Fun With Roms Vol. 2

As you may or may not remember, I did a little post a few months ago (September) called "Fun With Roms Vol. 1" which covered the games Rollergames and Ring King. I really should call it "Fun With Games," as I'd only feature games I have hard copy of so as to fully relate the console game experience. I only use roms, which are really just copies of console games playable on PC for the screen shots. Well anyway, this time around, while waiting for a DVD to arrive in the mail so I can better review a movie for a forthcoming Random Movie Project, I've decided do my best to 'get with the times' a little and do a quantum leap forward from the late 80's to...

...the early 90's.


I recently acquired the game Cool Spot, a Sega Genesis cartridge featuring America's favorite "uncola" mascot, the 7-Up Spot! Remember that phenomenon? Spot was all the rage! I mean, you gotta love mascots. There was a time in our culture when everyone was able to not only tolerate these odd, semi-menacing little characters, but actually find amusement in them, and even go so far as to buy the products they represent. Like other mascots such as "Noid" and the California Raisins, Spot captured the nation's heart and ensured that 7-Up would be America's colorless carbonated beverage of choice. That is, until Sierra Mist came along and Pepsi stopped distributing the stuff.

In the game, you control "Spot" through about a half-dozen levels where he has to rescue other Spots from cages suspended at the end of each scene. In order to do so, you must collect little mini red spots along the way which boost your "cool" percentage. Think "coins" from Super Mario World. That's a big theme in this game, too. "Coolness." See the yo-yo he's playing with? He only whips it out when you're not commanding him to do something. He's that cool.

Of course, since you're only a little spot, you are about a half-inch tall. That means you're at a disadvantage in a world designed for big people, so watch out for those crabs and crawdads. Mosquitoes also pose a serious threat in the early "beach" level (which you will also have to play through two more times when the game starts reusing it's own stages). Your only weapon, by the way, is a sort bubble thingy you fling at your enemies. I'm not too sure what it is. Carbon dioxide, prehaps?

Later on, you find yourself inside the walls of someone's house which means a whole new slew of enemies and obstacles to deal with such as spiders and pointy nails sticking errantly from the wall joists. One of my favorite enemies, here, is the mouse who, being a mouse and all, throws cheese at you at the rate of about one slice per second. The verdict is still out as to exactly why he's wearing pajamas, but my guess would be it's because he was sleeping, and he's so pissed that you woke him up that he'll resort to using his most prized possession as a weapon.

So, as for the game, I give it about 5 "burps" out of 10. The controls are a little twitchy at some points and damage is received a little to easily, especially from the inanimate obstacles such as spikes and barbed wire which can harm you from, seemingly, inches away. Is it worth tracking down to play in the year 2006? Hell no - but if you were to somehow find yourself in 1993, and you were one of the millions who loved the 7-Up Spot, and Mrs. Doubtfire is currently sold-out at the General Cinema I & II, and you have an hour or so to waste before watching Kelsey Grammer in that new Cheers spin-off, you might find a worthwhile diversion in Cool Spot.