Kirby + Contra + Megaman =

Gun Star Heroes!

Contra made me want to play more run-and-gun games, and I knew I owned this one, so I booted it up! Fortunately, it's also on the list.

The first thing I noticed about the game is how vague its plot is. Apparently, it's different between the JP and NA versions. This explains the random Power Rangers who show up at the end. But if you dig into tertiary sources, there's some stuff here. None of it is explained in the game, though.

Like all RnGs, though, who cares> It's all about the gun fun, and it's better than Contra. Each character gets two guns again, but you can combine them into one gun for the best aspects of both, like Kirby. You can also use each weapon separately, ala Megaman, which is nice, giving you a lot of ways to attack things. There are also viable melee tactics that I couldn't get the hang of. I need a manual!

You play through seven levels and a large number of random dudes and, sometimes, interesting bosses. Each level is different, too. One level is the Contra dungeon, and the next is an auto scroller on wheels. There's a Snakes and Ladders side game and a Galaga shoot 'em up toward the end.

The music is exciting, and it's incredibly detailed. Each track is pretty long, but I can't hear where it loops. Most are excited, but there are a few slower, tensioned tracks within.

The graphics aren't up to what I'd expect from the Genesis, but this was Treasure's first game, so I'll let it slide. There are a few scenes that blew me away. There was even foreground graphics once!

It's late for me, so here's the skinny.

Plot: who? I don't know who these people are! 6/10

Gameplay: math. Take the best aspects of some classics, and what do you get? A 9/10.

Art: Genesis. Why is everything on this console so pretty? 8/10

Sound: undeserving. Everything was drowned out by my homing fireballs and twenty thousand mobs. This is a shame. 10/10

Charm: yeoman. It works fine enough. 6/10

If the story made sense or was explained in any way, this wouldn't be here. And it would have more points above, probably. -2

In the end, Gunstar Heroes gets a 37/50. It's one above Contra, and I enjoyed this slightly more. It tracks.

I also dabbled in a few others tonight.
Outrun made no sense to me.
Alien Soldier, while not on the list, is another run Run and Gun. It's not as good as the others.
Final Fight looked amazing, but I found it slower than Streets of Rage. It was also harder/tedious. But it was still better than Super Double Dragon.
SDD was even uglier, slower, and tedious. I really don't get this one.

And with that, I've come to the end of the smaller games portion of this side quest. I was hoping to finish all of these games in a day or two. I mostly did that and consider myself on time still. There are two more I want to play still, assuming I don't add more, but I suspect those will take longer. Advance Wars...eventually!