Developer: Sammy Publisher: American Sammy Release: 1994 Genre: Shooter
The Neo Geo was the most advanced home console for its time. It was so advanced in fact that even later consoles like the PlayStation and Saturn had problems receiving accurate home ports of its titles. With a cost of $600 or more for the large majority of gamers you either played its titles in the arcade or the often times compromised home ports. While I enjoyed many of the 16-bit versions of its games occasionally there was a title that was just too much for the SNES or Genesis and suffers in the process. Viewpoint is one of those titles.
In the arcade Viewpoint is a stunning title. The game uses polygons to resemble 2d sprites which gives it a pseudo 3d look. Polygons were also used liberally around the environment and together with its isometric viewpoint (no pun intended) gave it a striking look. Beyond that the art direction is fantastic. The Genesis version does an admirable job mimicking this look. The enemies look the same despite being strictly 2d. The sprites are smaller and the color palette has seen a significant reduction but for the most part it fares pretty well at first glance.
Performance is a different matter entirely. Viewpoint suffers from crippling slowdown constantly and nearly becomes unplayable during its heavier moments. This occurs more frequently during the second half of the game where in addition to massive waves of enemies and bullets you must deal with environmental hazards that also tank the framerate. The slowdown can help during boss battles but more often than not leads to cheap deaths. I can appreciate the fact that they wanted to be as accurate as possible to the original. However some adjustments for the Genesis would have gone a long way toward making this a better game.
Viewpoint is light on weapons sadly. You have a rapid fire cannon and a 3-stage charged shot for offense but no other primary weapons. Options are almost always the first weapon you will pick up, creating two satellites that mimic your weapons fire. They can also absorb bullets although this is hard to do. Bombs come in three types: shock wave, homing cluster, and fire. You can carry three at max and the game is generous at replenishing your stock. Shields protect you from three hits but the perspective makes it easy to lose quickly. You are still better off attempting to doge enemy fire as best as possible.
Isometric shooters are rare and with good reason. The viewpoint makes it hard to line up shots and that applies here. Luckily the game eases you in to its gameplay. Waves are measured, at least initially with brief respite in between. For the most part they are also slow and give plenty of time get in to position and make your shot. The playing field is wider than normal and the game is generally good about avoiding off screen shots. There is no penalty for touching walls which is good as you need the space to avoid the varying traps that pop up.
Viewpoint is a slower paced shooter but no less intense than other action heavy Genesis shooters. It is so hectic in fact that it slows to a crawl constantly. This is where the game’s performance problems affect gameplay. By the later stages you spend more time dealing with the environment than enemies themselves. The game begins to rely on gotcha moments far too much in its second half for my liking. Encroaching walls, indestructible walls of flame, the game pulls out all the cheap tricks to make you lose your lives. It would not stand out so much if the beginning stages of the game were not so good. It is not game breaking of course but frustrating as hell.
Viewpoint is deceptive with its difficulty. The first few levels are relatively sedate with measured waves and frequent power-ups. The game is also generous in doling out extra lives as well. This is due to the change in scoring: you only need 30,000 points for an extra life compared to the arcade’s 80,000. This is an easy target to hit especially as the star bonuses are massive. Aside from tricky boss battles (which are to be expected) one would assume the entire game is moderate in challenge. By stage three it becomes a frantic mass of bullets, turrets, and stronger enemies. Rote memorization becomes mandatory for progress. The boss battles after this point often drag on as long as the levels themselves! This is a tough one but outside of your deaths due to slowdown is fair one.
In Closing
Considering the gap in strength between the Neo Geo and Genesis Viewpoint turned out better than expected. It nails the core gameplay and only suffers technically. I like it a lot more than I expected although it is not the first shooter I would recommend on the Genesis. The competition is too fierce in that regard. Viewpoint makes for a good second or third tier choice.
