4.7 KiB
| title | date | score | series | howlongtobeat_id | howlongtobeat_hrs | game_name | game_genre | tags | game_release_year | game_developer | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Battle Nexus Double Pack | 2024-05-01T21:20:00+02:00 | 2 | Turtles | 9649 | 3 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus | Beat em up |
|
2004 | Konami |
In a Franchise & Lows video by Retronaut Stuart Gipp about TNMT on Nintendo Handhelds, I learned about the 2004 beat 'em ups on the Game Boy Advance that was also conveniently packaged as one of Konami's Double Packs, perhaps better known from the Castlevania one. The eBay prices were reasonable, so the only reasonable thing for me to do was to follow Stuart's advice and give them a go.
The games are weird. I don't know. Some sections I like a lot, such as the stage variety in terms of gameplay twists (e.g. from beat 'em up to shoot 'em up), but other sections I dislike, such as the juvenile chatter in-between stages or the fact that the turtles are sluggish to control and require a bit of fiddling to adjust to. I suppose the pack is worth checking out if you are in dire need of Heroes in a Half Shell action on the Advance, since the best games came from the nineties original Game Boy era (e.g. see Turtles III).
The 2006 TNMT and the Battle Nexus sequel are watered-down versions from 3D TNMT console versions that were, as one might expect from that era, adequately average. It is indeed perhaps surprising then, that these 2D handheld variants are a slight notch above average---depending on your fanboyism level towards these green dudes.
In easy and normal mode, you'll breeze through the first and second game in less than 4 hours combined. There isn't a whole lot of enemy variety, but compared to their ancient 4-shades-of-gray turtle-in-a-cart predecessors, there's one big twist: you first have to find your weapon of choice, before the Mutant Action can begin. That means most stages start out as Metal Gear Solid-like ones, where hiding in the shadows is the preferred option, especially since triggering an alarm can easily swarm and very quickly kill you.
I don't like crawling around in the dark, especially when I'm a Turtle. When I'm a Turtle, I'm supposed to have my katanas and sais at the ready, and I'm supposed to run and jam A or B---while here, I'm first forced to press UP to crawl into a crevice and let the guard pass by. Yet at the same time, it breaks up the action and could be called a refreshing change of pace. Once you do get to your weapons, it's show time, of course.
Additionally, many stages are designed as multi-screen bland gray-ish industrial looking mazes, where everything starts to look the same. High chances of missing that one guard who needed a stab in the chest to release their key card. At this point, I'd rather replay a nineties TNMT instead. Nice try, though.
But perhaps I'm being a bit too harsh, as the shoot 'em up sections where Donatello kites through the New York night---with some kind of laser gun, shooting down even bigger rockets flying towards you?---are actually great fun and do spice up things a bit. The question is, though, is that spicing up needed if the core gameplay loop would have been more qualitative? I don't know.
It's very difficult for me to rate this game: today I'd give it a 2, but tomorrow I might change it to 3. Why? This Gamespot review summarizes it well:
On the whole, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus is a good game that does the license proud. If you go into it expecting a traditional side-scrolling beat-'em-up, you're liable to be disappointed. However, if you can handle a puzzle-oriented adventure game that's peppered with boss fights and shooter levels, you should come away satisfied.
Given my track record with the older TNMT GB games, it seems that I simply expected the wrong kind of game. If you're open to a more maze-oriented approach, the impressive 2D sprite work and fluent animations will not let you down. And I didn't even mention that each turtle gets his own unique route with 5 levels each.
The first game is less puzzle-prone but requires less than an hour to beat, making the nowadays second-hand prices a tough sell. You're better off putting your money into the contemporary Cowabunga Collection.