Gaming & Culture —

Virtual Console Monday (8-06-07): Wave Race in the hizzy

Wave Race 64, Adventures of LOLO, and Galaga '90 make this an uneven Virtual …

Ah, Monday. I'm hungover from my overindulgence of id Software titles, but of course I'm always ready to get up to see what Nintendo has for me. Like an alcoholic, but for games, I find it's best to take the gaming life one day at a time. What does Nintendo have for us today? Let's start with the wave physics...

Wave Race 64 (Nintendo 64, 1,000 point or $10) 

One of the earliest N64 games, and still one of more impressive titles. The game sported some great physics; how you attacked the waves in all the different conditions could have often more impact on how you finished than your cornering skills. Add in a nice system for tricks and you have a perfect way to get rid of that $10 that's been floating around your bank account. 

Adventures of LOLO (NES, 500 points or $5) 

You're a blue ball, and you need to find all the hearts in each level of this puzzle classic. Once you do, you grab the treasure chest that appears and you're off to the next level. There are fifty levels in all. If you solve the set, you deserve many more cookies than I can provide.

Galaga '90 (TurboGrafx 16, 600 points or $6) 

A port of the Galaga '88 arcade game, this is the second sequel to the classic Galaga. It adds a new feature (warping to different dimensions) along with scrolling levels, but in my opinion Galaga was never something that needed to be made more complex; they nailed the design the first time. Still, if you want Galaga with a twist, I suppose this is the best way to get it.

I'm not the biggest LOLO fan and Galaga '90 is a little gimmicky for my taste, but Wave Race 64 makes everything better. I think I'll be hitting the waves later today.

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Channel Ars Technica