Pirates of Dark Water, The (USA) ROM

Story 3 of 10
- The Pirates of Dark Water is a side scrolling hack and slash that finds a ragtag bunch chasing seven treasures across some distant planet called Mer in order to control something known as Dark Water which will somehow save their homeland. What Dark Water is, how it will save Octopon (their home world), and how exactly the Treasures of Rule do this we never find out. All we know is Ren who is the son of King Primus who was captured by and escaped from Pirate-Lord Bloth, now needs to hunt down these seven treasures to control this mysterious Dark Water. So I am giving this plot, what I feel is a very generous 3 of 10. Also the ending will piss you off.

Sound 5 of 10
- Average. The music fits the game well enough but I wouldn't say it's rockin or particularly memorable. I would say it is a bit twangy.

Graphics 5 of 10
- Again, average. The 3D is not bad considering the system however the repetitive use of the enemies by simply swapping their colors around is lame. Also while the foreground and background seem well defined the characters seem lacking the same attention to detail.

Control 7 of 10
- The controls are decently responsive but relative to the character you choose. If you are using Tula you will find her quick and responsive where Ioz feel a bit more clunky. Ren is right in the middle. Essentially you trade agility for strength. There are times however where there is some lag in a turn or attack which can be annoying but nothing major.

Game Play 5 of 10
- It is a hack and slash side scroller unique in its own right. There are some options to how you choose to fight although for the most part you don't need them. Once you get the timing down you really just end up tossing enemies to line them up and then cutting them down with power attacks. There are times you will need a special attack or a jumping attack but not often. The bosses are unique enough, especially the second to last one but it is still a quick play through. I wasn't a fan of the random hazard falling or rolling in from off screen, seemed kinda cheap. Also the jumping obstacles were a bit tedious.

Random Thoughts
- WTF is with that second to last boss? Seriously, the game randomly switches genres. And since when does my sword shoot energy waves? Because I feel that would have been useful about seven levels ago.

You know that creepy giant bird with the people hands that steals your food? Turns out the damn thing is part of your crew. I tried killing that thing every chance I got. Just weird.

Conclusion
- Pirates of Dark Water is worth a play through if hack and slash is your thing. Don't get me wrong I would never have paid the original sticker price but I did have fun playing through it on my Zsnes emulator. It's kinda like that movie you watch once and think, that wasn't half bad, but the next time it's on you keep flipping through the channels.

~~Echelon