I imported this game because I am a huge Dig Dug/Mr. Driller fan. I was going to wait for the USA release that is only a couple of weeks but decided to get it early.
The Japanese in the game is fairly limited. There is a bit of a story but nothing big.
The graphics are okay but nothing to get excited about. I would list the graphics as GBA quality.
The controls are pretty bad. This is the type of game where you need to make precise direction changes and there are plenty of times when the controls aren't there when you need them. Several times I have pushed left only to go up and so on.
The sound/music is sub par. At first I thought the music was glitchy. There are two types of sound going on though. There is the back ground noise and then when you are pushing a direction there is music being played. The problem is that the music stops or cuts out when you are not pushing a direction. That was a weird choice to make as it makes the sound appear to be unfinished.
The top screen is put to use in this game. You are digging on the bottom screen and need to drop pillars (by digging under them) that will cause the land to break off into the water. If you time it right you can trap the boss in an area that will fall off into the water, thus completing the level. You need the top screen to see where the boss is and to plan your move. There is a huge variety of monsters on the bottom screen as well as a lot of power ups.
The Stylus is not really used. It can be used for menu navigation and a mini game for extra lives at the end of a level but clearly that was just added on with no real purpose.
This game has two save slots and auto saves at the end of every level. There appears to be a lot of levels. I have only played ten levels at that took a little over an hour.
This game does offer a two player mode but you will need two copies of the game. I was hoping that Namco would make the Japanese version single cart/multi-player, like they did with Mr. Driller but they did not.
I have not really played it enough to give it a fair review. However, although the controls are wonky and the music is glitchy, it is a fairly addictive game. The puzzles get harder as the levels progress but sometimes they are harder than they need to be because of the controls.
6/10
The Japanese in the game is fairly limited. There is a bit of a story but nothing big.
The graphics are okay but nothing to get excited about. I would list the graphics as GBA quality.
The controls are pretty bad. This is the type of game where you need to make precise direction changes and there are plenty of times when the controls aren't there when you need them. Several times I have pushed left only to go up and so on.
The sound/music is sub par. At first I thought the music was glitchy. There are two types of sound going on though. There is the back ground noise and then when you are pushing a direction there is music being played. The problem is that the music stops or cuts out when you are not pushing a direction. That was a weird choice to make as it makes the sound appear to be unfinished.
The top screen is put to use in this game. You are digging on the bottom screen and need to drop pillars (by digging under them) that will cause the land to break off into the water. If you time it right you can trap the boss in an area that will fall off into the water, thus completing the level. You need the top screen to see where the boss is and to plan your move. There is a huge variety of monsters on the bottom screen as well as a lot of power ups.
The Stylus is not really used. It can be used for menu navigation and a mini game for extra lives at the end of a level but clearly that was just added on with no real purpose.
This game has two save slots and auto saves at the end of every level. There appears to be a lot of levels. I have only played ten levels at that took a little over an hour.
This game does offer a two player mode but you will need two copies of the game. I was hoping that Namco would make the Japanese version single cart/multi-player, like they did with Mr. Driller but they did not.
I have not really played it enough to give it a fair review. However, although the controls are wonky and the music is glitchy, it is a fairly addictive game. The puzzles get harder as the levels progress but sometimes they are harder than they need to be because of the controls.
6/10
