M.C. Kids

"I thought it would be a boring kiddies' game I could master in ten minutes. I was very, VERY wrong."

It was maybe four or five years ago when I went over to my friend's house, and I noticed that he had a new NES. It also came with about five games, notably Super Mario Bros. 1 & 3, Donkey Kong Classics, and McDonaldLand. So, we played Super Mario Bros. for a good half hour, then SMB3, and once we finished every other game, my friend asked if we should play McDonaldLand. I thought that this game was obviously going to be a crappy, boring, toddler's game that could be completed within the first ten minutes. But we played it anyway, just for the helluvit. Then after seeing my friend go through the first level, I was almost instantly attracted. Then when it came to my turn on the second level, I thought this wasn't such a bad game after all! In fact, it must've been probably the second best NES game I have ever played (nothing beats Super Mario Bros. 3.)! Well, I have my own NES now, and so I've decided, nothing better to do than write a review for McDonaldland!

McDonaldland was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System by Virgin and Ocean in 1991, and probably the best ever thing to be associated with McDonalds (apart from their Big Macs, but I'm not writing about that, right now). Mick and Mack are camping out in their tent one day when big Ronald McDonald, everybody's favourite clown, approaches them and tells them that the bozo Hamburglar has pinched his magic wand and is causing trouble. Mick and Mack are now the M.C. Kids and together they fight the power of the evil of the Hamburglar.

Gameplay - 10/10
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Very, very attactive game, plus the controls are easy to learn too. The levels may be a bit easy at first, but discovering all the many secrets is pure fun, and maybe raises the challenge just to a suitable level for any audience that plays it.

Story - 7/10
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The storyline is good. You have to retrieve the magic wand that has been stolen from Ronald and defeat the Hamburglar. At the same time you have to get these cards from many different locations (I won't spoil them for you though).

Audio/Video - 8/10
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For NES graphics, these look pretty good. The animation is very smooth. The music isn't exactly ''discotheque'' like the incredibly brilliant music from games like Super Mario Bros. or Final Fantasy, but it's good enough.

Buy or Rent? BUY
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Buy it! Buy it! Buy it! 'Nuff said. This game is soooooooo cool! If you own a NES and don't have McDonaldland, then get it, it's really awesome. You could probably get it from an eBay site or at a car boot sale for no more than £2.50 or $5.

Good things about this game
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It is pure fun.
It is very addictive.
It's about McDonalds.
It's got good music.
Controls are easy to learn and use.

Bad things about this game
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Not much of a challenge.

Other than that, this game is one word...Flawless! There's almost NOTHING bad about it at all! Congratulations Ocean for making one of the best NES games ever!

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/26/02, Updated 06/19/03