8 Eyes

"Better than Castlevania. That's right, BETTER."

First off, I feel bad for the crybabies who say 8 Eyes is a Castlevania rip-off. It has it's similarities, but then again, a lot of games have similarities. If there's one thing that makes 8 Eyes better than Castlevania, it's the fact that Castlevania sucks. Yeah, Castlevania's not a good game. Deal with it.

Anyway, continuing with 8 Eyes.

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Story - 7:

Okay, the story's a little overdone, but it has it's moments. It seems a lot of people don't even know what the story IS! Really you have no right reviewing a game when you're so ignorant to it's story.

The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic future. 8 nuclear reactors exploded across the world, causes nuclear fallout and all that good stuff. At the center of each explosion, a jewel was formed. The jewels have magical powers, and the man who becomes king of the world uses the jewels, now known as the 8 Eyes, to make humanity prosper again. However, the king's 8 dukes steal the 8 Eyes in an attempt to gain more power. The dukes fight amongst themselves and split up, each taking an "eye". The king sends his bravest guardsman, Orin The Falconer, to retrieve the 8 Eyes. And that's where the game begins.

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Controls - 9:

Very simple. Right and left move, and down crouches. B attacks, A jumps. Up and B sends Cutrus, Orin's bird, into action. Up and A, as well as Down and A, uses special items. While Cutrus is flying, Down and B has him perform a dive attack. Up and B calls him back to Orin.

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Gameplay - 9:

8 Eyes is fun to play. Battle with normal enemies is fairly entertaining, but it's Boss battles that really liven the game up. Each boss can only be harmed by Orin's sword and Cutrus' dive attack and certain special items. Most of the bosses can be beaten with special tactics, such as having Cutrus do the full job, standing in out of range areas, and hit-and-run.

The bosses may seem difficult, but they're easier if you defeat them in the correct order. The first 7 stages of the game can be played in any order, but there is a correct order which makes the game many times easier.

Some normal enemies can only be damaged by Cutrus. Nothing else too special to say about normal enemies.

To make a note: someone said that the puzzle at the end of the game was a matter of trial and error. It is if you didn't play the game right. Throughout the game you're supposed to find scrolls which give you hints at the order the 8 Eyes must be placed in the final room. If you get the 7 scrolls, it's really just a matter of thinking.

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Graphics - 9:

For an NES game, especially one of this style, the graphics were excellent. You never had to squint at anything and wonder what it is. Everything was pretty clear. Unfortunately, as with many NES games, some of the sprites blended with the background a little too well. It made the game slightly more difficult, but it still loses points for it.

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Should you buy it?

It depends, really. If you're a person who likes challenges and won't get caught up in what few similarities it has to Castlevania, buy it. If you're a true gamer, you won't regret it. If you're not into playing good games, stick to Castlevania.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/14/05