Alex Kidd in Miracle World

The Good
The first Alex Kidd, a game released the same year Master System was born, is arguably the best title ever released for the console. And may be considered the best game Sega has ever developed, facing rivals such as Sonic The Hedgehog, Virtua Fighter and Phantasy Star series.

Back in 1986, there were not much to be done to make a game more attractive to the consumer in terms of commercial appeal. Games licenses using famous characters became popular years later. Graphics were inevitably very simple because of technological limitations. Honest times. If a game was crap, nobody would conceal that by using ultra-sophisticated 3D graphics or surround sound.

When Sega released Master System, it had to face ultra-popular NES, despite its technological superiority, it had to have comparable games. Super Mario Bros had just been released for NES and it was really popular.

Sega's reaction to Super Mario came in the form of another action game. Alex Kidd was some sort of Mario for Master System. It never became as popular as Mario, but was the most popular character for the 8-bit Sega console. Alex Kidd is an incredibly nice game.

Graphics were just amazing, really beautiful for the time. Very colorful. Everyone could easily recognize the boy with big ears jumping and running in front of a blue sky. Mario couldn't dream of starring in such a colorful game because of NES graphics limitations.

Sound was nice too. Alex Kidd song was well-elaborated and sounded fine. Sound effects were very good and diverse for the time.

OK, nice graphics and nice sound. But that's not the most important aspect. Graphics and sound get dated and the game doesn't necessarily.

Alex Kidd is the proof you don't need a sophisticated hardware to create a really good game. It had only 1 Megabit of memory (128 Kbytes), but it was incredibly used. Alex Kidd was one of the most complex games for the time and hardly any Sega Genesis or Super NES game had such sophistication.

First, Sega created a nice story to go with the game. It took place on a different planet (Aries) and had hundreds of aspects. And the most important: the story did not just provide a background to be forgotten while playing. There was actually a storyline which involved the player.

Second, despite the simple controls (one button for jump and the other one for punch), the game had lots of sophistication in gameplay. There were different kinds of enemies. Some of them were revealed in an unusual way, such as the ghosts that would appear if Alex Kidd broke some blocks.

Alex Kidd could use many items that would give him special abilities (such as a powerful bracelet, capsules, a stick and so on). He would also have at his disposal a moto, a launch and an helicopter to help him through the stages. Some of these items could be bought at a store.

There were also the Janken matches, which Alex Kidd would have to play with the bosses, including Janken himself.

All these elements provided a very sophisticated gameplay that could hardly be rivaled by most platform games and were responsible for Alex Kidd's massive popularity in Master System. This was indeed a well-elaborated game, a game designed with care.

The Bad
For a game released in 1986, Alex Kidd is perfect.

Some aspects could be polished up, such as the controls (some of the moves were very difficult to be done).

And, since the game made no use of AI (Artificial Intelligence; c'mon, we're in 1986), Janken matches would be too repetitive.

Well, and there's also another problem. I don't like the background in which this game was produced. It might be seen as a waste of a fantastic game. That's why it is so hard to tell if Alex Kidd game is superior to Super Mario Bros. It probably is. But Mario became the most popular video game title in the world and had amazing sequels (Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World for SNES and Mario 64 for N64 were probably the best ones), while Alex Kidd is the symbol of a not really popular video game system. And it also has to be said that Alex Kidd sequels were not so nice as the first game. Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars was too simple and childish (despite its beautiful colors); Alex Kidd In High-Tech World had adventure elements, but was not an involving game; Alex Kidd In Shinobi World was probably the best sequel and had a nice gameplay, but was not as good; and Alex Kidd In The Enchanted Castle (Sega Genesis) was a desperate trial of making a 16-bit Alex Kidd In Miracle World (speedy Sonic The Hedgehog proved to be a much more adequate game for 16-bit consoles and became Sega's symbol after 1991).

The Bottom Line
TRUE CLASSIC. Alex Kidd remains as one of the best platform action games ever released, for all video game systems.

The Good
It is an excellent platform action game with the added feature of being able to purchase special items. And you get to play rock / paper / scissors.

The Bad
Everything is good. Except a basic complaint about several Sega Master System games that use the pause button. It's on the console itself. So to get the map and switch inventory items you have to be close enough to reach the console.

The Bottom Line
Think super mario bros. and add more modes and items and cool power ups. This is a must have game for anyone with a Sega Master System.

The Good
You get to punch a bat, a bull, a scorpion, & even a fish in the face! The FACE! Starting the game by going down instead of right or even up is great & fresh. The vehicles are awesome, the gameplay is awesome, the variety of items is awesome & fun. There is only one secret stage but the challenge to get to it is fun. The ending castle is very well laid out.

Graphics for 1986 are stunning & hold up perfect today. The title screen is awesome! Each Alex Kid game has Alex being able to walk behind things as a graphic bonus. Here he walks behind grass making it look tall. In Enchanted Castle he walks behind sand mounds to make him look like he's going through it & in Shinobi world he walks between alternating fore-ground/back-ground bamboo. Best of all here & in enchanted castle there are scorpions hidden in the grass/sand making use of this for gameplay. There is a plant jutting out of lava in one stage. It isn't a vine you can grab onto, it kills you. But it is a plant rising out of lava! So insane yet so awesome.

The Bad
The 1 hit death is the worst part of the game. You cannot have two of the same item. There is nothing in-game to tell you what the items do. The ending challenge is insane.

The Bottom Line
Difficult but one of the finest platformers ever made especially from around its release date. A worthy contender to Super Mario Bros. Super Mario Land's use of vehicles always felt like it borrowed from this.

The Good
Super Mario Bros. is an obvious comparison, but Alex Kidd has a bit more depth i.e Alex receives directions from the friends and relatives he meets along the way, checks his path on a map and holds an inventory of magic items and vehicles. I also preferred punching blocks to head butting them. Having dialogue with bosses and beating them in games of "paper, rock, scissors" is an interesting touch too.

The Bad
While it was new and different at the time, it seems a little too cute and simple now. The game isn't exactly easy, but I'd say it's meant for children to play and master over a long period.

The Bottom Line
Better than Super Mario Bros., I reckon one of the best console games of its time and it's innovative. Maybe it wasn't made with adults in mind and doesn't quite stand the test of time like other games.