Saturday 11 May 2013

Prisoners of War (NES) The Grade

....SNK games on the NES SUCK.

Actually, that's not entirely true. While the Ikari Warrior games are complete trash, this game along with Baseball Stars 2, and Guerrilla War are the exceptions. P.O.W. was a hit 2 player arcade game ported over to the NES in 89'. The NES features only 1 player action though.

Where's the two player action SNK?

So you play as a soldier who purposely gets captured by the enemy in order to escape and save his allies. You start the game with 3 lives, a punch, kick, back attack, and a jump kick. Along the way you can collect armor,  health, knives, brass knuckles (increases your punching power), and a machine gun. I just want to note that the 'hit detection' is a bit off. Nowhere near as bad as other NES games I've played, but it could have been tighter. 

 Tip: Don't enter any doorways. They're just a time waster.
Tip: At this part move your man to the top and you won't be crushed!

Unique in the game is the fact that you can enter doorways, cave entrances, and even the back of supply trucks. You'll have to face a few armed soldiers, but if you kill them you'll receive a power-up. Pretty good, but in my opinion, it's better to just continue down your path. 

 If you make it past a level you'll see some nice cut-scenes!
The Japanese box art for P.O.W. Very cool. ^>^

There's only 4 levels to slug your way through. And honestly, they're long enough. Coupled with some great music (I especially like Level 2 and the boss theme!) and sound effects you'll be having a good enough time. The graphics are also very well done. The sprites (while not varied) are good and clean looking. The detail in the objects and backgrounds are nice. Overall, good effort. P.O.W. gets a B.

While the game is notoriously hard, it can be overcome with the 20 man cheat code. The hit detection could have been a bit better, but the nice visuals and sounds keep me coming back for more. A two player mode should have been included in the game. Chances are you'll find this in the cheap bin of games, but its a nice filler type of game in your collection. Grab this game. It's pretty good! ^>^

"You smell like death..."

No comments:

Post a Comment