Capcom

December 1992

Action

1 Player

Mega Man faces off against his brother, the early prototype model ProtoMan, in the fifth game in the long-running Capcom series.  The gameplay in Mega Man 5 is solid, and there's a new, more futuristic soundtrack, but there's little else about the game that can distinguish it from previous entries in the series.  Could our little blue hero be wearing out his welcome?

Nintendo/Capcom

March 1994

Action

1 Player

The last Mega Man game on the NES brings back some of the magic the series lost after the last two generic sequels.  The stages (although sometimes rather frustrating) are more imaginative than in the previous two games, and the soundtrack has been improved over Mega Man 5's, with comfortingly familiar music that hearkens back to the series' early days.

FAST FACT:  Strange but true... Nintendo distributed the sixth Mega Man game in the United States.  The game was released late in the life of the NES, at a time when Capcom was more interested in promoting its new, more technologically advanced Mega Man X series for the Super NES.

Hudson/Game Freak

October 1990

Action

1-2 Players

The toys have revolted, and only you can put them back in their place!  To do this, you must slide the tiles under your feet, pushing the renegade dolls and action figures into nearby walls and uncovering hidden bonuses.  Mendel Palace is a cheery little action game with an original concept, but the picky collision detection makes it less fun than it could have been.

FAST FACT:  Game Freak, the creators of Mendel Palace, went on to design the hugely successful Pokemon series for Nintendo's later game systems, including the Game Boy and GameCube.

Ultra

June 1988

Action

1 Player

This is not just your ordinary military action game.  If you hope to destroy the mighty war machine Metal Gear, you'll have to either slip past your enemies unnoticed or sneak up behind them and knock them out.  This stealth play mechanic, coupled with deep gameplay and a wide variety of items, makes Metal Gear a very intriguing game despite its lackluster graphics.

Jaleco/Sculptured

March 1991

Action/Shooter

1 Player

In Metal Mech, you'll stomp through the streets of New York in a giant robot that looks like something Robocop should be fighting.  Despite all the havoc you'll be wrecking, you won't be having much fun.  Metal Mech is an extremely unpolished game, with choppy scrolling, ugly graphics, weak level design, and infuriatingly awkward control.

Irem

February 1991

Shooter

1 Player

This very stylish but very tough futuristic shooter lets you reverse gravity, sticking to the ceiling to escape deadly spikes and to draw a bead on precariously placed enemies.  The visuals in Metal Storm are just short of fantastic... if it weren't for the repetitive background patterns and overuse of bright blues and oranges, they'd be truly outstanding.

Nintendo

August 1986

Action/Adventure

1 Player

What else can you call this game but a classic?  It's fun, it's complex, and it's very, very looooong.  You'll be racing through hundreds of ancient alien hallways, blasting strange creatures while collecting weapons which not only help you deal with them, but act as keys to new areas.  Metroid's design still influences today's video games... now that is awesome.

Sammy

June 1990

Racing

1 Player

In the vast car lot of formula racing sims for the NES, this one's a lemon.  The best part of the game is when lantern-jawed racing star Michael Andretti instructs you on how to complete each course.  The worst part is when you're actually on the track, trying to take his advice while struggling with the stiff control and squinting to see your shrinky-dink race car.