The SNK 40th Anniversary Collection had some classics in it, as well as some games that I have never seen before in my life. The addition of the extra content was brilliant and makes the collection worth your time. If you’re an SNK fan or you just like old games, then add this to the list.
If you had the “honor” of reading my review for the Konami Arcade Collection posted a week or so ago, then you know my love for old arcade experiences. Arcades and old games will always have a place in my heart, no matter their difficulty and what frustration spring from them. It’s a love affair driven by nostalgia.
While it has taken me a while to get to this review, mainly because this time of year has been hectic leading up to E3 next month, I think that maybe SNK nailed what people wanted out of their arcade collection experience. Not only do you get the arcade games, which we will get to momentarily, from various years, but you get some extra material that you wouldn’t have known existed, if not for this collection. That extra material includes a museum of sorts featuring behind-the-scenes concept art, old advertising material for arcade machines, old newsletters, and, this might be my favorite, arcade guide books. I had no idea that arcade guide books existed, but apparently they did. I was unsure of the guide world before EGM arrived on the scene.
On top of the museum material, you also are provided with game soundtracks. These simply aren’t songs of the main theme, rather they are honest to God soundtracks that have multiple tracks listed with timecode. This section alone would be enough to warrant a purchase for video game music fanatics, and co-editor for this site, Steve Schardein. That guy is nuts about music in games.
Anyway, the extras seemed like a good place to start before we begin to discuss the actual gaming content. I get pretty judge-y in the next section, so I wanted to start with positives. That said, here’s what you get with the collection as it relates to the actual arcade games included:
Alpha Mission (1985): I am under the firm belief that the majority of 1975-1986 consisted of developers that only knew how to make top-down shooters. SNK brings this 1985 shooting classic that featured a heavy amount of Namco’s Xevious (1982) in it. Don’t get me wrong, SNK certainly knew what worked, and made it work a little bit smoother and more exciting, but it feels and plays like exactly like Xevious, though one can argue that the power-ups were certainly more flashier with the ship being built upon during flight. It was fun, impressive, but more of the same when it came to the shooters that were out in the arcade world at this time.
Athena (1986): This was my very first NES game, if you can believe that, folks. It played a lot like Kid Icarus, which was released the same year, but did something that I hadn’t experienced before — it was led by a female hero. Incredibly progressive for the time period. Athena is a fun game that deserves its spot in this collection, and the arcade version is hard as hell.
Baseball Stars (1989): Well, it’s no Bases Loaded, which Jaleco brought out a year prior to this 1989 release. This features fast and furious arcade baseball gameplay that didn’t age so well in the long run. It felt like Nintendo’s baseball game that released in the first batch of NES games, though Baseball Stars’ graphical upgrade definitely made it visually better. The best baseball game wouldn’t arrive until the NEOGEO hit the market in the early 90s, but this game was priced at a more reasonable under $200 price tag. It works well for an early baseball game, but won’t turn heads in the long run.
Beast Busters (1989): Where’s a light gun when you need it??? This game was built for either a mouse or a light gun, more than likely the latter because it’s an arcade title. It’s an interesting concept that probably looked good in the late 80s. Things appear on the screen, you shoot said things. It was hitting that time period where Snatcher was released, which featured some great light gun shooting mechanics. It also looks like a fancy/furious version of the arcade game Crossbow, which was a huge hit back in the day. There is a large amount of onscreen chaos, which makes this a visual delight, but also a huge pain in the ass to play with a controller.
Bermuda Triangle (1987): A bigger version of the top-down shooter Xevious and one that features an anime-esque feel to it. This is a tough shooter and probably paved the way for those impossible shooting games that drive people who don’t enjoy Dark Souls bonkers. Much like Beast Busters, there’s a lot of onscreen chaos that will keep you glued to the screen. I can see this eating up a lot of quarters in a 1987 arcade.
Chopper I (1988): During the Reagan years, we loved chopper games. There were a fair amount of games based on war, but chopper games were just another layer of badass. I’m not sure why, I’m sure someone has researched it that gets paid more than me, but it was a ‘thing’. Chopper I was a neat top-down shooter that redefined how much you can blow up with a single chopper that has an Airwolf essence to it. Whatever country is getting the shit blown out of it in this game really has crap pilots and crap technology. It’s a fun shooter, though.
Crystals (1990): An action/RPG of sorts, Crystals takes a Final Fantasy concept and turns into it a tough dungeon crawler with cool looking enemies. There’s a lot to love about Crystals, but it’s not for the weak of heart. It’s a tough game with some coolness to it.
