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It seems that only a handful of the seemingly endless stream of Space Invaders sequels and variations that have surfaced since 1978 actually try anything new, and the release of Space Invaders ’91 (Space Invaders ’90 in Japan) was a lukewarm effort at injecting some new life into the classic gameplay. It didn’t add much, but what’s there is actually fun for a while.
The Genesis is widely known for its shooter library, and among the many titles available is a relatively unknown arcade port of Task Force Harrier Ex. Toned down a bit but still retaining the essential gameplay and feel of the coin-op original, the Genesis version is a competent little game that far too few people know about.
Taito had a a string of releases for the Genesis, and it often seemed like every arcade game the company put out eventually found its way onto Sega’s console. Unfortunately, some ports were better than others, and a few, like Thunder Fox, took a major hit during the transition. Truth be told, there’s actually very little thunder in this version. In fact, compared to the coin-op original, the Genesis port sounds more like a rumbly tummy than anything else. Sigh… such were the things gamers had to live with at the time.
Epyx scored a series of hits in the late ’80s with its Games series, and the California edition was ported to every console ever conceived by man. Ok, maybe not that many, but it sure does seem like everyone had a chance to play California Games, no matter what console or computer they had. The Genesis got a port of its own, courtesy of Ecco wonder group Novotrade, but what could have been the best version of all turned out to be a major letdown. After spending time with this one and seeing all the lost potential, we think someone at Novotrade deserved to be smacked in the head with a solid steel footbag.
Let’s all celebrate our national pastime with a full review of R.B.I. Baseball 3! Then again, after spending time with it, you might actually have more fun watching reruns of old games on ESPN Classic. Still, think of the alternative: going