This Week in Defunct Games - April 6, 2010

What Is It? Not sure what Ironclad is? Sick of all the shooters on the Virtual Console? Thinking about skipping out on buying a game this week? Not so fast, because there's a rock solid case to be made for why you should spend $10 on a shooter you've never heard of. This obscure shoot-em-up is the first Neo Geo CD game to hit the console. Usually that wouldn't be important, seeing as most of the Neo Geo CD games were nothing more than slow-loading ports of traditional Neo Geo cartridges. But Ironclad is different. This shooter isn't a port at all, but instead is a brand new game that was only released on the poor selling CD console. No matter where you are in your Neo Geo fandom, you probably never played Ironclad. As far as I'm concerned, the game's worth the ten dollars for that very reason alone.

Thankfully the actual game is worth the years of wait. Ironclad is what happens when you combine Axelay with Metal Slug, it's a highly stylized shooter with plenty of challenge to keep you coming back for more. Although Ironclad plays like a horizontal shooter, the camera angle has you slightly over your craft at all time. This means that you're constantly able to see the ground below you, similar to that of an overhead shooter. This strange pairing is Ironclad's most compelling gimmick, giving you an experience unlike most of the other action games on the Virtual Console.

Does It Still Hold Up? I suspect this shooter holds up better than most of the other Neo Geo CD exclusives. The action is fast, but never so frustrating that you never want to play it again. The gameplay is unique, due in large part to the interesting camera angle. The bosses are fantastic and the graphics still look amazing. This late generation Neo Geo CD game definitely holds its own against the mountain of shooters already available for the Wii.

Is It Worth The Money? Ironclad is the type of game the Virtual Console was made for. Although we're only getting one game a week (and sometimes not even that), I can't help but love the direction of the download service. In the last month we've seen both Dracula X: Rondo of Blood and this forgotten gem. If this is what we can expect from the Virtual Console for the rest of the year, then I'll stop complaining about the occasional weeks of nothingness. Oh, and for what it's worth, you should already have Ironclad downloading in the background.

What Is It? Released in the United States in 2000, Ogre Battle 64 is one of the Nintendo 64's only good role-playing games. Person of Lordly Caliber is the third installment in this long-running franchise, coming right after March of the Black Queen and Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together. While not a huge departure from the original Super NES Ogre Battle, this Nintendo 64 sequel updates the visuals, offers a more interesting story and enough tweaks to the gameplay to make you give up the Super NES release. As an aside, it's worth mentioning that Ogre Battle 64 is the first role-playing game released on the Virtual Console since Final Fantasy back in October 2009. While I certainly understand that this is a niche market, it's a shame we don't see more variety on Nintendo's classic game service.

Does It Still Hold Up? Like a lot of classic role-playing games, the gameplay doesn't feel outdated. This is not one of those franchises that ended up becoming all about the visuals, instead it has remains a modest series with unspectacular graphics. Perhaps that's why Ogre Battle 64 doesn't feel out of place when placed next to other games in the series. The music is nice, the story is fine and the translation is a little off, but all in all this is a great game that holds up splendidly.

Is It Worth The Money? If you're looking for a 64-bit role-playing game, you're basically limited to Quest 64 or this. And there's no way I will ever recommend Quest 64, so you better go with Ogre Battle. The good news is that this is a great playing RPG that is both long and exciting. The traditional Ogre Battle gameplay is different enough from that of other Wii adventure games to warrant a purchase. This game isn't for everybody, but can't go wrong with Ogre Battle 64.