Join Awinnerwasyou as he travels back to the 1990s and remembers his first experiences with a classic SEGA title: Alex Kidd In Miracle World.
I’ve been a gamer for nearly 22 years now. Over that period, I’ve played many games and owned many consoles. And I have a lot of love for all of them. However, if there’s one company that has always meant the most to me, it’s SEGA. Sure, Nintendo may have started my interest in video games, but it was SEGA who truly made the most impact on my life. My memories of the games and the consoles are many, and it is those memories that have made life worth living. In this series, I intend to review some of the games that made my childhood, as well as recounting my fondest memories of them. This, I hope, will give some insight into what it was like growing up with these classic games. I also intend to take a look at the classics I missed first time around as well.
So, let’s take our first trip down memory lane, and I can’t think of a better game to start with than the very first game I ever owned- Alex Kidd In Miracle World!
It was early 1992 when I got my first ever console- the model 2 version of the Master System. Unfortunately, I had to wait until my granddad had hooked it up to my TV before I could play it- which he couldn’t get around to doing for a few days. So in the meantime, I found myself reading the instruction manual for the game that came built into the console. That game was Alex Kidd In Miracle World. Reading about the game got me very excited about playing it- it sounded awesome! I couldn’t wait for my console to be set up so I could finally play it. But was I in for a treat, or a disappointment?
The first stage was a good indication of how varied the gameplay was.
The story put you in the shoes of the titular Alex, who was on a mission to save his homeland from the evil Janken the Great. Along the way, he learns about his past and his true heritage, which he must also fight to restore. Though the game was a platformer, there was plenty of variety in there. The first level alone moved vertically, with Alex making his way downwards through many hazards, before landing in a pool of water for a horizontally scrolling underwater section. Later levels have you flying in a helicopter, exploring castles and even riding in a speedboat! This game certainly had plenty to keep you occupied.
Another smart aspect of it were the boss battles with Janken’s henchmen. Instead of a typical fight, you were challenged to a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. Win, and you could move on. Lose, and you lost a life. To make life easier, you could purchase a power up that would show what your opponent was planning, thus making it easier to win. Later on though, the bosses would attack you after being beaten, meaning you still had your standard boss fights to contend with.
Janken’s henchmen were all modelled after the “Rock, Paper< Scissors” game.
The other power ups were plentiful as well. These were mostly purchased from shops, and included things like the Power Bracelet, which enabled you to shoot projectiles, Invisibility Powder than made you invincible for a brief moment, and the Cane of Flight, which unsurprisingly let you fly for a short while. I still remember the first time I found a shop in the game, but couldn’t figure out how to enter. After a while, I figured out I had to push up on the D-Pad to do this. I know. I was a noob back then, but in my defence, this was the first time playing a video game properly. I still had much to learn…
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