Did somebody say McDonald's? For more than eighty years, McDonalds has been delivering foods, folks and fun, as well as some incredibly creepy versions of Ronald McDonald. Back in the early 1990s, we saw a trio of games based on McDonalds' iconic characters, including Mick & Mack Global Gladiators, McDonald's Treasure Land Adventure and M.C. Kids on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Yeah, those are definitely McDonald's games, but were the critics loving it? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, GamesMaster, Die Hard Game Fan and more classic magazines that reviewed these games back when they first came out. I hope you wanted fries with that super-sized order, because this is McDonald's Review Crew.


With a colorful cast of cartoony characters and a brand marketed directly to children, McDonalds always felt like it was destined to be a video game. Data East would be the first developer to take a stab at adapting the Happy Meal with their 1988 Famicom game, Donald Land. That game never made its way outside of Japan, so American gamers looking for their Ronald McDonald fix had to wait an additional four years for M.C. Kids, a 1992 platformer from Virgin Interactive released on the Nintendo Entertainment System. It stars Mick and Mack, a couple of friends who get transported into McDonaldland and have to save Ronald's magical bag from the Hamburglar. It's not exactly Hemmingway, but what did the critics think of M.C. Kids?

When it comes to the reviews, there's a real divide between the different magazines. Some loved it, some hated it and most were somewhere in the middle. Let's start off with GamesMaster, who was not a fan, giving it a low 41%. “The sprites are pretty drab and the entire game is just awful to look at; the sounds aren't that hot either, but they could have been a touch better. The game could also have had some more thought put into it, especially where level size is concerned, each being too small as it stands. With such a name as McDonalds behind this license, a lot could have been done to improve things. As it stands, there are a lot better and similar games. So save your money and go buy a milkshake.”

While no other magazine went as low as 41%, you did see the same complaints come up repeatedly. Nintendo Power wasn't a big fan of the game, giving it a 3.3 out of 5. Total went as high as a 77%, but hedged a bit when recommending the game: “This is actually a fine little game. If we hadn't seen it a hundred times before, we'd have liked it more, but that shouldn't distract you from the groovy gameplay. If you really must have another one of these games, McDonaldland wouldn't be the worst choice you could make.”

On the higher end of the scale we see N-Force give the game an 81%, that's the same score we saw from Nintendo Game Zone, which is just Game Zone, but with all of the Sega coverage ripped out. GamePro was the magazine to give M.C. Kids the highest marks – a perfect 5 out of 5. “Seasoned Nintendonians will be able to run, jump and spin through this cart's six worlds in a couple of days, but it's just right for its target audience – younger kids. M.C. Kids will tantalize you with its puzzles and secrets, while making you hunger for some good ‘ol Mickey D's.”

Nintendonians is one of those phrases that needs to make a comeback. Seasoned Nintendonians are even more delicious. Wait ... why am I suddenly hungry? I'm not sure if the advertising worked, but M.C. Kids managed to earn an overall rat of 74%. Not bad for a couple of kids.

Only one year after M.C. Kids, Ronald McDonald was back, this time on the Genesis. McDonald's Treasure Land Adventure marked Ronnie's return, this time around developed by none other than Treasure, the same company that gave us Gunstar Heroes earlier that same year. While this may seem like a weird departure to anybody who played Treasures early titles, you can see a lot of the company's hallmarks throughout. More than anything, it showed Sega just how versatile Treasure could be, allowing the developers to effortlessly jump from one genre to the next, almost always impressing the critics. Speaking of which, what did those critics think of McDonald's Treasure Land Adventure?

Once again, we're going to start at the bottom and work our way up. That means we're kicking things off with Sega Power, which gave the game a score of 69% in their 50th issue. “Obviously, Ronald McDonald, the cute enemies and the bosses who never die are all supposed to make the game appeal to young kids, but that doesn't mean the game has to be easy as well. You can rattle through most of the game on your first sitting, and when you've spotted some of the traps and tricks, it's even easier the second time around. Despite all of the neat touches, you're still stuck with a game that simply doesn't last long enough. This is a sin in itself, but it's even more of a shame when the game's as eminently playable as Treasure Land Adventure. This is a good game, but why isn't there more of it?”

Electronic Gaming Monthly may have called Gunstar Heroes one of the best games of 1993, but they were not as keen on this McDonalds game. In fact, they didn't even bring up the Treasure connection, instead giving the game a short capsule review and an average score of 7.4 out of 10. “Yes, it's Ronald McDonald in his own video game, but guess what? It's pretty good, too. The levels are big with plenty of items to find, and the various appearances by Ronald's crusty, yet benign, friends are a nice touch.”

