/vr/ - Retro Games

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero

Finished it yesterday - I'm going through every console game by release year (as long as they seem semi-decent from a quick look at their longplay)
This game is at the absolute threshold where I would include it in my curated list of decent games for the NES.
It's a game with some interesting ideas that aren't done too well. Like character swapping. If one of your men die, you have to start the boss fight or sub-stage again - except you lose that character and do not regain any health lost by your other two men.
There's an argument that this is actually a good directorial choice - as it means you have to work as a team, and adds significant weight to the death of any one character.
In practice though - you drain through the health of all your characters. One dies. The boss regains all health. You don't. You die - because of impossible odds. The game reloads the boss one last time for your final character (at one health). You commit suicide.
Still - It has decent graphics, music, controls. It just falls short in level/boss design sometimes, and the characters could have been a lot more diverse. Some of the mechanical vehicles are really cool - but they are not always fit for the levels they appear in.
In summary - It's the very definition of an alright game. Perhaps the most okayest game of all time.