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| The Entertainment Review |
| Genre: Action Developer: Marvelous Publisher: Ignition Entertainment |
Over the years it has been proven that updates to classic games enter into a danger zone. Luckily for many, some games have gotten
lucky and made a successful game update. One game that has been lucky and made a safe voyage from the past to the present is
“New Zealand Story Revolution,” a game that may excite many people who remember the game from the past.
The first thing that many gamers will notice about the game is the fact that the developer tried to stick to the game’s original style. After
other disasters in the world of remakes, such as Bubble Bobble Revolution, there is a small amount of concern that many fans of the
game should probably have for Tiki’s latest adventure. Lucky for fans, the overall makeover is limited and when placed side by side, the
difference between this new release and the original game are difficult to see. Those that are familiar with the original game will be
happy to see that the level layouts, enemies, power-ups and bosses are pretty much the same as those in the first game in the “New
Zealand Story” series, though it may be noticeable that Tiki seems to be a little bit on the chubby side and a little bit sad.
For those who haven’t played the original game, players take on the role of Tiki the kiwi, a bright yellow bird that has been given the task
of rescuing fellow kiwis that have been kidnapped by an evil seal. Does this sound a little strange? Well, it was a game released in the
80s. Tiki must travel around New Zealand with his trusty bow and arrows and save his little buddy birds by shooting bad guys while
jumping from one platform to another. Also, because Tiki is unable to fly, he must grab onto balloons to make his way across the
bigger and more dangerous gaps in the levels.
It may surprise some that the simple game play for the original release has managed to survive the test of time. However, some new,
more modern features have been added to the game including a double jump and a powerful chare-up attack. Other than these slight
additions to the game, “New Zealand Story Revolution” stays very true to the original game released in the eighties, and because of this
the game remains, still to this day, a surprisingly tough game to master. Enemies continually respawn around players; there are tricky
jumps that must be performed while being attacked, spikes that instantly kill Tiki upon impact and extremely difficult water levels that
can quickly end a game if players run out of air.
Despite all of the difficulties that are presented in the game, the traditional elements of the game manage to make this remake
challenging and fun, though the attempt to include the use of the Nintendo DS touch screen causes the game to falter a little. Most of
the game play on the bottom screen displays a radar the loosely marks the locations of exits and keys within the level. However,
occasionally throughout game play, an event occurs that requires the player to tap on the screen or slide the stylus across the screen in
order to help Tiki out of a sticky situation. These events have been poorly worked into the game and don’t exactly mix well with the rest
of the game because of the fact that they take players out of the action of the game at very crucial points, such as timing a difficult jump.
This also becomes very difficult when players are forced to spot differences between pictures on the top and bottom screens all while
trying to get through the level.
It would have been more worthwhile for the developer to work on fixing the sometimes awkward controls instead of trying to include new
additions that seem to pull away from what players fell in love with in the original game. Tiki’s jumping abilities are lacking, causing the
controls to feel overbearing at times compared to the graceful leaps of Mario and Luigi in almost and “Super Mario Bros.” game. Also,
the graphics of the game are very nice, but nothing extremely special. Many fans of the game will be happy that the graphics haven’t
been messed with, but the game could have benefited from the graphics being cleaned up a little bit. After such a long absence from
the gaming world, it would have been nice to see a cleaned up version of a favorite game. At times the graphics may cause players to
be unable to see certain obstacles and the bright graphics may make it difficult for some gamers to play the game for extended periods
of time.
For those that remember playing the original “New Zealand Story,” this game is one that keeps faithful to the classic, though it adds a
few touch screen elements that should have probably been left off. For those who never had the opportunity to play the original game,
this game may feel quite outdated, but with a little more thought about the overall level design and a total graphics overhaul, “New
Zealand Story Revolution” could have easily outdone other platform-style games. Overall, Tiki’s story will be one that fans of the game
from the past will enjoy, but will leave first timers waiting for something a little more current.
lucky and made a successful game update. One game that has been lucky and made a safe voyage from the past to the present is
“New Zealand Story Revolution,” a game that may excite many people who remember the game from the past.
The first thing that many gamers will notice about the game is the fact that the developer tried to stick to the game’s original style. After
other disasters in the world of remakes, such as Bubble Bobble Revolution, there is a small amount of concern that many fans of the
game should probably have for Tiki’s latest adventure. Lucky for fans, the overall makeover is limited and when placed side by side, the
difference between this new release and the original game are difficult to see. Those that are familiar with the original game will be
happy to see that the level layouts, enemies, power-ups and bosses are pretty much the same as those in the first game in the “New
Zealand Story” series, though it may be noticeable that Tiki seems to be a little bit on the chubby side and a little bit sad.
For those who haven’t played the original game, players take on the role of Tiki the kiwi, a bright yellow bird that has been given the task
of rescuing fellow kiwis that have been kidnapped by an evil seal. Does this sound a little strange? Well, it was a game released in the
80s. Tiki must travel around New Zealand with his trusty bow and arrows and save his little buddy birds by shooting bad guys while
jumping from one platform to another. Also, because Tiki is unable to fly, he must grab onto balloons to make his way across the
bigger and more dangerous gaps in the levels.
It may surprise some that the simple game play for the original release has managed to survive the test of time. However, some new,
more modern features have been added to the game including a double jump and a powerful chare-up attack. Other than these slight
additions to the game, “New Zealand Story Revolution” stays very true to the original game released in the eighties, and because of this
the game remains, still to this day, a surprisingly tough game to master. Enemies continually respawn around players; there are tricky
jumps that must be performed while being attacked, spikes that instantly kill Tiki upon impact and extremely difficult water levels that
can quickly end a game if players run out of air.
Despite all of the difficulties that are presented in the game, the traditional elements of the game manage to make this remake
challenging and fun, though the attempt to include the use of the Nintendo DS touch screen causes the game to falter a little. Most of
the game play on the bottom screen displays a radar the loosely marks the locations of exits and keys within the level. However,
occasionally throughout game play, an event occurs that requires the player to tap on the screen or slide the stylus across the screen in
order to help Tiki out of a sticky situation. These events have been poorly worked into the game and don’t exactly mix well with the rest
of the game because of the fact that they take players out of the action of the game at very crucial points, such as timing a difficult jump.
This also becomes very difficult when players are forced to spot differences between pictures on the top and bottom screens all while
trying to get through the level.
It would have been more worthwhile for the developer to work on fixing the sometimes awkward controls instead of trying to include new
additions that seem to pull away from what players fell in love with in the original game. Tiki’s jumping abilities are lacking, causing the
controls to feel overbearing at times compared to the graceful leaps of Mario and Luigi in almost and “Super Mario Bros.” game. Also,
the graphics of the game are very nice, but nothing extremely special. Many fans of the game will be happy that the graphics haven’t
been messed with, but the game could have benefited from the graphics being cleaned up a little bit. After such a long absence from
the gaming world, it would have been nice to see a cleaned up version of a favorite game. At times the graphics may cause players to
be unable to see certain obstacles and the bright graphics may make it difficult for some gamers to play the game for extended periods
of time.
For those that remember playing the original “New Zealand Story,” this game is one that keeps faithful to the classic, though it adds a
few touch screen elements that should have probably been left off. For those who never had the opportunity to play the original game,
this game may feel quite outdated, but with a little more thought about the overall level design and a total graphics overhaul, “New
Zealand Story Revolution” could have easily outdone other platform-style games. Overall, Tiki’s story will be one that fans of the game
from the past will enjoy, but will leave first timers waiting for something a little more current.
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