Nintendo 64 had to deal with a PSX that ate up the market with giant bites and many remember it for having a fairly small catalog. Although it is also remembered for offering such acclaimed games as Super Mario 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask, Super Smas Bros., Banjo-Kazooie, GoldenEye 007, Turok and Perfect Darkamong others.
Away from the spotlight, there are also some other games that deserve to be remembered, such as Body Harvest, the precursor to GTA created by Rockstar, or the eccentric Starshot: Space Cirvus Fever. The fact that they are remembered does not necessarily indicate that they are the best, since sometimes they stand out for being a rarity or for going unnoticed, and today the turn is for one of those: Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon, a kind of Zelda with aliens and Konami robots (Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania).
The strangest game in a saga with almost 40 years of history
The Ganbare Goemon franchise was born long before this installment, since it debuted in the mid-80s with Mr. Goemon for the arcade, just before receiving several sequels for the NES, but none of its chapters are as eccentric as Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon for Nintendo 64, an adventure set in feudal Japan that was also the first in the saga in 3D.
The game’s sense of humor is evident from the first moment, in which you can see how Japan is invaded by a group of aliens who call themselves shogun (…) and whose objective is to kidnap the princess of Castle Oedo, something they achieve with little difficulty. The player, of course, puts himself in the shoes of a handsome hero who does not hesitate to run away from her with the intention of rescuing her from her. The problem is that the aliens have already taken her to outer space…
The mission is clear: find four objects that will allow Goemon and his friends to undertake the journey beyond the firmament. To do this, you must explore a vast world that you can explore freely, delve into various dungeons and, of course, face fearsome endings.
In this sense, Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon has many similarities with the Zelda saga, since there are also cities to explore, shops, side missions and endless secrets. Although the most striking thing is the possibility of control a gigantic mecha in the Neon Genesis Evangelion style to fight some enemies.
The only platform on which you can play Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon is the same one it came to in its day: Nintendo 64. Because It was never released on others nor did it enjoy any type of remastering. It’s also not in Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Packthe service that allows you to enjoy classics from Game Boy, NES, SNES and the Nintendo 64 itself. Who knows, maybe one day it will be included in the catalog…
