The problem with writing about Master System is that many of the games that are actually easy enough to beat are really awful. Captain Silver is a great example of this. I don't think I've ever played an easier game with one hit kills and no continues.
I think it's also important to point out that this was the first Master System game that I ever saw in the wild. They had it at one of the thrift stores in my town. For a long time I didn't know what it was and it just sat there in the shelf. I got it soon after I got the system because it was a real novelty seeing a game for the SMS anywhere. Don't worry though, I had already read reviews for this one and knew it was a stinker. I just wanted another game for my SMS shelf. So just how is this game anyway?
If you need a little insight into the quality of this game just compare the box to the instruction manual. The back of the box says that this game has 4 levels while the instruction manual says that there are 6. You gotta wonder about a game that doesn't even know how many levels it has. Actually there were 6 levels in the European version and 4 in the U.S. version. I guess they were both right.
Wait this game only has 4 levels? Just think about that for a minute. This game only has four levels in it. It has a town, boat, jungle, and cliff. The boat level is the only one that you could call lengthy, and that's pushing it a little. It does has some branching paths and a boss to fight though. The town and jungle levels both only take 3 or 4 minutes to get through, and the final cliff level is even shorter than the others. When you add it all up, this game only takes about 15 minutes to beat, and I'm not talking about a Contra 15 minutes where you spend hours practicing and get through the game quickly when you're finally good at it. I'm talking about a turn it on the first time and be done with it forever 15 minutes. The enemies are easy and the two bosses are only mildly challenging. The only challenging thing in this game is the jumps, and that's just because the controls are so bad. How awful is a game in which the only challenge comes from poor control?
It's actually so bad that I hardly feel like talking about it. This is really one of my least favorite games ever. Master System games are supposed to be fast, colorful, and challenging. It did 80s arcade style gaming better than anyone. This game is just the opposite. It's slow, easy, and very bland. It has bad control and ugly sprites. However, if you've just gotten a Master System and are looking to start crossing some games off the list, I would probably recommend you playing this one first. At least that way it will be over, and you'll have nothing but better games to play once you're done.
What makes no sense to me is leaving levels off. I guess it's like how the European Rubber Soul has two more songs than ours did.
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