Robodemons
System: NES
Release Date: 1990
Developer: Color Dreams
Publisher: Color Dreams
Genre: Action
Go through the gates of Hell to save the Earth in Robodemons. You are an unnamed great warrior. It is up to you to defeat the demon Kull, lord of the underworld. Equipped with booster rockets and a magical boomerang, move through the seven levels of Hell.
Gameplay is simple enough. You have two things you can do. Jump with the B Button, throw your boomerang with the A Button. The boomerang shoots forward, curves up, and comes backward a bit. You can only have one projectile on screen at any given time. Some enemies are killed in one hit, others take up to ten.
Levels begin with a rocket booster portion. I feel like these exist so you can gain some life and pick up a smiley face to earn a free life. Kill enemies without taking too many hits. You then transition into the action platform levels. Typically, you need to grab a key and walk across the stage to the exit. There’s a boss type enemy guarding the door that jumps when you shoot your boomerang. Feel free to avoid it and get to the exit.
I feel like it uses the same engine as Pesterminator. The music sounds familiar. The weird platforming feeling is similar. The lack of level length and enjoyment certainly rings a bell. The final level moves you through rooms containing some difficult enemies. At the end is Kull, sitting on his throne of death. First, he’s flanked by some snakes or something, but when you kill those, he starts spitting out flying enemies. I cheated my way through the final boss because I didn’t want to play anymore.
Graphics: 1.0
The backgrounds are interesting, but the sprites look bad.
Sound: 1.0
The one song that drones over and over is too slow and lame to be good.
Gameplay: 0.5
Your character moves awkwardly, the lack of being able to aim your boomerang sucks.
Difficulty: 1.0
Avoid enemies as best you can and hope you kill them before they hurt you too much. Hearts are hard to come by in the platforming levels.
Fun Factor: 0.5
This is not a fun game. I started to get the hang of the boomerang, but then it was over.
Overall Grade: 0.8
Robodemons earns a D. Do you want to play a crappy game? Then this is for you! I’d personally pass, though.