Wardner
System: Genesis
Release Date: May 1991
Developer: Visco Corporation
Publisher: Mentrix Software
Genre: Action
Take the action to a jerky warlock and get your girl in Wardner! This is a port of an arcade action platformer brought by a publisher we have not seen on this list before. A boy and his girl are lost in the woods and before they know it, the girl is kidnapped and the boy is left for dead. Can you get through the six stages standing between you and your lady?
The hero jumps with the A or C Buttons and shoots a fireball with the B Button. To begin, only one fireball can be shot on screen at once, but this can be powered up by collecting crystals dropped by enemies. To be specific, you need to grab sixteen of these crystals in order to add a fireball to your arsenal. Or, if you’re lucky, you can find a large crystal to power you up immediately. You can buy different fireball magic in the shops between levels. I tried the Magic of the Stars, which makes the fireballs zigzag in front of you. I then got the Magic of the Sun, which shot a line of fireballs in front of me.
Treasures strewn about the level and money bags dropped by enemies give you the buying power you need for these magics. There is also a cape for sale that gives you an extra hit and a needle and thread which powers your cape up another level. Each level is timed and if you aren’t moving right through at a good clip, it will kill you when it runs out. Buying a clock in the shop will increase the time limit by 30 seconds if the time limit runs out.
The game is big on trial and error. This zipline was made to murder you. As was this one. These fireballs drop from the sky and hidden golems will pop up out of nowhere to get you. There are always things in the environment that will kill you. Level 4 is kind of a maze and will kill you if you go the wrong way. Enjoy these moving platforms over a spike pit. Jumps have to be perfect because it’s hard to avoid each obstacle. I don’t know who this guy wants me to kill, so I just ignored him.
Each level ends with a boss that can be difficult to begin with, but they each have a simple pattern for you to learn. This lady even tricks you before transforming into a hideous creature. The final level brings all of the bosses back in a timed boss rush. Good luck getting through without dying. The final battle against the Wardner isn’t too bad if you’re sufficiently powered up, it just requires a series of pixel perfect jumps. If you can beat both his forms, you save your girl and it’s off to cherry blossom fields.
Graphics: 2.5
Sprites look a little odd to me, I don’t know… washed out? But otherwise the animations are pleasant.
Sound: 2.5
The music and sounds are fine, though not spectacular or anything.
Gameplay: 2.0
Technically the character controls fine and the premise isn’t bad, but I’m not big on trial and error platformers.
Difficulty: 2.5
Levels can be quite difficult, but they are able to be overcome if you take the time to learn the different patterns and layouts.
Fun Factor: 2.0
It was alright for a short playthrough, but I would have been furious had I purchased it at full price in 1991.
Overall Rating: 2.3
Wardner earns a C+. This is an overall inoffensive game that is good for a try, but don’t expect anything great from it.