ATP Tennis is the sequel to Wimbledon Championship Tennis (Genesis, 1993), and I wish I knew what ATP stood for. This is a full-featured tennis game. You can create your own player and enter him in a series of tournaments, saving your progress to one of four slots. Or you can dust off your Sega multi-tap for some four-player doubles action. The option menu lets you do things like turn on a ball pointer, toggle automatic replays, and finely adjust the speed of the game. The control scheme offers three types of shots: soft volley (safe), hard volley (risky), and a lob which goes really really high. I was a little disappointed that the six-button controller is not supported in any way. As in real tennis proper positioning is key. Your player will automatically dive for the ball if it's too far away. I like how it's possible to hit the ball into the net or have it bounce off the top of the net - it's a bit of realism missing from most tennis games. There are even double faults and shots that sail out-of-bounds. What kills this game is the fact that the balls seem so dead; they lack bounce. This forces you to play the net all the time, which is not realistic at all. The player models look cheesy, especially the way they gallivant around after winning a point. The courts look good and I like how there are animated line judges and ball girls. The player selection screen features a few familiar faces (McEnroe, Sampras, Lendl), but I've never heard of most of these players (Guy Forget?). The grainy black-and-white photos depicting each player look so bad, it's almost embarrassing. The career mode offers extended replay value, but not being able to save your progress between sets is a deal breaker. One set can last a long time, and this game is hard on your hands. If there's one big selling point for ATP Tennis, it would have to be the four-player mode. My friends had a heck of a lot of fun playing this, and didn't even want to stop. © Copyright 2012 The Video Game Critic.

Adventures of Batman and Robin boasts sharp graphics, tight controls, and two-player simultaneous action. There's a lot to like, but this game is repetitive to the max! In the first stage our heroes walk down a city street while beating the crap out of clowns that pour out of the woodwork. I like how you can kick while hanging from ledges, and it's cool to toss Bat-a-rangs in a rapid-fire fashion. Actually the game feels more like a shooter than a traditional beat-em-up. But no matter how much damage you inflict, the bad guys keep coming in droves. It feels like you're beating up the same thugs over and over - there must be thousands of them! You'd think that having a partner would help, but in that case the game just throws twice as many thugs your way! Enough already! Had Sega cut the number of villains in half, this would have been a lot better. Still, it's great when you find a skull icon which instantly obliterates every enemy on the screen. The obligatory end-of-stage bosses have life meters that slowly count down from 100, which takes forever. The game is tough and the power-up system is confusing. You can try to play for score, but your score is removed the instant you lose your final life. Buried in this game are many classic Batman foes including the Joker, the Mad Hatter, Two-Face, and Mr. Freeze. The stylish graphics are attractive, with small but well-defined characters and varied scenery. Clever details include alley cats jumping out of trashcans and crooks that get their hats knocked off. With the exception of the obligatory elevator stage (snore), there's plenty to see - especially in the Mad Hatter's Alice In Wonderland-inspired level. Accompanying the action is an intense, pulsating musical score. There's no password option, just six continues. It's a solid action game at its core, but Adventures of Batman and Robin could have used some fine-tuning. My friend Eric and I used an invincibility cheat to beat the game, and it still felt like an ordeal! Despite my complaints however, I do find myself playing this one quite a bit. © Copyright 2011 The Video Game Critic.

I was hard on Aero in my initial review, and that was probably because I was burnt out on all the furry mascot games that proliferated on the Genesis on the heels of Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega, 1991). In retrospect however Aero the Acro-Bat is one of the better ones. The opening stage doesn't make the best impression, set in a circus tent with hideous clowns and spikes all over the place. The accordion music sounds like a cross between the circus theme and a "love that chicken from Popeyes" commercial. I was anxious to see what the second stage had in store, so you can imagine how annoyed I was to discover that each stage is five acts long! And that's not even counting the boss and bonus rounds! Despite being a freaking bat Aero cannot fly most of the time. Instead he performs mid-air "drill" attacks to propel him diagonally up or down. Using this attack on moving enemies is tricky and requires good timing. Each stage offers a new objective, from hopping on "star" platforms to jumping through rings to rescuing a girl. I find it confusing how certain columns block your way while others let you pass. I do like how after falling through a series of rings there's a pool of water waiting for you on the bottom. The stages are long but interesting, with plenty of secret areas to discover. Plowing through enemies on a unicycle is fun and you can even fire yourself out of cannons. Just be cautious when calibrating a cannon's power, as there are often spikes lining the ceiling. Aero is fun to play for score thanks to tasty bonus treats like cupcakes, cheese, and hot dogs. I enjoyed the amusement park and creepy museum stages but the "outdoor zone" feels like a Sonic knock-off - especially when you find yourself rolling down hills. A stage select would have been nice, but the convenient cheat code works just as well. Aero the Acro-Bat gets off to a rough start but ultimately it proves its worth. © Copyright 2018 The Video Game Critic.

