Ecco the Dolphin

"Cute-looking but fiendishly difficult"

Ecco The Dolphin, on the face of it, looks like a cute game. On first seeing it, you'd think of it as a platformer suitable for a younger audience, the sort of game you'd buy your kids.

But then you'll get home, play the game and immediately see how hard it is. Because Ecco The Dolphin is Hellishly difficult, but, beyond the hardship, an excellent game.

Graphics: Ecco never really pushes the genesis although the graphics are nice enough, appearing dull to match the game's overall sense of impending doom.

Sound: One of Ecco The Dolphin's real strengths is the sound. While the effects are fine, it's in the musical department where Ecco's sound really excels. A wonderful mix of melancholic, dread-filled pieces and techno-style beats, all of Ecco's music is superb and was even released as a soundtrack (Ecco- Songs Of Time). The MegaCD versions, music is even better as it was completely remixed for the crisper and much more powerful CD format.

Gameplay: Ecco The Dolphin is a mix of adventure and puzzles, in which you play (believe it or not) as Ecco, a young dolphin on a journey to save his friends and his home from Armageddon. You can talk to other animals with your Sonar, and destroy enemies by charging into them. You have to bars- a health bar and an oxygen bar. You can keep your oxygen bar up by regularly resurfacing (although this sometimes gets in the way of the gameplay) and you can refill your health bar by eating smaller fish.
Some puzzles are devilishly hard, as are some of the games adventure and exploration elements.

Lifespan: Ecco The Dolphin has to be one of the most fiendishly difficult video games of all time, so it'll take you a while to complete. In fact, one of the final levels, entitled Welcome To The Machine, has to rank among the hardest video-gaming experiences of my life. And, like me, you'll probably want to play through Ecco again after you first complete it, so there's plenty to keep you going.

OVERALL: Ecco The Dolphin is an excellent game, at times hindered by a solid difficulty level and minor gameplay niggles, although overall it has to rank among the Mega Drive's best games.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/15/05