Welcome to VC Weekly, N-Europe's guide to the wonderful world of Nintendo's download service. Written by Sam C Gittins.

Three games are in finally bucking the current trend of two titles per update and bringing an overall decent selection to the ever growing VC games library. Anyway enough from me and on with the games!

Available for download this week we have...

• Rolling Thunder 2
• Light Crusader
• Cybernator

Points: 800
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Namco
Released: 1992
System: Megadrive

Anyone who has played Sega's Shinobi should feel right at home with this title as thats basically what it's a clone of except with more of a secret agent theme to it. You play as a member of the Rolling Thunder task force who is on a mission to destroy the ebil Neo-Geldra organisation controlled by some ebil guy called Gimdo.

Even though the plot wavers from generic to vaguely interesting, thats not what your here for; it's a stealth action game comparable only really to the aforementioned Shinobi but manages to pull off some unique set-pieces of it's own which are reasonably impressive.

It's stealth elements are in no way in the same league as the original Metal Gear but they are well implemented and allow you to hide in the shadows and behind doors at specific parts of the game. This adds a small amount of depth to what would otherwise just be another all-out action adventure from point A to B and is a welcome exploit of sorts which will get you out of certain sticky situations.

On-screen action is well paced and never feels too overwhelming or laid back; it's mostly manageable throughout and never goes over the top ala Gun Star Heroes with excessive enemy counts. As a result this is a slightly more relaxed run and gun experience which is more tactical than all-out action and with everything being so well put together it genuinely feels like a different breed of game even though it borrows heavily from one in particular.

Visually striking with it's own unique style accompanied by a solid soundtrack; this is a great middle-ground title taking most of it's inspiration from the ways of the ninja while combining it with light elements of the immortal run and gun genre. Well worth a download for the slightly different experience that it provides.

Verdict : An excellently well executed espionage experience.

Points: 800
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Treasure
Released: 1995
System: Megadrive

Another oddity from the box of Treasure, this is an action RPG in similar vein to the classic Landstalker. It blends elements from RPG, action adventure and platform genres together in a similar way and yet manages to deliver a similar gameplay experience akin to the infamous Diablo on PC, it's worth noting that this came well before though.

With each passing day an increasing number of townspeople hailing from Green Row have been disappearing, the bewildered King Weeden calls upon the knight Sir David to investigate the matter further. Armed with only his equally sharp mind and sword, Sir David get to the root of this strange evil force and save the Kingdom from eventual potential ruin.

It's basic flow goes a little something like this; you have the town which acts as your central hub and from there you get to venture into several dungeons. The exploration is done more through these areas as opposed to an overworld, it's a concept that was adopted by Diablo and even more recent games such as Phantasy Star Online; it's a concept thats now tried and tested and works well but this was one of this first games to pioneer it.

Despite having virtually no overworld the actual action plays similarly to A Link to the Past featuring real time battles and an astounding array of puzzles throughout. As the game progresses though sadly it starts to break down due to the plot playing second fiddle to the way the game plays and eventually falling by the wayside; it's also unbalanced and puzzles that are ingenious to start with gradually become tiresome due to the game being more about mashing your mind rather than mindless mashing of the A button.

For all of it's flaws though it's still an enjoyable experience but one thats best played in small doses after your first play session. Due to it being kind of a niche title at the time it's sales were less than stellar, perhaps now though it will be given a decent chance thanks to the Virtual Console; if your looking for a different RPG this certainly meets that criteria.

Verdict : A crusade best played in short bursts, not spades.

Points: 800
Publisher: Konami
Developer: NCS
Released: 1993
System: SNES

Set in a not so distant future where resources are scarce and governmental powers are permanently engaged in disputes over who owns what bit of land. You assume the role of commanding soldier Jake and must lead your platoon on a merciless mission to destroy the enemy's weapon of war.

Suited up in your Cybernator G5-E (a great big mech-suit comparable to a tall building in size) through seven satisfying stages, amassing an astounding arsenal of weapons which you then upgrade along the way to a maximum of three levels. You decide whether to power them up in either standalone or simultaneous formation; a feature which ultimately sets this game apart from many others in this superb side-scrolling shooter.

Everything in this game is well realised from the vivid and varied locations each which have a great deal of atmosphere to them backed up with some genuinely decent dialog which helps to keep things moving along nicely. Controlling the mech feels wonderfully natural and adds so much to the game which is as much a joy to play as it is to look at and listen to.

Featuring some quite simply sumptuous sprite animation and a fine selection of realistic sound effects that accompany an already amazing soundtrack; this is a SNES shooter which easily stands out from the crowd. Shooter fans have another title to be proud of here as this is a rare example in it's genre that manages to deliver a complete experience from start to finish.

Verdict : An epically elaborate experience which will leave you elated.

Thats it for another installment of VC Weekly which will return again soon. So until then, enjoy the rest of the week and Game On!

Sam Gittins
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