Alex Kidd in Miracle World has secured itself a very special place within my inner personage.
The reason for this is because, like many (in Europe, Australia and Brazil at least),
I owned a Sega Master System II, and the original Master System II's included this marvelous
game as a built in piece of gaming excitement.
It might have even been your first gaming experience, and I certainly remember playing
it for most of Christmas day in 1991, and obtaining that blasting power ring for the
first time.
Sonic the Hedgehog would later replace Alex as the built in title, but pffft, we're not
interested in that, because Alex Kidd is da' bomb.
In fact there were also a few iterations of the first Master System with Alex Kidd built
in, such as this model sold in Brazil, called the Master System 2, but actually a Master
System 1.
How strange.
Originally Alex Kidd in Miracle World was released in November 1986 to Japanese markets,
but made it's way over to European and North American shores by the subsequent year.
Programmed by the incredible Yuji Naka, this game was a strong reason why Alex Kidd held
a solid claim to the Sega mascot throne for a good number of years, there was even a board
game and everything.
This is, until that blue streak of *PORCUPINE* turned up and ruined everything.
Scores for the game were almost universally good, with some publications going absolutely
crazy for the cute platformer.
Hence Sega decided bundle it with their 8 bit console in 1990; enticing the younger
gamer, whilst the Mega Drive targeted the older, cash rich teen.
The integrated version had a couple of differences from the original.
The first; the snack Alex is shown munching at the map screen is now a hamburger, rather
than an onigiri in the original... and by the way, this is an Onigiri... it's essentially
a rice triangle.
The second is the control scheme was swapped with button 1 to hit and 2 to jump, mirroring
the NES Mario layout.
But before I babble on for the rest of the century, this video isn't about Alex Kidd
in Miracle World per say, it's about Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2.
Available as download from the link shown here.
Originally this was released in April 2016 as a Work in Progress by Ian Wall of sega8bit.com
for the 2016 SMS Power Coding Competition.
Although Ian actually started design of this game way back in 2012, but only made significant
progress through the use of KiddEd, by Calindro.
A ROM hacking tool specifically designed for Alex Kidd in Miracle World....
you've gotta love the retro community.
The fact it's a ROM hack of the original game, feels evident through it's familiarity, but
although it's the same engine, it's not just a few tweaks here and there; this is an entirely
new game, including a revamped soundtrack by Nicole Marie T, which sends waves of nostalgia
over me, although they feel like waves from a slight parallel dimension.
The current version from May 2017 is a stand-alone ROM in itself, rather than a patch, and as
well as providing a fresher look, it cleans up many issues from the initial release, aided
by a small team who worked on the project.
Not only that, but there was also a delightfully arousing boxed version produced, in limited
numbers, which Ian was kind enough to send me.
*me babbling at the camera about how excited I am with the box, and
the fact there's a sticker on the box*
*Seriously, I've probably wet myself at this point*
That checkered Master System cover art gets me excited every single time.
But it has been beautifully executed.
The colour manual is something to behold, and still managed to entice feelings of nostalgia
despite the improvements over original iterations.
The faithful Master System cartridge, provides a sturdy comfort in all it's rectangular,
basic glory, and the little details just provoke feelings of new 8 bit excitement.
In many ways, the box was always the most exciting part of any new game.
Regardless of it unofficial status, having a boxed copy like this makes it feel official,
especially given the professionalism here.
So in my mind, 30 years after the original iteration, a sequel is here to this much neglected
franchise.. of course this excludes the other Alex Kidd titles, because none of them are
what I'd call a sequel to Miracle World, they're just other games, much like Sonic Spinball
and Sonic Labyrinth was to the Sonic series... or in fact, like the western release of Mario
2, which - like Alex Kidd in High Tech World - wasn't actually a Mario game at all....
and even though Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle tries to continue on from Miracle World...
screw that game, it's on the Mega Drive, and they can't even get the king's name right.
In any case, Miracle World ended with the cliff hanger, that his father, King Thunder
or King Sander pre-Romanisation of his name, had gone on a jolly, and got himself lost...
the silly sausage.
So Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2's blurb sets the scene.
"It's been 6 months since Alex defeated Janken the Great and reclaimed 'The Crown'.
Alex's brother Egle has taken the throne and oversees the city of Radaxian.
There is still unrest on the planet Aries however, as monsters still roam the land.
Alex is still greatly concerned by the whereabouts of his missing father.
Radaxian's forces have been unable to locate King Thunder, so Alex sets off himself to
find him.
He retraces his steps and returns to the place where the trail was lost.
Perhaps there was something he missed.
