Nintendo throwback provides the complete package

All the '80s nostalgia may cause the urge to wear leg warmers.

By Chase Koeneke

Published March 30, 2009

What I wouldn't give to have been a gamer on Oct. 18, 1985, the day the Nintendo Entertainment System arrived in North America and single-handedly saved the video game industry as we know it. Unfortunately, without a time machine (what the hell, scientists?) I'll never be able to live my dream. But "Retro Game Challenge" just might be the next best thing.

In "RGC," the spiteful Mr. Arino sends you back in time to that fateful year to play the games of the past. Although the plot is absurd and throwaway at best, it ends up being better than just being handed a collection of games a la "Namco Museum."

There are eight faux-NES games to be played, which pay homage to many of the retro games that came out in the mid to late '80s. Some of the highlights include "Cosmic Gate," a "Galaga" clone that actually makes some interesting changes and "Rally King," a top down racing game that utilizes drifting. No one game is good enough to stand on its own, but the combination of all eight makes it a stellar package.

Even though the games are definitely fun, the real highlight of "RGC" is its spot on rendition of '80s gamer culture. Anyone who has read an issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly or seen the movie "The Wizard" will instantly pick up on many of the small nods. The cheat codes you find within the in-game magazine, Game Fan, to the oddly included in-game instruction manuals to all eight fake games will take you back to a time when you stuffed quarters into Pac Man at the arcade. This game was obviously made with veteran gamers in mind, although the casual crowd will enjoy the simple concepts and controls.

Every part of "RGC" is an absolute blast, which makes it hard to highlight what could be improved. Of the eight games, only six of them are unique. Two are more or less a slightly updated version of another game in the collection (namely, "Robot Ninja Haggle Man 2" and "Rally King SP"). It would've been great to see games that referenced "Super Mario Bros." or "Contra" as well, but that ends up sounding greedy after realizing what we've already been given.

My biggest complaint (and only glaring weakness) is that each game is locked until you beat them in story mode. Although the DS made for mobile gaming, where a short burst of gameplay is ideal while traveling, it would've been great to have all the games unlocked at the get-go so you could play a few levels of "Star Prince" without having to be focused on completing a 15-minute challenge just to make it playable. It's a small gripe, but one that can be irksome when you're forced to play a game you might not like as much to get to one that you really do want to play.

Don't let that bit of criticism discourage you from picking this gem up though. Although the sequel is already available in Japan, we'll never see a "Retro Game Challenge 2" in the U.S. unless the original sells well enough to convince the publisher that localizing it would be worth it. So please, buy this game. If not for you, then please do it for me, because who knows when I'll ever get that time machine.