Hey look, another one game week. Is it still getting tiresome if the one game is good every week? Well, let’s find out. This week, we’re getting M.U.S.H.A. from the Sega Genesis. And here’s what your friends at DHGF have to say about it!
M.U.S.H.A.
Developer: Compile
Publisher: Seismic
System: Sega Genesis
Original Release Date: 1990
Price: 800 Wii Points
Christopher Bowen: WOW! Here’s an inspired choice, for once!
M.U.S.H.A. is your standard top-down shooter; you fly something, you blow shit up. The only difference between M.U.S.H.A. and other, similar shooters of this era is that the former is totally freaking awesome. It moves fast, throws a lot at you, and has a great gameplay mechanic with up to two weapons at a time in play as well as orderable options that can be use differently with a flick of the A button (on a Genesis, I don’t know how the VC will do it).
M.U.S.H.A. is easily one of the best shooters on the Genesis, if not the best; I rate it above the Thunder Force series, and for other games it compares to, Blazing Lazers is the first one that comes to mind for me. It also reminds me of Recca because there’s always something on screen to shoot. I can easily recommend M.U.S.H.A.
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Alex Lucard: I had know idea M.U.S.H.A. was coming to the virtual console, and it’s little surprises like this that keep me hopeful for other hidden gems showing up along the way (Hint: BATTLETOADS).
M.U.S.H.A. is a spin-off from the Aleste series. Compile might be better known for Blazing Lazers or the Devils/Aliens Crush pinball games for the TG-16, but M.U.S.H.A. is proof that Compile made some great games for non NEC systems.
M.U.S.H.A. is a weird little vertical shooter where you play as a dude driving a ninja inspired mech and you blow up things above a distinctive Chinese background. M.U.S.H.A. didn’t bring anything new to the table gameplay wise, but Elinor was a fun protagonist and one of the first female protagonists to boot. it’s a damn shame we didn’t get a true sequel to Metallic Uniframe Super Hybrid Armour, but the Sega CD did give us Robo Aleste which was both awesome and the closest thing to a M.U.S.H.A. sequel.
God damn, now I miss Compile. This is a definite recommendation from me and I love how chock full of long lost but still beloved shoot ’em ups the VC has.
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Aileen Coe Man, another good week for the VC – Nintendo’s on a roll here…
Granted, the game doesn’t introduce any new and revolutionary gameplay elements, and if you’ve played vertical scrolling shooters, this should be very familiar territory. But what it does have is executed excellently and meshes well into an addictive and fun game. Besides, who doesn’t love blowing up tons of things in a giant ninja mecha?
Considering how much the Genesis cart goes for these days (there’s a reason this is known as one of the most expensive Genesis games), $8 is a HUGE bargain, and you’d be insane to pass this up.
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Mark B: Wow, this is something I never expected to see on the VC. I’m almost getting my hopes up that we’ll see Sol Feace, Gaiares and some of the Thunder Force games while we’re at it. Lord knows this wouldn’t be a bad thing; if the VC becomes nothing more than a haven for old shooters, that’d be fine by me, if for no other reason than the fact that I’d have plenty of reasons to actually use the service.
Anyway, M.U.S.H.A. (you have to write it that way or it doesn’t work) was all sorts of awesome back in the day, and holds up surprisingly well today, largely because it’s still pretty tough, difficulty-wise, and the concept of earning sub-weapons that die in your place is still a novel and interesting concept. The game is also quite fast-paced and the level and boss designs are still pretty interesting, largely because the game has this medieval Japan theme to it that’s pretty unforgettable and quite original.
The music is also pretty awesome, but that’s a lot like saying that a Silent Hill game is weird; it’s kind of expected at this point.
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And on Wii Ware this week, we’re seeing High Voltage Hot Rod Show and Family Glide Hockey. So until next time, keep on hoping for some good single games to be released.
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