This one has been a long time coming. I’ve had “StarTropics” on my to-do list pretty much since it was released for the NES in 1990.
I can’t explain very well why I hadn’t committed to sit down and finish it in all that time, though I believe that conversation begins with the notion of “NES hard” and an aversion to the time commitment of an RPG. Regardless, I’ve now finally completed it.
(The RPG hang up was probably a little misplaced, because this game leans into adventurey, Zelda-like tendencies.)
But a proper review of the game needs to address firstly its charm, which is downright irresistible. The island setting surely helps in that, imbuing a sense of spirit and tone from the jump. The humor only helps, contributing to the light mood, and the action and plot are satisfying to navigate.
Having all of those points in its favor serves StarTropics well, because the game has a series of knocks against it well before it flies completely off the rails in the final act.
The sluggish controls and unforgiving enemies/easy deaths are a smidge too much. This game earns its reputation for being tough. And there’s a lot of silly backtracking and fetch-questing that irritates. And oh yeah, some of the puzzles sorta suck.
The last level definitely sucks, at least until you get properly leveled up. But I bring all this up to emphasize just how much heavy lifting the aforementioned charm has to do. It’s like this clumsy baby deer sliding around on the ice. You find it adorable despite, nay, because of its missteps. That this game ultimately succeeds is wild to me.
I can’t give it an 8, but this is a very high 7, flirting with must-play status for NES fans.