We're counting down to the Wii's launch with a daily look at what retro games we'd like to see on the Virtual Console. Each also features a Virtual Console Likelihood rating. A rating of 5 means the game has officially been announced for the service. Click here for an archive of previous days, or keep on reading below!
Released: 1994
Developer: Shiny/Virgin/Playmates
Console: SNES/Genesis
Players: 1
Save: battery
Virtual Console Likelihood: 3 / 5
When you look up pioneers of comedy in video games, the creators of Earthworm Jim will come up over and over again. It's one of the funniest games to be released for the SNES and Genesis, and unlike many games which rely on their humour as a selling point, Earthworm Jim has the gameplay to back it up. Jim is, obviously, an earthworm that gained marvelous powers like speech, limbs, and cool guns from a technologically advanced power suit that fell on him from space. using his own body as a whip, and a myriad of cool weaponry, he must get revenge on the crow who regularly torments him. However, a new crow has appeared to torment Jim. Psy-crow is his name, and getting his power suit back from Jim for his queen. Queen, um... well... Queen Pulsating, Bloated, Festering, Sweaty, Pus-Filled, Malformed, Slug-For-A-Butt. The bad part is, she's not named that for nothing. The Queen wants the suit to get rid of her sister Princess What's-Her-Name and take over the galaxy. It's now Jim's job to rescue the Princess and stop Psy-crow and Queen Slug-For-A-Butt before the galaxy is enslaved. No pressure, Jim.
The trend with these overly descriptive and fairly amusing character names continue with the rest of the cast. Bosses include Evil The Cat, and Bob The Killer Goldfish, for example. The levels are also pretty funny. For example Planet Heck is full of fire, brimstone, and lawyers. All the levels are unique and full of flavour, toilet humour, and a calm, timid dog who go berserk and kill you if he gets hurt. The SEGA-CD saw an updated version with extra levels and better music in 1995, although sales weren't the greatest. I hope that is the version that Shiny decides to bring to Virtual Console, if indeed they bring the game at all.
Released: 1998
Developer: Nintendo
Console: N64
Players: 1
Save: battery
VCL: 4/5
To some people, this is the best game ever made. Ever. At least, so they say, until Twilight Princess comes out, and that's in the same series! In fact, developers have called the upcoming Wii title a love letter to Ocarina of Time fans, which got me thinking. Nintendo's hoping to create a bunch of new gamers with the Wii, but they won't be able to enjoy the plot of Twilight Princess without first having learned the story of Ocarina of Time. So, I hope this game is available for download for those new gamers, and for the rest of us who didn't get their Ocarina of Time fix with the original release, the GameCube bonus disks, Master Quest, and even the plot developments in Wind Waker (the GameCube entry in the Legend of Zelda series).
The story is phenomenal, and while I won't give too much away, it starts with a boy named Link (or whatever you name him) who lives in a magical forest full of magical children that never grow up. These magical children each have a magical fairy as a best friend, and Link is missing out on this awesome fairy-mentor action. The magical tree who assigns magical fairies to the magical children in the magical forest, has been magically cursed by an evil magician and once Link destroys the magical monster inside the magical tree, the tree will assign him a magical fairy. This fairy is widely regarded as the worst part of the game, as she just never shuts her magical mouth up. Link must then go on a magical journey to collect magical crystals before the magician can magically open a magic portal to the magical mirror dimension so he can steal the magical triangles which will grant his magical wishes. Like I said, the story is phenomenal.
As great as the plot is, the gameplay and graphics are even better. You might even say that the developers make magic with the hardware of the N64. You might say that, but after that last paragraph many people would want to hit you. Kind of like the rest of the staff and a few readers want to hit me right now. Speaking of hitting things, it's really fun and easy to do in Ocarina of Time. Either swing with your sword to chop defenseless signposts to pieces, roll Link in a somersault attack into walls, or use a boomerang or bow to hit accuracy targets from a distance. Oh, and kill all the enemies too. Ride a horse, play music, explore towns and dungeons alike. It's a really epic game and takes itself just seriously enough that you too can believe it's the best game of all time. If you haven't played it yet, you need to go for it before you do anything else. I mean it - don't eat, sleep, or save the world with any other character in a video game until you save it with Link.
