You heard that right, folks: The Wii U Virtual Console is finally getting its first batch of TurboGrafx-16 games! Starting tomorrow, players will be able to download the classics Bonk’s Adventure, New Adventure Island and R-Type.
As the title would suggest, Bonk’s Adventure follows the prehistoric adventures of Bonk: a lovable, yet boorish, caveman who mightily crushes his foes with a mere thrust of his comically massive skull. Battle anthropomorphic dinosaurs and other prehistoric themed enemies in a mission to rescue Princess Za from the evil clutches of evil King Drool. Despite its charming personality and humorous tone, it does very little to break any new ground in the side-scroller genre. It also suffers from a fairly sluggish control scheme, though it can be somewhat forgivable given the game’s slower pace. I’d still give it a shot for anyone seeking a fun, lighthearted good time.
In New Adventure Island, players help Master Higgins rescue his newly wed wife from the nefarious Baron Bronsky. As far as platformers go, New Adventure Island is the cream of the crop. Not only does it stand out as one of the best games the series has to offer, but also admirably sits up top with some of Nintendo’s finest. Visually speaking, it’s nothing short of breathtaking, boasting some of the most colorful and vibrant environments I’ve ever seen in a game from that era. It’s an experience that easily reminds me why I love video games, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in playing one of the medium’s most cherished and underrated platformers.
Widely considered to be one of the greatest arcade shooters of all time, R-Type is a game every rage inducing shmup fan needs to play at least once in their lives. As is typical of the genre, you navigate a futuristic fighting craft through an endless barrage of enemies and bullets in order to reach a screen-filling boss at the end of each stage. The game’s legendary reputation is earned thanks in large part to its responsive controls, frantic gameplay and notoriously hard difficulty. I repeat: This game is not for the faint of heart, so be prepared to put in some serious man hours just to beat it. For those of you up to the challenge, do yourself a favor and add this game to your digital libraries this instant.
Both Bonk’s Adventure and New Adventure Island will retail for $5.99, while R-Type will set you back $7.99.
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Written by Matthew Weidner
When it comes to playing and writing about video games, Matthew aspires to be the very best, like no one ever was. Writing for Nintendo Wire and the thought of one day finally achieving a perfect, no death Super Meat Boy run fills him with determination.
