Retro Game Challenge

Feels like the first time.

Retro Game Challenge is by far one of the most unique and delightful experiences I have had on my DS, but I realize I am precisely the gamer that this game was created for -- I'm 31 years old and I grew up in the eighties while the history of gaming was rapidly transforming by the moment all around me.

Retro Game Challenge is absolutely worth picking up, and I highly suggest it to everyone.

Retro Game Challenge hearkens back to a time when 3D graphics didn't exist and video games were nowhere near as elaborate as the high-end affairs current-gen systems offer. Even so, the highly creative presentation is top-notch, and the varied gameplay will keep you busy for hours on end. This one's a must for retro gaming enthusiasts.

Retro Game Challenge is a great way to relive your NES days, or to see what the NES days were like.

The developers of Retro Game Challenge didn't just accurately recreate 8-bit gaming -- they made a bunch of really good games. Requiring players to complete specific challenges is a great way to get us thinking about a game in new ways.

Even if you're not old enough to remember blowing on carts, Retro Game Challenge is interesting and varied enough to entertain for hours. [Feb 2009, p.87]

Though you may not be able to become a kid again for real, Retro Game Challenge does a nice job of replicating that experience with retro knock-offs and magazines to add to the 80’s atmosphere that can’t be done as well with compilations and remakes.

Great gameplay and a goofy sense of humor make this a terrific tribute to the 8-bit experience. [Jan 2009, p.91]

Retro Game Challenge is vintage gaming at its best, whether you're a newbie or an old-school 8-bit kid at heart.

It works on several levels, but Retro Game Challenge is more enjoyable the nerdier and possibly older you are. The games are fun enough to play, but if you recognize a Ninja Gaiden parody just by playing for a minute, have played Galaga enough to tell the subtle differences in what they chose not to emulate or chuckle at the phrase "feel asleep," this is absolutely the game for you.

If you remember the joy of 8-bit gaming, Retro Game Challenge is the must-own nostalgic gaming experience you'll ever have.

The translations are occasionally botched. In two instances, the cheat codes were incorrect. This, plus the fact that some of the challenges send you back over territory you've already covered, keeps the game from achieving true retro perfection. It's still awesome, and a must-play for fans of the NES era.

But what it lacks in style and depth it makes up for in sheer replayability and nostalgia. It takes you back to a time before there were meaningful stories, fancy leveling systems or any of that other stuff you might take for granted.

Retro Game Challenge is a unique collection of newly made retro games.

Having fun with Retro Game Challenge doesn't require you to be a child of the '80s, or even a fan of older games; it just asks that you appreciate the past and Namco Bandai's loving attempt to recreate it.

A great compilation that will remind you of why you got into video games in the first place.

For many of us trying to recapture those childhood feelings of awe and wonder, Retro Game Challenge gets to the very heart of why we still play videogames and for that is to be applauded.

The game is still a blast to play.

A fleeting love letter to the 8-bit generation, Retro Game Challenge deserves to be experienced by everyone with a heart for gaming culture.

It's yet another unique DS experience, yet another game that simply must be played.

The charms, variety, and authenticity of this unusual compilation of 8-bit-style games help it shine in spite of some flaws.

The challenge concept gives Retro Game Challenge a sense of longevity and compulsion that's been missing from real-life compilations like Namco Museum, but is not without its own problems. [May 2009, p.116]

If the whole idea seems interesting to you, then the entertainment provided by games, magazines and dialogues will be more than enough to bring this work to the end.

If you’re a fan of retro gaming and can manage to wade through the filler, Retro Game Challenge provides ample challenge and enjoyment. Marred somewhat by its execution, though, I cannot recommend the game for everyone. It appeals to a niche audience, but that audience will find it to be very rewarding.

Retro Game Challenge may not be as genuine as an actual 8-in-1 retro game collection by Namco or Atari, but what it lacks in authenticity, it makes up for by successfully bringing everything that’s awesome yet simple about the classics.

Retro Game Challenge is a great concept, but the execution makes things more tedious than they needed to be. If it were a bit more open-ended about which games you could play at any given time and didn't double-up on some of the games, it'd be a pretty cool little collection. But once I got finished playing a game I really didn't want to play anymore only to be faced with a "new" version of a game I had already unlocked, the spell was broken and the rest became simple, repetitive grinding.

A bunch of so-so games. [June 2009, p.64]