a yellow bandage on his head. I don’t remember this character, to be honest. There is a blue bandage and a red one, but not a yellow one. They miscalculated and didn’t notice, apparently they took a three-year vacation in vain.
Classic anime game cover on Famicon (nes). Desert location? Same faces? The guy in the foreground (Ralph) breaks his legs? OK. Everything is quite logical and understandable.
Graphics: Very good. Large character sprites with lots of details and high quality animations greet and delight the player. Here, a three-year vacation gave the developers time and energy to give the game the shine and charm of a cool Rambo action movie. The color palette is not as annoying as before, but still, taking into account the location of the battle, you should not expect cool and beautiful arenas from the game. You walk through the jungle and hangars like a simple soldier and don’t ask for anything in return. In general, I have no complaints about the graphics. Music and sounds: It’s hard to call the music perfect, but it’s not bad. Pleasant musical compositions sound, but they obviously lack dynamics and power, which is why they quickly disappear from your head after playing. The sounds of impacts, falls and screams are loud and clear. All this causes almost no complaints.
1 – terrible (something on the level of Superman 64)
2 – bad (big problems, most likely in mechanics and gameplay)
3 – average (balances https://www.popularslotgames.co.uk/review/moneygaming-casino on the edge. The cons help the pros and vice versa)
4 – OKAY (graphics, music or something else prevents the game from taking off)
K.O.: Worst part in the series. Poor gameplay, so-so replay value, lackluster innovations and standard music. The only thing that somehow seems to keep the game from being shamefully staked is the graphics. But I didn’t come to watch the game, I came to play. I recommend playing only to avid fans of the original first and second parts.
But don’t worry fans, because I have a surprise for you. The second review is hidden deep under the first. Let’s take a look at Ikari Warriors III ports. They will greatly surprise you and me.
The game has very few ports and most of them are either terrible or nothing interesting. The Commodore 64 stands out due to its terrible graphics, controls and sound. They made an already not very good game even worse. Let’s give these talented developers a round of applause. But the guys who did it deserve applause nes version. Everything here (except for the graphics, although for a project on nes they are very good) is better than the arcade original. The character hitbox was fixed, various new enemies were added (there are ninjas, guys who throw their friends at the player and even guys with grenade launchers) and bosses. New levels have been added including underwater. Instead of the son of the future president, we are saving a daughter. The player’s lives have been added, which simplifies the gameplay a bit. Plus, in the European and American versions of the game you can use the continuation endlessly (in the Japanese it is limited to three).
The game on nes looks bright, juicy and interesting. Almost everything that is in the original arcade version is on nes (except for bad things and knives). But this version does even better with music. Almost exactly the same soundtrack sounds a million times more cheerful and fun. He lights a fire in the player’s chest, which, when blazing, helps him move forward. I don’t know how the composer achieved this effect, but he deserves a few nods from the fans. I rarely come across ports of games that are much better than the originals. A wild anomaly in the video game industry.
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)
(There was a Flash player, but since 2020 Flash is not supported by browsers)