Going Back To My Roots

When I first heard about Retro Game Challenge, I wasn’t quite sure what to think. It sounded kind of like a WarioWare rip off, so it was on the quick to dismiss list. Take a bunch of older outdated “Games” from the 1980s and slap them into a collection. Put some “Challenges” in to give it substance. Slap “Retro” on the cover of the box and that was the basic gist of it right? Well, there’s actually a lot more behind this game then one would think.

When you first hear the list of classic games, you’ll be surprised. There is a high probably that you haven’t heard of any of these games. Haggleman? Cosmic Gate? Rally King? Star Prince? Guadia Quest? The collection is from games released in the 1980’s and all for the Famicom. I had never heard of any of these games before, but I’m sure I had played games similar to them. Again I was quick to dismiss this game.

Before you go and do the same, let me start with the story. Yep, there is a story, one full of charm and youthful adventure that it brings me back to the days of my childhood and let’s me relive those memories. It is that powerful of a feeling. Other than that surprise, it’s also probably what is keeping me most interested in the game. If you’re not familiar with the Japanese TV Show Game Center CX, Retro Game Challenge is based off of that show and its’ host character, Japanese comedian Shinya Arino. Shinya-san basically goes back and plays games from the past generation, most of them the Famicom and most of them ranging higher on the difficult level. The show revolves around him going through the growing pains of learning to controls, deciphering the ancient graphics, and wading through the learning process in those older games, all while also taking a walk down memory lane.

How does this tie into the DS game? The Evil Arino, who is a Robot/Computer Program has turned you into a kid. You’re 12 years old again back in the past. You’re at the forefront as these new games are released and you’re forced to complete the task he sets before you or you won’t be able to grown up again. You run into Arino in the past as kid and he agrees to help you complete the challenges set forth by his grown up self, also he’s the one with all the games and money so you kid of just bum off him. The challenges range from scoring a certain amount of points to beating through a certain level without dying. While it’s just fun to go back and play through these games, which play surprisingly well for their age, it’s really the feel and atmosphere of being a kid and playing these games again that really sets this title apart. While I can see that this experience is lost on some, I can be pretty confident that most people who grew up at my age with a Nintendo and a friend will appreciate the finer points of this game.

So imagine you and your best friend just got the newest copy of Cosmic Gate in for your Family Computer Entertainment System. Your friend insists that you go first as you’re always better at these types of games. You begin. You’re racing through space all the stars are behind you. Everything is a dream come true but then here comes this massive wave of alien invaders flying at you and with one goal, to destroy you. You take down a couple of the ships but then you’re cornered. Somehow you survive the attack, and your co-pilot shares in your excitement, HOW DID YOU DO THAT? But there’s no time to rejoice, you’ve lost yourself in an asteroid field. You see the Weapon Upgrade but it is floating by behind two huge chunks of rock. You try desperately to find a way to maneuver in between the two masses but alas, it’s too late as you see it float by your partner shares in your disappointment. There’s only one way we’re going to make it out alive, we must activate the COSMIC GATE. But how exactly do we do that? There’s a knock at the door. Mom asks if you guys are hungry and want some snacks. You take this opportunity to read up on the cosmic gate in the newest Game Fan magazine.

That’s the feeling I get when playing this game. I used to walk home from Elementary school with my best friend David Kiehnhoff. We’d spend the afternoon discussing game theory over milk and cookies his mom just baked. We would take turns playing video games. He’d handle the parts that I couldn’t do and vice verse. Until it was time for me to go home, we’d be lost in our imagination. It’s something that been buried away for the last fifteen years behind work, school and relationships but thanks to this game, it’s finally had a chance to be reawakened.

David