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Robotosh
By PaulEMoz
I was never really into the James Pond games back in the day. I think they came out around the time of the likes of Zool and Superfrog, and I'd probably convinced myself that I was too grown up for platform games featuring cute characters. And while at the time I was probably right, there's no denying that there's some fun to be had with this type of game. So, apparently for this reason, or out of some mad rush of nostalgia, Play It have deemed it necessary to resurrect the James Pond series in 2006.
It's a bit of an odd fish to bring back to life, actually. I mean, the name "James Pond" hardly stands tall in the annals of gaming history as a shining beacon at the pinnacle of 8-bit gaming. And yet, in a way it makes sense. There are thousands upon thousands of thirty-something gamers, and many of them whinge that "they don't make games like they used to" and "old games are better than new games". Well, if you believe that, then James Pond: Codename Robocod is for you.
Nobody else has reviewed this yet, which means there's nowhere for us to steal our screenshots from. So I've made my own.
Well, it's for you if you can't be bothered to dig out your Megadrive to play the version you bought in the nineties, that is. James Pond: Codename Robocod is not so much a resurrection of the series, more of a straight port. It is better than the old version in some ways: it's been tidied up, and it plays a little faster in some crucial areas. But other than that, it's the same collect-'em-up platforming high-score fest that it always was.
At first, it's really quite appealing to be playing a game where you have lives. So often these days, you just restart from your last save point when you take a hit, and just keep going on forever. This is how it used to be, baby. You run out of lives, and it's Game Over. And, when was the last time you played a game where, every time you collect an item, its points value flashes onto the screen in bold, bright colours? It fair takes you back. But after a while, when you've gone through ten levels and haven't lost a life, and you've got lost somewhere in a maze of platforms and you can't escape because you've missed the one item you need to collect and can't find the bastard thing, you remember why you stopped playing these games in the first place.
Might as well use another one of these. Even if it is the stuff that nightmares are made of.
James Pond: Codename Robocod is unashamedly, unapologetically old-school. It's a throwback to days we thought were long gone. It's true: they really don't make games like this any more. And yet, someone has. And while it's far from exciting, offers nothing new and suffers from all the faults you'll remember from every game like this that you've ever played, there's still something refreshing about finding a 2D platform game, where you play as a fish and run and jump around collecting cakes and tennis rackets, on the Playstation 2. It's also just what many people have been crying out for for years. And for the price, if it's what you fancy a bit of, you can hardly go wrong.
November 2006
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