River City Ransom

"There's trouble in River City..."

RCR ranks high on many people's list as the best 2 player game for the NES and why not? In this adventure/fighting game, you assume the role of Alex and Ryan (or whatever you want to name them) who are battling to free River City High School from assorted gangs with funny names. Along the way you can power up your guy by reading books, buying toys, and eating exotic foods!
This game is an utter blast to play! The gangs you fight have funny names and their last words are amusing (BARF?!). It takes a while to get all the power ups needed to really have fun; actually beating the game isn't too hard. Half the fun is exploring the shops of River City (they have a Flat Irons Mall just like we do here in Boulder!!)
Stay away from this game if you hate fun!

Graphics=8.7 Very amusing! The stubby little inhabitants of this world are essentially the same guy with different heads, but who cares. This game has a lot of fun graphics and everything is pretty well detailed.

Play Control=8.8 You can learn a bunch of moves by reading assorted books, such as Dragon Hands, Javelin Man, and Grand Slam! The only time your guy is hard to control is during precision running and jumping situations. Otherwise, very good control.

Sound=9.5 Rockin' theme song! All the little in between songs are well done too. The fun music matches the fun mood of the game.

Storyline=5.3 Ok, you are saving a girl but also a high school full of captive students from a guy named Simon, so I give it a little better score than the average ''Save the Girl'' theme.

Challenge=6.8 Not very hard at all, but the emphasis here is on fun! So who really cares, plus you can make the game harder or easier.

Overall=9.4 A great game! Very fun, especially in the two player mode. Wacky, goofy and fun-- everything a game like this should be!

BRU'S MUST GET OMETER-10** SO very fun!!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/11/00, Updated 02/11/00