Today's game revolves around King's men like in previous game. This time they can fly and looks like still kid but they're old enough to drive drill into cute villains and hold gold coins that enough to buy second apartment on their own. They're Gadget Twins (1992).
This title screen looks childish but there's some rather unsettling part of it. The twin's face, yeah a bit. The controllers on bottom, obviously. The mantrap claw on "w", is simply "What the heck?". The menu only contain "1-player mode" and "2-players mode". No option setting or whatnot but at least i don't have to worry about true ending is locked if you go with "normal" difficulty setting.
Of course, there's story of this game and it's pretty simple: At night, Thump the bad green plane steals Magic Gem that kept on King's palace while constantly wiggling his eyebrows.
Then morning comes, The king very surprised that the gem is missing. Then he summons the gadget twins.
The twins also surprised with the fact that the gem is missing! Why the twins have worse expression than the king? Is the gem really that important? Or the artist just have fun drawing wacky surprised expression? Anyway, Bop and Bump (which to be honest i don't know who's who) goes after Thump although they barely have any clue that leads to him. Maybe they know Thump before this on that day where he stands at Gadget Plaza (every place or thing in this game starts with word "Gadget", you have to take my word for it) and swears with megaphone that he will steals the magic gem on this fateful day.
Level 1. Gadget Bay
You probably can guess that Gadget Twins is shooter game because the protagonists (and other persons) are plane. But Bop/Bump only has spring with boxing glove at its end. So the genre is horizontal punch 'em up instead of horizontal shoot 'em up at least for now. Here's the control: d-pad to move Bop/Bump around, 'A' button to unleash attack, and 'B' button to switch weapon. By switch weapon, i mean cycle Bop/Bump's weapon on his side. See that small yellow arrow? That means i prepare my down-directional weapon. You can only cycle weapon in clockwise order but at least i can attack enemies on my behind and i really appreciate it.
Then i delve into water thankfully i don't need oxygen to breath so i can be underwater as long as i want. Defeated enemies will drop either big coin (that worth 20 money) or small coin (that worth 5 money) and you can guess that i can buy something in shop. To enter shop, you have to press 'C' button near that shop hole.
Here's the shop screen. The purchasable items are on bottom row. I can buy either bigger boxing fist or the aforementioned mantrap claw. I can put the former on every side but the latter only for top and bottom side. Unlike the boxing fist, the mantrap claw will stays for awhile after reaching its maximum range before retracting. Therefore this weapon has slower rate but has potency to be more accurate to hit enemies.
You can find power ups on chest but -get this- they're not fixed, they're entirely random. In other shoot em up game, there's certain pattern on power up drop or you can cycle them by shooting them but not in here! I test it with save/load state. Sometime this chest contain 1up but in this occasion speed-up item appears. It's quite baffling and tedious especially in this relentless game. Yes, you heard me. This game is relentless despite the kindergarten-ish setting. I mean sure Bop and Bump has health bar instead of adapting one-hit death system. But the problem is there's no post-hit invincibility at all! So once fish/plane/boot/etc make thorough skin contact with them, they will get hit multiple time and the feeble range of their attack can't help much. The enemies can get stun when hit but only for tiny split second. So if you can't get health refill consistently (which happen quite often to me), you will have really hard time playing this.
There's Thump on submarine shark that can draw his false teeth in and out. Every boss and sub-boss have their own weakpoint and you can't just punch them anywhere even though they're all big target. In this case, the weakpoint is the shark's eye. I know what you think "Why not attack Thump's cockpit?". Any hit on it just doesn't register. My strategy is" hide in corner left bottom so the sub-boss is lured to approach me then i swiftly get his eyes by using the claw. Rinse and repeat. You can see the sub-boss/boss' health on bottom-left corner and represented by yellow stars.
You get various pick up such as 1-up (small yellow plane), speed up (fast forward symbol), speed down (rewind symbol), instant-use screen-clearing bomb (cartoon bomb), health refill ('E' symbol), and temporary invincibility bubble (shield symbol). I also like to point out that there's 2 row of star on top hud. The top one (red color) is the health bar while the bottom one (yellow color) is Gadget Twins' speed level. By the way, i replace the bigger boxing fist with yoyo which has more range and damage power.
The first boss is Thump...on purple giant plane that shoot-out mantrap claw from its mouth and its weakpoint is his eyes. You probably think that the boss is quite the same with the sub-boss. Well, you're quite right moreover most bosses in this game is stronger version of the sub-bosses on same stage, so get used to this sub-boss & boss similarity few times! And also Thump escapes everytime his subordinate/vehicle/vassal is destroyed. As for this boss, he has more capability than the submarine shark which is: he can send missiles at me that can be either avoided or smacked.
The level doesn't ends with the boss defeated. You have to go through a bit more where you will get some chest that hopefully contain health refill to repair the damage you get during boss fight. I don't have it but at least i bought this hammer. Heavy_mvm_loot_common02.wav.
