Vectorman

"Among the systems' best"

One of the best games made on the Genesis, Vectorman impressed players with its graphics and sound. Beyond that, it was an enjoyable, too! I was fortunate to have this game as a youngun, and it still plays as good as I did when I opened it up that wonderful Christmas day. Enough of my backstory; what Is Vectorman? Vectorman is your hero, the hero of the future; 2049 to be exact. He is a robot made out of balls and a head. This seems to have been the popular thing to do back in 1995. I remember at least a couple of games that starred balls or included them as a prime object, including 3D Ballz for the N64. Vectorman is nothing like that travesty, though. Vectorman rocks, and don't you forget it. Anyway, let's move on.

THE GAME
This game is a 2D side scroller that has you, Vectorman, blasting things with your unlimited arsenal of deadly white sphere-things. There is a story to this game, but I won't bother to go into it due to lack of interest. It's nothing special, but you'll find that you don't really need a story because it's fun enough without it. The stages are long and there's plenty to see and do. Your goal is to get to the end before time runs out to usually encounter a boss. Along the way, you'll collect "Photons", which in science are weightless particles of light, but not here! They are circular white objects to be collected for points. Kind of like coins in Mario, only these don't give you extra lives. As you proceed through the colorful stages, you'll also find Televisions that are begging for destruction. What's the point of the TVs? I don't know; I just blow them up and collect what's inside- powerups.

Blue Sky Software knew the dangers of simplistic design. Vectorman has a number of transformations and weapon upgrades to keep things interesting. The transformations include morphing into a bomb, a car, a fish, or a jetpack for various purposes. I find that these are unnecessary and are often there to serve the quick purpose of blowing up a wall or moving around the level a bit. I wish they would have allowed access to secret areas or included your abilities of jumping and shooting so as to continue on. Instead, they provide a momentary interlude which is more of an annoying distraction than an addition to the gameplay. The weapon upgrades are what it's all about. They're all equally fun and useful for clobbering your foes. Also, they're all over the place, which is good.

SOUND!
The Genesis certainly has a distinguishable sound effects palette that has had its share of stinkers. Sometimes it works, like in Sonic, or in this case, Vectorman! The sound effects are great, from the blast of your 'gun', to the destruction of TVs, and especially the explosions. This game sure likes its explosions and they all sound like cannons- very awesome. You may get tired of the same sounds of double-jumping and shooting, but maybe not; after all, did that happen with Sonic or Mario? Not for me. The music is decent, but not too memorable. The title screen music is a great introduction to the game, which is probably the only memorable track in my opinion.

GRAPHICS
Vectorman has some impressive graphics that push the Genesis to the max. Everything is nicely detailed and everything is so colorful. However, there is more of the color white than in any other game I've ever seen. Seriously, your 'bullets' are white, the Photons are white, the explosions are white. Not a bad thing, just noteworthy. What I found to be most impressive is the shading and shadows present when you walk under an awning or overpass or are under water. Pretty neat for 16 bit. The graphics on the last stage are a neat thing to witness as well.

LEVELS
There are a bunch of them, and like I said before, there's always plenty to do and plenty to see. There are several routes to take to get to the end, some of them hidden to provide the only replay value the game offers. The time limit is strict and won't allow you to explore every level in full detail unless you're a pro at Vectorman. It's fun to try and find every TV for those bonus points at the end of the level and it's always my goal to get them all. I find that the stages are as long as they should be, but could have done with a less restrictive time limit or at least more time powerups. There are enough enemies to keep you busy, but are all rather easy to dispose of.

The bosses are imaginative and challenging. Most of them simply require you to shoot them until they die, which sounds simple enough, but they put up their own fight and require you to strategise a bit. There are plenty of them, as well, Just about every other stage offers a boss to defeat at the end, and when they are destroyed, they blow up in a momentous spectacle of light and sound.

Every other level or so will feature a unique mini-game that is actually a part of the real game, only different from the rest of the stages. One has Vectorman morphed into a train trying to take down a robot hanging onto the tracks. Another has you in a disco scene shooting at the DJ in the middle. Some of these stages are challenging, but mostly just provide a nice break from the gameplay. The bonus stage is rather unusual, as well. There are three opportunities to challenge the bonus stage and are accessed by finding the satellite dish in the regular game and destroying it. I can't even describe what the bonus stage is like, but it's a test of coordination and concentration as you're attacked from all sides. Stay alive for a minute and you're awarded with some points. This stage is tough and what's worse is that the energy you had when you entered the stage carries over to the bonus stage. So sometimes you won't even stand a chance because you only left one dot of energy. I usually just skip these anyway.

CHALLENGE
I can't remember the first time I played, so I can't speak on behalf of the first-timer Vectorman player, but the game isn't hard. You start with only three dots of health which can be upgraded with powerups you find throughout the game. The first few stages may present a bit of a challenge, then, since it's so much easier to die. Once you get to 5 dots, you're pretty much set since you'll also have accrued a safe number of 1ups as well. What's more is the multipliers, which are found by destroying this-or-that, which multiply the health and 1ups you collect. At least one point in the game allows you to get 10 extra lives at once this way, but only if you know the stages well. I won't say the game is easy, however, so don't eliminate this game because of that. Insane mode is a joke. The only thing different in this mode is that the enemies fire more bullets. The bosses and many enemies are largely unaffected and pretty much stays the same game.

YOU WIN
The end shows a neat cast of characters and a congratulation. This game is still enjoyable after 13 years and should remain so for as long as I can see. It's also available on the Sega Collection for the PS2 if you can't find it otherwise. It's pretty much the same experience as on the Sega. Hooray for Vectorman!?

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/21/08

Game Release: Vectorman (US, 1995)