Goemon's Great Adventure
- Only available on the Nintendo 64 (No Virtual Console release)
- 2.5D Platformer
- Developed by Konami
- Published by Konami
- Released on September 15, 1999
It’s no secret to anybody that the Nintendo 64 is my favorite gaming console of all-time. I mean I have an N64 Coffee Table for Pete’s sake (thanks Grandpa)! There are many reasons as to why the N64 is my favorite and I don’t want to bore readers 10 seconds into this article but basically the N64 housed some of the best games of all time. Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 64, Super Smash Brothers, Majoras Mask, Mario Party 1+2+3, Wave Race, Diddy Kong Racing, Mario Kart, Mario Tennis and Golf, Golden Eye, Paper Mario, Perfect Dark, Star Fox, Conkers Bad Fur Day, Banjo Kazooie and Tooie, Yoshi’s Story, F-Zero, Kirby, 1080, Harvest Moon, Donkey Kong 64, Pilot Wings…and Goemon’s Great Adventure. What’s that? You aren’t familiar with that last one? Well that’s about to change because I’m going to show you there is a lot to love about this side-scrolling gem!
If ever there was a game that deserves More Lovin' it's this one right here
Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go!
In Goemon’s Great Adventure you take the role of the blue-haired hero Goemon…however as you progress through the story you are going to have the option to play as not 1 but 4 playable characters. Each character has their own strengths and weaknesses and if you are familiar with the Ganbarre Goemeon series at all they, will be a familiar cast. You will be playing as Goemon the titular blue haired hero-ninja, Ebisuamru the lovable klutz and self-proclaimed "Ninja of Justice", Yae the serious and dependable female ninja, and Sasuke the robot ninja that enjoys tea and baths. In fact you will have to use all of them at some point in order to completely beat the game in all its glory. The plot in GGA is very deeply rooted in Japanese culture and humor. The light hearted story (the game includes laugh tracks) has you stopping an undead army and the leader of the undead army himself. That’s pretty much all you have to know, and as crazy as the story is, it only adds to the reasons to love this game…what a great segway to our first More Lovin' reason.
GGA belongs up there with the greats in my opinion
More Lovin' Reason 1: It's a 2D platformer on the Nintendo 64
Quick, name five 2D side scrolling platformers on the Nintendo 64! And…Go!
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
TIME'S UP!
Were any of you able to do it? Yes that’s right, for a system that has many of the best games of all time, the N64 is a system that is severely lacking in the side-scrolling platform genre. I mean there aren’t really even any bad platformers, there were just practically none for the system! There is a reason for why however and it’s pretty straight forward: 3D technology. When Nintendo and Sony were duking it out during the gaming good ol’ days, it was all about that 3D action. 2D games were a thing of the past meant for the then archaic NES, SNES, and Genesis (although the Playstation had many more options than the N64 in terms of side-scrolling selections). This was the future and the future was 3D. Goemon’s Great Adventure, which was developed and published by Konami for the N64, gets so much love from me because it took what was great about all the classic platformers and adapted it to a 3D environment. Mixing tried and true gameplay mechanics, with bright colorful polygonal 3D backgrounds making it a pseudo 2.5D platforming gem. Platforming games require precise and accurate control and Goemon does just that. You have the option of using the control stick, or the seldom used D-pad to control Goemon and friends and the game feels and controls great. It looks great too, taking you all over feudal Japan and showcasing many of Japans mythical creatures and locales. You will be collecting plenty of entry passes (Goemon’s form of Mario's Stars or Banjo’s Jiggies) to move on to levels in forests, in the sky, in castles, underwater, the underworld, and many more. Mech battles that are custom to the Goemon games are also back and as fun and challenging as ever, giving you a nice change of pace from platforming. There weren’t many 2D platformers on the N64, but thankfully this game is so good that it makes up for the lack of them.
If you wanted 2D platforming action on the N64, this is one of the few offerings you had to choose from...
More Lovin' Reason 2: How Bizarre
Remember that foreign kid that you went to elementary or middle school with? Everything about he or she was different, but not different in a bad way, different in a way that you wanted to find out why the individual was different and why they were the way they were. That is my best comparison to Goemon’s Great Adventure. It is no doubt one of the strangest games of the 64-bit era. Just take a look at this continue screen, and some of these moves you can do, and the enemies you will face. From start to finish this game is filled with strange and wonderful humor, that while I didn’t understand most of it, it kept me engaged for the whole game. The whole plot is so silly, it makes an episode of Adventure Time look like white paint...well maybe not that far. Many of the games jokes are lost in translation as this is a game HEAVLY inspired by Japanese culture, but that is one of the reasons I love this game. It plays great and it is just so different than all most all games out there. That is a recipe for success in my book!
The only other game that is as closely as bizarre on the N64 would be the other Mystical Ninja offering...
More Lovin Reason 3: Multiplayer
Quick, name 5 multiplayer games on the N64
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
TIME'S UP!
Now this challenge was easy wasn’t it? The N64 is perhaps best known for its brilliant library of multiplayer games and is usually still found in many college dorm rooms 20 years after its release in 1996. However when people talk about the great multiplayer N64 games, for whatever reason GGA game gets left out, and that is a crying shame. Goemon’s Great Adventure is everything you want in a local multiplayer platformer. Most people have played New Super Mario Bros. in Co-Op at least once, and with one play most have experienced the fun, frustration, laughter, and general chaos that ensues. Goemon’s Great Adventure is the exact same. You will laugh, you will cry, and you will have fun. After you play this game I have no doubt that it will instantly vault into your vaunted list of best multiplayer N64 games…and THAT is some very high praise.
While the N64 is home to many great multi-player games this is one of the few other co-op games offered on the N64
Ninjas in Paris
I will sum up Goemon's Great Adventure by saying this. This criminally overlooked N64 game deserves to be in your collection. It is honestly that good. And while this is a review that points out only the good aspects of the game, I can't honestly think of any negative aspects to point out! The graphics are nice, the soundtrack fits the game perfectly, the control is tight, the humor is bizarre but charming, and it is going to keep you busy for while. I cannot recommend Goemon's Great Adventure enough and I hope you see now why it deserves:
MORE LOVIN'!