Defender / Joust

"Good solid conversions of two classic games on Game Boy Color"

I recently picked this one up for ten bucks; mostly because I've been looking for a portable version of Joust that isn't on the PSP, but I digress. Today's Game Boy Color game, a part of Midway's Arcade Hits series, comprises of two classic arcade games: Joust and Defender. Curiously enough, a similar compilation was released for the original Game Boy roughly a couple years earlier - although that cartridge was released by Nintendo. I'm not sure if the two releases are related. In any case, if you already have that version, there's no reason for you to pick this one up unless you want color... but even stranger is that this cart is backwards compatible with the original brick GB. Strange...

For those who don't have that version, is this any better? I don't know... seriously, I don't know. I don't have the other version so I can't really say... but I do have this one so I'll just review this now.

GRAPHICS: Visually speaking, both games look fairly decent given the low resolution screen of the Game Boy Color. Obviously, Defender doesn't lose much in translation as far as the visuals go and the levels seem to scroll smoothly enough. Joust does lose some detail with regards to the sprites and platforms, but is otherwise a fairly decent representation of the arcade original. Regardless, they still look fairly nice. If you're playing this on the original brick, the visuals do seem a bit dark but otherwise is fairly nice looking. 7/10

SOUND: Sound is about as good as you expect it to be on the old GBC and to be honest, it's actually fairly good. Joust in particular sounds almost as good as its arcade original and is fairly crisp and clear. Defender also has fairly good sound quality - it almost seems like perfect arcade quality, but it really isn't. Still, top points for effort. 8/10

GAMEPLAY: Gameplay-wise, both games are treated fairly well. Joust plays about as good as it did on a console release, it controls rather nicely, and has a very simple premise that is virtually impossible to screw up - not that anyone hasn't tried. Defender is also a solid play; controls are generally responsive and straightforward, there aren't any major sacrifices in terms of quality, and is a solid game overall. In the case of both games, you can adjust your lives count and difficulty, as well as a couple other options exclusive to each game. All in all, a fun time to be had by all.

Multiplayer is treated differently depending on the game: Joust allows you to link up with another player for two-player simultaneous action, while Defender features two-player alternating play using a single Game Boy, which I thought was a nice little feature. After all, if you can't find someone to share your GBC with, you could always play with yourself. That seems like some semblance of fun. 8/10

CHALLENGE: As mentioned, you can tweak the difficulty of both games, but both have fairly good difficulty curves. Defender is a harder game from the get-go, while Joust starts off easy with a gradual increase in difficulty as you progress. At any rate, you'll be able to handle the controls fairly quickly and be ready for anything. 8/10

REPLAY VALUE: Both games come from a time when earning a high score was the goal of the day. Defender and Joust are both tough games that you'll probably abandon for a short while, but eventually come back to tackle the challenge again. It's something that can be played in short bursts that will gradually get longer as you get better. Even without the additions of achievements or unlockables, these still have some value of play for the short term at least. 7/10

OVERALL: Overall, this is a fairly good port of two classic games. While the loss of resolution and detail makes them seem somewhat bland and unappealing by modern standards, it still bears the frantic and fun gameplay aspects that have made these games worthwhile plays. Chances are you'll probably want to pick this up if you don't already have the fifty other versions of Joust/Defender out there or if you just want your fix of Joust or Defender on the go. Give it a go. 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/14/09

Game Release: Defender / Joust (US, March 1999)