NEO GEO Pocket Color Collection Volume 1: Review By Brad Feingold

 

 

 

 

In the world of video games on consoles, I feel that collections, compilations, remixes and reboots are four of my favorite words that I look for when I hear about a new game. The main reason for that is because if it is a compilation, you are WELL getting more than what you paid for. For example, you pay one price in the past for Mario All Stars and you get Super Mario 1,2,3 and a whole bunch of extras.  Remember when you paid an arm and a leg just for #3?

The next case in point, and the reason for this review is the Neo Geo Pocket Color Selection Volume 1. Already you know it will be awesome because there is a good chance that there will be another down the road. But the main idea is to take the best of the best and put them into a collection that everyone will want. Just released for the Nintendo Switch, V1 already had my interest with the ten attention getting games that I was looking for.

 

Here are the eight games that are included with the collection:

– SNK GALS’ FIGHTERS

– SAMURAI SHODOWN! 2

– KING OF FIGHTERS R-2

– THE LAST BLADE: Beyond the Destiny

– FATAL FURY FIRST CONTACT

– SNK VS. CAPCOM: THE MATCH OF THE MILLENNIUM

– METAL SLUG 1ST MISSION

– METAL SLUG 2ND MISSION

– DARK ARMS: Beast Buster 1999

– BIG TOURNAMENT GOLF

Now in the past, we have reviewed Match of the Millennium SNK vs. Capcom, Gals Fighter and a few of the other classic fighters. So we will not be covering those games. However, what we will talk about is two games that we have been waiting to see on the Switch which are Metal Slug 1st Mission, Metal Slug 2nd Mission and also Big Tournament Golf.

Playing nice, we will start with the quiet ones. Golf is unfortunately a very rare bird for the Nintendo Switch. Even though there is the NES Golf and also now a PGA golf, which took a bit to long to arrive, there still hasn’t even been a Mario golf released. Yes there is one coming out, but the release is way too slow for me.

BTG is just what the doctor ordered for the word simplicity in the world of golf.  Choose your club, aim, hit the ball at the power you would like and then hope you don’t hit the ball too hard or soft. As I said very easy game to follow. But sometimes I got really frustrated for hitting the ball just right and then the ball hit the pin, or flag and bounced off. If only my real game was like that. But it is just a simple game to get me through a little time when I want a break from hacking and slashing and shooting. It is a very nice addition to any collection.

 

But let’s get to the meat and potatoes! For the first time ever, Metal Slug 1 and also Metal Slug 2nd Mission appears on the Nintendo Switch in miniature glory with not one but two games ported from the Neo Geo Pocket. Always wondering what the hype was about this game, I started to play this game for about five minutes and realized what attracts people to this.

The Metal Slug series a run and gun shooter very similar to the 80’s classic Contra. But for some reason it keeps players coming back and wanting more. I lost track of how many hours I have been playing this game.  Between this and a couple other retro games, I really enjoy these two games the most. There is something about a fast paced runner with various bullet collections and also vehicle obtaining goals to get you through the missions.

The graphics are just what you would expect coming from a Neo Geo Pocket Cart, and they looked great, with the exception of a little glitchiness in the 2nd Mission that did cause a little slowdown. But these are something that I really looked over to enjoy the game the most.

Bottom Line: This is an AWESOME collection of some of the BEST OF THE BEST in Neo Geo Pocket games. However, if you already have purchased some of the games in the past, you might not be getting all of your moneys worth. But let’s turn this around again. For the low price, it really does even out the the numbers, but just gives you an extra couple games.