99Vidas Review (PS4)

Intro

99Vidas features a classic side scrolling beat 'em up style gameplay. The game seems to take its biggest pointers from the acclaimed Streets of Rage from the days of the Sega Mega Drive back in 1991. The biggest issue that this game feature is, it feels like a rip off of a couple games from the genre it pays homage to without adding much on its own for gameplay. The game is so slow that making it through it feels like weeks have passed when it honestly has only been a few hours.

99Vidas is a game for anyone who wants to take a trip down memory lane, look at how far games have come, and enjoy the little references and easter eggs that the game offers up in its playthroughs.

The game can be bought on PlayStation Store for $9.99

99Vidas - The Game: Official Gameplay Trailer (2016)

Gameplay

99Vidas features a cast of eleven playable characters with only six of the being playable from the start. Each character has their own element, though characters can share elements and have different stats, which equals out to the special effect that is added to the otherwise dull and boring combat.

Each character has their own leveling tree which involves changing how each combo works from about 4 combos per character with some feeling like a direct clone of another character with different special effects. The combos aren't the only thing that goes into the combat. There is also a multitude of weapons that can be found and picked up through the game which "add" to your damage but they are actually slower and do the same amount of damage as your fists making them feel like a worthless feature to include in the game. The whole game has so much that was just included to make it more of a throwback to when all games were side scrolling beat em ups but this game doesn't have what it needs to stand up on its own as a solid game.

The enemies featured are pretty simple, a soccer player, a Mike Tyson knock off from punch out, some hoodlums and other general enemies like that. Except for that off the second boss Mr. Harddy. He is the thing of nightmares, legitimate nightmare fuel. Something even Batman or Superman would wake up in fear of. Basically, he is Michael Jackson who drinks hazardous waste and dresses like a sexy cop.

99Vidas offers a few items to help boost your scores like collectible icons of old video game stations such as the Mega Drive or the SNES. Collecting these items and receiving more score means that you have more of a chance of boosting your characters lives and combos as the points earned in levels can be used to buy more lives and is used to learn more combos.

The game has 3 difficulty modes, Campaign, Survival, and Versus. Each mode can be played with up to four people and versus needs at least two people.

Survival is as simple as fighting off wave after wave of enemies with generally increasing difficulty with a limited number of lives but this game mode gives you a chance to place your name on the leaderboard of the 99Vidas and prove yourself as an elemental hero. The versus mode is also included which is as simple as you fighting another player to see who comes out on top.

Story

The campaign is your usual sort of story. An evil corporate villain has stolen the 99Vidas which is a thing that provides the main characters with their connection to the elements and each character their power. The enemies have also upgraded thanks to the power of the 99Vidas like the first boss who transforms from a simple arcade owner into an 8-bit hulking monster.

If you find wanting to scratch your eyes out your thing then this game does feature a 2 hour, at best, story. The story aside from adding some of its own visual effects is pretty bland as a group of chosen ones you must defeat Ganon before he takes over Hyrule. Oh wait, that is the Legend of Zelda I just get so confused because the story of this game has literally nothing memorable about it. All of the characters are dull and boring and from as far as I can tell the only driving factor for the main villain is money, another dull story point.

The main thing the developers relied on for this game to make any money is the pop culture references featured in the story and throughout the levels but it was such a task to make it far enough to see these references that it wasn't worth the journey. I will say that if you are from Brazil then this game may be more enjoyable as it is, very loosely, based on a Brazillian talk show by the same name. The show talks about old video games and what they did wrong and what they did right.

Graphics & Audio

This game does feature very impressive graphics but they aren't enough to hold up such a dull game. When you have a beautiful backdrop and beautiful characters but everything about them is so bland it makes you miss the art because you just want to shut this off and go play something more enjoyable.

The audio for the game also somehow holds its own ground but at the same time, it does have very curiously striking similarities to music from that of games from the past. To give the game the benefit of the doubt the music is very solid and one of the only few good things about the game.

What Went Wrong?

Honestly, reading about this game I was so excited to give it a try it seemed like it would be such a blast but it just drags on and on. The thought of having a game like Streets of Rage excited me so much, but this game seemed to be lost in its references to pop culture and to that of the radio show, it is based on. Further more being based on a Brazillian talk show and developed by a Brazillian studio this game features many cultural references that one may not connect to from not being from Brazil.

The fighting is simple yet the difficulty is quite hard. This is another game that suffers from more frustrating difficulty than that of actually providing a challenge. The game offers some fun combat in some sequences but it seems to dull out quite quickly into the game after even the first level the game can feel like a drag to play and continue.

Overall 99Vidas is a success for older gamers trying to reconnect with their roots but this game doesn't offer quite a lot for new gamers trying to get into the genre. For people looking to try out the genre, there are already so many staples out there that this is just another game lost in the void.