KMGR of Zaxxon

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Zaxxon, the classic "isometric 3D" shooter, was brought back as a mobile game. Is it any fun? Well... sort of, but only in the nostalgic sense.

For those who aren't nostalgic, Zaxxon is one of the first "3D" shooters, even though it's really 2D with isometric view. You pilot this space plane that flies through various space fortresses, moving up/down and left/right (your speed is fixed). You need to destroy enemy infrastructure and defenders, dodging obstacles (yes, you can crash). In the way you'll see turrets (at ground level), missile launchers (firing up vertically), and such. Between the fortresses you get some space planes attacking you in random pattern. And every few levels you get to shoot at a boss who shoots a seeking "cruise missile" at you, and you have to kill it or be killed. While playing, your fuel level is steadily dropping. So you need to kill the storage tanks to keep your fuel up, else you also die when your fuel runs out. How long can you last?

The translation is very faithful... all the barriers, "planes", turrets, radars, tanks, and so on. Turrets firing, missile launching, electric barrier shimmering, altimeter... everything is there. The only concession to mobile phone is they added optional "auto-fire", where you just shoot continually.

Other than all that, the game really has nothing new to add. The graphics palette is retro, the look is retro... if you are nostalgic, sure, but as a $3 game, this is a little excessive.

Overall rating: 6.5 out of 10
Pros: everything is here, plus autofire
Cons: and nothing else... at least Spy Hunter gives you an "improved" look
Verdict: only for nostalgic fans

KMGR of Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo

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Super Puzzle Fighter II is an offshoot of Street Fighter II. Instead of mashing buttons to get in your six different attacks and go for combos, you put down the "gems" on a playing field, and use the "break gems" to break as many gems as you can to 'attack'. You can play solo, but that is rather boring. The versus mode is a bit more exciting, as you take one the various other street fighter II fighters in a puzzle brawl to see who is the ultimate champion.

The gem-drop gameplay is very simlar to Sega Columns or Piyu-Piyu. You get two gems, which can be regular, break, or diamond, of various colors. They are dropped two at a time, and you can rotate them as you see fit. There are six columns to drop the gems onto. If you form a square of same color, they merge into super-gem. The larger the supergem when you break it, the more powerful the attack. You BREAK gems by touching it with a break gem, of course. It has to be the same color though. The diamond gem clears ALL gems of the color from the board, and is quite rare.

The problem is there is no tutorial mode, and no hint so you *have* to read the help to play, and that is just unintuitive, and then the versus mode doesn't explain about what's different about each fighter and the special rules.