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Gunblade NY: Special Air Assault Force & L.A. Machine Guns: Rage of the Machine - Arcade Hits Pack
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Graphics & Sound:
Arcade purists and retro gamers alert! This double release from Sega will be instantly recognizable as a piece of throwback cool, especially since it takes advantage of hardware that was somewhat unique to its original setting. Gunblade NY: Special Air Assault Force & L.A. Machine Guns: Rage of the Machine - Arcade Hits Pack brings us two games that appeared in the '90s, when the whole idea of hanging out in an arcade was probably on the wane. The idea behind playing games that barely tax the graphics' capabilities of the platforms we have today is to relive some treasured part of our youth, in a time when consoles hadn't gained such ground on arcade entertainment. These games would have been timed perfectly for the Gen-Y folks born in the early '80s, but might have flown under the radar of older gamers that were absorbed in their PSOne or N64 when Gunblade NY came out in 1995. The visuals aren't impressive by today's standards, but they are used artfully to create good gameplay.
As part of their adaptation to Wii, both games incorporate voice messages piped into the Wii-mote. We've never been wowed by the tinny speaker on the controller before, but it actually seems well suited to walkie-talkie messages. The little mission briefings and comments are amusing and a surprise at first, since not that many games seem to utilize this feature. The music in both games is awesome, retro in its own right, and full of driving, guitar-laden rock. If you can't close your eyes and get at least a little excited by the soundtrack and the accompanying staccato beats of gunfire or explosions, check your pulse and be sure you can still fog a mirror. If nothing else, the visuals remind us of that old adage about "nothing new under the sun," since we tend to think of the modern light-gun genre as being innovative. Watching the short-but-sweet action unfolding in Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns, you can see the roots of games like Dead Space: Extraction and the popular Resident Evil shooting releases for Wii. The difference is mainly in the level of visual detail, because these oldies do an almost perfect job of capturing dramatic visual perspective. The 3D effects were exceptional for the time but seem awfully dated now, a fun retreat for gamers that want to relive the days when bliss at the mall amounted to a stack of quarters and one of these machines. |
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Gameplay:
Before delving into the guts of Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns, let's put the parents at ease: The enemies are robots. Bloodless killing seems so quaint and yesteryear after the rise of survival horror, eh? Second only to zombies, robots are a favorite target from behind the stock of a loaded weapon, whether in 2D or 3D. This perspective makes things especially fun, as you'll be tested against waves of aggressive humanoid robots and huge mechanoid creations. Robots in Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns come in a variety of shapes and forms. They appear garbed in clothes, and relatively human in appearance. A few well-placed shots will blast off their disguise and reveal their metal skeletons, a la Terminator. You'll battle aquatic robots, decked out as frogmen and jumping out of the water armed with homing missiles. Robots pilot vehicles, including flying scooters, tanks, and watercraft. The bosses are huge, multi-stage monsters that unleash wave after wave of guided missiles and heavy bombs in your direction. Against this enemy force, you'll be armed only with your trusty machine gun, airborne on the wing of a speedy flying vehicle.
Gunblade NY features two unique ways to play, separate missions that represent different levels of difficulty. You can also play a rapid-fire challenge that sets a timer in specific areas, forcing you to rack up as many points as possible before the sands of the hourglass drain completely. L.A. Machine Guns serves up distinct campaigns that can be adjusted for difficulty in the options menu. The style of play is always airborne, shooting down on enemies, but enemies react differently depending on where you direct your fire. Because the game wasn't designed with wide screens in mind, 16:9 sets have a sort of "dead zone" on either side, where you can see the background but can't place shots, or be fired upon. As you would expect from the way these games were presented in arcades, a second player can join in quickly and assist, adding another targeting reticule to the fray. Tracking scores is about bragging rights, but earning points is also an important part of leveling up and unlocking new weapons. Four variant weapons can be accessed during gameplay, and can come in handy during more complex battles that require combinations of powerful, single shots and rapid, scattered gunfire. The entire Arcade Hits Pack only amounts to a few hours of gameplay, making it good for core retro or arcade enthusiasts, and any Wii gamers looking for a fun weekend rental. |
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Difficulty:
It's easy to forget in modern times, when consoles rule, how many quarters we pumped into the old arcade games. As a measure of this, each time you tap the "Continue?" button during a session of Gunblade NY or L.A. Machine Guns, you would have been notching up another 25 cents. You may not spend the equivalent of the retail price for this box-set before the credits roll, but you'll probably come close. These games were hard! It's mainly the boss battles that will test you. Many have multi-stage enemies that send salvos of missiles toward you, requiring quick and measured reflexes to win the day. A few helpful features prevent the difficulty from becoming crippling; enemies will flash before sending a projectile your way, and objectives are clearly marked with targeting reticules. The controls are pretty forgiving, and you can't argue with the liberal destructive ability of a machine gun. Only flamethrowers and cluster bombs are better at spreading carnage... The dedicated purists will want to improve their stats, shown at the end of each major section. We finished a few rounds with accuracy ratings in the 20-30% range, which is actually pretty embarrassing. Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns don't hold you back at all based on these scores, so even rank amateurs can finish the game through a series of well-applied Continues. As with any modern light-gun shooting game, the trick is prioritizing targets and controlling your rate of fire. Again, machine guns are especially choosy, but there does seem to be a cool-down setting that makes it necessary to space your shots in anticipation of long, complicated attacks. There are some default difficulty settings in Gunblade NY that really just amount to two different campaigns, with the Hard version of the game featuring a higher concentration of enemies. L.A. Machine Guns did a lot with locations that included civilian targets, and made it ridiculously easy for heavy trigger-fingers to accidentally shoot an innocent tourist. These fatalities are subtracted from your final score, which affects your placement on local, regional, and world leaderboards.
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Game Mechanics:
Our Wii Zapper hasn't had the same workout as our Classic Controller, but it's a close second. Shooting games from the Resident Evil and Dead Space franchise are high water marks, in addition to several good wartime shooters. The Wii landscape is also littered with throwaway Shooters that are infinitely forgettable. We'd love to see more of the quality arcade gun games make their way onto the Wii, that have otherwise been relegated to retro history because of their special hardware requirements. Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns make a strong case for future releases, so spend a little money to send a message to SEGA and others that have good products in their back catalogue. Hardware translation is probably tricky, but each of these games feels well adapted to the Wii. In at least one case, you can even take advantage of the tilt features to spray multiple bullets, when that weapon is equipped. We were disappointed that the Nunchuk analog stick wasn't better used for actions during play, but overall responsiveness is great. You can adjust settings to improve the fit for your play style, but we liked how both games felt right out of the box. Also, because the Nunchuk isn't heavily used, it's possible to play capably without the Zapper, whether going in solo or with a friend.
Dramatic action in real-life settings makes for a good time in both Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns, and this combo pack is worth looking into if you were fond of these games in the arcade. It's a shame there are not a couple more games packaged in with these two, considering the relatively short time you'll spend playing Gunblade NY & L.A. Machine Guns, but dedicated fans will keep going in the interest of higher scores and a treasured place on a regional or national leaderboard. Don't come to the party expecting loads of graphical sophistication, or incredibly deep gameplay, but if you can set your mind back to the '90s, you'll find it easy to appreciate the craft behind both games. Considering how long its been since these were released, they've actually aged very well. |
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-Fridtjof, GameVortex Communications AKA Matt Paddock |
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