Desert Speedtrap Starring Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote - SEGA Master System

Question: What breaks a platformer video game? 

Answer: THE CONTROLS 

     This game commits all the sins of a bad platformer. Bad Janky Controls. Unfair enemy placement. Bad level design. Repetitive boss fights. 

     The sprite work is beautiful. It really looks like an actual authentic Looney Tunes Cartoon. The still illustrations are so close to the real deal. It’s such a shame the controls ruin the experience of this game. Controlling Road Runner was a fight. Every jump was so much work to get done accurately. Especially with all the precision this game asks of you. What could take seconds to complete was almost impossible, especially with the unfair enemy placement. Running itself was a dangerous task. If you’re going to be a Sonic clone, you need a way to be invincible to enemies as you speed off. Sonic has a roll attack. Road Runner only has 4hp and a prayer. 

     I can’t recommend this game. It has too many flaws to be enjoyable. It’s not even a "it’s so bad, that it’s good" kind of game. Another Sonic Clone that belongs in the pit of failures. Darn shame, because this game's sprites look so good. 

Baby Boomer - Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

     This is Baby Boomer. It’s an unlicensed light gun Zapper game on the NES. You help Boomer venture safely across traitorous environments, by shooting all hazards and enemies. You must also shoot the milk bottles to keep Boomer from going hungry, and make bridges by shooting clouds and waterways. Collect the gold nuggets to earn a 1up. 

     I don’t mind this game. It’s not that bad, when you play with a controller. If you’re playing this via real hardware with an actual Zapper, well your experience may vary. Its simple gameplay is kinda charming. You only need to memorize and practice to beat this game, and it’s a short one. It’s only 20 minutes long. I see this as another high score game, rather than being invested in Boomers journey. The music can be a little annoying and the enemies can be unfair with their placements, but it’s manageable.

     If you need a short and silly distraction, I wouldn’t mind this one to pass the time. Not the most complicated game, but that’s a part of its charm. The controller is also more reliable than the Zapper, if you’re wondering. Give it a try. 

Deep Duck Trouble Starring Donald Duck - SEGA Master System

     Donald Duck is on another adventure to free his Uncle Scrooge from a curse. He travels to an island to find clues and treasures, so he can return a jewel amulet to the island’s stone idol. Select the stage and make your way through obstacles and enemies, to find the treasure clue of that area. 

     The animation of this game is Awesome. Donald looks very fluid and his colors pop right out beautifully. Amazing that this is a Master System game. All the levels are nicely detailed and unique. I am very impressed by the quality of the game. 

     Here’s the thing: Donald’s animation is “TOO” Good. His animations causes a delay when he jumps, so timing and precision is hindered. This is a platform game. It’s kinda important to have accurate jumping in platform games. This was frustrating during my play through. You can get use to it, but it’s still a chore. My other complaint is Donald’s hit box is a little off. Enemies have an unfair advantage on you, because your hit box is too vulnerable. There is also unfair enemy placement. Very typical for games in this era to throw countless enemies at you. It’s very annoying.

     This is almost a perfect game. It has flaws, but it is still playable. If you can adapt to the delayed jumping and have the patience for the enemies, give this game a try. I played worse games, so this is still a fun time in comparison. 

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes - Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

     Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. A video game, based on a Saturday Morning American cartoon, based on a spoof horror B-movie from the 1970's. Yes, this is a multi-span decade franchise, and a new movie has released this year in 2026. Quite the accomplishment, for a low budget indie movie. 

THIS GAME IS TERRIBLE. 

Sweet Merciful Crap! I was fighting the stiff controls the whole time! 

And the hit boxes for your character is so janky. Every jump to defeat an enemy is a gamble on your health bar. The jumping is so unreliable too. Jumping has a delay. This has sent me falling off platforms. I just eventually gave up and started running to avoid as many enemies as possible. After I don't know how many game overs I got, I gave up and quit. Terrible!  

     I can't recommend this Janky game. It's a shame, because there's a solid platformer here. This game needed more developed time. It's not the worst game ever. It’s beatable, but you'll be fighting its Jank The whole time. 

DARC - SEGA Master System

     DARC is a homebrew title for the Master System with a lot of heart in it. It’s very simple, but yet fun. You fly around as a jetpack fighter blasting enemies, seeking cores to destroy in an Alien Fortress. The controls are tight, so flying is super easy and fun. There’s linear exploration, but the path forward is always closed off by an objective. Find the core, destroy it and more doors will open onwards. Get upgrades as you defeat each core. It feels like Metroid with a jetpack, especially when you fight one of the cores that is reminiscent of Mother Brain. It is also not easy. But that’s good, because I don’t like games that I can fly by through without any challenges. 

     If you’re looking for something new to play and bored of the official library of games, definitely try this game. It’s easy to play and it’s challenging. Definitely recommended. 

Athena - Nintendo Entertainment System

     Athena on the NES is a mess of a game. To give it a little praise, it’s at least a fateful port of its Arcade version. The graphics are colorfully bright, and the weapons and armor upgrade mechanic is fun. That’s about it. The endless and unfair respawning of enemies, their spamming of projectiles, the awful ear piercing music, the stiff movements and jumping, and no stage checkpoints, it all just makes this a terrible experience. This is one of SNK's very early releases, and it shows their inexperience in platformers. 

   Athena is not recommended by me. I don’t mind difficult games, but this is just too broken and unfair to enjoy. It’s a shame, cause this has so much potential. Athena could have been up there with the likes of Mai Shiranui, but is instead relegated to a cameo fighter in the King of Fighters series.