| Publisher:
Sega
Developer: Sega
Size: 4 Megs
No. of players: 1
Official Ad: Yes |
|
Mr.
Big, for some reason, has decided to kidnap the largest group of identical
children this world has ever seen! As they are something of a rarity, Michael
Jackson gets pissed....bad! He heads out to rescue each of the kids, who
have been taken to some of the oddest hiding places you can think of(who
hides kids behind tombstones anyway!?).
What's it all about?
It's a sidescrolling...sorta, adventure, kinda shooter thing. As Mike,
you run around using a combination of dance moves, magic sprinkles and,
when it comes down to it, fists to fend off the various assortment of goons.
Each level has you finding a set number of kids, then fighting a gang
of
enemies to exit the level. Mike also has the power to use actual dance
routines to wear the enemy out: By activating it you break out one of
the various,
signature dances that the enemies, helplessly, have to join in...until
they drop!
|
| Graphics
- Excellent. Each level does an amazing job of recreating the theme
and, in some cases, actual scenes of the video they are based on. Mike has
a lot of animation in his sprite, so most of his moves are really fluid...the
enemies are less animated, but still come off alright. All in all, the game
looks great. |
| Sound
- Awesome. To accompany you through it, each level gets an excellently
redone version of a various MJ song; Beat it, Smooth Criminal, Bad, etc,
they're all there. The sound effects, with the various voice samples and
all of Mike's dance screams, are great as well. |
| Control
- Damn smooth. Mike gets around very easily and responds immediately
to whatever it is you need him to do. The only real sore spot comes
at the point when you need to grab onto tree limbs, and such, to swing
around the levels. That can be a real chore, at times, to get started. |
| AI
- The regular, level-specific enemies pretty much leave you
alone until you get close enough...the soldiers, on the other hand,
chase your
ass down...and with guns. All in all it's pretty balanced and there's
nothing too cheap or overbearing. |
| Replay
value - High. The game is so very good that you'll find yourself
coming back time and again to break out those dance moves on the goons,
dogs, ghouls and even that damn parrot in the graveyard! |
Tips
for a better gaming experiences:
The
soldiers will *not* dance....don't waste your time, and magic, trying. Instead
spin into them much as you can before activating the dance, then let loose
to make Mike toss his hat. This will generally get you through most battles
with multiple soldiers.
|
|
Game
Genie:
Infinite
lives: AXST-AA8T
The Genie
taught Mike everything he knows about dance...give him a call if you
need a backup. |
|
| My
rating: 95(out of 100) - Very close to perfection. This is
an excellent and completely original take on the common side scrolling-adventure
genre. |
| EGM
gave it: 7, 7, 7, 7(out of 10) |
This is about as close as JD gets to dancing...
Cat's review: What an odd game....but also, a great one. I can't
say I agree with the parts where Mike has to attack cats and other animals...but
other than that... |
|
|
To
this day, that leaning thing they do still impresses me. |
Dancin'
with the ghoulies... |
|
|
Between
stages you're usually treated to some hip, little sequence like this. |
Yes,
it's a monkey on your back, and you must obey! |
|
|
Smooth:
Smooth Criminal, in my opinion, is the absolute *best* music
video ever made!
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