#19 (Third Party) - Earthworm Jim
Released: 1994
Developer: Shiny/Virgin/Playmates
Console: SNES/Genesis
Players: 1
Save: battery
Virtual Console Likelihood: 3 / 5
When you look up pioneers of comedy in video games, the creators of Earthworm Jim will come up over and over again. It's one of the funniest games to be released for the SNES and Genesis, and unlike many games which rely on their humour as a selling point, Earthworm Jim has the gameplay to back it up. Jim is, obviously, an earthworm that gained marvelous powers like speech, limbs, and cool guns from a technologically advanced power suit that fell on him from space. using his own body as a whip, and a myriad of cool weaponry, he must get revenge on the crow who regularly torments him. However, a new crow has appeared to torment Jim. Psy-crow is his name, and getting his power suit back from Jim for his queen. Queen, um... well... Queen Pulsating, Bloated, Festering, Sweaty, Pus-Filled, Malformed, Slug-For-A-Butt. The bad part is, she's not named that for nothing. The Queen wants the suit to get rid of her sister Princess What's-Her-Name and take over the galaxy. It's now Jim's job to rescue the Princess and stop Psy-crow and Queen Slug-For-A-Butt before the galaxy is enslaved. No pressure, Jim.
The trend with these overly descriptive and fairly amusing character names continue with the rest of the cast. Bosses include Evil The Cat, and Bob The Killer Goldfish, for example. The levels are also pretty funny. For example Planet Heck is full of fire, brimstone, and lawyers. All the levels are unique and full of flavour, toilet humour, and a calm, timid dog who go berserk and kill you if he gets hurt. The SEGA-CD saw an updated version with extra levels and better music in 1995, although sales weren't the greatest. I hope that is the version that Shiny decides to bring to Virtual Console, if indeed they bring the game at all.
#19 (Nintendo) - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Released: 1998
Developer: Nintendo
Console: N64
Players: 1
Save: battery
VCL: 4/5
To some people, this is the best game ever made. Ever. At least, so they say, until Twilight Princess comes out, and that's in the same series! In fact, developers have called the upcoming Wii title a love letter to Ocarina of Time fans, which got me thinking. Nintendo's hoping to create a bunch of new gamers with the Wii, but they won't be able to enjoy the plot of Twilight Princess without first having learned the story of Ocarina of Time. So, I hope this game is available for download for those new gamers, and for the rest of us who didn't get their Ocarina of Time fix with the original release, the GameCube bonus disks, Master Quest, and even the plot developments in Wind Waker (the GameCube entry in the Legend of Zelda series).
The story is phenomenal, and while I won't give too much away, it starts with a boy named Link (or whatever you name him) who lives in a magical forest full of magical children that never grow up. These magical children each have a magical fairy as a best friend, and Link is missing out on this awesome fairy-mentor action. The magical tree who assigns magical fairies to the magical children in the magical forest, has been magically cursed by an evil magician and once Link destroys the magical monster inside the magical tree, the tree will assign him a magical fairy. This fairy is widely regarded as the worst part of the game, as she just never shuts her magical mouth up. Link must then go on a magical journey to collect magical crystals before the magician can magically open a magic portal to the magical mirror dimension so he can steal the magical triangles which will grant his magical wishes. Like I said, the story is phenomenal.
As great as the plot is, the gameplay and graphics are even better. You might even say that the developers make magic with the hardware of the N64. You might say that, but after that last paragraph many people would want to hit you. Kind of like the rest of the staff and a few readers want to hit me right now. Speaking of hitting things, it's really fun and easy to do in Ocarina of Time. Either swing with your sword to chop defenseless signposts to pieces, roll Link in a somersault attack into walls, or use a boomerang or bow to hit accuracy targets from a distance. Oh, and kill all the enemies too. Ride a horse, play music, explore towns and dungeons alike. It's a really epic game and takes itself just seriously enough that you too can believe it's the best game of all time. If you haven't played it yet, you need to go for it before you do anything else. I mean it - don't eat, sleep, or save the world with any other character in a video game until you save it with Link.