Level 2. Zeppelin Attack
Yes. Yes. Impressive. Hammer hand may have big damage power and longer range. But it has slower attack rate and also there's "blank" spot on the arm because the only hitting spot is the hammer, not the whole weapon.
Therefore i re-buy the yoyo. Plus, i bought new top and bottom side weapon: spiked drill or whatever is it. Thing for sure is, you don't want it to make full contact with your molar. Thump is back and now he rides on balloon and not zeppelin. You can say that balloon is barebones of Zeppelin but this thing still barely Zeppelin. He can punch with those mean Morningstar and that's about it. The weakpoint is obviously the balloon part. I can say that because of that red star which marks a successful hit on enemy. There's also yellow star mark that appears when you get hit.
The weather is getting bad but Bop/Bump still proceed dauntlessly...with his vacuum cleaner. Ironically, the weapon doesn't suck (both literally and figuratively). It's faster than the hammer arm and doesn't have "blank" spot. Although the level named "Zeppelin Attack", i don't get to defeat said zeppelins because they're just indestructible terrain and they can only unleash balloons and bombs. They're guarded with this cute robots that walks like ED-209, robot in Megaman X, or that bipedal robot that professor rides on in Contra Hardcorp.
The boss is probably more resembles to Zeppelin, perhaps? It can drop bombs besides punching with that nasty spikes. The weakpoint also the same: the balloon part. It's nice aesthetic touch that the balloons will pop out if their "health" depleted so you have to target others balloon after bursting one.
Much to my surprise, there's bonus stage after level 2. You get lots of chest but they only contain big coins and i don't think they're useful, not as useful as 1-up at least. The fast way to open the chests is park above them and open them with the bottom weapon. Kind of like corkscrew open up a bottle of Champagne. There's time limit here but i'm not so worried about that as long as i get hefty money here.
Level 3. Lost City
If you grown up with wacky cartoon films, you should know the mightiness of metal weight! It's the proper drop bomb in this game and the best bottom side weapon too! It has the fastest travelling speed and deal tons of damage. Get it? Tons. Weight. ;D
This time, Thump is on spherical cuckoo bird that can springs his head, wing, and tail. My tactic is simple: just constantly drop metal weight on the cockpit. Heavy_specialweapon08.wav
Haha! Look at that dumb face of the shark, he's so dumbfounded with the almighty metal weight! There's no chest in this level, instead the items stored in those yellow pots. So feel free to break those pots with high historical value!
I have no idea what this mini-plane does but i buy a couple of it anyway because i'm rich! Also i replaced the vacuum with flying bomb which is the slow-moving projectile that can only exists two of it on screen at a time.
The boss is this big goofy lobster and he loves to blow lethal-to-touch bubbles. Because he stands on the bottom, he's much easier target form my metal weight bombing. Demoman_specialcompleted04.wav
Level 4. Submarine Attack
Those submarines has weary expression of player that come to this point. Not me though. Ok, i feel bored a bit but i'm still curious what lies ahead next. Thump and his vessels, most certainly. By the way, that tiny barrel hold the pick-up items now.
Loch ness monster, sure why not? Or at least a submarine shaped like the legend monster as you can see their cockpit glass on his body. Just drop weights on his neck. That's my advice.
On the other hand, the boss level is this goofy yet creepy octopus submarine. I should not replace the flying bomb with this hammer because it's pretty hard to use it against this boss or even any sub-boss/boss in this game. In my defense, the bombs are too cumbersome against the mooks that relentlessly come after me one by one in fast pace. Also i like to remind you that the main part of the level is auto-scrolling section that fairly often scrolls too fast even with maximum speed level. But regarding the sub-boss/boss, you can take your time easily to land a hit on them plus there's no time limit, thankfully.
Level 5. Crystal Lake
That's right, we're going to meet the big bastard with hockey mask, FREAKING JASON VOORHEES...not really. This level is just plain snow/ice level. Boring, i know. Those 3 arrows indicate secret place that you can visit to get more power up.
After passing section where penguins and whales live, i encounter Thump (for the 9th time). Now his spherical cuckoo bird can swing a wrecking ball which inspired by Robotnik's flying vehicle, for sure. The problem in this sub-boss fight is: he reluctant to fly low thus the opportunity to drop metal weight on him kept minimum. So i'm resorted to using the slow bomb. Demoman_jeers08.wav
I hope you don't keep expecting Jason Voorhees cameo in this level because i ensure you there's none of that here at all. Perhaps this upside-down sinister-looking snowman can ease your disappointment.
This time Thump is on fish that like to swing spiked wrecking ball and spit some vicious piranhas. Due to his slower movement, the fish is easier target than the blue cuckoo bird. As you can see that the bombs pass Thump without making explosion but that's how they work. They don't blow themselves upon contact instead they fly through enemies which potentially deal thorough damage but i have to wait for them to disappear after reaching their maximum distance before i can fire another ones. Nonetheless, the flying bomb is a must-have because without it you can't get the real experience of "horizontal shoot 'em up"!
Strangely this bonus stage has exit door that very close to entrance. Maybe the developers are lazy to design another bonus stage so i'll be lazy too. Pick some coins above and immediately head on to exit.
