Who named this guy Master Higgins?Review by Mike SklensOriginally released on the NES way back in 1986, Hudson’s Adventure Island has long been considered a classic by gamers. Now, Hudson has remade the game as a part of their Hudson Selection series. The game has been updated with 3D graphics, yet it still maintains its original gameplay.
Adventure Island stars Master Higgins, who is trying to rescue the beautiful princess. In order to do so, he must fight through eight worlds full of peril and take down a boss at the end of each. What makes Adventure Island so challenging is that Master Higgins must eat fruit to refill his constantly-decreasing health bar. Higgins journeys through side-scrolling levels filled with all sorts of enemies blocking his path. He also has to contend with a lot of pits that need jumping over. Scattered throughout the levels are eggs (many of which are secret) that contain power-ups to aid him on his quest. There are quite a few weapons available, including axes, spears, boomerangs, and the almighty fireball. There’s also the skateboard for Higgins to ride, which is quite an oddball item considering it’s found in an egg on an island (remember though, this game is from the 80’s).
Though there are tons of enemies, Master Higgins hunger is easily the worst of the bunch. Higgins’ health is always dropping, and he must eat a never-ending supply of fruit to keep it up. On top of this, fruit is only on-screen for a brief amount of time. If Higgins doesn’t act fast, it will disappear. The health meter, coupled with the fact that the baddies deal a hefty amount of damage, makes Adventure Island a very difficult game. Thankfully, Hudson has realized this and included an easier mode in which the health meter does not constantly drain. This mode also removes the devastating eggplant “power-up,” which can spell certain doom by draining Higgins’ health even faster for a short period of time.
Adventure Island sticks to the classic platform formula; the hero must complete four levels per world and then square-off against a boss monster. The bosses scale in difficulty, of course. All of them are challenging, but can be easily taken out once their attack patterns are learned.
This remake, obviously, looks much better than its NES counterpart. However, compared to other GameCube games, it is still lacking in the graphics department. The polygon counts are relatively low, and the textures could be greatly improved, as they are often blurry and sometimes pixelated. The sound has also been upgraded from the original. The songs are the same, but now have a much fuller sound thanks to the GameCube. They are very catchy and indicative of many old school games.
Adventure Island is a fun romp through yesteryear. Fans of the original will have a grand old time remembering this classic title. It’s also great for any fan of old school side-scrollers in general. The challenge level is right up there and can also be toned down if you’re having too much trouble. At a budget price of about $33 from
Video Game Depot, Adventure Island would fit nicely in any old-schooler’s library.
Pros:Easier difficulty option
Rockin’ old school music
Cons:
The graphics still look crummy, compared to other GCN games.
It’s pretty short.
Graphics: 4.0
This remake looks a hell of a lot better than its NES counterpart, but that’s not saying much. The characters are fairly bland and lacking detail, and the textures are often blurry or pixelated.
Sound: 6.0
The catchy Adventure Island soundtrack has been redone with the GameCube’s enhanced audio. The classic tunes remain, but now have a fuller sound.
Control: 8.0
The movement and jumping are spot on, which is very important for a game that often requires pin-point accuracy like Adventure Island.
Gameplay: 7.0
The challenging platforming gameplay returns in this remake. You’ll be dodging all sorts of stuff and taking out enemies left and right. There’s also Master Higgins’ depleting health to watch out for. Thankfully, there is an easier mode for those not up to the brutally hard normal mode.
Lastability: 4.0
It’s a remake of an NES game, so it’s not like there was a ton of gameplay to start with. The replay value has been spiced up with a time-trial mode as well as some unlockables.
Final Score (not an average): 6.5
The Adventure Island remake is a great trip down memory lane. Anybody looking for a fun platforming game or a vintage gameplay experience will have fun with this newly improved classic.
Topic: [b] Who named this guy Master Higgins?[/b] (Read 3341 times)
