Since this is IGN we're talking about (and judging by their remarks on the game's difficulty), I'd guess the reason they think the slowdown is good
is because it makes the game slightly easier - your reflexes can keep up with enemies more easily if they slow down and you can see them coming.
Also, on the subject of the game's weapon edit system - Well, yes, there are lots of combinations of weapons, but how is that the most important aspect of that game? Who is actually going to bother to beat the game with every single possible combination of weapons and powerups? I found one combination that works really well for me and I never deviate from it (if you MUST know, it's Hawk Wind missiles, G. Laser, the options arragement that puts two above and two below, Reduce, and Full Barrier - the normal gun type I always pick the first one because I don't use it once I get the laser.)
Anyway, geez louise, I don't even think I'm that great of a reviewer, but this would be my Bill & Ted review if written in IGN's style:
Keanu Reeves has been in a lot of movies, including Bram Stoker's Dracula, Speed, Johnny Mnenomic, A Walk in the Clouds, The Devil's Advocate, The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Something's Gotta Give, Constantine, A Scanner Darkly, and The Day the Earth Stood Still. But one of his first major roles in film was Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, on which this game, Bill & Ted's Excellent Video Game Adventure, is based.
In this game, Bill & Ted can collect many different weapons. There are firecrackers that scare enemies away or make them explode on contact. There are cups of pudding that will make an enemy turn friendly. There are CD players that make all the enemies stop what they're doing and dance in place. There are super bombs that destroy all on-screen enemies at once.
Bill & Ted can also collect coins for using the phone booth and jail keys to get out of jail. There are many historical people to save in each world including George Washington, Cleopatra, Confucious, Ben Franklin, Al Capone, Julius Caeser, Christopher Columbus, Paul Revere, King Arthur, Jesse James, Elvis Presley, Robin Hood, Rembrandt, William Shakespeare, Thomas Edison, and Marilyn Monroe.
There are also many different worlds to explore including a medieval world, a colonial world, a wild west world, a modern world, and an ancient Egyptian world. In some of these worlds, you can ride a horse, and in others you can ride a boat. Every world has many different people you can talk to, including men and women. The game is difficult, but not too difficult that you can't beat it.
Though there have been many overhead adventure games on the NES (The Legend of Zelda, Willow, Crystalis, Faria, The Magic of Scheherazade, Rygar, Little Ninja Brothers, Chronicles of the Radia War, StarTropics, and Zoda's Revenge), Bill & Ted stands apart as a game that has somehow gained depth over the years.
Also, on the subject of the game's weapon edit system - Well, yes, there are lots of combinations of weapons, but how is that the most important aspect of that game? Who is actually going to bother to beat the game with every single possible combination of weapons and powerups? I found one combination that works really well for me and I never deviate from it (if you MUST know, it's Hawk Wind missiles, G. Laser, the options arragement that puts two above and two below, Reduce, and Full Barrier - the normal gun type I always pick the first one because I don't use it once I get the laser.)
Anyway, geez louise, I don't even think I'm that great of a reviewer, but this would be my Bill & Ted review if written in IGN's style:
Keanu Reeves has been in a lot of movies, including Bram Stoker's Dracula, Speed, Johnny Mnenomic, A Walk in the Clouds, The Devil's Advocate, The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Something's Gotta Give, Constantine, A Scanner Darkly, and The Day the Earth Stood Still. But one of his first major roles in film was Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, on which this game, Bill & Ted's Excellent Video Game Adventure, is based.
In this game, Bill & Ted can collect many different weapons. There are firecrackers that scare enemies away or make them explode on contact. There are cups of pudding that will make an enemy turn friendly. There are CD players that make all the enemies stop what they're doing and dance in place. There are super bombs that destroy all on-screen enemies at once.
Bill & Ted can also collect coins for using the phone booth and jail keys to get out of jail. There are many historical people to save in each world including George Washington, Cleopatra, Confucious, Ben Franklin, Al Capone, Julius Caeser, Christopher Columbus, Paul Revere, King Arthur, Jesse James, Elvis Presley, Robin Hood, Rembrandt, William Shakespeare, Thomas Edison, and Marilyn Monroe.
There are also many different worlds to explore including a medieval world, a colonial world, a wild west world, a modern world, and an ancient Egyptian world. In some of these worlds, you can ride a horse, and in others you can ride a boat. Every world has many different people you can talk to, including men and women. The game is difficult, but not too difficult that you can't beat it.
Though there have been many overhead adventure games on the NES (The Legend of Zelda, Willow, Crystalis, Faria, The Magic of Scheherazade, Rygar, Little Ninja Brothers, Chronicles of the Radia War, StarTropics, and Zoda's Revenge), Bill & Ted stands apart as a game that has somehow gained depth over the years.
| Presentation
A detailed, theme-setting opening cinematic readies you for adventure. Alex Winter has never looked better. |
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| Sound
The game's music isn't good (you can't easily imagine Miyamoto dancing to it), but the movie got a soundtrack CD released because it was THAT good. |
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| Gameplay
Pure butt-slamming action, properly balanced to still be difficult, but not so difficult that you get frustrated and feel you can't win. |
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| Lasting Appeal
There's some huge factorial possible combinations of historical figures and worlds. And the classic time-traveling Phone Booth is included, of course. |
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