Jerry Boy (SNES, 1991)
Graphics-7 Sound-7 Control-6.5 Challenge-7 Story-6
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-6.5 Originality-5.5
Overall Score-6.5
+
Decent art style (precursor to Pokémon)
Stick to walls and ceilings by holding the run button
Some optional detours and hidden items (1-ups and letters)
Replay beaten levels (1-ups respawn)
Can stand on most enemies
Minor adventure elements (NPCs you can talk to, quests of sorts (you don't go get a quest and then search for the object/enemy/npc though - it's all linear))
Upgradeable life bar (only lasts until the next level though)
Fairly frequent checkpoints (unmarked)
Decent bosses overall (some later ones have a second form)
One level is a parody of heaven
+/-
Flattening yourself works as a punch attack of sorts (unintuitive as you need to press down)
Regular throwing balls only last one throw (though you can throw them upwards and catch them again it only works if you don't hit anything with the throw) - a few levels in you'll find iron balls which last until you die or drop them in a pit
Somewhat forgiving hit detection when punching
Most item containers (flowers) respawn their content after a few seconds (regular balls only?)
No save feature or password (the game is ~1h15m long)
-
Control/interface issues (can't punch forward while in mid-air or while on a slope, letting go of the run button in mid-air makes you lose your momentum, can't remap the controls (running and throwing mapped to the same button was a bad idea - you'll run into seeds that grow into elevator platforms after being placed for some minor puzzles), inconsistent hit detection around slopes and corners (sometimes you'll stick to slopes and sometimes not - usually not when running towards a downward slope; game acts as if you stuck to the wall in front of jerry boy if you stand him in a corner and hold the run button, can't jump outward while sticking to a wall, somewhat lacking jump height control (easy to accidentally jump a bit too high), can't jump down through platforms you can jump up through, can't pick up extra HP while carrying the jump power up (perhaps others as well), no proper item inventory (annoying to accidentally throw away certain power ups, you can hold more than one regular ball though and hold one power up while holding onto the regular balls as well), )
Easy to miss the 1-up after the fish boss
Trial & error (some cheap enemy placement, need to drop your current power up (besides regular balls) to pick up a 1-up, leaps of faith - can't look down/up, boss patterns)
NPC dialogue doesn't update if you go back and talk to people (after the first boss for example)
Some doors take you back to the beginning of a level
Some bland backgrounds (moon, heaven)
Time limits on each paragraph during dialogue
The camera doesn't auto center on your avatar after entering a new room so you'll sometimes have to manually adjust it
Some slowdown (polar bear boss and final boss)
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-6.5 Originality-5.5
Overall Score-6.5
+
Decent art style (precursor to Pokémon)
Stick to walls and ceilings by holding the run button
Some optional detours and hidden items (1-ups and letters)
Replay beaten levels (1-ups respawn)
Can stand on most enemies
Minor adventure elements (NPCs you can talk to, quests of sorts (you don't go get a quest and then search for the object/enemy/npc though - it's all linear))
Upgradeable life bar (only lasts until the next level though)
Fairly frequent checkpoints (unmarked)
Decent bosses overall (some later ones have a second form)
One level is a parody of heaven
+/-
Flattening yourself works as a punch attack of sorts (unintuitive as you need to press down)
Regular throwing balls only last one throw (though you can throw them upwards and catch them again it only works if you don't hit anything with the throw) - a few levels in you'll find iron balls which last until you die or drop them in a pit
Somewhat forgiving hit detection when punching
Most item containers (flowers) respawn their content after a few seconds (regular balls only?)
No save feature or password (the game is ~1h15m long)
-
Control/interface issues (can't punch forward while in mid-air or while on a slope, letting go of the run button in mid-air makes you lose your momentum, can't remap the controls (running and throwing mapped to the same button was a bad idea - you'll run into seeds that grow into elevator platforms after being placed for some minor puzzles), inconsistent hit detection around slopes and corners (sometimes you'll stick to slopes and sometimes not - usually not when running towards a downward slope; game acts as if you stuck to the wall in front of jerry boy if you stand him in a corner and hold the run button, can't jump outward while sticking to a wall, somewhat lacking jump height control (easy to accidentally jump a bit too high), can't jump down through platforms you can jump up through, can't pick up extra HP while carrying the jump power up (perhaps others as well), no proper item inventory (annoying to accidentally throw away certain power ups, you can hold more than one regular ball though and hold one power up while holding onto the regular balls as well), )
Easy to miss the 1-up after the fish boss
Trial & error (some cheap enemy placement, need to drop your current power up (besides regular balls) to pick up a 1-up, leaps of faith - can't look down/up, boss patterns)
NPC dialogue doesn't update if you go back and talk to people (after the first boss for example)
Some doors take you back to the beginning of a level
Some bland backgrounds (moon, heaven)
Time limits on each paragraph during dialogue
The camera doesn't auto center on your avatar after entering a new room so you'll sometimes have to manually adjust it
Some slowdown (polar bear boss and final boss)