Sunsoft made some good games back in the day. One of them was the original Batman video game based on the hit movie of the same name. It was one of the few good movie adaptations on the NES. Well, before Batman Returns came out the makers of that game decided to make a sequel to their game and they brought the Joker back to life! Why not? He is Batman's greatest nemesis...so we get Batman: Revenge of the Joker. Not only on NES, but on Genesis and SNES as well! We also get mixed results, and one of these games being so difficult it is one of those games people probably ripped out of their systems and flung across the room! I have played all three and my score is a grade for them all.
First off, is Batman: Revenge of the Joker for NES. This one along with the Genesis version is featured on one of two Batman episodes on AVGN. It is also the best of the three games I have played as I give this one a six. It is difficult and annoying, but it still has a charm to it. The music is good and so are the graphics. The game play is not its strongest point as you are supposed to be Batman, yet you shoot a weapon nearly the entire game. Getting by levels unscathed is probably impossible as it is super hard just getting by one enemy without getting hit. It features a couple of flying stages, but they really do not add a whole lot to the game. Just a change up that does not really last all that long. The boss battles are pretty easy until you get to the laser cannon and the two battles with the Joker; however, you can win all the boss battles here with your standard weapon. An okay game, just needed more work.
The Genesis version is next and it is pretty much the same game as the Nintendo version. The graphics are a bit better, but the music which is nearly the same as the NES version, just does not do well in its conversion to the Genesis. The game play is more difficult this time, even though it is essentially the same game as the controls are not as tight, making this game a bit more annoying than the NES version. Not much more to say about this one, mainly because it is the same game with its graphics improved upon and the difficulty ramped up. If you do not have the right weapon during the boss battles you are pretty much not getting passed them. This one also adds a kick to Batman's attacks, but he still mainly just shoots away...he would almost be more at home in a Contra game. This one gets a five.
The final version is the SNES version and it is surprisingly the worst of the three! The graphics and music are really good, but it is so difficult that you want to pull your hair out every level including the first! How the angry video game nerd did not go over this game baffles me! The best thing I can say about this game is that it is different from the previous two games mentioned. Sure, a lot of the levels are similar to the levels in the other two systems, but a lot has changed. This one adds bosses to the flying stages and makes them longer and more annoying. It makes all the boss battles more annoying. About the only part they made easier was dealing with the Joker, if you have the right weapon he is toast! Unfortunately, the rest of the game is a huge ordeal as stages take forever and wait till you get to the snow level. I can imagine many a gamer simply quitting the game rather than dealing with tornado throwing enemies that can kill you with two hits. This version of the game gets a score of three from me.
So there you have it, Joker does not get his revenge only on Batman, but all of us! I do not know why he has such an insane grudge against us, considering most of us have never defeated him in the first game for the NES. All of these games have high points, but they also have a lot of low points...all three are plagued by extreme difficulty and why not have any of Batman's other villains in the game? All three are more shooter than Batman too. Still, the NES version is a pretty fun game at times while the Genesis version needs a bit of tightening. I think that the makers of this game really should have Gensized it, making the music and everything play to the Genesis console's strength. The SNES version they seemed to play to its strengths as far as graphics and music, but they just made it way too difficult. Which is strange, considering that NES games are usually the harder ones.
First off, is Batman: Revenge of the Joker for NES. This one along with the Genesis version is featured on one of two Batman episodes on AVGN. It is also the best of the three games I have played as I give this one a six. It is difficult and annoying, but it still has a charm to it. The music is good and so are the graphics. The game play is not its strongest point as you are supposed to be Batman, yet you shoot a weapon nearly the entire game. Getting by levels unscathed is probably impossible as it is super hard just getting by one enemy without getting hit. It features a couple of flying stages, but they really do not add a whole lot to the game. Just a change up that does not really last all that long. The boss battles are pretty easy until you get to the laser cannon and the two battles with the Joker; however, you can win all the boss battles here with your standard weapon. An okay game, just needed more work.
The Genesis version is next and it is pretty much the same game as the Nintendo version. The graphics are a bit better, but the music which is nearly the same as the NES version, just does not do well in its conversion to the Genesis. The game play is more difficult this time, even though it is essentially the same game as the controls are not as tight, making this game a bit more annoying than the NES version. Not much more to say about this one, mainly because it is the same game with its graphics improved upon and the difficulty ramped up. If you do not have the right weapon during the boss battles you are pretty much not getting passed them. This one also adds a kick to Batman's attacks, but he still mainly just shoots away...he would almost be more at home in a Contra game. This one gets a five.
The final version is the SNES version and it is surprisingly the worst of the three! The graphics and music are really good, but it is so difficult that you want to pull your hair out every level including the first! How the angry video game nerd did not go over this game baffles me! The best thing I can say about this game is that it is different from the previous two games mentioned. Sure, a lot of the levels are similar to the levels in the other two systems, but a lot has changed. This one adds bosses to the flying stages and makes them longer and more annoying. It makes all the boss battles more annoying. About the only part they made easier was dealing with the Joker, if you have the right weapon he is toast! Unfortunately, the rest of the game is a huge ordeal as stages take forever and wait till you get to the snow level. I can imagine many a gamer simply quitting the game rather than dealing with tornado throwing enemies that can kill you with two hits. This version of the game gets a score of three from me.
So there you have it, Joker does not get his revenge only on Batman, but all of us! I do not know why he has such an insane grudge against us, considering most of us have never defeated him in the first game for the NES. All of these games have high points, but they also have a lot of low points...all three are plagued by extreme difficulty and why not have any of Batman's other villains in the game? All three are more shooter than Batman too. Still, the NES version is a pretty fun game at times while the Genesis version needs a bit of tightening. I think that the makers of this game really should have Gensized it, making the music and everything play to the Genesis console's strength. The SNES version they seemed to play to its strengths as far as graphics and music, but they just made it way too difficult. Which is strange, considering that NES games are usually the harder ones.
