Wurm: Journey To The Center Of The Earth (Asmik 1991)

In the year 1999 some destructive Earth tremors and volcanoes cause havoc with the planet's surface prompting scientists to attempt learning the origin behind these forces. Vehicles are built to explore the depths of the planet but four of these never return. Now it's up to you to find these lost explorers and try to find out what caused their disappearance as well as what is causing the tremors.

WURM combines quite a few genres in a attempt to bring something new to the NES and a huge quest stands between you and the secrets of the center of the Earth. Traveling around in your VZR (the WURM) you have to fight against the inhabitants of the underworld in a variety of viewpoints. Not only do you have side scrolling and top town shooting sections but also a first person view boss battles and platform style adventure sections. All these are backed up by some entertaining cut-scenes that further the interesting storyline.

Your VZR have quite a few tricks it can employ to thwart the enemies and your crew is also on standby to offer some advice. With the ability to use tank, hover and aerial modes,  your VZR is well equipped for the missions ahead as long as you keep a eye on your shield and fuel levels. Shields recharge over time but fuel has to be collected by killing certain enemies. Enemies come at you thick and fast and only split second reflexes will save you. Enemies also have the annoying ability to constantly respawn so be on your guard at all times. The boss sections are unique because you take them on in a first person view battle. You can only scroll the screen left and right but you can move your target cursor all over the screen to take out their minions and focus on their weak spots. You also get the chance to talk to your crew to best determine how to kill the boss which is quite an interesting touch.

The platform sections put you on control of Moby, the female captain of the VZR. Although these levels are generally short they can be pretty tough and it's a good thing that you have a gun to take out enemies. You bullets are finite though so unless you want to kick your way across a level it's best to conserve them. You'll have to search for clues and keys to progress as well as find the missing members of the previous teams.
The graphics in the game are quite good especially considering how many different gaming styles are on offer. The platform sections feature large characters and some pretty detailed locations. The boss battles are also quite nice with huge creatures and cool effects. The shooting sections are nothing special and look pretty much like any other but still has some unique enemies and levels while the WURM is a unique and versatile craft. With twenty levels spread across five acts it's a good thing the game has a password feature and infinite continues.

The audio in the game isn't bad but there is nothing to make it outstanding or especially good. The tunes remain in the background and you'll be hard pressed to remember any of them once you've stopped playing. Sound effects are also basically nonexistent. The controls take some getting used to and there is a definite learning curve involved mastering them. The collision detection can be a bit shaky at times which can make things frustrating as well.

Although WURM is a unique and entertaining game it could also have been a bit better in some areas. The constantly onslaught of enemies are challenging but at times you can hardly dodge them. Some of the platform sections also get a bit tedious as you have to search maze like areas for the exit or clues. The ability to talk to crew members during a boss battle is a nice touch but their dialogue is limited and the soon repeat themselves.

While it's not quite a classic game it can still entertain and it's good to see companies try something new. It has some original touches that makes it worthwhile but some persistence (as well as patience) is required if you want to get the most out of it.

[7]

Dragon Warrior 2 (Chunsoft 1990)

After saving the world at the end of Dragon Warrior the hero and the princess left and started their own kingdom. Peace reigned and everyone was happy. The happy couple had three children who each got their own lands to rule. Under their fair and just rulership the land enjoyed peace for 100 years before trouble started again. This time an evil sorcerer called Hargon attacked Moonbrooke Castle in his plans to use the dark gods for world domination. Fortunately a lone solder escaped the carnage to warn the king of Midenhall. Unfortunately the king is far too old for questing but luckily his heir is on hand to save the world.

 

What this all boils down to is pretty much saving the world by finding five artefacts and killing the bad guy. Fortunately Dragon Warrior 2 has some minor improvements that will make the game more fun to play for fans of the first part as well as please newcomers. It's still not up to Final Fantasy standards but at least Enix bothers to translate their games, something Square wasn't very interested in during their early days. The bad news is that the graphics remain pretty much the same as the original with only a few improvements here and there. Seeing as the first game already had dated graphics this does not make for a very visually impressive game. The gameworld is many times larger than the original though so the game packs a far greater challenge.

The biggest change from the first game is the addition of party members. You can now have two other members in your party to help you in your quest. Of course, this means that you'll no longer fight single enemies but can be attacked by large groups of monsters. Although your main character is a warrior and cannot use any magic, his companions can and the game packs a few new spells to make life easier for you. The interface has also been cleaned up a bit and while remaining pretty much the same as in part one most of the more tedious aspects has been improved. You no longer have to use a command to use stairs for example. You also no longer have to worry about torches as all the caves and dungeons are well lit. You can still only save at certain spots but now almost every town and castle has a save spot so you don't have to backtrack vast distances to save your game. If you're really lucky you can also lay your hand on a potion that enables you to save anywhere. This can only be used once and the potions are very hard to come by so don't rely on them.

Buying and selling is still a bit annoying as you have to buy or sell items one by one but at least the shopkeeper will tell you if an item you want to buy can be used by a character. This saves a lot of buying useless equipment hassles. Just to add a little bit of spice to the game you can now also play some lottery mini-game if you find the tickets. Winning can reward you with some very neat prizes although it's not very easy. There are also lots more puzzles and quest than there was in part one although things can still get pretty tedious at times.

The sounds in the game are still very annoying and after a few hours of play can seriously get on your nerves. A bit more variety would have helped a lot. Not all the tunes are bad but you hear them so much that they really start to grate. Sound effects are still pretty much non-existent  Controls are the same as the previous game and it still felt very stiff to me. The cleaner interface made for less cumbersome actions but it's still not perfect. You do get to travel around in a boat due to the larger gameworld but the hordes of random encounters can sap your fun very rapidly.

The game has a decent enough storyline but the formulaic gameplay doesn't make for a very compelling experience. Most of the time finding the items is a bit tedious due to the amount of random encounters and some of the clues can also be very obscure. I played the game for more than twenty hours to acquire all the crests and items, but then couldn't find the final bosses hidden castle. My only clue was that it's hidden somewhere peaceful. Having to fight every second step also sucks the fun right out of the game.

If you enjoyed the first game and can put up the dated look then Dragon Warrior still has a lot to offer. The gameplay is much better than the first part and there are quite a few parts in the game where you have to puzzle things out. You also get to visit some familiar locations and the dialogue is still sometimes entertaining. Having allies also makes for tougher battles and there are now loads more creature types to battle. Overall, the game packs enough improvements to make it worthwhile for fans of the genre. 

[8]