My friend Chris once described Afterburner as "Outrun in the sky", and I think that's a great description. Afterburner 2 compares favorably with its Sega CD and 32X counterparts, although you'd expect those to be far more advanced. The action begins with your plane firing up its engines on an impressive-looking aircraft carrier named the "Sega Enterprise". Once airborne you view the action from behind your plane as bushes, rocks, and towers rush by on the ground below. Enemy planes scale in from the distance, but targeting them is tough because your plane turns on an arc, making it hard to line up your crosshairs. When a digitized voice yells "fire!" it means you're "locked on" and should unleash a guided missile. Resist the urge to fire these with reckless abandon because they're limited in supply. If you use them up, you'll have to wait for a refueling plane which appears every few stages. Afterburner 2's odd control scheme uses A button to speed up, C to slow down, and B to fire missiles. Your speed doesn't really come into play until the later waves when enemies start riding your tail. Your machine guns fire automatically, which makes sense from a practical standpoint but seems a little cheesy. Your guided missiles are followed by a plume of gray smoke, but the chaotic visuals make it hard to enjoy your kills. The action is choppy and the gameplay tends to boil down to unleashing a series of shots and then weaving side-to-side like crazy to avoid the incoming barrage. When your plane begins smoking and burrows into the ground, you won't even know what hit you. The scenery is less than spectacular but the color schemes are extremely attractive, especially in the snow and night stages. The audio features the distinctive Afterburner theme, but it's fuzzy. Overall Afterburner 2 nails the frantic arcade style it was shooting for, but comes up short in terms of playability. © Copyright 2011 The Video Game Critic.

Once you get past the goofy title, it's easy to get hooked on this riveting side-scrolling shooter. Its basic formula is unremarkable as you blast pods, jets, and mechanical beasts over cities, through caverns, and in space. It seems strictly by-the-numbers, but there are enough original touches to give Air Buster some personality. Shooting special canisters cause weapon icons to spring forth, and these include six-way shots, missiles, rear shots, or a revolving gun turret. With enough skill you can scoop up a specific icon before it falls off the screen. Stage two offers a nice change of pace with high-speed tunnel chase sequences that challenge you to avoid collision with the walls. It helps if you can snag the "bumper" power-up which provides a layer of protection above and below. An excellent two-player simultaneous mode allows players to compete against each other or strive for highest combined score. I didn't pursue Air Buster for many years because I heard it was simply the Genesis version of Aero Blasters (Turbografx-16, 1990). While that's technically true, there are enough differences between the two games that shooter fans will want both. The graphics are more detailed in this Genesis version, beginning with a more elaborate opening sequence. Each stage not only boasts additional background detail, but there are some new obstacles in the foreground as well. The colors are extremely vibrant - sometimes to a fault. The bright red screen near the end of the first stage is hard on the eyes! The Genesis version is much more difficult, not because the enemies are different but because the action moves faster. I noticed that some bosses require slightly different tactics to defeat. The soundtrack is much richer on the Genesis, and the sound effects pack a lot more punch. This version seems more fine-tuned, as pesky enemies are easier and your missiles are all guided. An extra screen appears between each stage, but it doesn't serve much of a purpose except to delay the action. On the surface the Genesis version seems to have the edge, but my friend Chris insists the Turbografx edition has cleaner visuals and better playability. Whatever the case, both will satisfy your urge for some arcade shooting fun. © Copyright 2010 The Video Game Critic.