Level 6. Thumps World
I didn't know what Thumps world means. Then i realize that Thump is the main antagonist which means this is his homeworld and hopefully the final stage. This level is filled with wicked-looking kites and jack-in-a-box that deal devastating damage if it manages to ram at you. Despite the cutesy look of this level, it's pretty bastard.
I was fool to keep thinking that the yellow box is chest that contain power up but turns out it's the dangerous jack-in-a-box. Instead, the power up container is chocolate coins as you can see above me. I forget to tell you that there's magnet that like to pull you toward it. There's also nigh-invisible current inside the water that alter your flight/swim plan.
Some enemies pose minimum threat such as that rubber duck and toy train. They just mind their own business, walking left and right. If you get hit by them, it's entirely your fault.
This time the sub-boss is the mother of all hovercraft that i defeat in Lost City level and she looks pretty calmed or to be more accurate stoned. She stays on the ground which means she's sitting duck for my weight bombardment. When she hides on left corner, she sends her child that can fly straight up. And when she hides on right corner, she shoot out smokes from her exhaust pipe. Quite disgusting.
I forget to tell you that there's this boots around this level that reminds me of trap in Deception game. Also note that they're deadlier than the jack-in-a-box because they reach longer and faster.
The boss is significantly different than the sub-boss. It's Kangaroo that loves to jump around and occasionally punch at me. Often than not, i'm forced to hide on top-left corner. I can try to fly to other side but the boss hop really fast that i get trampled by him most of the time. Besides, i can aim at Thump really well in that corner. Both this boss and the hovercraft sub-boss has maximum health of 12 stars! But thankfully, they're easy to hit with the flying bomb. Ok. Calling it bomb is inaccurate because it doesn't explode at all. Maybe it's UXB (unexploded bomb).
Finally, Thump is on his last wit and decides to fight me plane-to-plane fair and square. Much like me, he has weapon on each side: boxing fist in his front, hammer in his rear, pizza cutter in his topside, and spinning blades in bottom side. I have hard time to hit him with the flying UXB so the metal weight is the best against him. Just mind that pizza cutter!
As per usual, Thump leaves the screen with invincibility bubble after defeated. But this time, he's back with white flag and the magic gem! I thought it was cue for me to pick the gem myself but turns out i only need to wait for him to get to the other side of the screen then the level ends. Cm_sniper_gamewon_01.mp3
The gem is returned. The king is pleasant and show gratitude to the twins but they receive no reward or anything like that. Just a complimentary. But again, they twins get 1,210 money from their quest. It can't be helped. The only good thing to but is the bomb and the metal weight, that's it! Gadget Twins returns to their home in Gadget Town and they begin to think to buy home in some tropical island of "Gadget Island". Meanwhile The King have high-security device installed around the Magic Gem and put some regular patrol schedule so he can sleep soundly every night. While Thump goes to gadget hospital for intensive medical care. How he get the money for it? He sell the scraps of his friends/vehicles/vassals, of course. Happy end!
Imagitec Design Inc's Gadget Twins (1992) isn't Fantasy Zone and well-polished game. It feels tedious to play thanks to no post-hit invincibility and melee attacks that have relatively short range. The metal weight is probably the best weapon but sadly i can only install it for bottom side weapon. I forget to mention that the options are the most useless/worst in gaming history. They only exist to damage any enemy that touch them. You can't change their formation/position except they will always around your front side whether you facing left or right. The arsenal variety need more work. Most of the melee weapon feels same-y like bigger boxing fist, vacuum cleaner, Yoyo, and the mantrap claw. Put more projectile weapon is my advice. The weapon cycle feels too slow to be intuitive. I wish the "C" button is another "Cycle weapon" button but in counter-clockwise order. Maybe put the "enter the shop" function to shoot button or something. The randomness on pick up spawn feels bit baffling. Or maybe i wish the health refill spawns more frequently. The economy feels quite fair although there's not much use of money if you already have flying UXBs and metal weight. Dying will drop your equipped weapon but if you are fast and lucky enough, you can get it back. The game provides you with no password and 3 continues thus i feel that the game don't want to be cleared in relatively fair way. There's cheat that allow you to access stage select though. I give the game some credit because i can attack backward and defeating enemies has other purpose than securing my way which is to get coin. The coin will spin around wildly if you don't pick it some seconds after spawning. Whether this is good or bad, you decide. The bosses and sub-bosses have interesting design...in visual. In gameplay aspect, most of them are quite arduous to deal with thanks to their specific and small weakpoint. The music is strangely good for me. Not much i can speak about the sound effect though. The presentation is family-friendly although there's spikes, trap claw, or spiked drill around. Gadget Twins (1992) is barely proper horizontal shooter game. I believe there's many horizontal shoot em up game in Sega MegaDrive/Genesis that better than this. You should play them, instead. I play this so you don't have to. Despite the cheerful tone of the game, it's not meant to play casually because it's still rough as unpolished magic gem.
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