Batman Returns for Christmas

Originally released in 1993 on a variety of gaming systems, Batman Returns follows the same story as the film it’s based on, but adds a significant amount of comic-book flair. There are several unique versions of the game, including experiences on the Sega Genesis, NES, MS-DOS, and more. While those games are respectable in their own right, the Super Nintendo version rises above the rest, providing players with an epic beat ’em up adventure that rivals the best in the genre.

Set across seven stages, Batman Returns sees out heroic caped crusader hunting down the villainous Penguin, battling the anti-hero Catwoman, and fighting his way through hordes of criminal goons. Every stage is based on a specific scene in the film, guiding players through an action-packed journey that stays true to the source material. Just like in the movie, Batman must fight his way through the Penguin’s army of thugs and thwart his sinister plot for Gotham City. You’ll brawl in the snowy streets and businesses of Gotham, drive the Batmobile around a bit, and even delve into the Penguin’s Lair for a final showdown.

All of that is fine and expected, but what sets Batman Returns on the SNES apart from other beat ’em up games is its Christmas setting, which adds a flourish of color and nostalgia. Much like the original 1992 film, Batman Returns is firmly set during the Christmas season, offering seasonal snow-filled levels with festive decorations. Trees decorated with colorful lights and ornaments dot the scenery, Gotham’s citizens are busy with holiday shopping, and the Penguin’s clown-goons bust out of Christmas presents with enthusiasm. The stark winter environments help the rest of the color palette pop, resulting in a vivid, action-packed experience.

Batman’s Christmas Beatdown

The Super Nintendo version of Batman Returns was developed by Konami, who are no strangers to the beat ’em up genre. Well known for their work on other action classics like TMNT IV: Turtles in Time, X-Men, and The Simpsons Arcade Game, Konami has a track record of quality. That quality is reflected in Batman Returns, which feels great to play and is full of fun and exciting mechanics. In addition to punching and grappling enemies with brutal efficiency, Batman has a handful of items at his disposal.

If any enemies are giving you a hard time (like the motorcycle-riding clown bikers), you can chuck a Batarang at their head to disrupt their attacks. Batman can also utilize his trusty grappling hook to navigate dangerous ledges, as well as swoop across the stage and kick enemies with force. When things get particularly overwhelming, you can even toss a dangerous test tube of explosive material to clear the screen of all baddies. Each stage also ends with a tough boss encounter, so it’s a good thing Batman can block, attack in mid-air, and even pull off a special attack for extra damage.

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An Adventure Begins

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past starts off with our titular hero, Link, waking up to see his uncle donning a sword and a shield during a stormy night. Unknown to our hero, Hyrule Castle is being overthrown by a dark wizard. Suddenly, a voice fills your head. It’s Hyrule’s princess, Zelda, as she calls out for help. It’s at this point our hero rushes out into the stormy night and begins his adventure.

Initially A Link to the Past starts off linear: break into the castle, save the princess and escape. However, once this daring rescue is complete, how you tackle the rest of your adventure is entirely up to you. You can decide how to tackle the game’s challenges, exploring the open world as you see fit.

A World of Opportunity

It’s this openness that sets A Link to the Past apart from many of its peers. Even it’s own predecessors. At the time the ability to explore at your own pace was a luxury that few games afforded players. While exploring Link will discover numerous temples. Each housing a powerful foe, as well as a unique piece of equipment to help Link in his adventures.

It’s in these temples, as opposed to the over-world, that you will find most of the game’s challenge. Each temple will employ various traps, puzzles and gimmicks. In one dungeon you may be flicking switches to to raise and lower barriers, while the next you may be dropping down from higher levels to navigate a labyrinth.

Once you manage to fight your way to the end of a temple, you’ll need to face off against one of the game’s many bosses. These foes usually require striking a weak point, or using a newly discovered piece of equipment. Figuring out their weakness is often the key to victory. Unfortunately it’s during these fights once of the game’s weak points becomes apparent.

Controlling your Destiny

While many of the enemies require precise strikes to defeat, Link’s controls are often not up to the task. Link is a lefty. As such he swings his sword right to left across himself. It’s this swinging animation, while a nice attention to detail, that can mean enemies attacking you from your left can sometimes get a cheeky hit in before your attack animation completes. The ability to strafe could have alleviated these issues. Unfortunately, it will feel as if you’ll spend more time positioning yourself than actually striking an enemy.

This can lead to taking hits that feel unfair. Coupled with the often excessive amounts of knock back you often feel more like a pinball rather than the heroic saviour of Hyrule. Ultimately you will learn the timing of these strikes after a few encounters, but strikes never feel as satisfying as the should do.

Conclusion

Fortunately this is only a small blemish on what is otherwise a polished title. With it’s bold and detailed environments and some of the most memorable music of it’s generation, the presentation is top-notch, especially upon its original release back in 1992. Throw in some impressive special effects such as rain and transparent fog and you have a title that really did show off what the Super Nintendo was capable of.

It is worth noting that I first completed Link to the Past almost 30 years after its original release. On it’s original release I never managed to play beyond the opening scenes on a cousin’s SNES, as such I don’t have much nostalgia for the title.

Adventuring through Hyrule often felt like one fetch quest after another. Although through a combination of ingenious dungeon design and some iconic music, the game managed to keep me invested throughout most of my play-through. It was also interesting to see where many of the series’ roots were originally laid.

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