Touch Arcade

Big Tournament Golf is an amazing game that is well-suited for mobile. Hamster has done its usual outstanding job bringing it to the platform, loading it up with all the options and features you could ask for.

This is a really strong game, but if you don’t have an external controller or two you’re really not going to get to enjoy the game at its best. While the touch controls aren’t a complete disaster like they were in Puzzled, they’re not as accurate as you’ll need to pull off all of the wild moves packed into this game.

It’s a rather uninteresting variant of Tetris that has a lot of flaws, some of which are magnified if you’re trying to play it with touch controls. Said controls also introduce some new problems, making an already-vexing game an even more agitating experience.

Zed Blade does the job. It doesn’t do it particularly well, and it probably won’t etch itself into your memories with any force. But it’s okay. For its part, Hamster has given it the same star treatment it has offered the other ACA NEOGEO titles.

Legend of Mana is rather experimental. The end result is something that tends to be a love-or-hate affair, but at least in my case I find it hard to hate something so utterly genuine.

A solid classic, a game with serious historical value, but maybe not the greatest fit for mobile.

This kind of game plays well with touch controls, and Hamster has packed it full of features and options that allow you to fully appreciate the game on your own terms. It’s an excellent action romp that frankly goes harder than it probably needed to, and if for some reason you never saw fit to drop a coin in its slot back in the day, this is a great chance to give it some of your attention.

Alien: Isolation, this is a fantastic way to do so and one of the best iOS conversions ever.

If you’ve not played Monster Rancher before and are wondering if these new ports are worth your time and money, the answer is yes with a few caveats. While I’m pleased with the controls, visuals for the most part, and new features, these two games are quite dated. The asking price might turn some people off given the visuals and screenshots, but I’d definitely look into getting one or both of the games in Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX when discounted as a curiosity. For longtime fans, Koei Tecmo has done a good job of retaining the original aesthetic while implementing a nice compromise for the CD-generation system for monsters here. Hopefully iCloud save support is added in because that’s all I miss in this release right now.

The game plays quite well with the virtual controls, so even if you don’t have access to an external controller you can still have a really good time.