“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

One of the coolest parts of playing video games as a kid was the feeling of exploration. Sure, back on the NES it was still in a pretty abstract way, but a well designed adventure could really suck you in. Even back then, when passing the controller back and forth with my friends to work our way through a game (old school co-op), we felt like we were there.

Never was this truer than of the original Metroid. It totally blew us away that we were free to explore the game’s world in whatever order we wanted. Sure, you needed to find new abilities to progress past certain obstacles, but that only added to the challenge and fun. But there weren’t nearly enough of this style of game. We were surprised and delighted to find there was a sequel to one of our favorite movies in game form, and it was in the Metroid style.

That game was The Goonies II.

Back then it didn’t bother us at all when a game’s plot was complete nonsense. The Fratellis have kidnapped six of the Goonies and a Mermaid named Annie. It is up to you, as Mikey, to save them.

I fully admit that that the plot of Goonies II is pure insanity. It was made in Japan as a sequel to a game that only came out in the states via the PlayChoice-10. We didn’t even realize that was why it was called #2. We all assumed it was a sequel to the film.

The main field of play is a 2D action platformer where Mikey uses various weapons like a yo-yo, boomerang, and bombs to defeat his enemies. As you progress, you will need to find various tools that will help you reach new areas and save all the Goonies, then Annie (the mermaid).

The secondary part of the game is a 3D first person area, reminiscent of (but a very much simplified version of) games like Shadowgate and Déjà Vu. Here is where you must use many of the tools you have collected to find hidden doorways, collect new items, and ultimately rescue your captured friends.

The 3D zones are also the connecting pathways between the various 2D areas. A very cool design concept was that the 2D map was actually double sided, with the warp zones in the 3D areas linking the two sides of the map.

Why did I pick this game?

Like most people who grew up in the 80′s, The Goonies was one of my favorite movies. This year is the film’s 25th anniversary and as strange as it sounds, the NES game Goonies II really ignited my love of the film. Games from that era were designed to be power fantasies for kids, making it feel like you were the one on a crazy adventure.

Since every kid I knew back then wanted to be a Goonie, it only made sense that playing through the game made us feel like part of the action.

How does it hold up with time?

The 2D segments of The Goonies II are solid even today. I was still able to jump in and find my way through the game with a minimum of frustration. Sadly, I can’t say the same for the original Metroid.

The 3D segments really slow down the action. I remember loving those parts as a kid because they felt so strange and mysterious. Nowadays, the slow interface of using your tools to bang on the various walls to find the hidden stuff starts to get tedious after a while.

One of the first strategy guides we ever had our hands on was simply called The Nintendo Player’s Guide. It is a black book with every major release up to that point laid out for you. If it wasn’t for the in-depth maps and hints in that book, I doubt I would ever have made it very far in Goonies II (or Rygar for that matter).

Going back for my recent playthrough, I thought it only fitting to once again use the book in tandem with playing through the game. I’m glad I did, as it made it a smooth ride that was as fun as I remembered it.

Tags: Friday Old Games, Goonies II, licensed games, Metroidvania, platformer

This entry was posted on Friday, July 9th, 2010 at 11:30 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.