Game & Watch Gallery 2

"Toad is in it... Making it a frightening game!"

Wario Land 2 (Delux version) was the only launch game out for the Gameboy Color which featured a Mario Character, and even that was a remake of a black and white version. So, how do you throw in a Gameboy Color game which isn't a remake? Wario Land 3 is the answer. You maybe wondering why I said that, well Game and Watch Gallery 2 is simply a collection of old games made in the 1970's and 1980's, but with more features and modern versions of the games featuring the following Mario Characters : Mario, Luigi, Toad, Yoshi, Wario, Bowser, Princess Peach, Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong JR, as well as common Mario baddies, Shy Guy's, Cloud Guy's and Boo's.

Game and Watch Gallery 2 is jam packed with arcade games for you to try, each with a Classic mode, where you play the original versions of the games on your Gameboy Color, and a Modern version, the colorful one version with Mario Characters and fair difficulty. There are five games at the start of Game and Watch Gallery 2 you can choose from, Vermin, Parachute, Chef, Helmet and the star of the show, DONKEY KONG!

There are actually more then five games, There is a lot more for you to unlock, but only some of them have a modern version. The game itself is jam packed with a lot of features just waiting to be unlocked, like a music center, theature, games and a huge collection of more games and features. It is truly a gem for features.

The games are easily played. All the buttons what consist up the UP, DOWN, LEFT and RIGHT buttons, sometimes the A and B .

I will explain each of the ''already selectable'' games to chose from, I won't go in to the hidden one's, you don't want your game spoiled do you?

Vermin

Vermin is my least favourite game, and it also the hardest in my opinion. Remember such games like Whack-Attack or the American version, Whack-A-Mole? Well if not, the role is simple. Several monsters or something like that are attacking a object, you need to keep the buggers at bay but hitting them over the head.

In the Classic mode of this, You control a stick man (Get used to it folks, he'll be there all the time in classic mode now, and sometimes he'll have stick-friends) and he has these SWAT bats what you hit flies with, You must guard him over holes and hit moles when they pop out. There isn't actually any point fior the moles to come out of the holes, bless them. Let's report the stick man to the R.S.P.C.A!

In the modern classic, Yoshi must go round in a circle protecting eggs. If any of the eggs is hit three times, it is game over. Yoshi must act quickly and keep all the enemie's at bay. Each enemy has it's own different personality, Shy guy's and company go in for the kill, Yet Boo's tend to go very slow and avoid you by turning invisible when you go to hit them.

Verman's difficulty is quite hard, and not many players will be too found of it, but I must admit that the graphics and sound is pretty impressive indeed.

Helmet

Helmet is my favourite game on the cartridge, and has a medium difficulty. The aim of this game is simple, you must Mario (Or Wario) from A to B. A and B can act as doors, flowers, castle gates, anything. But something is stopping you friom racking up easy points. This annoying cloud guy will throw things like hammers down to the ground, forcing you to think of a very good tactic before rushing for the kill.

Hammers or whatever tend to go very slow the first few runs, but it becomes much harder after you have racked up some points.

Classic mode and Modern mode is almost the same, of course there is some exceptions like power ups which let you regain lost health. After getting a lot of points in Modern mode, the game switches the current scene to something else, something harder like a garden path or, the most challenging of all, Bowser's Castle.

Scattered accross the path is coins, the more coins you get before going to your destination racks up massive points when you finally get to ''B'', But, the more coins you get, the slower Mario and Wario will get until they get to the exit. Not good. Anyway, Helmet is the best game on the cartridge, offering a lot of fun. Worth the look.

The sound, Music and Graphics are all spot on in Helmet. In fact, in every game on Game and Watch Gallery 2, it has good sound, music and graphics,so I will think I stop reviewing the Sound, Music and Graphics for the remainder of the three games.

Chef

Chef is a very fun game on Game and Watch Gallery 2. It also proves challenging, and leaves me in histerics every time I drop food on the floor in Modern Mode. The aim of Chef is to ''juggle'' food all the time, Tjhis happens in both versions. You just juggle in classic mode, and sometimes this cat steals your food for around five seconds.

In modern mode, you still have to juggle the food that Mario and Luigi serves you. You, as Princess Peach has to juggle the raw food, which is sasages, eggs, steak or chicken with a frying pan, when their cooked, you food them to Yoshi. Becareful not to give Yoshi cold or burnet food, or he will feel bad. if you keep giving him good food, he may even give birth to little Yoshi's, and the process continues. If this happended in real life, Princess Peach could make a fortune.

Parachute

Parachute is a fun game for the first time you play it, but it becomes very boring quickly.

In Classic mode, a plane drops Stick Men, and you, a stickman in a boat must catch all of them. There is an endless supply of stickmen fallimng, just how do they fit in to one boat which is 2CM big?

Arcade mode is the same, except that the stickmen are replaced with Toad, Yoshi and Donkey Kong JR. Toad's fall slow, Yoshi's are medium and Donkey Kong JR Falls very fast.

Donkey Kong

The star of the show is a very fun, yet repeative game. In classic mode, a stick man must climb a city's scaffolden to get to the top of a under construction building with a gorilla on top. Your aim is to rescue your girlfriend. Like the other classics, this has a strange plot as the man is happy just getting close to his girlfriend, you don't actually save her.

The modern version is an exception. In three worlds, a sewer, garden and winter wonderland, you, as Mario must save Princess Peach from the clutches of Donkey Kong whilst avoiding barrels and enemies. You must stand on switches to make platforms appear, so you can go hurt Donkey kong.

Smash hit Box Office!

- Loads of games remade, Including old favourites.
- Good graphics, sound and music.
- Very fun.
- Lot's of secrets.
- It's Mario!

Plain, Old, Boring Museum

- No Multiplayer mode
- Two games get boring after a bit
- Classic Mode sometimes too hard.

Summary

Graphics - 9/10
Sound - 8/10
Music - 9/10
Challenge - 7/10
Gameplay - 8/10
Enjoyment - 8/10
Replaybility - 8/10
Overall - 8/10

Alternatives : Namco Museum, Game and Watch Gallery , Game and Water Gallery 3, Super Mario All Stars

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/21/01, Updated 10/21/01