* Reviewed when game was Under Judgement.
Don't be put off by the menu screen! Rest assured, the game really does deserve a chance of at least 2 minutes. The nostalgic graphics brought me back to the memories when I used to play on the SNES, and as the author had already mentioned - retro arcades. Even the movements of the sprites, music, sound effects, storyline and level-mapping are alike, which is a great experience for those who wish to relive those good ol' days.
Considering how this is a retro-esque game, the quality of the BGM and SFX is understandable, though the impatient and easily irritated ones may find themselves growing bored of the repetitive sound made when the character (who looks quite like Mario, in a different colour scheme, and shaved) runs/walks. To me it sounded like someone who has trouble letting out a long fart while they walk, in turn, breaking down the sound into short, dull but high-pitched little squeaks. Annoying (but that's just me).
The storyline is fairly simple. Your girl has been taken away by an antagonistic being - this one, a gigantua bird - and you must save her or she will meet her demise - a rotating blade with teeth they call chainsaw. I have absolutely no idea why the bird did that, but it did, and so you must save your girl, level to level, until you finally confront the bird in a boss battle.
The controls are fairly simple. To navigate, use the left and right arrow keys, and, tip, the jump is quite short, so jump - with the spacebar! - while running so that you do not fall off when your hero almost reaches the edge of a platform.
Slow gameplay, but that could probably be my system's fault. The time taken for my hero to start back at the beginning of a level after death (yes you have limited number of lives!) was largely consumed, and I'm not sure if it's possible to skip the short interlude/music/"Ready" screen after my death - it just stayed there for 5 seconds or so before letting me move on already. Annoying (again, it *may* not be the game's fault).
Art: 3.5 stars (greatly nostalgic SNES graphics)
Sound: 3.5 stars
Storyline: 3.5 stars (typical Popeye-ish plot)
Gameplay: 3 stars
Overall: 3.5 stars (3.4 stars)