"Pretty difficult, but deep and strategic."

Trojan is a sidescrolling Hack-and-Slash made by CAPCOM in 1986. It's on the CAPCOM Classics Collection Vol. 1. I've recently beaten the game all the way through, so I have a few different opinions in some areas.

Story: 6/10
Although the game makes no attempt to tell it, the story is good, although rehashed. It's one of those Fist of the North Star-type Post-Apocalyptic future things, and one guy has to go out by himself to battle the bad guys.

Presentation: 7/10
The title screen shows your character on the right demonstrating the game. He blocks a knife with his polygonal shield, then gets it knocked off by a bomb. He picks his sword and shield back up, then the demo comes on. Simple enough. Also, the HUD is easy to read, for it's just an energy bar, a time limit, and some lives and points. Also, the dank colors really give the story some power.

Graphics: 8/10
Like I said above, the game uses very drab and bleak colors. Not as much as Street Smart, but it's not colorful like Strider, which came out a bit later. Everything looks like it's supposed to, with buildings being crumbly and having signs near-falling, Mountain ranges spanning the backgrounds of the wilderness, and a cool city-scape in the back of the city levels. Also, the enemies are well-designed, and nothing looks out-of-place. Although, isn't that the same guy in Avengers? Well, Trojan came out first, but it seems like they just took off his kneepads and leg warmers, made him fight barehanded, and stuck him in a top-down view. Oh, well. Also, the sprites are decently sized, animated, and detailed for the time period. Nothing leaves you asking what it is. Oh, except for the hit effects. They're so insignificant, you can't tell that you're dying until you either die, or look at your energy bar.

Sound: 8/10
I'm still almost rating this solely on the music. To me, it gives a slightly Latin feel, but only because it sounds like what my old neighbors used to play really loudly downstairs... The soundtrack has a lot of good basslines, and should get you in the mood for some fighting, but, it's a little muted for my tastes. (The tracks that stand out to me are the first, second, third, and fourth stages, and one of the game over songs.)The sound effects are what causes the muting. They're pretty loud, but there are maybe 1 or 2 places in the game where nothing happens until you walk forward, so, your ears can rest a bit.

Gameplay: 8/10
This game is pretty fun to play, and easy, too. Your Trojan Warrior has a polygonal shield that looks like a Puzzle Fighter gem, a sword, and he can jump. Also, there are spaces that say 'JUMP' in neon letters. If you jump on them, you can reach high up enemies, and get extra points. You can block in 4 directions, being straight up, diagonally up-forward, forward (All of these can be done in the air, too), and crouching forward. If you block a bomb, then your weapon blows up, and you have to punch and kick your way to victory until you see your weapon again. Although, sometimes the bosses can be a little cheap (Except the end boss, who wins the "Potentially Easiest Final Boss of All Time" award), and what's with the elevator stages?! Since I beat it, I noticed that, unlike Strider would later be, that Trojan is NOT a button-masher. Trojan can only swing his sword in about 1 second intervals, so mashing on the sword button will not make him go faster. This, combined with the shield, makes for a very strategic hack-and-slash, which takes quick thinking and a good memory to beat. What keeps this from a 9 is the fact that Trojan is a tank. He doesn't feel pain until he just falls over and dies, so, you constantly need to monitor his energy, or else the constant blows to the face or knees will make him die. At least on NES he makes SOME kind of reaction...

Replay: 3/10
I rated the Replay based on the CCC. If you're in the arcade, you only play again to beat the high score. On the Collection, you unlock things. Otherwise, there IS no replayability.

Overall: 7/10
Trojan is a fun game if you like Strider without the acrobatics (which your character looks like Hiryu, too), or if you like Avengers without the horrible viewpoint and speed. If you combine those together, you get Trojan. The game's pretty hard at points, but you won't find yourself throwing your controller. It's good for a casual play-through, and the strategy involved in the shielding and slash speed give it some extra points, but not enough for an 8. It's just not worth going through multiple times, unless you like it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 08/26/07, Updated 01/06/08

Game Release: Trojan (US, 1986)