Willow

This is another volume in my series of "Personal Favorite Video Game Store". I love that this game is based on one of my favorite films of all time, doing this feels like someone is making games for me. It makes sense as "Willow" was a big hit in the 80's so it was inevitable there would be games made for it, thankfully it was made by Capcom as their one of the best companies in making licensed video games. I'll admit seeing this arcade game just blew my mind when I was a kid. I remember playing this at "Godfather's Pizza" in Yakima, WA. I loved the game then and still do.

I really love the graphical presentation, which is the kind you would expect for arcade games from Capcom and I wouldn't have it any other way as they just fit like a glove for this game. The game is a platform action game that like "Ghouls and Ghosts" but also a little of "Mega Man" and "Rolling Thunder".

I really like the level format as we see it does follow the movie but of course there are some extra things added to make the game longer but most importantly interesting. Yeah, certain things in the game were never in the movie but it's always fun to think that it could've, which to me adds to the gaming experience.

One of the things I like about the game is that you get to play as both Willow and Mad Martagon, which makes sense as both are the main heroes of the film. But you play as each of them at different levels of the game, and it makes sense not just considering the film, but it helps in giving the game it's variety. Both characters as we see play differently as they have their strengths and weaknesses.

Willow he can shoot out magic bolts giving him a strong offensive attack as the bolts can reach mid-to-long range. Mad Martagon he swings his sword much like in the game "Strider" which produces an arc, this gives him strong defense and even offense, but his offense is only good when he comes into range. And there are some power ups to give you a leg up in the game, one of them is having the option function which are in the form of the Brownies that throw out spears. But one highlight for both characters having a charge function, where you hold down the attack button and then let go making your characters unleash a strong attack. This predated the Mega Buster which didn't show up till the latter volumes of the "Mega Man" series.

Another thing in the gameplay is in the platform action where you simply go from point A to B. But you also can jump up and climb up the platforms much like in "Rolling Thunder" which is interesting. However, what makes this gameplay more interesting is in the level format, where in each level there is a bit of a nonlinear element as you can explore the level a bit and there are some secrets around the game. The levels are divided into stages which are each different so there is never a dull moment in the game and causes you to adjust and adapt quickly; like one of my favorites is the cart chase like the film which is cool I always love those moving levels, as it's fast hitting action but also causing you to think on your feet faster.

There are also different bosses from the two headed dragon from the movie, but also a giant rat dog which is obviously by its nature the giant robot dog from "Mega Man 2". Yet it was still cool to see all the same and there was a little difference in it's attacks, so that boss isn't a total pushover, or at least not at first anyway. Then there is the RPG element where you can use the money you collected from felled enemies to purchase items to help you on your quest or level yourself up.

And of course, there is the music which is just fantastic as there are a lot of memorable tracks, they sound like the kind of tunes you hear from any Capcom arcade game, but some of them were inspired by James Horner's soundtrack, which is part of why the music fits so well. Along with the sound like hearing those rat dogs howl which sounds cool as it feel like it can be heard for miles though also sends a bit of a chill as those rat dogs are nasty.

This licensed video game classic has plenty of magic for fun.

Rating: 4 stars.

Willow was a movie that kind of under performed at the box office, but was still a modest hit. It spawned a few games, this being the one I played. There was also an arcade game and probably a Commodore 64 game too. I say probably, because that system had a game for everything back in the day! This one basically takes a lot from the original Zelda game, right down to the way the screen scrolls and adds a few touches to the mix such as towns and the chatting with characters and such. I would rank it higher, but it gets a bit repetitive at points too as they seem to add some stuff that was not in the movies, but leave out stuff that is.

The story centers around Willow as he is the fabled hero of legend that must take down Bavmorda. The baby is in the game, but she is not as important in this retelling the story, nor is any other character other than Willow. So you see just about all the main characters from the films, but they mostly just make what would be essentially a cameo appearance in the game. Though, that is a good thing as far as those two little dudes from the movie goes.

The game play has you going through the forest, mountains, caves and castles on your quest to get to the evil queen's castle and defeat her. You enter a couple of towns along the way and get some clues and pick up a quest or two. It would have added a bit to the game if they had given you the ability to purchase items, but you pretty much get everything in the game for free. You can use magic, but other than the final fight, this magic is pretty much worthless against all the boss battles; however, most bosses can be defeated fairly easily with the exception of the first phase of the final fight.

So, the game is fun and quite a good adventure game for the NES as it is one of those titles that prove a movie adaptation can be fun. That being said, this one is not made by LJN or Acclaim (I believe those two are actually the same company) but rather it is done by Capcom who knows how to design a game. I would have liked more scenery though as this one turns into a mountain slog late in the game, and I am baffled by the fact they had no area with snow as there was one in the movie. Still, worth a play through, but some of those levels get awfully tough to traverse as you near the end!