SEGA AGES Wonder Boy: Monster Land

Wonder Boy: Monster Land is ultimately a weird deep cut for Sega Ages, but it is one I’m glad exists. I’d never seen the arcade version of this game, and I always ignored the console re-releases previously. That said, this is a very enjoyable old-school platformer that is charming enough to warrant some attention more than 30 years later.

Its importance in the evolution of the action platformer can’t be denied, but it’s not quite as addictive as other Sega Ages games, and while the emulation is as flawless as ever, the underwhelming extra modes mean there’s less incentive to keep coming back time and time again. Still, sometimes it's nice to play a game that has a bit of history behind it, and this is one such game; it may not be anywhere near as refined as Wonder Boy's more critically-acclaimed adventures, but it's still an entertaining way to spend an hour or two.

New play modes can't hide the game's age, but the blend of role-playing, platforming and gaming history remains engaging.

Wonder Boy in Monster Land is een game die vooral draait om de uitdaging in het hoofdverhaal. De uitdaging die je ooit ontzettend veel kwartjes kostte, maar vandaag de dag alleen kokend bloed geeft en geen cent meer kost dan 7 euro. De port is, zoals de meeste SEGA Ages titels, een erg goede die zowel de positieve als de ‘negatieve’ aspecten van de arcadeversie meegenomen heeft.