Alex must further explore the Miracle World, traverse dangerous lands and use the art of
Shellcore to defeat his enemies.
He once again has his motorcycle and peticopter to help him get around but now he also has
a plane to fly him across treacherous waters.
Experience even more action in Alex's greatest adventure yet.
Once again, it takes a Kidd like you to handle this even greater challenge."
So, as we're told, you actually start in the same room Alex finished in during the first
game and the first level eases you in nicely, with some familiar surroundings... and a dirty
great pool to swim through.... with seemingly docile yet incredibly irascible fish bobbing
about.
One thing about the original Miracle World, was the high difficulty - for me at least
- thankfully, since having a Spectrum from a tender young age, I grew accustomed to not
making much progress in games, and I was perfectly fine with this.
It's probably one of the reasons I was drawn more into the workings of these games, rather
than occupying myself with completing a title and moving onto the next.
However, Miracle World 2 is even harder than the original, and that's not a criticism;
I loved the challenge of the original, so now with my slightly more proficient fingers,
this game feels around the same difficulty curve as the original.
We still have twitchy controls, a jump which feels more like a hover and some spurious
collision detection, but it wouldn't be "The Kidd" without these.
My numerous and continuous deaths throughout playing are clear evidence of this.
Seriously, I'd forgotten how skittish this game could feel.
Aside from the level arrangements, notable differences are new puzzles.
An Alex Kidd whose hair has grown to shaggy lengths, and a whole slew of new characters
(hopefully, this moving testicle is also gone).
You'll also notice, like the original, there's no hamburger as this is a hack of the original
cartridge ROM, and therefore the button layout is also true to the original.
What's up with you Alex?
Not hungry?
Food not good enough for you this time around?
You fussy little sh**t.
Stop showing off your food and get it down your gob.
One thing I liked about the first game was the flexibility involved in your level traversal.
Some obstacles could be overcome by a variety of different methods.
Sometimes you might blast on through using your bike, other times you might have to use
an object obtained earlier in the shop.
But there was usually a method to suit your playing style.
It's something that I'm very pleased to see continue in this second outing of the game.
Here's an very simple example straight from the off;
Do you take the easy route through the blocks, or the slightly more perilous route and collect
the extra cash.
You're then faced with this additional recess, where further MONEY can be found.
For me, taking the easiest route is nearly always best, although that was easier said
than done on the non-linear levels.
But at least I can still stick to low speeds on the bike.
But, like the original game.
Nothing creeps up on you.
Your possible paths are always evident and your enemies always play fair, leaving you
to plan your route or just trust your skill and execute that slightly precarious jump.
Although those grim reaper ghost things are still a pain in the crack.
Something which isn't continued is the Janken, or rock, paper, scissors competitions at the
end of each level.... and you know what?
Thank fudge for that, regardless of that fact there's a pattern.
How the hell was I supposed to know that as a 9 year old?!?
Ba**tards.
This time, we're straight for the rice triangle, every time.
There are also more secrets than the previous game, often with clues, leading you behind
shrubbery, which is a pleasant aesthetic.
What else do we have?
Oh yes, a new vehicle.
A plane!
Like the bike, things can get pretty hairy and the projectile seems to evaporate a few
feet in front of your soaring transportation.
But again, you know what you're dealing with, and the skill level is well balanced.
We also have the ability to continue, if you have the funds, which is more than welcome.
Although, frankly, going into the editor and upping your lives is still my preferred option.
So just like it's original, Alex Kidd serves up a slice of timeless, classic gaming.
The graphics may be fairly simple, with plain backgrounds, but that does mean a solid 60
frames per second... or 50 if you're on a PAL system, which I will add, does mean the
game runs slower on European hardware, in fact, just like the built in version did,
even though it was almost exclusively sold in 50hz regions... and actually, it feels
much nicer to play at this slightly slower rate.
The twitch factor is reduced, and everything feels more manageable.
Almost like the game is optimised for 50hz and actually runs too fast at 60.
Hmmmmmmmmm.
You've seen the game play at 60hz for most of this video.
But it's definitely worth pointing out, that you probably played the original at 50hz,
so if you want a level playing field, and you want to emulate this game, make sure to
set the region to European.
Anyway, overall, this new venture reeks of nostalgia and attention to detail.
In fact, it's drenched in these two substances.
Apparently Ian's going to be making some more cartridge versions, so if you a fancy basking
in a pool of warm nostalgia, keep an eye out at Sega8Bit.com and grab yourself a physical
copy.
Because we all know physical copies are the best.
Man, I love the retro community.
Thanks for watching.
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Have a great evening!
Taraa.