Rocket Knight Adventures

"Konami's best character ever isn't Solid Snake......"

Sonic was a hot topic back in the days of the Genesis, and there were lots of sonic clones. Some were pretty good, like Dynamite Heddy. Rare few really took the idea and ran with it, though. There never really was a great side scroller like Sonic. That is, until Konami decided to join the race. Inviting their little Opossum on a wild rock boost of a game that truly defies the stale genre. One thing that really brought this game to my attention was the overall ingenuity of it's design. Think about a midevil world that just so happens to have rocket packs and Opossums and Pigs fighting a global war. Its nothing I have ever imagined of, and kudos to Konami for being so original. Actually, Konami almost always makes a good game. For example, Tiny Toon Adventures: Bab's Big Break for gameboy was a BLAST. Only rare few companies maintain a high level of quality throughout. Capcom slips, as does Nintendo. Sega, Squaresoft, Konami, and Rare are by far the highest quality producers out there.

Konami has been known to go a little too far with sequels, though. For example: Gradius, Parodius, Castlevania, Goemon, Twinbee, Pop n' Music, and even Rocket Knight had a sequel. This isn't bad, but the reason that I like the first Rocket Knight better is because it was so much more original than Sparkster (Rocket Knight 2)

Graphics:
Sparkster, the Rocket Knight, looks fabulous. Konami has made a genuinely fabulous looking game. Everything from the animation to the terrain looks great. Sparkster even hangs on his Opossum tail from time to time with full animation to boot. Most developers need to take notes on this!

Graphics: 10/10

Sound:
Believe it or not, this game has the catchiest tunes I have heard in a long time. The first song still plays in my head, and the carnival song is fabulous. Konami is famous for making catchy soundtracks (Like Konami Krazy Racers). Overall the quality of the music is beyond any other 3rd party developer out there. Way to go, Konami!

Sound: 9/10

Gameplay:
Sparkster flies, hangs, and fights all with ease. He's got a great control system, which really comes in handy in the later levels. The game consists of walking or launching yourself with your jetpack. What makes it so great is the funny animations of the defeated pigs. On one level you are flying along and missles are going straight up, then all of the sudden you see a pig holding on for dear life while he sails away with the bomb. The game is great, not only because it's fun to play, but because it doesn't take itself to seriously.

Gameplay: 10/10

Overall this is an outstanding game that I would recommend to anyone who likes games. The game is so fun to play I could't put it down (and I had just bought Goldeneye when I bought this!). Yeah, the game is that addictive.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/24/01, Updated 07/24/01