If you're hankering for a little something on your Sega Genesis, but can't decide what to play, then why not go with one of the safest games imaginable? QuackShot is always a good time. Hit the start button, give it an hour to an hour and a half, make your day a little more bearable. This is one of those rare moments when I'm comfortable admitting that I've played a particular game for 35 years. It's a timeless adventure that deserves to be revisited and enjoyed until the universe folds like a piece of paper and collapses.
It's been a rough week for the guy writing this piece. You know how I get when life brings me down. I pick a random game to bully. Picking on one of the few things on this planet that doesn't deserve it isn't the right way to live, but that's just how my poisoned brain works. Maybe if I turn QuackShot over enough times, I'll unearth some fatal flaw buried within that'll score me points with a gaming community that hasn't ever given a shit about my work. Like I said, poisoned brain. Imagine my disappointment when the only flaw I could find was a potential game-halting bug if I timed a press of the start button to match the exact moment an NPC initiates dialogue with Donald. It's a bug that might have even gotten caught in a later revision. You don't have to tell me that if I'm reaching too hard to take the shine off of a gem.
Okay, so enough nonsense. What makes this game work can be summed up in a single generic word: playability. Controlling Donald the treasure-hunter is both seamless and deep. It's like... well... whatever swimming in the Scrooge McDuck money bin feels like; endlessly rewarding. Walking, running, jumping and/or shooting. All the dots connect with a subtle brilliance. I don't ever have to think about what I'm doing, and that counts for a ton in a platformer. Somehow the duck leaps with the grace of a swan. Donald has a knack for death-defying leaps like he was putting it all on the line every moment of his life. He is so good at this, and it makes playing his game a treat every single time.
Oh, and goddamn! That fucking slide is needles straight-in-the-vein fantastic. I don't spend enough time championing great slides in video games, because this is definitely one of them. Besides being smooth as heck, it's got enough functionality to apply to every situation. You can turn around mid-slide, jump out of it if you're about to slide off of a ledge, or just slide whenever you want a little magic in your life. Also important is that this technique is performed by holding down and pressing the jump button. Not down-forward or down-back, just down. This erases any possibility of an accidental slide ruining Donald's life and your day.
I also have to mention the value of the A button, because Donald's ability to dash isn't something that should be casually ignored. Though, in fairness, I'd never blame someone if they said they did. The button-placement on a typical Sega Genesis controller does make dashing a little awkward. If you're using an emulator to play, then consider mapping the A button to R1 or L1. Any dash usage is going to give this adventure a more robust flavor. Besides the speed boost it provides while waddling around, dashing affects how far Donald's jump travels. Even if all you do is hold the dash button while jumping, that's still adding momentum. It's not required for most jumps, but the extra distance could save a potentially bad one. Dashing is flexible, works just about everywhere, and enhances a game that already has strong movement.
Alongside a series of platforming challenges that increase in difficulty with progress, QuackShot is great at provided a wide range of varied environments to hop & shoot through. There are ancient tombs filled with all manner of traps, a haunted castle with an obligatory underwater section, the door maze from Revenge of Shinobi, and quite a bit more. Everything here works wonderfully. Time isn't wasted on areas that run for too long or don't provide any clever ideas. You get a full globe-trotting adventure that's never boring.
Way back when I played this game for the first time, I recall being a little perplexed that Donald's default weapon was made for stunning and not killing. Like everything else though, it becomes second-nature. A plunger to the face - or whatever the enemy's weak point is - will put them out of commission for long enough. If anything, it provides another opportunity to use the wonderful slide. A little detail, but I also really like how some enemies are tall enough that Donald can hit them the instant he jumps. He doesn't have to sacrifice momentum to land a shot. The baddies do their part by being diverse, but not excessively so. A few might require multiple plungers or others have some unique gimmick. No matter the case, it never hurts the pacing.
Naturally, I don't have any complaints about the bosses. Even after all this time and however many playthroughs, some of them still put up a decent fight. The final boss in particular can be a mean one. During a playthrough I recorded some years back, I realized just how valuable it is that Donald is able to land multiple plungers each time The Duck Knight throws his sword. For what is essentially a game designed with kids in mind, a lot of attention was paid towards spacing, timing, execution, and other concepts that one isn't liable to immediately understand. In case I haven't already said it enough, QuackShot is a deep game. It packs a ton of tech into a brisk adventure, but in a manner so subtle that it took me practically a lifetime to ever consider it.
If you're tired of the endless praise, then I have good news for you. The review is finished. Until next time!
No comments:
Post a Comment