It seems like every platform game has that obligatory underwater stage where everything slows to a crawl, pushing your patience to the limit. Well, in Little Mermaid, every stage is like that! Joy! I tend to enjoy 16-bit Disney titles like Aladdin, the Lion King, and Jungle Book, but the lack of quality here is glaring. Each level is an uninspired treasure hunt. Blame the water currents all you want, but the controls are just plain lousy. At the very least you'd expect that fluid Disney animation to shine through, but the choppiness of this game hurts my eyes. Pat, can I buy a frame of animation? Ariel's about as agile as a nuclear sub, and less graceful than Lindsay Lohan after a night of clubbing. And probably less responsive as well! The levels incorporate reefs, pirate ships, and ruins, but each is just a sprawling underwater maze. Ariel's abrupt turns make it agonizingly difficult to navigate the narrow, craggy passages. The goal of each stage is to locate and rescue "mer-people", which look like little green worms until you touch them, causing them to transform. Electric eels pop out and snip at you without warning and fat sharks mindlessly swim back and forth. Aerial can fire musical notes, but they're weak. I hate how after you shatter a skeleton, touching an individual bone inflicts damage. A helpful map is available via the start button, but waiting for it to "unroll" across the screen is annoying. Sometimes you complete a level but the game won't let you exit for no apparent reason. Bosses exhibit no signs of damage as you pelt them, leaving you to wonder if you're doing the right thing. There's no password and no score - despite the fact that point values appear on the screen for killing certain creatures. The one redeeming aspect of this game is its pleasant steel drum music. The Little Mermaid is one of those games that sucks from the minute you begin playing and never stops. © Copyright 2010 The Video Game Critic.

Arnold Palmer is an arcade-style golf game with bright graphics, catchy music, and simple controls. The left side of the screen shows an overhead map of the hole while the right side shows an over-the-shoulder view. Your caddie is a cute blonde chick in a short shirt. Wait - are you telling me the game made her carry my bag around?! That golf bag is bigger than she is! To be fair, in two player mode a male caddy lugs the clubs for a female player. The holes are rendered in layers from distant to close, and at first it looks like you're standing on the edge of a gaping chasm! You need to page through a series of small windows to check the wind, lie, stance, and club. Is all that really necessary? Why isn't the distance to the hole displayed? Why must I always select my own club? Now I'm starting to realize how that caddy got her job! The swing meter is a little confusing. You hit a button to start it, and if you don't hit it again before it reaches the top, it resets. The fairways tend to be narrow and sand traps attract balls like moths to a porch lamp! The greens tend to be pretty small, but you have to have a really soft touch or the ball will roll right over the hole. After nine holes there's a little "coffee break" animation featuring a Playboy bunny! You don't see that kind of silliness in games anymore. Once you get into a groove you can knock out a round in well under 30 minutes. The background music sounds like it belongs in a 2D shooter, but I love it! If it doesn't appeal to you, you can toggle between three other tunes or just shut it off altogether. The tournament mode offers a password featuring mixed capital and lowercase letters (oh dear). Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf is one of the fastest golf games around and also one of the more addictive. © Copyright 2016 The Video Game Critic.

Of all the attempts to rip-off Sonic the Hedgehog, Awesome Possum may be the most blatant offender. I can only imagine what those early design discussions at Tengen were like. "Hey, we need a new video game character! What marsupial hasn't been taken yet?" We just can't get enough of those small, furry mammals can we? Apparently we can, because Awesome Possum's unlikability quotient is off the charts! This scrawny little rodent is one seriously ugly bastard, and his grainy, high-pitched voice spews all sorts of idiotic nonsense like "I'm awesome!", "I'm so cool!", and "Don't pollute!" Just hearing that last line makes me want to run out and pour motor oil into the nearest stream! And whenever you hear his maniacal laugh, you'll want to reach into the TV and beat the living [expletive] out of that unappealing SOB. The game looks bad in general. Foreground objects are sloppy and grainy, and the backgrounds look dark and muddy. The framerate is so choppy you'll want to divert your eyes, and the level design is infuriating. In one stage you'll whiz through a series of tunnels only to be tossed into a set of elevated buzz saws! Your adversaries include chainsaw-toting gray robots which can be defeated by Awesome's patented spin attack. And when I say patented, I mean patented by Sonic of course. Awesome Possum is woefully unoriginal, which is also evident in the derivative rainforest, underwater, and ice stages. The background music is a few notches below Casio keyboard quality, and the muffled sound effects are grating. Between stages you're presented with trivia questions which make little or no sense. Awesome Possum is one platformer that should only be played out of morbid curiosity - don't expect to derive any degree of enjoyment. Heck, Awesome even makes that lame-ass Bubsy look cool by comparison! © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.