GamePro ended up liking the game a bit more than EGM, giving it a 4 out of 5. Mean Machines Sega went a tick higher, settling at 81%. And then there's Die Hard Game Fan, which gave the game the highest marks of any magazine – 89%. Skid admitted that “when this game crossed my workstation, I never thought I could like a game starring Ronald McDonald. But once I saw the Treasure logo, I immediately changed my mind. Treasure Land, although geared towards a younger audience, is an excellent game. The play mechanics, control, graphics, color, music and awesome special effects truly set this title apart.” Sgt. Gamer agreed, saying that he “never even considered spending time playing a game based on the nauseating McDonald's characters. Treasure has managed to change that overnight with the release of Treasureland. Ronald takes you into some of the best action/platform gaming around, and when the guys that did Gunstar Heroes are responsible, a good time is guaranteed for all.”

I understand the trepidation, especially given that it's a game advertising a fast food restaurant. Advergames tend to be terrible, yet this one, much like Cool Spot, actually delivers solid gameplay and sharp graphics. Treasure Land Adventures ended up averaging a solid 79%, a big improvement over M.C. Kids. But does that mean this is the best McDonalds game? Not so fast, because I think Mick and Mack might have something to say about that.

Mick and Mack are back, this time as M.C. teens. Whether you consider Global Gladiators to be a direct sequel or a standalone game, one thing is for sure, it impressed just about everybody when it came out. Having already worked on a surprisingly fun Terminator game, David Perry was given a chance to really show off his programming prowess in what could have been just another throwaway licensed game. But Global Gladiators was so much better than that. With massive levels, fun gameplay and a real eye for animation, this game impressed Disney so much that they ended up working with Virgin on games based on Aladdin and The Jungle Book. Were the critics just as charmed by this environmentally-themed action game? Let's find out.

This time around we're going to start with Electronic Gaming Monthly, but only because they gave Global Gladiators the worst scores of any English-language magazine. They ended up giving the game a 7.5 out of 10, though there was one critic really pulling the average down. That person was Steve, who gave Mick & Mack a slightly above-average 6: “There are two sides to this game. 1) It has the most awesome graphics and sound to come along since Sonic. The look and feel of the game is truly impressive. 2) The controls are not as accurate and responsive as they need to be. The character moves too fast for his own good.” Sushi-X liked the game a lot more, giving it an 8 and asking the question, “Anyone smell French fries? Mick and Mack are back in full 16-bit style. Wow! One look at the crisp graphics and smooth animation and I got hungry for more. This is the type of environmentally aware game that belongs in the family. What a great way to send a positive message in a fun format. Worthy!”

EGM was outlier here, as every other magazine gave the game an 80% or above. That's the exact score Mean Machines Sega landed on in their fifth issue, while the newly rebooted Electronic Games gave it an 83% in their second. Games Master's Adrian Price liked Global Gladiators a lot more than M.C. Kids, giving it an 86%: “Personally, I don't eat at McDonalds, but I did like Mick & Mack. The graphics are well presented and the whole game looks like a different planet, although not the present day one, as suggested. The sounds are great with sampled speech bursting out of the speakers, wordz like ‘awesome' and ‘ouch' are frequently shouted at you. It's a nice little game which would have been better if they'd killed off Ronald ages ago.”

Moving up the scale, we see Mega Play give the game an 8.75 out of 10, while Video Games & Computer Entertainment went with an 8.8 out of 10. Hey, that's the exact same score as Sega Power. Computer & Video Games went all the way up to 90%, leaving Paul Rand impressed “with its good, wholesome ‘clean up for the kids' message. What's more important, though, is the fact that it's actually a damn good game, too. The first thing to hit you is the quality of the graphics; Virgin's artists just get better and better with each new release. Mick & Mack Global Gladiators is yet another hit for Virgin.”

There were magazines that liked it more than CVG, like Sega Force, who gave the game a 94%. However, if you're looking for the highest score, then GamePro has you covered. They gave Global Gladiators a perfect 5 out of 5: “Keeping the Earth litter and pollutant free is a dirty job, but everyone got to do it. Mick and Mack just make it gallons of fun. So, do your part, by joining the Global Gladiators.”

With praise across the board, Mick & Mack were a hit. And not just because of the fluid animation, but also because of the message. It may have started out as a game selling you hamburgers, but Global Gladiators turned into a rather pointed political message about pollution and our place on this planet. Linking fast food with sewage and pollution is an interesting play, but the critics loved it, giving the game an overall average of 87%. Global Gladiators is by far McDonalds' best-reviewed game.