Data East Arcade Classics [Games for Lunch]

Developer: G1M2

Publisher: Majesco

Release Date: Feb. 19, 2010

System: Wii

ESRB Rating: T

Official Web site

​In a nutshell: Their definition of "classic" is inconsistent.

0:00 I'm a big fan of classic gaming, but the Data East name doesn't really trigger any warm nostalgia for me. Still, I figured this one was worth a quick spin on the GameFly queue, if for no other reason than to improve my classic gaming knowledge.

0:01 The little blooping theme on the preview screen seems familiar, but I can't quite place it.

0:02 The loading screen has the characters from Burger Time running by. Oh my God, Burger Time! How could I forget that was Data East? It's one of my favorite arcade games ever!

0:03 The title screen and menus are pretty plain, as is the super generic background music. Feels a bit like a rush job. The list goes alphabetically, so I start with Bad Dudes, which I remember playing occasionally on the NES.

0:04 "Rampant Ninja related crimes these days... whitehouse is not the exception. President Ronnie has been kidnapped by ninjas. Are you a bad enough dude to rescue the president?" You've gotta love that quality retro gaming translation.

0:05 Characters are much bigger and better animated in this arcade version, when compared to the NES. Kicking these endless streams of ninjas is surprising satisfying.

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Atari Classics: Evolved

Developer: Stainless Games
Publisher: Atari
Release Date: Nov. 20, 2007
System: PSP
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site

In a nutshell: I can't really summarize it better than the title.
0:00 I think I've played most of these arcade "classics" at some point during my Chuck E. Cheese-saturated youth, so I'm looking forward to a portable, nostalgic romp. Already, I'm enamored by the clear case that surrounds the UMD disc.

0:01 Nice, simple menu design. First up is Battlezone, which I actually haven't played in the arcades. The game's already making a liar out of me!

0:03 I'm navigating a green field from a first-person perspective. There are some occasional holographic green obstacles, but the field is pretty empty. My vehicle handles like a tank, which I suppose is appropriate.

0:04 In addition to the radar, the HUD tells me when there's an "enemy in front" or an "enemy to right," etc. Good thing, because it's hard to tell the enemy tanks from the regular obstacles.

0:05 The game seems to be sending only one tank at a time, and if they end up behind me, I'm toast. This may have seemed revolutionary when it first came out, but now it just seems kind of dull. I do like the updated techno soundtrack, though.

0:06 There are 11 games to get through, so I've got to keep moving. Millipede is up next. I predict I'm going to miss the arcade game's trackball.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Pac-Man: Championship Edition

Developer: Namco Bandai
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Release Date: June 6, 2007
System: Xbox 360

In a nutshell: The first real sequel to Pac-Man in 25 years.

0:01 Starting a single player game, I'm confronted with a baffling choice of modes with no explanation. OK... uh... Championship Mode sounds good, I guess.
0:02 Where's the sound? I do a quick reset to figure out if it's a glitch.
0:03 Sure enough. The game loses a lot without the familiar waka-waka-waka
0:05 Right away I like the widescreen maze format (Pac-Man never quite worked on a horizontal TV) and the sparks that show up when you try to turn into a wall. Neat.
0:07 Another nice touch -- the quick disposal of eaten ghosts and the quick return to the same spot when you die. They keep the action moving at a fast pace. Speaking of which, the ever-increasing speed of Pac-Man and the ghosts is a nice touch.
0:10 First round over. I still had three lives left when time ran out. Annoying! Where's the untimed mode?
0:11 I love the color-coded graph of your scoring progress. Hooray for data! Now why can't I seea similar graph on the leadboards?
0:12 Challenge Mode 1 is up next, whatever that means.
0:15 Major gripe: The blue ghost I can't eat looks way too much like the blue ghosts I can eat.
0:16 Done after only 5 minutes of the 10 minutes round. Like the title said, that got pretty challenging, mainly because I wasted all my power pellets in the first minute or so. Whoops!
0:26 Challenge mode 2 ends with 1'20 left. I love the concept of a dark arena only navigable through dots. The subtle lighting halo around Pac-Man is nice too.
0:32 It took me five minutes of Extra Mode 2 to notice that the board itself was changing with each fruit I eat. Cool! Then I abruptly die. Uncool.
0:40 I was in the zone there for a bit, racking up eight lives in one amazing string. It's entirely too easy to get lost in the rhythm of play.
0:46 Extra Mode 1 freaks me out with its long, straight, unchanging corridors.
0:47 Why do they taunt you with replays that you can only watch once and not save for later?
0:53 Completed Extra Mode 1 on my second try. The Achievements are dropping like flies.
1:00 My second try on Championship Mode ends up worse than the first. I'm overthinking things, I think. Time for a break.

Would I play this game for more than an hour: Yes
Why? All the addictiveness of the classic with much less rote memorizability.

This review was based on a copy of the game purchased from Xbox Live.