CONGO'S CAPER
Review by Paper Ace Chase (CWilley)

Very little know what Congo's Caper is. It's a rather old game (to be precise, 1993) made by Data East. It's a platformer with colorful graphics, decent music, and okay gameplay. I loved the game as a child, but it's basically only a good game for that, a child. Let me get one with the review.

Story Line (1/10): I have never given a story line such a bad rating. The story line is pointless. Demon-Kid has kidnapped Congo's girlfriend. If you are looking for a platformer with a deep storyline, stick with Yoshi's Story!

Sound/Music (5/10): The sound effects is okay, but probably could have been better. Some of the music is catchy, while other tunes are very mediocre and boring. The only tune I can think of that I liked was the first stage tune. Not the best sound/music in the world, but it's not enough to make you hit MUTE.

Graphics (7/10): This part is good. The graphics are very colorful and nice. This is one reason I liked the game. At some parts, the graphics could have been better in my opinion, but they are still nice. This is a platformer for color-loving gamers.

Gameplay (7/10): Basically like many platformers. You are Congo. You walk around and whack stuff with a club. If you get hit, you turn into a weaker monkey. One more hit equals death. Can you say Mario Brothers? However, collecting red gems will eventually turn you to Super Congo (say Star Man for me, please). Basically, the goal of the game is to go from the start of the stage to the end of the stage and sometimes battle a boss. Congo does, however, have a pretty good arsenal of abilities. He can body slam, aim his club, super jump, swim, roll, climb, etc. The gameplay is pretty fun and challenging for a youngster, but it's nothing to scream about if you are an older gamer.

Difficulty (4/10): Like I said, if you are a youngster, the game is challenging and more worthwhile. If you are older, it'll be like playing Elmo's Letter Journey on Hard difficulty ... not too difficult.

Replay Value (2/10): Once you beat it, there's nothing to come back for. There are no huge secrets, no cheats, no special powers, just a platformer that's as straight-forward as possible.

Rent or Buy? Since your chances of finding a place that actually lets you rent this game are extremely slim, your only chances of playing it now-a-days is through purchase, which will still be a hard task. It's not really worth the money, though. Basically, it's a forgotten-platformer that was fun when it was made.