SNES REVIEWS: Sparkster
One of the genres almost perfected in the SNES/Genesis wars is the Platformer genre. From the spectacular Super Mario Land, to the speedy Sonic games. Sparkster is apparently Konami's input into the platformer genre, but with an action twist strapped on in the shape of a rocket.
#87: Sparkster:
Year: 1995
Genre: Action-Platformer
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Konami
"The baddest opossum ever to strap on a rocket pack"
The above quote is from the game's box. Despite this game's opossum probably being the only one of its species to wear a rocket launcher, I am not sure the adjective used to describe him is apt in this case. This game is an obvious answer to Sonic from Konami. Evidenced by its start in the Genesis, Sparkster follows the 90's craze of animals with attitude.
Along with the craze if having "shadow" antagonists
That specific phase has been done to death in the 90's, and it was an uninspiring and lazy one to be honest. As such, Sparkster feels devoid of any personality in its world. Indeed, while the Sonic world was vibrant, and his speed was fresh, Sparkster's worlds are mostly boring bar two levels.
"ROCKET LAUNCHER"
Of course, any game worth its salt must strive to either excel very much at what it does, or else differentiate itself from other games. In this game, the rocket launcher strapped to your back serves as a chargeable boost, and it allows for both an enormous speed boost and offensive tackles.
It sounds good in theory, but Sparkster's speed-based gameplay falters in three ways:
First, the level scroll, which is how the "movement" is obtained in 2D games, is unreliable, and the zoomed-in perspective makes it difficult to judge boosts.
It would have been blasting on all fronts if you could see where you are going
Second, the charge move can just as easily kill an enemy as end just before touching him to get some unavoidable damage.
While this doesn't nullify the use of the rocket pack, it makes using it a powerful but clumsy tool. You can spam boost to oblivion and lose a couple of hearts, but a healing item would most likely be available. Most levels are a boost and heal affair, where boosting through is the best way of getting over the tedium of the level, while healing is used to offset the damage caused by the boosting.
"Boosting through time and space"
While Sparkster's world is mostly boring, it does not lack in variety, both in design and gameplay. For instance, a desert temple level employs a number of light puzzles into the game, and feels aptly labyrinth-like. However, the star of level design in the game is perhaps the single inspiring element of the game. Games like Rayman and Donkey Kong Country Returns both employ stages where musical instruments act as platforms and sound off on contact. I believe that such a level was first introduced by this game here, and it is no surprise that it is the best level in the game.
But not the best looking level
On the gameplay front, Sparkster is not afraid of shaking things up. Along with the puzzles of the sand temple, and the percussion jumps of the music stage, the game also includes a shooter-inspired level and a robot ostrich stampede. What this game lacks in concepts and mechanics, it somehow compensates with some serious variety.
"Mechanical Music"
Not ever bothering to be amazing, the music of Sparkster is content with being adequate. It is similar sounding in most stages, as the sand temple and music stage stand out yet again. Additionally, the boss themes are catchy and exciting.
"Rocket boost to the face"
It is admirable that the same tactics you use in your regular gameplay can be used for the bosses. Many games give the player a powerful tool to use in the stages, yet they remove them against the bosses. Boosting to full speed to both dodge and attack the bosses is oddly satisfying, and most battles are close yet fair.
A lot of the bosses are surprisingly good
Several battles spring to mind, with the bosses carrying the same variety as the stages themselves. Again, it comes as no surprise that my favorite boss was the music stage villain. In the best cases, you need both skill and strategy to beat the boss.
Yet, there is one instance nearing the end of the game where a boss is simply unfair. Playing him every time might give a different scenario. At one time, he might just look at you and allow you to pummel him until he goes berserk and leaves you no room to do anything. Some other time, he would just go berserk from the beginning. Looking at commentaries on this boss, I found that the general experience around him is that luck would be needed more than skill.
In Conclusion:
Sparkster might not be in the same league as Sonic and Mario, and comparing them might not be exactly fair. Yet, I cannot help but feel that given some tweaks, and an actual spirit of competition from the game, Konami might have had a mascot to begin with.
However, given that Sparkster was obviously not made to join the battle with Nintendo and Sega, we should be thankful for a decent, if for our age an underwhelming, game.
Final: 6/10 (Not really recommended)
Pro Points:
- Strong Gameplay Variety: +5
- OK Music: +1
- Good Bosses: +1
Con Points:
- Lacks Personality: -2
- Week Central Mechanic: -3
Tips:
- Collect gems for lives.
- Use shoulder buttons to move left or right after a vertical boost.
- Search the levels for more gems, health items, and 1ups.
- Use the turbo function against unfair boss.
Series:
I remember having a lot of fun times playing the SNES in my childhood, but I only played or bought about 10 to 15 games, and many games that I played I couldn't go far into owing to my inability to read basic instructions in English.
As I grew up, I played more SNES games that came my way, as well as others released on other platforms. Due to the sheer quality of those titles that I played years later (such as Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger) and those I remember playing (Donkey Kong Country, Super Mario World), I was always curious about the quality of all those titles I did not play.
Three years before starting this review series, IGN released a list of their top 100 SNES games. Reading that list, I got excited and wanted to play all of them. However, I realized that just playing them wouldn't be enough. I wanted to study that list, and hence decided to review most games on the list.
Next Game:
I am going to confess that I skipped a game that I shouldn't have. However, I decided that the brawler (beat-em-up) genre is a very poor one that offers no entertainment value to myself. However, game #85 Spider-Man & Venom: Maximum Carnage allows for the mindless genre to evolve with superpower strategy. Also, I was a big fan of Venom as a kid..
Stay Tuned.
For Previous Genesis Game Reviews:
This blog was originally posted in Destructoid Community Blogs on April 25th, 2014. The blog was slightly edited to fit my newer review format.
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