Here you will find my brief reviews of NEC TurboGrafx-16 (TG-16) games, along with a rating from 1 to 10. A rating of 9-10 indicates a great game; 7-8 is a good game; 5-6 is a mediocre game; 3-4 is a poor game; and 1-2 is a horrible game.
8
The cave boy and TurboGrafx-16 mascot Bonk stars in this platformer. Using Bonk's giant noggin, you headbutt your way through five side-scrolling worlds as you try to defeat King Drool and rescue Princess Za. You also have the ability to chew (yes, chew) your way up cliffs, and you can eat meaty power-ups to become invincible for a short time. Many secrets and bonus stages are hidden along the way. The action is fairly simple with no complex moves to perform, but its headbutt-and-jump gameplay is quite a bit of fun. In addition, some catchy and memorable tunes accompany the action. Bonk's Adventure is a game that every TurboGrafx-16 owner should have in their collection.
10
Devil's Crush is the best video pinball game I've ever played. It has a mild horror theme with skulls, dragons, sorcerers, skeletons, and other monsters throughout. The table is three screens high and there are some two dozen targets to shoot for. There are opportunities for bonus points, extra balls, multipliers, and guards that keep you from losing a ball. There are also six different bonus stages--and most of them are quite enjoyable. The graphics and sound are great, and you can save your game either with a password or with the back-up memory (if you have the right hardware). The ball physics may not be extremely realistic, as the ball will do some odd things occasionally. But Devil's Crush is just so fun that it's worth playing over and over again.7
In this horror-themed action game, you play as a guy named Rick, who wears a hockey mask--much like Jason from Friday the 13th. Use your fists and your feet to fight through seven side-scrolling levels filled with zombies, demons, and other monsters. Some stages have additional weapons, including a two-by-four, a shotgun, and a golden cleaver. There are some challenging and frustrating parts--the womb level comes to mind--that will require some practice to beat. The hit-detection seems a bit off too, but it's not a huge problem. Splatterhouse has some gory sights, including corpses that literally spill their guts, that may not be appropriate for young players. The game is short and lacks depth, but it is enjoyable while it lasts. The spooky music adds to the atmosphere, and Splatterhouse is a good game to play around Halloween.
Note: The Splatterhouse review is based on the Wii Virtual Console version of the game.