Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Raving Mad serves up a trio of platform action delights, each with a distinct flavor yet unified by a playful, cutesy presentation. In James Pond 2: Codename: RoboCod, players guide the anthropomorphic fish-turned-cyborg James Pond through inventive, holiday-themed levels. The game’s mechanics include gravity boots for inverted stages, water-based puzzles, and gadget-driven platforming. It strikes a fine balance between accessible controls and surprise challenges, making every level feel fresh.

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Rodland, a conversion of Jaleco’s arcade classic, delivers a different take on platforming. Here, you switch between fairy sisters Tam and Rit, using a magic wand to launch enemies skyward before knocking them out. The dual-character aspect encourages strategic play—choosing the right sister for specific enemy types, chaining attacks for higher scores, and timing jumps precisely. The learning curve is gentle, yet mastering the stick-based combat adds depth for seasoned players.

Mega Twins rounds out the trio with a more straightforward, hack-and-slash approach. Controlling royal siblings determined to avenge their father’s death, you slash through hordes of monsters and hefty bosses. The combat feels weighty and satisfying, with power-ups that alter your weapons and abilities. While it may appear simpler than the other two titles, its relentless enemy waves and demanding platform sections provide a solid adrenaline rush.

Across all three games, controls are generally responsive, though slight input lag can surface on modern hardware if emulation settings aren’t optimized. Each title offers its own difficulty settings or continues system, ensuring both newcomers and veterans can find an appropriate challenge. The compilation’s menu is straightforward, allowing you to switch between games on the fly and even reset progress without diving into nested options.

Graphics

Visually, Raving Mad is a colorful showcase of early ’90s artistry. James Pond 2 pops with vibrant winter backdrops and whimsical enemy designs; his robotic suit sparkles against icy platforms, and animations are fluid. Though pixel resolution may lack today’s crispness, the charm of hand-crafted sprites shines through, and the holiday-themed set pieces remain delightful.

Rodland’s aesthetic leans toward pastel fantasy. The backgrounds feature rolling hills and candy-colored skies, providing a dreamy contrast to the frantic action in the foreground. Character sprites—particularly the fairy sisters—are well-animated, with exaggerated attack frames that convey impact. Enemy designs range from goofy to menacing, ensuring that every hit feels satisfying both visually and aurally.

Mega Twins embraces a darker medieval tone, with stone dungeons, lava pits, and gothic architecture. The sprites carry weighty outlines, and the palette employs deep reds and grays to reinforce the high-stakes narrative. Despite a slightly smaller color range compared to the other two games, clever shading techniques bring out depth in the environments and monsters.

On modern displays, the compilation offers optional scanline filters and aspect-ratio adjustments to maintain the authentic pixel-art feel. Without these enhancements, some players might notice stretching or blurring, but the built-in options mitigate most issues, ensuring that the visual nostalgia remains intact without sacrificing clarity.

Story

Storytelling in Raving Mad is charmingly straightforward. James Pond 2 unfolds a holiday rescue mission: Dr. Maybe has kidnapped Santa Claus and is intent on canceling Christmas. This light-hearted premise is woven into each level via tongue-in-cheek dialogue and festive set pieces, ensuring the narrative always feels present without interrupting the action.

Rodland’s tale is equally simple but endearing. Sisters Tam and Rit embark on a quest to save their mother from a mysterious enchantment. The story is delivered through brief cutscenes and in-game messages, giving context to the stick-based antics. While it avoids deep exposition, the familial bond between the fairies adds an emotional anchor to the whimsical gameplay.

Mega Twins takes a darker route: two young heirs seek vengeance against the dragon that slew their father, the king. Between levels, minimal text describes their journey, but the game relies on atmospheric design—flames, crumbled castles, and foreboding boss arenas—to convey its tale. Though sparse, the narrative drive propels you through increasingly challenging stages.

As a compilation, Raving Mad doesn’t weave the three stories together, but its menu art and bonus galleries celebrate their individuality. This allows players to appreciate each hero’s motivations and world without feeling forced into a meta-narrative. It’s a collection that respects its source material, presenting each story with clarity and affection.

Overall Experience

Raving Mad offers exceptional value for platforming fans and retro enthusiasts alike. Three distinct gameplay experiences are bundled into a single package, showcasing varied mechanics—from gadget-based puzzles in James Pond 2 to stick-whacking tactics in Rodland and brute-force combat in Mega Twins. The diversity ensures hours of entertainment and prevents the compilation from feeling repetitive.

The presentation is polished: thoughtful emulation options preserve the integrity of the originals, and a sleek UI makes selection seamless. Extra features like concept art galleries, game manuals in PDF form, and optional save states cater to both purists and newcomers. This attention to detail elevates the compilation beyond a simple collection of ROMs.

While each game has its mild quirks—occasional control lag if settings aren’t tuned, modest storytelling, or the inherent simplicity of 16-bit platformers—the overall package remains charming and accessible. Raving Mad captures the essence of early ’90s platformers, blending challenge with whimsy.

For potential buyers seeking a nostalgic trip or a taste of classic platforming that still holds up today, Raving Mad is a must-have. Its trifecta of games covers a broad spectrum of genres within platform action, providing both depth and variety. Whether you’re defending Christmas, thwacking foes with magic wands, or slaying dragons, this compilation delivers a fun, enduring experience.

Retro Replay Score

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