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Whenever a new Goemon game comes out, you can be pretty sure that the game will most likely be fairly different from its predecessor. Not knowing what to expect, I got my favorite import store to track down the latest Playstation Goemon game, known as Ganbare Goemon! Kuranarakoi! Ayashigeikka no Kuroikage or as sources online telling me, is translated as Go for it, Goemon! Until the Love Comes: The Ayashi Family's Black Shadow. Unfortunately, this installment has changed a bit too much on a whole...there's no side-scrolling gameplay and while the characters maintain the same wacky style they have in previous outings, it just doesn't feel like Goemon.

For those who don't know Goemon (which I'm guessing would be a vast majority of you readers, considerly how unpopular he is in America) he's a goofy grinning, pipe-wielding, spike-haired guy based off a Japanese folk hero. His main partner is Ebisumaru, the slightly overweight blue-clad character who wields different weapons in every game (this time, a frying pan.) Sasuke is a wooden robot that fights with ninja knives called kunais and Yae is a green-haired ninja woman with a katana. You can only play as Goemon and Ebisumaru at the beginning, with the other two coming in later. Unlike other games, you can't switch characters in mid-game. You have to go to certain stations in town to do that.

This game being in Japanese, and myself at a disadvantage for not knowing very much of this language, inferring the story is mostly guesswork. Omi-chan, pal of the Goemon Gang, has been kidnapped by the matriarch of the Ayashi family in order to find a bride for her son. This cannot be stood for, so it's off to find their secret hideout and save Omi-chan! There isn't too much difficulty understanding where to go and what to do, as long as you pay at least a little bit of attention to the dialogue (and if you're stuck, try going through the one mountain area, the first action scene).

Instead of being a sprite-based 2D game like the last Playstation Goemon title, this title uses 3D graphics similar to the N64 titles, only with an overhead view. At first, it looks fantastic. The polygons are crisp, look great in high-resolution and even moves at a very smooth framerate. That is, until you see the horrendous polygon tear. You can barely walk anywhere without seeing the product of lousy graphical coding all around the place. I'd go so far to say it pretty much ruins anything else nice I'd have to say about the graphics.

Although the game is structured like an adventure title (with some towns) it's still pretty much linear. Go through a level, kill bad guys and jump on a lot of platforms. In fact, a lot of the game revolves around jumping on rotating and moving platforms...it's a good thing the view is easily rotating by the L and R buttons. Unfortunately, this causes plenty of confusion in the few areas that require explortation. There's no compass to tell which direction you're facing and no map to tell where you've been. One seemingly simple level, in where you have to find ten gear parts spread throughout a landscape, is made frustratingly long due to the amount of times you'll get lost. The lack of any recognizable landmarks doesn't help.

The other main aspect of the game is the fighting system. Previous Goemons were simple yet blitheringly effective: hit the bad guys, and they exploded, leaving your presence. Somewhere along the line, the designers thought this wasn't good and changed it quite a bit. Enemies require multiple hits now, which is usually accomplished by rapidly jamming the two attack buttons. This really isn't too bad when facing one bad guys, but trying to attack more than one is just futile. More often than not, I end up running away to avoid fights. There are little technique scrolls that can be picked up, so you can do controller motions to execute special moves, but these hardly help the actions. In another glaring omission, the characters can't use their trademark secondary weapons (like Goemon's coin throw or Yae's bazooka), instead replaced by dumb useless little bowling balls. It's all rather silly.

On the plus side, the Impact battles are back in full-force! For the unenlightened, each character has their own huge mechanical robot to fight bad guys and the battles take place in a first person view. Unlike the previous Goemons, you actually have free ability to move around the area, instead of just waiting for the bad guy to attack you. These scenes are pretty easy, but fun nonetheless.

At first the music seems a bit strange...apparently the music composers tried to emulate the feel of an old Japanese record, with some tracks starting with (hopefully) intential static. But after playing through more of the game, most of the music is techno with a Japanese flavor...a very good thing. The Impact battles are accompanied by hard rock tunes that are definitely the best music of the game. Though there aren't any vocal songs (like the Nintendo 64 game) there is plenty of excellent voice acting. Hearing Goemon and Ebisumaru actually talk is something no fan should miss.

Honestly, it's hard to recommend this action/adventure title to much of anyone besides hardcore Goemon fans. The game is short and irritating little things make it longer than it should be (when you beat a level, you have to track BACK through it, and you need to traverse one certain mountain several times through the course of the game), and the poor battle system sucks out most of the fun that could've been had. Though not without its fun (especially the Impact scene and the voice acting), you should try the first PSX Goemon or the American N64 cartridge to see what the Mystical Ninja is all about.

- Kurt