Every week I plan on taking a look at the classic games being uploaded on the
GameTap service. Regardless of whether it's part of their free or premium service,
GameTap offers a wide variety of old school games that is worth checking out. Here are the most recent games uploaded to their server, keep in mind that all of these games are free to play starting today:
Super Baseball 2020 (Neo Geo) -
I have always hated Super Baseball 2020. Don't get me wrong, I love the concept (robots with superhuman abilities play an over the top version of baseball), but the execution of this game is all wrong. The game's biggest weakness comes in the fielding. You might as well not even try to field the ball; because the players don't run fast enough and the camera can't keep up with the action (so catching the ball is near impossible). I'm all for the idea of Super Baseball 2020, but you have to try harder than this game does.
Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors (Arcade) -
Night Warriors is the exciting first installment in the Darkstalkers franchise, Capcom's most inspired 2D fighting series since Street Fighter. With its impressive line-up of characters (which feature a Frankenstein lookalike, a vampire hunter, a cat woman, little red riding hood, a mummy, etc.), Night Warriors proves to be one of the best fighting games currently on the GameTap service.
King of the Monsters (Neo Geo) -
The concept behind King of the Monsters is simple; you play a Godzilla-style monster fighting other creatures while destroying a major city. The concept is good and it's a lot of fun to destroy skyscrapers, but the fighting engine is shallow and the novelty of the game gets old only minutes after you start playing.
Bust-A-Move (Neo Geo) -
This Neo Geo port is a solid version of one of the longest running puzzle franchises of all time. Of all the games being uploaded this week, Bust-A-Move (or Puzzle Bobble if you prefer the original name) is the one that feels the oldest. The game has been on dozens of consoles in the 13 years since its release, and in that time they have refined the concept and added a lot of worthwhile single-player modes. Unfortunately this version is as barebones as you get, which is definitely disappointing. It's still a fun game, but it's easy to find a better version of this game.
Super Qix (Arcade) -
Qix is one of Taito's best games, but this 1987 sequel doesn't add enough new to warrant is release. The good news is that the graphics have been improved and there are new enemies to contend with; unfortunately that's not enough to recommend this lazy sequel. If this is your first time playing a Qix game then by all means check it out, but for those who grew up loving the original game it's hard to recommend this version.
Last Resort (Neo Geo) -
Last Resort is yet another fast action shoot-em-up on the Neo Geo. Taking its influence from R-Type, Last Resort is a relatively good looking horizontal shooter with some cool looking bosses. The only problem with this game is that it never comes off as being very original, while other games in the genre were able to stand out from the rest of the pack, Last Resort always feels like it's copying other games instead of trying to be original. It's a lot of fun, but definitely derivative of other shooters.
Breakers (Neo Geo) -
Another 2D fighter on the Neo Geo? No way! Sarcasm aside, Breakers is a relatively fun fighting game with a few memorable characters and some good graphics. The problem is that all of the game's potential is left on the cutting room floor, there's just nothing in this game that sets it apart from all of the other Neo Geo fighters. What's even more frustrating is that the superior sequel, Breakers Revenge, is nowhere to be seen. Forget this fighter and just wait for Breakers Revenge.
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