When I first started this summer challenge I came had two simple goals:

1) Clear out my backlog
2) Play owned games I haven't touched before

The really expected to not have much fun with this.  See, I'm a very chaotic person by nature, and I usually don't equate "fun-time" with structure.  Structure is for the world of Information Assurance and Network Security, not free gaming time.  With that in mind:

Conquest of the Crystal Palace

Simply put, I love this game.  Of all the NES games I've played in my life, very few have elicited a response that I would call "joyous."  I've enjoyed many of them, but I only return to a select few.  From this moment on, Conquest of the Crystal Palace (CCP) will be added to this list, right next to Clash at Demonhead, Final Fantasy, and Super Mario Bros. 3.

A quick look tells me that only about 5% of us actually own the game.  I wonder just how many have played it...

At a glance CCP doesn't stand out too much.  From screenshots and advertising videos one can see that it is a action/platformer in the vein of - well many other NES games.  The hero has a sword and a companion dog.  Shades of Mega Man?  Not really.  The difference, as they say, is in the details.  Like many successful NES games, action is mixed up just enough to make it interesting.  Each level offers some sort of time-limited weapon drop and generally (but not always) some sort of healing item.  These will drop from certain enemies only, making it just enough predictable.  Along with that, every enemy drops varying amounts of money that can be used to buy healing items and magic-style weapons (all time-limited) from Kim, a pink-clothed anime character.  Bosses are, for the most part, creative, but not overly so, and even in some of the stages falling down a pit will send you to the last "checkpoint" instead of killing you.  Also, unlimited continues.  It was almost as if the creators intentionally made a game that most NES gamers of the NES era could pick up, play, and conquer.  In fact, the game difficulty only ramped up during one portion of the game: the maze-like section before the final boss.

Humor (be it intentional or otherwise) is present in small doses, from the faux news reports that Kim does to the goofy Russian dance the main character does after a boss fight.  But there are also touches of horror.  Stage 3 sees the hero in a very horrible hell-like place, where the background, made up of grotesque arms and faces, constantly writhes and screams silently in pain.  Although any horror at this is tempered by the strange frog-creatures that spin around of what appear to be stripper poles.  Yep.

Overall this was quite nice of an experience, and one that I would recommend to anyone looking for an excellent action/platformer to beat in a few days.  So, here it is (my LCD monitor is annoyingly reflective):



Tip time.  Yay!

- Don't forget you have a dog companion!  You can select him (and the other items) by holding down and pressing "A".  Just keep in mind that he has a finite amount of energy and if "killed" you will need to buy energy items for him at Kim's store.

- Having trouble with the some of the bosses?  I played using my Advantage the second time through using Turbo.  Made a world of difference.  First game in a while I played through in one sitting (about an hour).

- There is a cheat available.  Don't use it.  Not that I have anything against that, but the game is easy enough without cheats.

- After you finish the game it starts you over in an "hard mode."  Shades of Ghosts and Goblins?  Who knows.


Next I think I'll tackle Ironsword.  Despite the criticism I was a huge fan of the first Wizards and Warriors.  Although Rare ditched the "super-contrast' color scheme in Ironsword and adopted Fabio as their mascot, I'm still curious.  About the game, not Fabio.

For this entry

Conquest of the Crystal Palace
Ironsword
Dr. Chaos
Total Recall
Ultimate Stuntman
Tombs and Treasures
Swords and Serpents
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine
Driver: San Francisco

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