Fantasy (1981): Okay, so if you ever had the pleasure of playing the game Kangaroo in the arcade, then you get the same concept. Some of the levels are straight from Kangaroo, even down to the red ass of a baboon. SNK must have seen Jungle Hunt and Kangaroo, maybe some Congo Bongo from SEGA, and decided it would be cool to mix them into one feature. It’s a fun arcade game for 1981, and it’s something you should try out.
Guerilla War (1987): There’s a lot of one-man army games around this time period in arcades, as well as consoles. You can see a lot of Ikari Warriors with this one. You can acquire vehicles, save your fellow soldiers, and blow a bunch of enemy soldiers straight to hell and back. All of this while having the ability to turn your hero around in a 360 manner (2D – 360). It’s a fun game that is brutal, as an arcade game should be, but it works. Graphically, it’s an upgrade from Ikari Warriors, which came out a year prior.
Ikari Warriors I, II, & III (1986+): It’s like playing twin Rambos. The first game is incredibly basic with its intentions. You’re in jungle warfare trying to rescue fellow people against an evil warlord-esque army. The second one is a bit out there with the inclusion of swords to take care of business, and some supernatural enemies. It might have been a better way to go in several Rambo films. The third one…well…the third one is the third one.
Iron Tank (1988): A spaceship, a chopper, and war walk into a bar and the spaceship and chopper say, “I wish there was a tank shooter”. WISH GRANTED! Iron Tank rolls in with a tank-based game that asks you to move the tank and the turret, which is highly confusing for someone my age. I’m positive that I adored this game back in the day, but it was all sorts of ‘AHHHHHHHHH’ in this collection. Cool concept that expands the shooter genre into a new direction — figuratively and literally.
Munch Mobile (1983): I get it. You’re a car that eats. It’s a wacky 80s game that features eyeballs on a car with hand extensions that grab roadside grub. Much like Iron Tank, controlling a car on the road, while selecting which arm to extend to eat stuff is a bit much for an old man like myself. I can see how much fun this might have been in the 80s. Right up there with Food Fight.
Ozma Wars (1979): Lots of GORF here. LOTS of GORF here.
Paddle Mania (1988): This has the same style to it as Windjammers. It’s a competitive, don’t-cross-the-mid-line sports game that looks like a more violent version of ping-pong. It’s a lot deeper than expected with a sports game, but also a very 1980s type of game sports style. I can see how this worked well in the arcades and would have been a wonderful two-player game.
P.O.W. (1988): YAY! Side-scrolling action! Taking a page out of Bad Dudes and Double Dragon, P.O.W. continues that Rambo feel started by Ikari Warriors and mixes in a little bit of Chuck Norris’ 1984 classic Missing in Action. It was one of the first side-scrolling action games of this time period in the arcade that was fun, but with a little bit of Vietnam War empathy to it. It was also around the same time that Vietnam vets were getting a bit more respect for their service, which was needed way before this game.
Prehistoric Isle (1989): Side-scrolling shooter with a Land of the Lost feel to the action. You’re essentially in a biplane that fights off prehistoric creatures. This is some out-there stuff.
Psycho Soldier (1987): Athena had an anime sister? Gosh, it seems like it.
SAR – Search and Rescue (1989): An isometric contra mixed with Xenophobe. There’s a lot of Splatterhouse like blood and creepy creatures from an H.R. Giger nightmare. How many pop culture references can I put in this? More than the amount of unnecessary neon in Buckaroo Banzai.
Sasuke vs. Commander (1980): I love this title. I love the fact that there are ninjas falling at you in an insane Centipede manner. There’s so much to love and hate about this game, so I’m going to just love it because hating takes time and effort.
Street Smart (1989): A more detailed Karate Champ that adds some Bad Dudes and P.O.W. gameplay mechanics. I do like that they followed a Streets of Rage design too. I do not like how long it takes to beat someone in the game. I must have kicked the crap out of the first guy for like 2-3 minutes before he finally fell.
Time Soldiers (1987): Shirtless time warriors. Ikari Warriors with muscles. Pretty badass for the time.
TNK III (1985): You can see Iron Tank in this game. Same type of mechanics, same type of gameplay, very cool art.
Vanguard (1981): I played the hell out of this on the Atari 5200, and it hasn’t changed much with the arcade version. Great music, wonderful side-scrolling shooter, loved the mechanics where laser beams would come out of every direction of your ship (X/Y). It’s a lot to juggle, but nonetheless fun juggling.
World Wars (1987): Another shooter, another day. This time around, they’ve taken a tank turret and placed it on the front of a spaceship. I like where you were going here, SNK. Very out of the box. I think I used to doodle this on my math exams in the seventh grade.
The SNK 40th Anniversary Collection had some classics in it, as well as some games that I have never seen before in my life. The addition of the extra content was brilliant, and makes the collection worth your time. If you’re an SNK fan, or you just like old games, then add this to the list.
