For the last decade or so, the indie gaming scene has been slowly widening, creating more and more retro-styled content. With incredibly high-tech consoles and overpowered PCs, you would think people would gravitate towards fancy modern 3D games but it turns out that’s not entirely the case. Instead, as the indie scene flourishes and more and more vintage-styled games come out, it turns out that older, less realistic, and less complex styles of gaming are still remarkably popular. Any gamer can tell you why. They’re fun! Simple, straightforward gaming for entertainment is what video games are all about. Sure, there’s a place for complexity, but sometimes you just want to kick back, relax, and mash some buttons!
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider from developer JoyMasher and publisher The Arcade Crew is exactly that. A throwback Sega Genesis-style platform action game that lets you relive what it felt like to get a new rental game from Blockbuster back in the day. In Moonrider, you play a powerful cyborg named Moonrider (gasp!), engineered for the suppression of the people for the benefit of an elite military ruling class. You awaken to flashbacks of the atrocities you have committed and you know you have done wrong you must atone for. Then it’s time to take back your world from the cabal that created you in order to free the people!
While the plot is not incredibly deep in Moonrider, it’s still pretty good. There’s more than a bit of current-day politics injected into the story and that makes for an interesting ride in itself. Sure, the translation to English is a bit hokey, but that was also part of the charm of 16 bit games. It’s not like JoyMasher doesn’t know what they’re doing either. This is the same company that brought us Blazing Chrome (review here) after all! Knowing that, you won’t be surprised to learn that the focus here is definitely the gameplay.
Moonrider is set up very much like a Mega Man game. You play an introductory level to get yourself warmed up and then you’re taken to a hub-style map where you select stages in any order you want. Each stage has a boss and several modification chips for Moonrider. As you wind your way through a variety of very different levels, you’ll slowly master the techniques it will take to succeed. In addition to a standard slash attack, you can jump up and attack from the air at an angle, coming down onto enemies and damaging them. In some parts of the game you can hang from various surfaces and there’s the standard wall-jump built in as well. There’s also a dash that can be used for a powerful dash attack (you will definitely need this) and you’ll have to master all of it to survive!
You also start with the Moonspear, a powerful forward spear attack that obliterates regular enemies and does massive damage to bosses and mini-bosses. As the game progresses and you beat enemies, you’ll acquire their weaponry as well. It’s all very much styled after Mega Man in that regard but don’t worry, this isn’t a clone! In fact, Moonrider plays more like a combination of Turrican and Strider, but without the elegant jumping mechanics that Strider is known for.
Modification chips are hidden in a variety of places but are not outrageously difficult to find. When found you can significantly augment Moonrider, making him regain health or get stronger when enemies are killed, upping his resistance to damage, enabling double jumps and respawns, and a host of other abilities. With 12 chips in all, you’ll be able to customize Moonrider to suit your playstyle! Add in the 7 additional weapons you’ll get from each main stage boss and there’s a lot of versatility here! If you miss some chips (and you likely will your first time through), don’t sweat it. The game can absolutely be completed without finding them all. Sure, it’ll be a bit tougher, but you can only equip two at a time anyway and you’ve got them for the whole stage so there’s a bit of planning involved. You definitely won’t use all 12 in any given playthrough.
While there’s no reason to go over all the weapons here since it is way more fun to experience them yourself, it’s important to note that each weapon uses different amounts of sub-weapon power with the Moonspear draining a huge portion and other weapons only using a few bars per shot. Unless you get a power chip that recharges your subweapon, you’ll have to find items throughout the levels to do that, and they’re not all that common, so be careful how you use your abilities or you’ll be in trouble when you reach the bosses!
The level variety here is part of what makes Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider such a fun game. Plenty of retro games reused backgrounds and enemies heavily but here you’ll be experience a wide range of dystopian levels, from flaming power plants to underwater stages, sky stages and even a combat-oriented Super Hang-On style stage or two! Each level has unique and interesting design elements, new enemies, and unexpected mini-bosses on your way to defeat the enemy’s cyborgs. Constantly being surprised by new enemies is a simple and profound joy that has slowly disappeared from many modern games due to the sheer complexity of adding all those extra creatures into the game. But in a vintage pixel platformer, it’s easy to shake things up with a host of wild creations without breaking the studio bank and JoyMasher has added a ton of glorious sprite work to Moonrider for your enjoyment!
Speaking of pixel art, let’s talk about the visuals in Moonrider. This is a gorgeous game if you’re into 16-bit artwork. Sure, it looks like you’re playing it on an old CRT TV, but that’s part of the charm. The design work is purposely very slightly blurry and there’s something about the style that triggers the imagination. Sure the detail level is fantastic but it’s almost like you can see more to it in your mind’s eye than is really there. That’s the mark of a truly excellent pixel art team. If you’re really into the retro look, there’s a CRT mode that adds scan lines for that truly authentic 16-bit experience and you can even control how much the screen shakes to add extra effects during game events. It’s simplistic but in the best possible way and underneath the hood, it’s obvious that an absolute ton of design work and care went in to Moonrider.
Expect some solid chiptune-style music here too. Naturally, the soundtrack for Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is enjoyably retro, unsurprising for a game with a 16-bit pedigree. Thumping bass lines and synthesizer music mix together to feel like a perfect ‘90s throwback. Each level has two separate tracks in addition to the other music in the game and the variety and overall compositions stay very steadily on target throughout the game. This is honestly a really fun soundtrack and if you happen to be a PC gamer, the entire 43 track soundtrack by Dominic Ninmark is available for only a few bucks.
There’s really only one major flaw with Moonrider and it’s one you might not expect. The difficulty. One of the hallmarks of retro games from the 16-bit era was the sheer challenge of gameplay. Repeating levels 20, 30, or even 40 times was not unheard of. Part of that was design-related naturally, but not all of it. Moonrider takes a different tack, making the game approachable for a variety of skill levels. You’ll still have to try, but even if you don’t get a solid grasp on the mechanics, you can usually force your way through most situations. Enemies don’t necessarily need to be defeated either since you can just run by them. It makes no difference how you play. If you’re playing for ranking, your finesse will matter a bit more but if you’re just trying to complete the game, you can hack your way right through bosses and minions alike with ease. Damage taken in levels is mostly mitigated, with plenty of healing opportunities. Even falling in pits isn’t a big deal since you don’t lose a life!
While JoyMasher went out of their way to make this a vintage gaming experience, there’s almost too much forgiveness in Moonrider, making you feel like you haven’t really accomplished anything when you beat most bosses. While stage end rankings never got higher than B during the course of this review, only two continues were required to beat the game and most of the bosses fell in the very first attempt, illustrating the low challenge. After the tough-as-nails Blazing Chrome, this softer platforming experience was definitely a surprise. Fortunately, the game is quite fun no matter what, making up for the low difficulty.
If you’re looking for a fun old-school gaming experience on a modern console with a great control design, solid sprite work, and a fun soundtrack, Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is going to be the game for you even if it’s only maybe 3-4 hours long. It looks and feels like it came straight from the Sega Genesis and that’s definitely a good thing. The controls are fluid and responsive and the gameplay is well-thought out as well. The script is fun and the whole package ends up being a great ride from start to finish. For only $17, this is a game that’s well worth spending a few hours with, and then a few more to find all the things you missed! Now it’s time for you to go free the people from tyranny so get to it!
This review is based on a digital copy of Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider provided by the publisher. It was played on a Playstation 5 using a 55” 1080p Sony TV. Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is also available on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and PC on Steam.