Bad movies from the 80s and 90s are my bread and butter. Give me a film with an incredibly goofy plot (twin brothers team up to take on a giant plant that spits venom?) and cheesy special effects, and maybe Billy Blanks in the lead (that’s a compliment) and you’ve got a Friday night worth making popcorn for. I’m simple to please.
But we don’t really see that “so bad it’s good” vibe in games, which is why I’m thankful to see something like Pizza Bear Games’ Megacopter: Blades of the Goddess. It takes the classic Strike formula we’ve seen from the Sega Genesis days and molds it around a thrilling action game with a goofy plot involving – get this – a helicopter that requires human hearts as a sacrifice. And you thought Mola Ram had a yearning for them.
The game has its imperfections, mainly with its aiming and landing systems, as well as a camera that can make it difficult to scope out some parts of a level. But the sheer excitement of blowing stuff to bits while seeing where the ridiculous story goes next is part of the fun. Plus it’s reasonably priced and quite nostalgic, especially if you grew up all things Strike.
The Name’s Copter — Jack Copter!
There’s a guy and his name is Jack Copter. So, of course, putting him in a Mazda makes absolutely no sense. He was born to fly! And so he does with the Megacopter, a specially fitted war machine that feasts on blood and human hearts. But that’s a good thing, as the Reptoids – a dangerous lizard people – are invading. It’s time for the two of you to go to work and snack on these fools!
Megacopter offers a variety of missions to take on, including Search and Destroy, Defense, Rescue and Boss Hunt. But they all have the same purpose – blast your enemies to kingdom come, then live on to fight the next mission. Jack Copter depends on you!
Gameplay-wise, I’m happy to report that the game handles about as smoothly as the classic Desert Strike. Copter maneuverability is excellent, and the shooting controls are simple, as you can variate between air and ground attacks. Because the Reptoids come from all sides, don’t you know. (Airborne lizard freaks!) You can also change your loadout with new weapons, which is useful for larger – and quite bothersome – boss enemies.
That said, the system could use a little tweaking. We saw a few skirmishes that resulted in us missing some targets, mainly due to switching up between firing. The camera also can be a bit of a bother, as it’s hard to see some enemies trying to attack from off-screen. This is one of those situations where a much more distant camera would’ve done a world of good. The map, however, is excellent, and shows you just where you need to explore next.
Also, why is landing such a pain sometimes? It should be as simple as approaching the station and simply setting your hungry bird (that’s what I call her) down. But we had to circle a couple of times before it recognized it and we managed to settle.
These are minor complaints, however. Get used to these quirks and you’ll find that Megacopter is a fun little throwback action game, packed to the gills with fresh lizard carnage (that’s what you buy games for, right?) and lots of options for destruction. I just hope we get a patch that irons out everything so it’s smooth flying all around.
Taking Flight With the Presentation
Camera quirkiness aside, I was pleased with how Megacopter turned out. Along with cheesy cinema sequences taken straight from the Sega Genesis era, the game features smooth flight animations, along with impressive enemy designs and some good terrain layouts. Again, it can be tough seeing some enemies, but overall this definitely fits right into the throwback mold.
Backing up the visuals is OGRE’s excellent soundtrack. It sounds like they were definitely inspired by classic tunes back in “the day,” as it comes through in each of the background tracks within the game. The sound effects are also ambient and perfect for the theme involved.
I would’ve loved some recorded dialogue, along the level of MegaForce. You remember that cheesy little piece of action, don’t you? Barry Bostwick with the greatest hair ever? Look it up. That said, there’s still more than enough here to get you in a flying mood.
Megacopter Won’t Feed Itself…
There’s a demo for Megacopter available now on Steam so you can try it out and get an idea of the slight control and camera issues we addressed. But we have a feeling you’re going to purchase the full game and get the same result that we did – a flawed but still worthy flight experience right up there with the best Strikegames.
It’s fun to play, and worth sticking around for the goofy plot and sweet presentation. And it doesn’t hurt to have a little cheese in your life. Not everything has to play by the rules.
Now go and feed Megacopter before he eats our interns! BACK, COPTER! HYAH!
GAMERHUB RATING: 4 (out of 5) STARS
Thanks to Pizza Bear Games (rad company name!) for the review code!
