222. Yousei Monogatari: Rod Land (Sales Curve, Famicom, 1992)

Yousei Monogatari: Rod Land ("Fairy Tale: Rod Land") is a port of a Jaleco arcade game released in 1990. I wouldn't normally be excited to play a Jaleco game or something from a British developer (at least pre-2000s), but it's games like Rod Land that teach us that you can't always judge a game by its developer or publisher.

Rod Land is a single screen game where the objective is to either defeat all enemies or collect all the flowers. If you succeed in collecting all of the flowers, you are granted a bonus minigame where any remaining enemies will turn into fireball enemies that only drop the letters that spell "extra", and collecting them all grants you an extra life. The ability to beat levels in one of two ways feels like so much more player choice than you see in a lot of arcade-style Famicom games, and it made each new level a treat to check out.

Levels are small and mostly consist of blocks and ladders to climb. Your fairy character cannot jump, but you can summon a ladder at will with B. The A button uses the titular magical rod, short-range weapon that will stun an enemy and throw them to your other side if it hits them. Enemies do not die after being hit once, though, you have to hit them 3 times to finish them off, at which point they become a powerup that you can use to defeat more enemies. Powerups have a nice variety, both in their abilities and their usefulness, but a highlight is a multiball that bounces everywhere.

The fact that you have to hit an enemy 3 times to finish them off and the fact that hitting them once places them on the other side of you means that Rod Land has much more thoughtful action than 95% of other Famicom games. Most games of the time have you indiscriminately blasting at enemies, but in Rod Land, you really have to think about how you're attacking the enemies, and it feels good in the same way that Devil May Cry or many fighting games do, in that not pushing a button can become just as important as pushing a button. It's a very particular feeling, but it's one that I have come to love in video games.

After a handful of levels, you eventually reach a boss. Bosses are also single screen, but they consist of multiple parts that take several hits each, and are a nice break between the more standard stages. There is a nice screen scroll transition between levels that makes the world feel like a more cohesive whole than just cutting to the next level. Some later levels include doors that teleport you around the stage; these are a cool idea that almost feels ahead of its time. The music is another highlight, and it changes so frequently! Most Famicom games like this typically have a single song, or at most a few that loop.

5/5, a great, thoughtful action arcade game with Bubble-Bobble vibes