Forgotten Worlds

Forgotten Worlds, released by Capcom in arcades across the globe in 1988, was the first of SEGA's reprogrammed versions of Capcom's late 1980's coin-op bombshells, around the time when the Genesis first showed up in the spotlight in 1989 and Altered Beast was the pack in game.

The game is centered around two beefy (duh) soldiers in the Forgotten World, a planet that has been infested by monsters, aliens and dragons. These two camouflage-wearing, Terminator-look alikes (they both wear "sunglasses" and one of them has a funky looking mohawk) are called The Nameless Ones, for the simple fact that they carry no real names (hmm, foreshadowing of Interplay's Planescape's Torment perhaps). Their job and yours, of course, is to rid the planet of these pesky monsters.

The game plays very similar to Capcom's NES game Section Z, mixed with a dash of R-Type because you fight with a weapon satellite in front. Using this satellite, you can rotate and shoot in all eight directions. Because all you're concentrating on is which way you rotate the character and the satellite, the game with fire by itself and will never turn off. This "rapid fire" mode is very useful, but can become annoying when you want to aim the shots at the most powerful enemies.

Forgotten Worlds is one of those games where it is much easier and more fun to play in two-player mode, since then the players can continue as much as they want. Another fun aspect of the game is that you get to buy different weapons and items, including obligatory first-aid packs, and an armor. There is a shop in every stage of the game, but the further you get, the more expensive weapons are.

Overall, this is another outstanding, almost addictive shooter that shouldn't be overlooked. It is highly recommended that you find a friend to play with, though, as the game is insanely difficult in one-player mode. Two thumbs up!

Review By HOTUD