Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Arcade classics in miniature form, January 4, 2004
I fondly recall playing all four of these games at the local arcade when I was a kid, and it's great to see them available now in handheld form on the Gameboy. The ports are pretty much verbatim, and if you're looking for some videogame nostalgia then this petite collection should offer you some momentary fun.That being said, what works in an arcade setting doesn't necessarily work on a handheld, and Super Hang-On in particular really just isn't much fun without actually sitting on the plastic bike and leaning left and right to control the game. Outrun is another racing game that just doesn't offer much excitement once the nostalgia wears off (and it will). Space Harrier and Afterburner still offer some thumb-burning fun, though, and it's easy to recommend this collection for those two games alone. All in all, if you remember these games fondly and want to revisit them from time to time in whatever setting you use your Gambeboy, you can't go wrong purchasing this cartridge. If you're looking for serious gaming that will entertain you for more than a few minutes at a time, you'll probably want to spend your money elsewhere.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Above average compilation of legendary Sega games, December 6, 2003
Consisting of After Burner, Outrun, Space Harrier, and Super Hang-On, all of which were massive hits in the arcade for Sega, Sega Arcade Gallery is an above average compilation that nostalgia gamers will enjoy. After Burner is a classic shooter in which you command a jet and blast your way through 20 levels of opposing fighter planes. It looks like the same game that did time in the arcades, but there is much missing here. The bonus levels with ground targets are gone, as is the on screen radar in which you can escape chase planes. Thankfully, that game is the only low point here. Outrun is almost identical to it's arcade counterpart and is still a fun racing game to this day. Space Harrier is still a unique shooter that is still a blast to play, and Super Hang-On is as challenging as ever and is also almost identical to it's arcade counterpart as well. A save feature (or a pause feature as well) for high scores would have been a welcome addition, but oh well. All in all, minus the poor conversion of After Burner, Sega Arcade Gallery is a nearly perfect port of some classic Sega games.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good,but not great, October 2, 2003
THQ's Sega Arcade Gallery brings together four classic arcade games on a single Game Boy Advance cartridge. The collection includes Space Harrier, OutRun, Super Hang-On, and After Burner, all of which were originally released between 1985 and 1987. For the most part, the games come across well on the Game Boy Advance. All four employ traditional two-dimensional sprite-based graphics and use basric scaling and rotation effects to suggest the appearance of three-dimensional environments--a technique that's perfectly suited to the capabilities of Nintendo's popular handheld. While these games would seem dated on a more powerful console, they fit right in on the GBA.
Even today, OutRun is a truly enjoyable racing game. Space Harrier is the oldest game in the compilation, and it's also the most unique. Set in a world known as the fantasy zone, the game puts you in control of a warrior who soars through the air on a jetpack and battles monstrous creatures using a powerful blaster rifle. Thanks to the forward thrust produced by the jetpack, enemies and terrain are constantly racing toward you. It's your job to dodge these hazards and use your blaster rifle to defeat the bosses waiting at the end of each stage.
Space Harrier was just the second project for a 27-year-old producer and programmer named Yu Suzuki, who would later go on to design many recent hits such as Virtua Fighter 4, F355 Challenge, and Shenmue. Bits Studios did a nice job of bringing Suzuki's second undertaking to the GBA. The psychedelic color schemes and fast shooting action are just as addictive on the smaller screen. The only major deviation from the arcade game is the removal of the specific theme music for each of the bosses. Eagle-eyed fans of the original will also notice that the enemies don't aim as accurately in the GBA version, but the game is still plenty challenging. The next game in the collection is OutRun, which places you behind the wheel of a snazzy red sports car. Your goal is to beat the clock while traveling from one course segment to the next. Although there aren't any opponents to speak of, commuter traffic can slow you down or nudge you off the highway--where a collision with the various signs and boulders along the roadside will lead to a time-consuming rollover accident. A gearshift toggle lets you select between high and low gears, giving you better control through hairpin turns. The most distinctive feature of OutRun is that it allows you to choose between two different pathways at the end of each course segment. In this fashion, the scenery changes with each successive segment, giving you control over how the environment looks every time you play the game. In total, the game contains 15 unique courses. Except for a few minor differences, the version of OutRun included in this compilation is a tiny doppelganger of the original arcade game. The most noteworthy change involves the tendency of the car to pull more quickly toward the side of the road at higher speeds. This is a difference some purists may scoff at, but it literally takes less than 30 seconds to adjust to. Devoted fans often point to the game's music as its most outstanding aspect, and the GBA duplicates all three music selections with remarkable accuracy, even if the bass volume seems a little loud at times. Cosmetically speaking, there are fewer boulders and signs lining the side of the road, and the signs announcing the names of upcoming course segments are absent. All the other graphical features from the arcade game are present, however. Super Hang-On, the third game on the cartridge, has a lot in common with OutRun. The underlying goal of both games is the same: to reach the end of a lengthy course as quickly as possible. Here, though, all the vehicles are motorcycles as opposed to cars and trucks. There are a few other differences as well. The gearshift has been replaced with a nitrous boost that you can trigger at top speed, and you no longer have the option to pick and choose course segments during a race. Instead, you choose one of four different premade route maps before the race begins. In all, the game contains a grand total of 48 different course segments. Those of you who remember Super Hang-On for the Sega Genesis may be disappointed to learn that the GBA version doesn't allow you to collect parts or hire different mechanics. Those features were unique to the Sega Genesis version and not included in the original arcade game, which the GBA conversion is based on. Rounding out the collection is After Burner, an aircraft-based shooter in which you have to work your way through roughly 20 stages of oncoming fighter planes. Even though this pint-sized conversion of After Burner looks and sounds like the original arcade game, it doesn't play nearly as well. The controls are slow to respond, and you can avoid most--if not all--incoming fire by performing barrel rolls. The game is also just flat-out missing a few major aspects from the original arcade version, such as the ability to attack ground targets during bonus stages or the need to escape chase planes using the onscreen radar.
This version of After Burner is missing a few aspects from the original arcade game, such as the ability to hit ground targets in the bonus stages. The only other low point for the compilation is the absence of a save feature for recording high scores or pausing games in progress. This isn't a huge complaint by any means, but it's still annoying to make progress in a game or to input your name onto the high score list and have all your hard work disappear once you turn the system off. Despite the omissions and deficiencies in After Burner and the unfortunate absence of a save feature, Sega Arcade Gallery is one retro collection that's worth owning. The ports of Space Harrier, OutRun, and Super Hang-On are remarkably close to the original arcade versions, and all the games in the compilation compare well with what's already available for the Game Boy Advance.
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