Super Probotector: Alien Rebels/Contra III: The Alien Wars (SNES, 1992)
Graphics-8 Sound-7.5 Control-7 Challenge-8.5
Level Design-7.5 Frustration-8.5 Fun-7.5/7 Originality-5.5
Overall Score-7.5
*2-player
+
Varied and sometimes intense action
Good bosses overall
2-player cooperative
Difficulty and control options (huge differences between easy and hard)
Screen covering smart bombs
Some nice graphical effects (bomb plane in stage 1, rotating and climbable platforms, etc.), hold l/r to stand still while shooting, ‘berserk’ attack (hold l+r while shooting to shoot both weapons in semi-random’ directions – not that useful in most cases), it’s possible to switch between one and two player modes when using a continue (regardless of if you started a one or two player game), two player a and b modes (split screen or shared screen in the top down view stages),
+/-
Fairly easy to gain extra lives
Fast moving item containers (makes them easy to miss with weapons that have a slow rate of fire)
Limited continues (just 2 even on Easy)
-
Trial & error (enemy/boss patterns, smart bombs don’t block most shots, no score counter in-game so you can’t see if you’re about to gain an extra life)
Top down levels aren't very fun (odd targeting controls, repetitive, loose scrolling)
Can’t look up/down
Somewhat loose scrolling in the vertical sections
So-so sound effects (explosions sound like an 8-bit game)
Slowdown (very noticeable when using bombs), a bit short, awkward jumping and climbing controls (very short horizontal range, no jump height control, jumping off ceilings and walls work different to one another), can't move while crouching (trying to makes you stand up and move), you have to be careful about what you pick up since you can only carry two weapons and picking up one auto-replaces the one you carry instead of filling up an empty slot, 2-player mode limits movement (if one player stands still you can’t move until you touch the other side of the screen – instead the scrolling stops you against an invisible wall), sloppy hit detection on the blue legged form of the final boss, very easy searchlight ship mini-boss on stage 3,
Bugs:
-Minor scrolling bug at two points where you've just climbed a wall and want to scroll the screen forward (if you keep running towards the edge of the screen, nothing happens)
Level Design-7.5 Frustration-8.5 Fun-7.5/7 Originality-5.5
Overall Score-7.5
*2-player
+
Varied and sometimes intense action
Good bosses overall
2-player cooperative
Difficulty and control options (huge differences between easy and hard)
Screen covering smart bombs
Some nice graphical effects (bomb plane in stage 1, rotating and climbable platforms, etc.), hold l/r to stand still while shooting, ‘berserk’ attack (hold l+r while shooting to shoot both weapons in semi-random’ directions – not that useful in most cases), it’s possible to switch between one and two player modes when using a continue (regardless of if you started a one or two player game), two player a and b modes (split screen or shared screen in the top down view stages),
+/-
Fairly easy to gain extra lives
Fast moving item containers (makes them easy to miss with weapons that have a slow rate of fire)
Limited continues (just 2 even on Easy)
-
Trial & error (enemy/boss patterns, smart bombs don’t block most shots, no score counter in-game so you can’t see if you’re about to gain an extra life)
Top down levels aren't very fun (odd targeting controls, repetitive, loose scrolling)
Can’t look up/down
Somewhat loose scrolling in the vertical sections
So-so sound effects (explosions sound like an 8-bit game)
Slowdown (very noticeable when using bombs), a bit short, awkward jumping and climbing controls (very short horizontal range, no jump height control, jumping off ceilings and walls work different to one another), can't move while crouching (trying to makes you stand up and move), you have to be careful about what you pick up since you can only carry two weapons and picking up one auto-replaces the one you carry instead of filling up an empty slot, 2-player mode limits movement (if one player stands still you can’t move until you touch the other side of the screen – instead the scrolling stops you against an invisible wall), sloppy hit detection on the blue legged form of the final boss, very easy searchlight ship mini-boss on stage 3,
Bugs:
-Minor scrolling bug at two points where you've just climbed a wall and want to scroll the screen forward (if you keep running towards the edge of the screen, nothing happens)